Live Green Twin Cities

In this economy, many of us are looking for ways to save a buck, especially at the corner station. Here are some tips on how to save some green, while living green:
•    Watch for money-saving coupons on fuel in your newspaper or your mailbox.  Hint: Many discount coupons for gasoline are also good for cleaner-burning E85 fuel, too.
•    Want a greener vehicle, but can’t afford a new car? While used hybrids are sometimes hard to find, don’t overlook some of the fuel-sipping vehicles on the used car lot.
•    According to AutoMD.com, every five miles you drive over 60 miles per hour is like paying an additional 24 cents per gallon.

This week’s tip can help you save some money – and help to save the planet – when you are on vacation or taking a business trip.  When renting a vehicle, be sure ask for alternative fuel options, such as an E85-ready Flex Fuel Vehicle, or a fuel-sipping hybrid vehicle. Many of the major vehicle rental services now offer flex fuel vehicles and hybrids as part of their fleets.

Learn more at http://cleanairchoice.org/

Forget shifting around boxes to clean. These 10 easy steps from the Clean Air Choice program of the American Lung Association of Minnesota will make your garage cleaner, greener, and safer.

Headed out to the Living Green Expo this weekend? Metro Transit offers a way for you to ride to the Expo for free!  Leave your car at home and hop on a Metro Transit bus or light-rail train FREE between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. each day when you show a Go Greener Pass. Download and print your pass at livinggreenexpo.mn.

And when you get to the Expo, sign up for the the Commuter Challenge and register to win prizes at the Metro Transit booth, where you can learn  about forming carpools, resources for bicycling, assistance planning your trips, and more!

Want an easier, greener way to travel to work, school, and play? The Go-To Card from Metro Transit is a simple, easy-to-use, instant-access pass that can be used on trains and buses. Get a 31-day pass or store up to $400 in travel on the card, and get $1 back for every $10 you put on it.

August 11, 2009 11:25am CST

Have unwanted phone books piling up on your doorstep? Not sure what to do with them? You're not alone. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency estimates that only 12 percent of discarded phone books were recycled in 2006. That means that 11,538 tons--or 22,000 pounds of phone books-- ended up in the state's municipal landfills that year. But by taking a few simple steps you can combat the unnecessary waste and deforestation caused nationwide by the 540 million unsolicited phone books every year.

Did you know? According to a 2006 report by the United Nations, the world's livestock generate more greenhouse gases than the transportation industry. In fact, it's estimated that the livestock industry is responsible for 13.5 to 18 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

And there's another meaty issue tied to our love of beef: Manure from industrial farms is polluting water bodies, increasing Earth-heating nitrous oxide emissions, and having a detrimental effect on wildlife, human health, and the planet.

Did you know?: It takes about 700 pounds of coal to burn the average incandescent light bulb for one year? That amounts to about 1,800 pounds of carbon dioxide coughed into the atmosphere every year from one little bulb. By replacing those old-school energy gobblers with compact fluorescent bulbs you can reduce your energy use by up to 75 percent. And even better--replace them with LED lights and those costly carbon emissions are reduced by about 90 percent.

Your impact: If every home in America replaced their incandescent bulbs with EnergyStar-approved CFLs, in one year it would save enough energy to light three million homes and reduce greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to that produced by 8,000 cars....(Read more.)