The recently introduced Apple Battery Charger has one of the lowest standby power usage values or “vampire draw” of similar chargers on the market. That’s the energy most chargers continue to draw after their batteries are fully charged. The Apple Battery Charger senses when its batteries are done charging and automatically reduces the amount of power it needs. In addition, the reusable batteries that come with each Apple Battery Charger are designed to maintain a high charge capacity for hundreds of charges, so you no longer have to buy new batteries or toss them every few months.

The smarter way to charge.

When the Apple Battery Charger recharges your batteries, it not only maximizes battery performance and lifespan, it also conserves energy. Thanks to an intelligent power management system, the Apple Battery Charger uses less power once your batteries are fully charged, making it one of the most energy-efficient rechargeable battery solutions ever. The Apple Battery Charger can recharge one or two batteries at a time. It’s optimized for Apple-supplied batteries and it also works with AA NiMH batteries from other companies, too.

Fully loaded. And then some.

Each Apple Battery Charger comes with six high-performance AA NiMH batteries: two for your keyboard, two for your mouse or trackpad, and two for charging. Unlike many other reusable batteries, these batteries have an incredibly long service life. Which means you can finally break the cycle of buying and disposing of those single-use alkaline batteries. The batteries that come with the Apple Battery Charger kit also have an extraordinarily low self-discharge rate. Even after a year of sitting in a drawer, they still retain 80 percent of their original charge. That way you always have backup power when you need it.

The charger kit costs $29 and includes six Apple batteries touted to last for up to 10 years. The charger can also work in other countries as well. See the Apple site for more info.

Whether you realize it or not  lawns can consume up to 50-80% of  a household’s water. That amounts to a lot of energy spent which costs you money!   Here are some tips to save on water as keeping a green lawn takes a lot of care.

• Lawns need 1/2 inch of water ever other day during really hot weather.
• Water early in morning as to lessen evaporation. Do not water at night as lawn disease may occur.
• Water deeply, not often as it also encourages deeper roots. Only water every third to fourth day when using this method.
• Make sure your automatic sprinkler system is setup correctly to in the early AM.
• Replace all or part of your lawn with wild flowers or the whole lawn with artificial turf.
• Add some scenic walkways around your property as they require no water.
• Mulch, preferably from your compost bin, helps keep moisture in the soil, and keeps weeds down.
• Cutting your grass higher also helps prevent water loss as it helps shade the soil.

By Tay Yoshitani

CEO, Port of Seattle

The most recent government employment reports have been disappointing because they show a profound lack of job creation on the part of the private sector.

In addition to calling the health of the overall U.S. economy into question, many analysts say that the latest data raise troubling issues about the viability of clean technology as a positive force for 21st-century prosperity. After all, we’ve been told repeatedly that legions of new green-collar jobs will materialize and generate growth for communities all across the nation.

Right now, two-thirds of all green collar jobs in America are in the energy conservation and pollution mitigation area, but capital is rapidly moving into clean energy, energy efficiency, and environmentally friendly products and services. Meanwhile, many existing blue-collar jobs that truly matter to families and communities all across the country are turning green.

These are the next waves of the green-collar job revolution. And, if we’re fortunate and far-sighted, I believe that this revolution can lift our nation higher — much higher — as it reaches for even greater prosperity in the decades to come.

I believe the analysts are wrong; my view remains that the creation and proliferation of well-paying green-collar jobs in America will ultimately help us address the biggest employment crisis since the Great Depression.

Read his full article at Port of Seattle.

Petra Solar designs and manufactures the first smart grid interactive solar electric system specifically designed for installation on utility distribution poles, Utility Grade SunWave™ UP Series. The systems, which operate as individual power generation stations, combine solar power, smart grid and power management technologies to enable utilities to improve power quality and grid management. Petra Solar’s systems operate on streetlight and utility poles, connecting directly to the grid’s secondary voltage lines at the pole.

Last July the N.J. Board of Public Utilities approved a contract between Petra Solar and New Jersey’s largest utility, PSE&G, to generate 40MW of power through SunWave solar systems installed on up to 200,000 poles in New Jersey. The intelligent photovoltaic solar units are currently being installed throughout the state’s six largest cities and 300 suburban communities and will be running on the AT&T wireless network. For more information see Petra Solar.

Gas-powered lawn mowers are polluting monsters. Mow for an hour or drive your car for four hours: the emissions are equal. Mowers have been largely unregulated with few emissions controls, although all that will change as of 2012, when new emissions standards for small spark-ignition engines goes into law. The rules intent is that it will  provide a 35 percent reduction in hydrocarbon emissions, lower evaporative emissions, and hence less ozone and greenhouse gas formation as a result of all that grass cutting.

Goats are ruminants, and emit methane as part of the enteric fermentation that occurs in their first “stomach,” the rumen. In 2003, according to the EPA, U.S. goats emitted 0.3 Teragrams CO2 equivalent of methane emissions. By comparison, landfills emitted 131.2 Tg, termites about 20 Tg, and mobile sources 2.7 Tg. Goats are not blameless, but they are better than lawn mowers and termites. However the old fashion push mower may remain your best choice for lawns if you really want to produce NO emissions and burn some additional calories!

Traditional manicured home lawn mowing is perhaps the wrong application or wrong image to convey. Goats are best used for hillsides and or rough terrain as they not only love to eat grasses, they also love all those plants we don’t want as well. So hence we see companies, like Google and other SIlicon Valley firms, using them not on a lawn, but in weedy fields. Goats easily and happily eat a huge variety of invasive and noxious plants down to the nub. Blackberry and poison ivy are just two examples of unwanted plants that goats love to eat.

Google is not the first to prefer goats over machines: Many goat herders are renting out their goats for landscape renovation and maintenance. Goat herds are used to maintain areas alongside airplane runways, like at SeaTac in Washington state, to remove scrub in fire-prone areas, and to replace pesticides in weed eradication on ranches. They do all this and more without the impact of heavy equipment or deadly herbicides. Their byproducts provide a type of fertilizer, as their hooves stomp into ready made compost. See the video below for more insight.

Below is a video on how the Port of Seattle is leading the way to green practices within its organization. The below video is how at its Airports it has its coffee barristers recycle their coffee grinds. It save a tremendous amount of waste from going into the local landfill. Recycling coffee grounds can be done by everyone very easily by just sprinkling them among your garden plants or adding them to you compost bin. Enjoy the video below and begin recycling them today. If you are interested in adding coffee grounds to your compost pile or garden Starbuck’s has a “Grounds for Gardens Campaign” where they will happily let you pick them up from your local one. Read more at Port of Seattle.

Starting August 1st, 2010, IKEA will start phasing out incandescent bulbs from its U.S. stores, with the goal of completely eliminating them by January 1st, 2011. As we know, incandescent bulbs actually are more efficient at producing heat than the light they give off thus much of the electricity used is spent producing this by-product.  However IKEA isn’t only doing this out of concern for the environment: “The IKEA phase out will come in advance of the federal legislation that will begin to phase out incandescent light bulbs in 2012.” Why are they doing this and what will replace incandescents? Well for one it saves them money in energy costs by installing LED lighting and saves them money by having less cooling costs as well. Doing it sooner than required gets them not only saving money faster but gives them a marketing edge. Also as most retailers delay to do this it could create a temporary shortage driving up the price by the time they need to comply.  Many kudos for IKEA for being the first to make the big jump.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has welcomed the Sheraton Suites Orlando Airport Hotel into the Florida Green Lodging Program. The Florida Green Lodging Program is a voluntary state initiative that provides the lodging industry with technical assistance, encouraging hotels and motels to adopt cost-saving “green” practices that reduce waste, save energy and conserve natural resources.

The Florida Green Lodging Program was established in 2004 by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) with the intent of recognizing and rewarding environmentally conscientious lodging facilities in the state. Through this rapidly growing program DEP encourages the lodging industry to conserve and protect Florida’s natural resources. The Florida Green Lodging Program is unique in that it covers an all-inclusive list of environmental initiatives that are specific to the Florida environment. Read more about the Florida Green Lodging Program.

About Windspire
Windspire wind turbines are low-cost, low-noise, attractive wind power generators for use with residential, business, and commercial buildings. Manufactured in the U.S., the Windspire wind turbine is a 30-foot tall, propeller-free, vertical-axis wind turbine designed for harnessing wind power in urban, suburban and rural locations. Windspire’s patented technology maximizes energy conversion from wind into electric power, regardless of changing wind speed and direction. For more information, visit www.mariahpower.com.

Waterpebble is a revolutionary device designed to take the effort out of saving water.

Water Pebble is a world’s first. Paul Priestman a director of design company Priestmangoode was inspired by a sign in a hotel bathroom to, “Please Use Water Sparingly” and he started developing the concept on his return home. The Waterpebble is unique in the way it works to help reduce water usage.

This clever device monitors water going down the drain when you shower. Memorizing your first shower and using it as a benchmark, Waterpebble then indicates, via a series of ‘traffic lights’ flashing gently from green through to red, when to finish showering. Each time you shower the Waterpebble automatically fractionally reduces your shower time helping you to save water without needing to think about it. Set it and forget it! The Waterpebble encourages you to use less water each time you shower.

Press the reset button. 3 lights will flash

Place in the shower near the plughole. Shower as normal. The lights will flash green, amber and red as Waterpebble memorises your shower. Then each time you shower, Waterpebble lights up to indicate:

Green – start , Amber – you’re halfway through, Red – time to stop

Every shower, your water usage is reduced a little. Waterpebble can be reset at any time. They claim the battery will last for around 4 to 6 months with average use. The battery cannot be replaced which we view as a downside however they do recycle the units if you send them back.

For further information see waterpebble.com.

See their video at Waterpebble