Reducing My Utilities Bills

Follow up to my carbon offsets...

Last year I gave away ~176 CFLs and helped several people with home energy projects.

By my calculations I offset ~75% of my emissions but, that does not taking into account my emission are shrink along with my energy usage at a fast enough rate to offset any price increases. In addition I have helped friends, family  and neighbors as well as the country.

I want these type of cuts and help for more. For the whole country to save us from foriegn enery dependency while helping the country's collective wallet.

Hopefully this year (Earthday 2008 to Earthday 2009) I can cut the energy usage by another 50% while not reducing our standard of living. My car was 1st my wife's is next. On the home front I may look at replacing the AC unit and solar. But, all of these are big ticket so, I am looking for additional ideas and technologies.

Please help me with ideas.

Aaron

Enviromental priorities a bit messed up.

Here is another case of the environmentalists having the wrong priorities. In the case of coal do not block the building of plants mandate their emissions if they can make a truly clean coal plant I am all for it.

Never mandate how just a minimum result.

Controversial offshore wind farm clears hurdle

Coal power goes on trial across U.S.

Aaron

116 of 307 of my CO2 offset plan

Today I gave away 16 CFLs to someone who could really use them. This plus some other one I gave away brings the total to 116 since April.

They plan on installing them tonight.

116 of 307 (they 307 was based on the worst case math). I help them financially, the environment and when they see the impact they will probably want to do the rest of their home.

So I have offseted 38% of my calculated CO2. Note the calculation was made before all the work I did on my home but, that is my plan before the end of 2007 (a friend pointed that out). Presently if you calculate the number it would be less the 200 CFLs to offset my families CO2. 

Aaron

Carbon Offseting: People are starting to question

CNN: Carbon Offsetting: 4 Questions to Ask

Here is an article talking about my same concerns about the accuracy and problems with carbon offsetting.

Worse we are thing about a cap and trade systems based on these not so accurate measures. Doesn't this bother you.

Do something at home and at work before you buy a single offset. Though I believe the intention are good from most of these organizations. I would rather see people invest in savings at home and work for a faster impact.

On my version of offsetting I am at about 100 CFLs of my 307 I plan on giving away this year.

Aaron

Environmentalists need to choose their priorities

Environmentalists need to choose their priorities just like the country.

The bird versus wind power issue is slowing the roll out of wind power. See, the above video also in other parts of the country. If CO2 and greenhouse gases are so critical on the global scale some times trade offs will need to be made on the local and regional level. Also, since wind is the most cost effective greenhouse gas free energy source it needs to get a bit more priority since the impacts of the delay on global warming are more significant then the impacts to bird populations.

Presently my opinion is the bias needs to be towards wind power (and solar) with the intend to use best practices (latest technologies, higher towers). As a individual home owner or a community member I should not have to risk lawsuits to erect a wind generator. I am not saying to seek out to hurt birds but, to avoid where possible but, limit the lawsuits and the studies so wind can make further progress.

They should have been allowed to expand but to coordinate the placement of new towers with the groups not be under threat of lawsuits for towers that we erected years ago.   

What do you think?

Aaron

Trashing a Hummer is not enviromentalism it is criminal

I man in DC gets this treatment...

Vandals batter D.C. man's SUV, slash its tires and scratch in an eco note

see http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19818804/?gt1=10150

Does this help the environment or show that the environmental movement is nuts? Will it help the environment if he fixes it or sells it to someone else.

Raise the CAFE standards and create a minimum MPG. In time these vehicle will disappear. Trashing them creates more (very large) litter.

What do you think?

Aaron

Green side effects

http://petesplace-peter.blogspot.com/2007/07/more-unintended-environmental.html

This on-line discussion talks about where I used to live before I moved to California and the challenges and compromises the green movement and politicians need to make and are refusing to.

• If you to buy or promote ethanol it helps CO2 possibly with other pollution risks.
• If you want to use wind you may impact birds.

What is a person to do?

Use common sense the extremists (far left and far right) on either side of the debate don't seem to. The solution is always in the middle.  That is what I am trying to do while keeping my family's money

Aaron

Fun contest

This looks like fun a green contest sponsered by Popular Science.

http://popsci.typepad.com/how20blog/2007/07/our-new-instruc.html

Something fun to do with the kids.

Aaron

MIT and CO2 offsets

Here is an article from MIT about CO2 offsets.

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2007/06/mit-model-compa.html

This is why we need open the discussion to ALL available ideas from any party based on the latest technology, fact and make it most importantly affordable and sustainable.

I still want the money to go to something good, not to middlemen, lawyers and taxes. People can get paid I just want most of the money not to get lost in the system.

I also want the US to move from being a oil importer to be more self sufficient but, not by making us import food (the article talks about the crop lands we have and whether or not we could produce enough food/fuel or both with what we have).

Also, I have not seen a study or any other data showing the impact of such a scheme on small and or home based businesses. Lastly will this positively impact the environment.

Aaron

It is still hard to take traditional CO2 offseting seriously

Check out ebay...

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?sofocus=bs&sbrftog=1&fcl=4&fnu=1&from=R10&satitle=carbon+credits&sacat=-1%26catref%3DC6&sargn=-1%26saslc%3D2&sadis=200&fpos=92688&sabfmts=1&saobfmts=insif&ftrt=1&ftrv=1&saprclo=&saprchi=&fsop=3%26fsoo%3D1

This makes me laugh and sad and why I will continue to offset in a more direct way (helping others and giving out CFLs).

I love ebay and have bought items to save energy via ebay but, how can I trace that the offsets are "real". Even if they are real the impacts are far slower then installing CFLs. Other in this business are for profit and have even less visibility into what they are doing.

In addition to that if I chose to donate to one of these companies I would would only donate to groups that where not for profit therefore you could look into their finances and I would make sure they are not political.

Aaron