Archive for May, 2009
Posted by Our Green Atlanta on May 31, 2009
Have you ever worried about the air quality in your home? high energy bills? drafty windows or doors? Good news is here! In 2001, Local Decatur eco-friendly business Renewal Design-Build established themselves as an expert green renovations company. Now, as people’s interest in energy efficient homes increases, they are adding to their services with their sister company, Renewal Systems Solutions. Below is press release from Renewal Design-Build:
Local Decatur Business Offers Home Performance Assessments
May 22, 2009 –Considering that 45% of Decatur and 61% of Atlanta homes were built before 1960, it’s not surprising that local homeowners are often faced with drafty windows and doors and leaky ducts, often resulting in high energy bills.
Renewal System Solutions – sister company of Decatur’s Renewal Design-Build – offers Home Performance with Energy Star, a comprehensive home assessment that reveals where and why a home is not energy efficient. With diagnostic equipment, Renewal can pinpoint a home’s problems and provide the homeowner with solutions. Home improvement services include: energy efficient renovations, HVAC systems, duct systems, crawl space encapsulation, insulation and air sealing, replacement window and doors, and combustion safety. Improvements to the home result in improved energy efficiency and air quality, and lower utility bills.
“Twenty percent of the energy produced in the United States is consumed by homes,” says Renewal CEO Peter Michelson. “By evaluating and making improvements to our homes, we as homeowners are protecting the environment by conserving energy, and we are saving money by cutting costs on our utility bills. It’s a win-win all around.”
Homeowners will not only save on utility bills, but they can also get cash in their pockets through rebates and tax credits. Georgia Power is now offering its customers Home Performance rebates, and there is a multitude of federal tax credits available to those homeowners making green improvements to their homes in 2009 and 2010. For more information on getting your home tested, visit www.RenewalSystemSolutions.com.
For information on RSS or RDB, call 404.378.6962 or visit www.RenewalDesignBuild.com or www.RenewalSystemSolutions.com. You can also contact: Joe Thomas, home performance consultant, at 404.378.6962 or Joe@RenewalSystemSolutions.com
Posted in Developments, Energy, Homes | Tagged: atlanta green movement, energy efficient homes, green building, green homes in Atlanta, Renewal System Solutions | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Our Green Atlanta on May 28, 2009
Clove Salon, Boutique, and Gallery in Midtown Atlanta is giving away a FREE upscale, eco-friendly hair treatment and blowdry to promote awareness of their new green salon services here in Atlanta! (Click here for the press release posted recently for Clove.) This environmentally-friendly, free giveaway is valued at $100 and includes the following:
- A Karite nutrition oil pre-shampoo treatment – to add moisture and repair dry ends
- A Complexe 5 treatment – a stimulating scalp treatment to cleanse and rejuvenate the scalp and strengthen the hair
- A Curbicia treatment – a purifying clay mask to help reduce over-production of oil for overly oily hair
- This treatment will include a relaxing scalp and hand massage as well as a shampoo and blow dry
- All of this with stylist Andrew Keller
Additionally, all first time clients to Clove Salon leave with a gift bag full of samples of Rene Furterer to try at home!
Clove welcomes to embark on a different salon experience, from its location in an older house in Midtown to its views of the plant and herb garden in back. The relaxing atmosphere is enhanced with the scent of oranges and cloves to create the natural sense of being outdoors. The main focus is on being as green as possible, from the recycling program to energy efficient bulbs and appliances to allergy-free flooring to products that are 100 percent free of animal testing and so much more. Time to take a break from the typical factory salon!
In order to enter the contest, please leave a comment below with your favorite green beauty or health product or tip! May the best tip win! We will announce the winner next week on this blog, between June 1-5, so be sure to check back and see if you won! The contest closes Saturday, May 30th, 2009 at 12 p.m. midnight EST. Only residents of the greater Atlanta metro area are eligible for this giveaway (due to the difficulty of long-distance scalp massages), but there will be more giveaways in the future for different eco-friendly products, so stay tuned!
To schedule an appointment, you can contact Clove online, call 404.249.7855, or visit them at 165 6th Street NE, Atlanta, GA 30308.
Posted in Donate, Environment | Tagged: eco-friendly, recycling at work, environmental products, Recycling, Midtown Atlanta salon, Clove Salon, green beauty products, free giveaway | 7 Comments »
Posted by Our Green Atlanta on May 27, 2009
Pick-your-own strawberries at LCCL Starwberry Farms in north Georgia, near Rome and Armuchee! The last photo is Zack standing below the bigger of two falls at Keown Falls and John's Mountain Trail.
This past weekend, after an anticipated rafting trip down the Cartecay River was scrapped due to weather concerns, Zack and I reevaluated how to go about spending our Saturday outdoors. Luckily, it’s strawberry season, which means fresh daiquiris are in! After a little research, I came up with a plan to go strawberry picking at a local Georgia farm near Rome followed by a hike along the Armuchee Ridges just north of the farm. So we set out amidst the thunderstorms to head for the foothills of north Georgia.
By the time we made it to Rome a little while later, the rain had cleared up, although it was still a little overcast. We pulled into the dirt driveway of LCCL Strawberry Farms on Old Dalton Road and parked the car next to rows and rows of strawberry plants. Several cars filled the parking area and we made our way to the barn-like building to get our buckets. A very tall man asked how many buckets we wanted and said we could have as many as we wanted. As it turned out, his name is Lance, the first “L” in LCCL Farms. The C’s are his wife Cindy, older son Connor and youngest son Lucas. We collected up four white plastic buckets and followed the instructions to walk 200 yards down the path to the back strawberry fields where we would meet a man who would guide us as to where to pick.
- What: Strawberry picking at local Georgia farm, LCCL Strawberry Farms (containers provided)
- Where: LCCL Strawberry Farm at 3743 Old Dalton Road, Rome, GA (map it!)
- When: NOW! Strawberry season winds down in June! Monday through Saturday from 8:30 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Sunday from 1-5 p.m. (they don’t have a website that I could find, but feel free to give them a call at 706.295.2587 to double-check times)
- Cost: $1.50 per pound (about 5 pounds per bucket) if you pick ‘em and $2.40 a pound for pre-picked
7 year-old Lucas and 9 year old Connor offered us a rides on their mules (a four wheeler more akin to an off-road golf cart), but we headed off on foot. At the back field, several groups were already in the rows picking strawberries. We were greeted by a man named Brad who directed us down rows 6 and 7 and asked that we pick along either side of the row and make our way back towards him. We couldn’t believe the amount of big red berries we found all over the plants!
As we picked strawberries, we talked to a few people in the field and one woman said this was her second time out here in a week. She also mentioned that each bucket holds about 5 pounds, which surprised us. As we picked our way back towards Brad, we started talking to him and he talked to us about strawberry farming. He said they grow the strawberries on mounded soil covered in plastic so they can irrigate and fertilize underneath. A number of strawberries were starting to go soft and Brad explained that those berries need to be removed, too, because as they go soft and they’re not plucked, the fruit will slow its production drastically. I should have asked him about it earlier and we could have helped pick them off as we went along!
We actually filled our four buckets with strawberries relatively quickly (for not having done it before). Zack tried to behave and not eat too many as we picked them, but I did not have the same reserve. I debated whether we should grab more buckets (to fulfill my grandiose plans of making strawberry jam, cobbler, shortcake, smoothies, daiquiris, pancakes, frozen foods, etc., but Zack convinced me we should be good with four). When we got back up to the house and they dumped our strawberries into a cardboard palette, the total weight came out to a ridiculous 21 pounds!
As we loaded them into the cooler and debated what to do with them, a woman pulled over to the side as she was leaving and said she’d overheard me talking about daiquiris earlier and wanted to know if I have a special recipe, that she couldn’t get them off of her mind. I said no, not really, that’s it’s really just a another means of getting fresh strawberries into my mouth!
After strawberry picking, we headed by my cousin’s house nearby in Armuchee to drop off some of the 21 pounds and then were on our way to Keown Falls and John’s Mountain to hike a few trails and then on to stay with our friends at Carter’s Lake for the night.
As this blog post has blossomed to a longer length than originally intentioned, I’ll save Keown Falls and John’s Mountain Trail for another time. If you want more info on creating your own day trip from Atlanta, just leave a comment here and I’ll get back to you!
Posted in Food, Gardening | Tagged: Atlanta day trips, frozen food, LCCL Strawberry Farms, local food in Atlanta, local Georgia farms, north Georgia hiking, pick-your-own farms Georgia, strawberry farms Georgia | 5 Comments »
Posted by Our Green Atlanta on May 25, 2009
World's largest solar tower outside of Sevilla, Spain. (Image courtesy of Abengoa Solar, which I then borrowed from the TreeHugger website.)
Spain has debuted the largest solar tower in the world that now supplies 10,000 homes with renewable energy! The impressive farm of mirrored solar panels, called heliostats, all point at a 532-foot tall tower which collects the solar radiation and creates steam that then runs through a turbine to generate the clean electricity. Each heliostat is 1,291 square feet and there are 1,255 of them. Abengoa Solar, the creators of PS20 and its little sister PS10, estimates that the two solar farms will prevent the ejection of 12,000 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere. Click here to read the article and readers’ comments on land usage and weighing the costs of using land for solar versus corn or coal or nuclear. Some readers did a great job crunching numbers!
Even around Atlanta, the “City of Trees,” I’ve seen more solar panels popping up on people’s houses. If developers continue to insist on clear-cutting for new subdivisions, maybe they’ll at least consider implementing a renewable energy source since these neighborhoods are all bright sunshine with no trees. And how about more green roofs on new construction housing, too??
Thanks to my brother Byron for passing along this article he found on www.TreeHugger.com!
Posted in Energy, Environment | Tagged: Abengoa Solar, clean energy, renewable energy, solar panels, solar power, solar tower Spain | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Our Green Atlanta on May 24, 2009
Matt (above) and his friend Jeff are launching a new fertilizer here in Atlanta. JavaSoil is blended from used coffee grounds, compost, and soil.
Calling all gardeners! JavaSoil, the brainchild of two Atlanta entrepreneurs, is making its way onto the Atlanta market as a new fertilizer made up of used coffee grounds. Armed with the knowledge of how beneficial coffee grounds can be for plant life and charged with a willingness to collect them from coffee houses all over Virginia Highland and Decatur, Matt and Jeff decided to go into business selling 15 pound bags of their specialized product. And it’s all local!
This past Tuesday, Matt and I met at San Francisco coffee to talk about JavaSoil. Matt said that he and his friend had been recruiting local coffee shops to donate their used coffee grounds and had even dropped off collection buckets at several locations. Kavarna in Oakhurst is a local coffee house that has been particularly supportive. They then take the coffee grounds and mix them with a specialized blend of soil and compost.
The benefits of JavaSoil include:
- Reduction of landfill contributions
- Locally produced
- All-natural fertilizers are great for your garden
- Safe for the environment
Right now, they’re finalizing their business plans and getting ready to market JavaSoil. Matt gave me a full burlap sack to test it out and see how it goes. You can mix the fertilizer with dirt or potting soil indoors or out or you can use it solo in potted plants or in gardens. Matt currently has basil and herbs planted in JavaSoil in the window of his Buckhead apartment and the leafy plants are doing great.
You can check out JavaSoil online at www.JavaSoil.com (the website is currently in progress) and get in touch with Matt and Jeff. You can also get in touch with them or order a bag of JavaSoil (right now, they’re sticking to selling locally) and support an eco-friendly Atlanta business, reuse local Atlanta coffee grounds, and green your garden!
Posted in Environment, Gardening | Tagged: composting, fertilizers, local Atlanta businesses, used coffee grounds | 1 Comment »
Posted by Our Green Atlanta on May 22, 2009
Whether it’s cleaning up trash or trimming back brush, the American Hiking Society needs our help in maintaining our country’s trails and precious forests! So, on June 6th, 2009, REI invites you to come out and join them in one of a two places around Atlanta to help beautify our parks and hiking trails. This is a nationwide event, so even if you’re not around Atlanta, you can still visit the wesbite by clicking here and find a volunteer location near you. Please see info on the two Atlanta locations below!
Tribble Mill Park in Lawrenceville
- What: National Trails Day sponsired by the American Hiking Society and REI
- When: Saturday, June 6th, 2009 at 9 .m.
- Where: Tribble Mill Park in Lawrenceville
- Registration: Only if volunteering, please register with djessee@rei.com with location in subject line. If you have questions, please contact Jamie Fergerson at jferger@rei.com or 404.633.6508.
- Cost: Free
This year we’re partnering with Gwinnett County Parks and Recreation, the Gwinnett Parks Foundation, and the Southern Off-Road Bike Association’s Gwinnett Co. Chapter (SORBA-GATR) at their annual Trail Mix Celebration. The event will be held at the multi-purpose Tribble Mill Park near Lawrenceville. Starting at 9AM we’ll need at least 40 volunteers to help with trail work (think shovels and getting dirty), and the whole day will be filled with events like hay rides, horseback tours, fun runs, rock climbing, and disc golf. The first 250 volunteers to register are guaranteed a wicking REI Volunteer T-shirt. Lunch and hydration will be provided.
Volunteers are needed to help man festival stations as well as do trail work. If you’re interested, please e-mail djessee@rei.com with your full name, phone number and T-shirt size (we have mens, womens, and child sizes) along with your preferred type of work (more strenuous trail work or easier festivity help). Also include which location you are registering for in the subject line. (Tribble Mill Volunteer, for ex.). We’ll email you with further information.
Powers Island branch of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area
- What: National Trails Day sponsired by the American Hiking Society and REI
- When: Saturday, June 6th, 2009 at 9 .m.
- Where: Powers Island branch of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area
- Registration: Please register online by clicking here! If you have questions, please contact Natalie at nmolnar@rei.com or 770.901.9200 ext. 204.
- Cost: Free
REI is partnering with the National Park Service and SORBA in helping to build a lasting legacy of trails, rivers, and wild lands for generations to come. Each year we participate in The American Hiking Society’s National Trails Day to help beautify the local parks and trails where we recreate. For 2009, we’ll be helping out at the Powers Island branch of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area.
We will need lots of hands to cut brush, restore habitat, dig in the dirt, pull invasive plants and manuever wheelbarrows. Please wear long pants and closed toe shoes. Bring work gloves and a reusable water bottle. A wicking REI Volunteer T-shirt will be provided to the first 250 volunteers to register. Snacks and hydration will be provided. The normal parking fee will not be assessed for volunteers that day.
There will be ample work for people of all ages and abilities!
Posted in Be Active!, Environment, Parks, Volunteer | Tagged: American Hiking Society, Atlanta volunteering, Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Georgia forests, Georgia hiking trails, Gwinnett parks, local atlanta parks, National Trails Day, Tribble Mill Park, volunteer atlanta | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Our Green Atlanta on May 21, 2009
Atlanta’s Southface Energy Institute shared the following energy-related reports in their monthly email newsletter. The following is from the newsletter:
Below please find summaries and downloads for four new energy-related white papers recently authored by the World Resources Institute, the Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance, the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy and Southface. Dennis Creech, Southface’s Executive Director, is one of the authors. We hope you’ll find them interesting and thought-provoking.
Energy by the Numbers | Download document
Policymakers in the United States are facing significant energy challenges. Increasing demand for energy combined with concerns about energy security, fossil fuel price volatility, and the effects of global warming have many policymakers looking for ways to develop a cleaner, more effi cient, and secure energy economy. Meeting future energy demands requires solutions that address these fundamental challenges, yet are regionally appropriate.
Local Clean Power | Download document
Southeast states seeking solutions to current and future energy challenges have a major opportunity to use existing technology to harness local renewable energy resources. Our regional assessment, drawing on recent government and regional studies, suggests sufficient renewable energy resources to meet as much as 30 percent of the Southeast’s electric power needs within the next 15 years.
Power of Efficiency | Download document
Abundant efficiency opportunities in the Southeast can help meet regional energy needs. Efficiency investments can lead to economic and environmental benefits across several
sectors by reducing demand for electricity, natural gas, and transportation fuels. For the purposes of this brief we focus on efficiency’s role in meeting future electric power needs. With prompt policy action, energy efficiency improvements could reduce electricity use more than 10 percent by 2015 and 20 percent by 2025.
Water and Watts | Download document
The Southeast faces immense challenges in meeting the water and energy needs of a growing population. Efforts to ensure an adequate supply of one resource must recognize impacts on the other.
Posted in Education, Environment, Water | Tagged: clean energy, energy efficient homes, global warming, renewable energy, Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, Southface Energy Institute, water conservation, water efficiency | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Our Green Atlanta on May 20, 2009
Experimenting with compostable plastic cups. Day one: May 13th 2009. (I even stuffed the cup with compost to help get it started biodegrading.)
At Inman Park Festival a few weeks ago, we got a couple cups of lemonade. As usual, I held onto the plastic cup for the rest of the festival and took it home with me to recycle. As I was about to put it in my blue recycling bag, I noticed that on the side of the cup it said, “Made of corn. Please compost.” Currently, my neighbors are trying their hand at composting two plastic “to go” containers that don’t seem to be disintegrating too quickly, so I figured we could give it another shot with a compostable plastic cup.
So, here is a picture of day one of my experiment to see how long it will take for this compostable plastic cup to biodegrade. I will take pictures periodically and post them on here to check on progress. In the meantime, you can read my earlier blog post here with facts on compostable corn plastics and a photo of my neighbors’ biodegradable “to go” containers. Have you tried to compost corn plastics in your home compost pile? Let me know how it’s working for you! Thanks!
Posted in Gardening, Recycling | Tagged: biodegradable food container, biodegradable plastic, compostable containers, composting, corn plastics, Recycling | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Our Green Atlanta on May 18, 2009
Last week, I received this press release for Clove, a new totally green and organic hair salon opening up on 6th Street in Midtown Atlanta!
Clove’s mission statement:
Clove salon is one of the first environmentally focused salons in Atlanta. From construction to everyday operations we attempt to be as ‘green’ as is possible in our industry. 100% of the products used in the salon are NOT tested on animals, and our recycling program goes above and beyond to add highlighting foils and colour tubes, something no other salon in Atlanta claims to do. Allergy free flooring, energy efficient bulbs and appliances, low voc paints, biodegradable cleaners and a commitment to continuously become more environmentally efficient are just a few of the things that set us apart from the rest. We will always be looking for ways to improve our business, environmentally and otherwise.
Clove Salon also features the Rene Furterer line, which is made in Paris by a pharmaceutical group called Pierre Fabre. The group only deals in natural and holistic remedies and is best known for their natural cancer treatments in Europe. Rene Furterer uses essential oils in their products so in your shampoo you could have basil and peppermint, myrr, cherry vinegar, caraway, or soy – and these are just some of the contents from their line. Rene Furterer sold his product line to Pierre Fabre because he was retiring and knew that they would continue his legacy of natural hair care if they were continuing to only produce natural remedies in a time of medicine moving towards more harmful synthetic chemicals.
Contact Clove:
404.249.7855 | 165 6th Street NE, Atlanta, GA 30308
For more information, please contact Eileen Tilson with Tipping Point Entertainment at etilson1@gmail.com or 770-313-7014.
Posted in Environment | Tagged: green Atlanta, energy efficient appliances, recycling at work, biodegradable plastic, environmental products, Recycling, Midtown Atlanta salon | 1 Comment »
