April is a big month for living green ideas. So, make a list of the actions you want to take this month and get going!
Home Green Home: Green Building Ideas
It's that time of year again—the birds are coming back, the ground is warming up, and the kids are counting the days until summer vacation. You start to daydream about summer evenings spent in the hammock.
And then you realize that you have a graduation party, a Memorial Day barbecue, and three other parties to get ready for.
It's time to make the house look presentable!
Luckily, there are great resources to help you fix up the house using green principles and products.
See real examples of green remodeling at the Minneapolis-St. Paul Home Tour (April 28-29). Check out several homes showcasing energy efficiency and green construction. You'll also find homes that have installed rain gardens to absorb water run-off.
Attend a green building and remodeling workshop at the Living Green Expo, May 5-6. Another source for workshops or classes in green building is NextStep.
Learn how building practices can create homes that are both "green" and comfortable during three meetings with an engineer specializing in sustainable design. Register for Make Your Old House Green, starting April 24, through the U of MN's College of Continuing Education.
If you're considering building a new house, take a tour of the Eco-Home at Hawk Ridge (Duluth), which will be open for tours May 12-20 as part of the Arrowhead Builders Association "Homes on Parade."
The MPCA's Green Building Program offers additional resources, including tips on getting started and where to find products.
Fact or fiction? De-bunking some living green myths
Since living green is a hot topic, urban legends and myths are bound to crop up. How can we tell fact from fiction?
We'll start with this puzzler sent by Bob R. from Coon Rapids:
True or false? Driving an electric car would not reduce pollution, since the electricity is produced using fossil fuels.
First, we should distinguish between gas-electric hybrid cars (like the Prius) and all-electric cars (these include plug-in cars and aren't widely available yet).
Gas-electric hybrids produce some emissions because they still burn gasoline. The electricity they generate comes from braking, so there are no emissions from the electricity.
All-electric cars use a battery and an electric motor, which means the car must be charged by plugging it into an electricity source. The amount of emissions produced depends on how the electricity is generated. If the electricity is generated using resources like wind, solar, nuclear, or hydro power, there are no pollutants emitted into the air. Nuclear and hydro power have other environmental impacts, however.
Other factors to consider are when and where the electricity is generated.
Batteries for electric cars are usually charged during off-peak periods for energy generation, maximizing the opportunity for the most efficient (and least polluting) power plants to be in use.
Even if the electricity is generated at a plant using fossil fuels (coal or natural gas), the emissions are produced at one stationary source (rather than at the tailpipes of millions of cars), which is typically more efficient to control and regulate.
Conclusion: Driving an electric car rather than a gas-powered car CAN reduce pollution, but the amount of pollution reduced can vary, and the pollution will not be completely eliminated.
Big thanks to Frank Douma from the Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota and Mary Morse of Neighborhood Energy Connection for their help de-bunking this myth.
Dig a little deeper: Community resources to help you live green
Check out SEEK (Minnesota's interactive directory of environmental education resources) for outdoor activities, classes, and other events during April and May.
From the folks who brought you the Twin Cities Green Guide comes the Do It Green! Annual Magazine. Watch for Do It Green! workshops this summer throughout the metro area.
Reduce.org has an amazing amount of information to help you reduce waste at home, at work, at school, in the yard, when shopping—in every aspect of your green life!
Happy Dancing Turtle offers educational experiences to promote sustainable living in the Pine River area.
Learn more about cohousing opportunities in the Twin Cities area at introductory meetings on April 14 and 25, sponsored by Cohousing Advocates.
Live well and have fun in the Twin Cities! A free Blue Sky Guide will be given to the first 200 attendees each day at the Living Green Expo (limit one per household).
Days of our green lives: Celebrate Earth Month at these community events
Volunteer your time and skills to make the 2007 Living Green Expo a success. Check it out May 5-6 on the State Fair Grounds.
Spend some time outside during your community's clean-up events. Check with your city or county for details. GreenGuardian.com has a great list of events in the six-county Twin Cities metro area.
Let's go fly a kite—and celebrate Earth Day at Wishes for the Sky (St. Paul) on April 22.
It's that time of year again—the birds are coming back, the ground is warming up, and the kids are counting the days until summer vacation. You start to daydream about summer evenings spent in the hammock.
Fact or fiction? De-bunking some living green myths 
Dig a little deeper: Community resources to help you live green 