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Plastic Bags Bad . . . Paper Bags Better . . . Reusable Bags Best

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Why are you still using plastic bags?

You are at the register in your favorite store and the cashier asks: 
 "Will it be paper or plastic?"   Your answer: "Neither, I brought by own bags."
It is no wonder that plastic shopping bags continually gained in popularity since their introduction about 25 years ago.  Their attractive qualities to consumers are that plastic bags are free, they are light weight and are water resistant.  They make great liners for small trash cans. We use them everyday.  I found a stat on the web that said 4-5 trillion of plastic bags (trash bags to grocery sacks) were made  in 2002.  I also found that plastic is a by-product of oil refining.  The creation of plastic uses about 4% of the total world’s oil production.
Some interesting facts about plastic bags
  • Plastic bags are a product of petroleum.
  • In the late 50’s plastic "baggies" were first used.  A few years later, plastic garbage bags became available.
  • North America and Western Europe account for nearly 80 percent of plastic bag use—though the bags are increasingly common in developing countries as well.
  • A quarter of the plastic bags used in wealthy nations are now produced in Asia.
  • Each year, Americans throw away some 100 billion polyethylene plastic bags. (Only 0.6 percent of plastic bags are recycled.)
  • The Irish have been known to call the ever-present bags their “national flag”; South Africans have dubbed them the “national flower.”
Eliminate the use of plastic shopping bags.   These simple steps will help:
  • Purchase, or better yet make, reusable cloth shopping bags.
  • Put them in your car or brief case or purse so you remember to use them.
  • If you don’t carry them with you, then write R2TRCB on top of your grocery list.  R2TRCB = Remember to Take Reusable Cloth Bag.
  • Give reusable cloth bags to your friends and encourage them to use them.
  • Shop at stores that offer a credit for using your own Reusable Cloth Bag.  The list of stores giving credit is growing.  If your favorite store isn’t "with the program" talk to the store manager.
  • Go at least one week without taking a new plastic bags.
  • Carry out small purchases without putting them in a plastic bag.
  • Find a local store that recycle plastic bags.  Look for "bin" in which you can return bags.  Most supermarkets have these bins in the entrance area.
Top 10 Myths about Plastic Grocery Bags – the other side of the argument

Please suggest additional links      

Links to Articles about Plastic Bags
Keep Plastic Bags out of Landfills by Sitting on Them:  Plastic grocery bags seem to multiply like Tribbles. You use them to store things; you use them as garbage bags.  Click on the link to see what unique product Kitsch, a retailer in the UK, is offering…. Read More
Campaign Against the Plastic Plague Background Info: from Earth Resource Foundation.  Plastic bags are everywhere! Everyday, we are handed countless plastic bags: when we go to the grocery store, retail clothing store, book store, restaurants, etc. Yes, sometimes, plastic bags are convenient, as they are water resistant and light and inexpensive compared to paper bags. Most of the time, plastic bags are superfluous and avoidable….  Read More
Plastic Left Holding the Bag as Environmental Plague:  by Joan Lowy.  Imagine a world without plastic shopping bags. It could be the future. There is a growing international movement to ban or discourage the use of plastic bags because of their environmental effects. Countries from Ireland to Australia are cracking down on the bags and action is beginning to stir in the United States…. Read More
Plastic or Paper:  from the Washington Post.  A useful comparison chart of paper versus plastic bags…. Read More
Banish the Bags: Used for minutes but last 1,000 years… The life cycle of plastic bags:  from Associated Newspapers Limited in London.   They are handed out in their billions, used for a few minutes then discarded to pollute the earth for hundreds of years. Here we trace the life cycle of a plastic bag ....Read More
Are Plastic Grocery Bags Sacking the Environment?: by John Roach for National Geographic News.  The "paper or plastic" conundrum that vexed earnest shoppers throughout the 1980s and 90s is largely moot today. Most grocery store baggers don’t bother to ask anymore. They drop the bananas in one plastic bag as they reach for another to hold the six-pack of soda. The pasta sauce and noodles will get one too, as will the dish soap….Read More
San Francisco Plastic Bag Ban Interests Other Cities: from NPR by by David Gorn.  Cities around the world are moving to ban plastic shopping bags to protect the environment. A roundup: …Read More
Plastic-Bag Bans Gaining Momentum Around the World: by John Roach for National Beijing plastic bags pictureGeographic News, April 4, 2008.  From Australia to the U.K., and all across the U.S., politicians and corporations are pondering banning or taxing plastic bags. A hefty surcharge that began in 2003 in Ireland has spurred the public there to spurn plastic bags almost completely in favor of reusable cloth totes. Plastic sacks are also taxed in Italy and Belgium. Grocery shoppers must pay for the bags in Switzerland, Germany, and Holland. Spain, Norway, and now the U.K. are considering a ban or tax as well.   …Read More
Pressure Builds to Ban Plastic Bags in Stores:  from the New York Times by Ian Urbina.  ANNAPOLIS, Md., July 23 — Paper or plastic? It is a question that has long dogged grocery shoppers. But the debate may soon be settled for this maritime city, where a bill aimed at protecting marine life would ban plastic bags from all retail stores.  …Read More
Whole Foods to ban plastic bags company-wide: from The Houston Business Journal.  After meeting with Austin city officials for several months about strategies to voluntarily reduce and recycle plastic bag use, Whole Foods Market Inc. has abruptly decided to eliminate the use of plastic bags in its Austin stores.  Whole Foods (NASDAQ: WFMI) on Wednesday announced it will immediately stop offering plastic bags at checkouts in two Austin stores and that it intends to ban plastic bags company-wide by early 2008.   …Read More

Please suggest additional links      

Living Green in the Garden — Organic Gardening Newsletters

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Avant-Gardening Tid-Bytes:  Inspirational insights into the creative and spiritual aspects of gardening.  (added 7/06)

Backyard Gardener Newsletter:  Sign up for a free email newsletter (added 7/06)

Common Ground in Palo Alto Newsletters:  Common Ground’s mission is to support and grow the local organic gardening and sustainable agriculture communities, through providing materials and education to home organic gardeners and mini-farmers… (added 7/06)

The UpBeet Gardener Newsletter :  Greetings from Kodiak, Alaska where I publish the UpBeet Gardener. Here you’ll find an upbeat view of life, including unique recipes and news clips that doesn’t make the headlines. You’re part of a community of subscribers in 70 countries, … (added 7/06)

Natural Building Links

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Build Recycle:  a free information exchange for companies and individuals to buy, sell, and trade used building materials

Building for Health Catalog:  a full catalog of natural and healthy building materials and home appliances

Carbohydrate Economy Clearinghouse:  comprehensive information on plant matter-based products and the companies and cooperatives producing them (created by The Institute for Local Self-Reliance)

Cool Roofing Materials Database:  assists in the selection of roofing materials that reflect, or otherwise reject, the sun’s radiant energy (prepared by the Heat Island Project within Berkeley Laboratory’s Environmental Energy Technologies Division)

Eco-House, Inc:  natural chemistry products for healthier homes, farms and gardens, and a safer environment

EcoMall:  "Earth’s Largest Environmental Shopping Center"

EPA Comprehensive Procurement Guidelines:  recycled content product listings and product fact sheets, including recommended recycled content

Forest World:  a portal for several wood product related searchable databases, as well as classified ads for buying and selling wood-related products

Friedman & Sun Catalog of Earth-Friendly Alternatives:  catalog contains ecologically-minded building materials and home products

Green Guide:  gives photos and information on featured green building materials, as well as a salvage building material exchange; order CD-ROM or printed catalog for complete listing

Green Pages:  Publishes "National Green Pages", a listing of products and services that promote environmental and social responsibility

Green Spec:  environmentally preferable building products available online with a paid subscription

Harris Directory:  subscription-based, searchable online directory of pollution prevention products for home, office, and garden

Hudson Valley Materials Exchange:  online exchange of used/surplus materials for art, education, and construction located in Hudson Valley, NY

Natural Building Technologies:  a range of natural products (including plasters, insulation, and paints)

Real Goods:  products dealing primarily with home furnishings, but also stressing renewable energy systems and natural building accessories

Recycled Content Product Database:  Searchable database of recycled-content products, including a used material exchange

REDI Guide:  one of the first searchable online databases of environmentally responsible building products

The Gallery of Environmentally Preferable Goods and Services:  listing of innovative examples of environmental practices and green products found in various industries (sponsored by MIT’s Center for Environmental Initiatives)

Building a Strawbale House

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Building a Strawbale House
We decided to build a strawbale house for several reasons.  First, we wanted a house that required very little heating and cooling to free us from high utility bills and allow us the possibility of not tying in to the electrical grid, but instead use solar electric.  Second, we wanted a house that didn’t feel like your average house that everyone else has.  Third, we wanted a house that would allow us to do some of the work without the worry of it having to look perfect; strawbale homes generally have a unique feel with unsmooth walls and slight visual imperfections.  Finally, we just knew that if we were going to build anything, we were definitely going to build a Green Home that was environmentally friendly.

This site shares some of the experiences we had in the building process, some of the green and natural products we used and the techniques we used to build and finish our strawbale house. 
 

   Read more of this Article     

Living Green Links

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(Beer) uilding Energy Efficiency Research:  is the Building Energy Efficiency Research project at the Department of Architecture, The University of Hong Kong. The objective of this research study is to formulate effective strategies for achieving energy efficient design in architecture and buildings.

Did She Really Just Ask That? Boston Green Tourism Director Dan Ruben Reveals the Secret of His Eco-Philosophy:  What are some of the other practices that you do that are examples of living green? Dan Ruben: Well, a lot of it is. I get excited about making changes in …

Ecological Stewardship Workshop:  report from the US Forest Service on sustainable forestry and forest ecosystems

Green Delaware:  Green Delaware is a grassroots organization concerned with environmental and public health issues in Delaware and surrounding states. We advocate policies consistent with good health, preservation of biodiversity, and long-term sustainability. We believe that achieving these ends also requires progress towards human relationships based on peace, justice, and democratic forms of government. Located in Port Penn, Delaware

Handmade Organic Mosquito Repellent (HOMeR):  The Thai lemon grass in our herb garden grows nearly two inches a day — and we found it keeps the mosquitoes away. We’ve also found that it’s an effective herbal anti-fungal medicine (lemongrass tea) and in Puerto Rico people use the fibrous stalks as a natural toothbrush! But how can its essence be extracted and preserved without losing its magic? We use a tincture we make with Chinese brandy. It works well — but can you find a better way?

Living Green, Saving Green!:  Did you know you can save a lot of green by living green? … For example, you can save at least 50% on your organic vegetables by shopping at your local …

Making Smart (And Green) Choices When You Paint:  (16 pages) Draws on experiences of Central and Eastern European countries to examine the Joint Implementation (JI) and the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) flexibility mechanisms created by the Kyoto Protocol and explores issues regarding their implementation. Elena Petkova and Kevin A. Baumert.

Red Jellyfish:  Environmental directory with natural products, services and organizations. Links to recycled, organic, solar, cruelty-free, healthy, socially conscious, and environmentally friendly products

The Complete Idiots Guide to Saving the Environment:  The choices you make each day matter a lot. This e-guide can simplify green living because it puts practical tools and resources at your fingertips that are designed with the busy person in mind. 

Tower of tomorrow is an example of living green architecture:  When Fortune invited my design firm, which specializes in sustainable architecture, to share our vision of a building of the future, we decided not to guess…

Living Green Today. Step by Step to an Renewable-Energy Powered Home (assumes you are using an existing home)

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What is Living Green?
Living Green  –  Building Natural & Green  –  Cleaning the Green Way

Passive Solar  –    Reduce, Reuse, & Recycle 

Videos:  Building Green     Straw-bale Home     Hydroponics

 

Living Green Today
Step by Step to an Renewable-Energy Powered Home
(assumes you are using an existing home)

Living Green, is basically making decisions considering the impact that decision would
have on the environment.  Living Green is making choices that are good for the earth.

1. Conserve Energy – Most people can not afford to buy the additional PV & solar heating modules to run the average US home. There are many people who figure they are quite well off just by doing this step alone!
1A. Insulate as much as you can afford – Put in double and triple pane windows. Insulate the roof, walls and maybe floor. Use light colored roofing to reduce your cooling expenses in hot climates.
1B. Get energy efficient appliances, lighting, heating, and cooling – Remember heating and cooling are your major loads. Solar can replace heating (or even cooling) depending on your site (and INSULATION). Please see table below for various heating/cooling methods.  Your refrigerator, unless new within the last 5 years, probably should be replaced with a new one. Check the renewable energy catalogs for the best efficiency ones. If you can’t afford a new one, consider mounting a couple of muffin fans to blow away the heat generated by the motor of the refrigerator. A 4 watt muffin fan, left on all the time to cool under the refrigerator, will save you electricity because it removes most of the heat that would normally rise up in to the cooling compartments.  Washers, the best efficiency ones are the horizontal axis ones. Lighting, choose fluorescent, compact fluorescent, or LED.

Cooling/venting your attic reduces the load on your living space cooling system. Most people use 110vAC fans which use a lot of electricity. You can use solar, but that is very expensive. A turbine vent or ridge vent are less expensive, they don’t use electricity, don’t have a motor to burn out, and use natural convection currents to cool the attic. Some say ridge vents work better than turbine vents. However you need to make sure your input/soffit vents are not blocked, and that you have plenty of them.
2. Examine your site – How many hours of sun per day does your site average? Is there any objects blocking the sun? The clearer the view of the sun’s path, the longer you’ll get usable energy out of your solar modules.
You can use a single or dual axis tracking mount to get more usable energy of you pv modules per day. A tracking mount points your pv’s directly towards the sun. The difference between a single and a dual axis tracking mount is that a single axis one has to be adjusted seasonally. The dual axis tracker automatically adjusts for seasonal variations. A dual axis tracking mount usually won’t increase your power output enough over a single axis tracking mount, for most places, to make the dual axis tracking mount worth it. A tracking mount is more expensive than a fixed mount, but may be more cost efficient than buying more pv modules.
Do you have a stream available? Hydro can give you surplus electricity if there is enough flow and head. How much flow is the stream?

How high is the stream (head/vertical fall)? Head times flow is your hydropower output. 500 Gallons per min. over a 3 foot drop, or 3 gallons per min. over a 500 foot drop give you the same power output. The higher the head, the lower the gallons per minute you need to make the same power. Micro-hydro equipment is what is generally sold in renewable energy businesses. Micro-hydro is usually high head (over 10ft), low flow (less than 120GPM). Please be considerate of the environment: Ensure that there is plenty of bypass water for the wildlife all year around. Be careful if there is any fish in the stream about damming the stream. 

What is the average miles per hour of the wind at your site, per year?

The lowest startup wind speed for a wind generator I’ve seen is 7mph or 3.0m/s. At that speed not much electricity is generated, however having a hybrid solar/wind system generates electricity when the sun is out with the pv’s and when it is stormy with the wind generator. For best performance, mount the wind generator on a tower about 30 or more feet above any obstacles and for safety’s sake, put the tower at least two times the height away from any building, power line (on poles or towers), and property lines. There is roof mounts for the Air Modules, performance will not be as good as on it’s own tower due to turbulence from nearby obstacles.

3. Add up your electrical load – You need to find the total watt-hours of the load’s you want to put on RE battery system or to compensate for the load usage in a battery less grid-tied RE system. By using the data plate on your appliances will give you a quick, but general idea of that appliance’s energy usage. A more accurate, easier, and more expensive way is to use a watt-hour meter. You can also use your electric bill, which gives you total watts used in kilowatts, or watts times one thousand.
Using the data plate, you might have to convert to watts. After you have converted to watts, or starting with watts, watts times the number of hours that appliance is on per week equals watt-hours per week. Then add up all the watt-hours per week of all the appliances you are going to use on RE. Divide that by seven to get avg. watt hours per day.
Using your electric bills, add up one year’s worth, then times one thousand, divided by 364, or 365 depending on the number of days that year to get avg. watts per day.
Take avg. watts/watt hours per day times 1.2 to get DC watts per day that you must generate.
Divide this by the avg. hours of sun per year or the avg. hours of sun for the worst month. This gives you how large your PV array must be. Dividing by the avg. hours of sun per year will undersize the system during the winter, and either needing a generator, or more grid usage.
Using different energy sources complicates the calculations a bit.
4. How much money can you spend? – Due to a lack of money, people will only put part of their electrical load on an renewable energy system, then spend more later on when they can afford to buy more. The owner of Real Goods did this a long time ago! Nice thing about PV’s is that they have no moving parts and can last a long time (some even have warranties for 25 YEARS!) Note PV’s don’t produce as much in HOT climates, as they do in COOL climates. Buy NAME BRAND, DEEP CYCLE batteries for storage (if you decide for any storage at all). A battery bank however has to be bought all at once. You can’t mix old and new batteries because the new batteries will be brought down to the performance level of the old batteries.

Living Green in the Garden – W

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Business Conservation Initiatives:  A water audit is an excellent place to start determining where excess water is being used

Clotheswasher Savings Calculator:  Calculate your savings in common areas laundry rooms

Drop by Drop:  A How-To Guide: Starting a Water Conservation Program

H2O Water Saver Home:  California Urban Water Conservation Council Water Saver Home. Take a tour of water saving opportunities in your home.

Multi-Family Laundry Rooms Save Water:  Help implement this cost-saving and resource-friendly water and energy conservation method

Pricing promotes efficiency and conservation:  Market-based pricing of water use would enable consumers to prioritize their water use.

San Diego expands landscape conservation programs:  Water savings continues with plans for the next five-to-ten years.

Toiletology 101 Care And Repair:  For some time now a growing group of people have been trying and succeeding to make diesel fuel out of used cooking oil (waste vegetable oil, WVO) by themselves. There are many magnificent articles on this subject on the Internet that can teach you how to get started.

Water Efficiency Manual: 

Waterwiser Drip Calculator:  Measure and Estimate Water Wasted Due to Leaks

Organic Gardening: Water Conservation / Saving

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Hotlinks to Additional Internet Resources:

A Green Home is a Healthy Home:  The ways that you use water and energy even what you do with your backyard can have a very significant health impact

Business Conservation Initiatives:  A water audit is an excellent place to start determining where excess water is being used

Clotheswasher Savings Calculator:  Calculate your savings in common areas laundry rooms

Composting Toilet Feasibility Report:  Composting toilets have the potential to reduce water use and divert pollutant loads from the sewerage system directly to agriculture

Drop by Drop:  A How-To Guide: Starting a Water Conservation Program

Ebb and flow irrigation system:  Innovative greenhouse watering ways where water conservation is a great side benefit

H2O Water Saver Home:  California Urban Water Conservation Council Water Saver Home. Take a tour of water saving opportunities in your home.

Island tourism industrys innovative approaches to water savings:  Including time switches in collective toilets and showers; flow meters in common services.

Multi-Family Laundry Rooms Save Water:  Help implement this cost-saving and resource-friendly water and energy conservation method

New Hampshire Dept Of Environmental Services – Database:  $100,000 annually saved on water, sewer, and energy cost reductions. The retrofit cost will be recouped in 3 1/2 years.

Permanent Water Conservation Measures:  watering gardens, grounds and nurseries in Australia

Pricing promotes efficiency and conservation:  Market-based pricing of water use would enable consumers to prioritize their water use.

San Diego expands landscape conservation programs:  Water savings continues with plans for the next five-to-ten years.

Software for environmental awareness: 

Toiletology 101 Care And Repair:  For some time now a growing group of people have been trying and succeeding to make diesel fuel out of used cooking oil (waste vegetable oil, WVO) by themselves. There are many magnificent articles on this subject on the Internet that can teach you how to get started.

Towards a water-sustainable future:  The Toronto Atmospheric Fund was established by Toronto City Council to finance local initiatives to combat global warming and improve air quality. 

Water Efficiency Manual: 

Water Efficiency Retrofit Program:  A New Hampshire Medical Center’s successful approach to saving water throughout its building

Waterwiser Drip Calculator:  Measure and Estimate Water Wasted Due to Leaks

Who is Water Wise?:  The Effects of Paper Recycling on Timber Harvests – Peter Ince, September, 1995

Please suggest additional links   

Living Green in the Garden – W

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A Rainwater Catchment System:  Rain Barrel Program in Vancouver Canada saves water. 
Accept a new type of wastewater treatment system in your home:  Advantages and disadvantages of collecting rainwater
Alternative construction methods to save water:  Why use a pail of water to flush when a cup will do? 
Annual water use of 8000 litres per full time employee:  Utilizing the best state-of-the-art energy and water efficient measures available 
Austins Zilker Park showcases rainwater harvesting:  Dual flush toilets are ideal for buildings with a high daytime use
Beneficial reuse of reclaimed water:  Canadian 12-page research report 
Build a simple rain barrel:  A power station’s dependence on potable water greatly reduced while assured of a reliable, continuous source. 
Case studies on reducing facilities water usage:  Rain barrels, the simplest rainwater collection devices, can save thousands of gallons of tap water each year, and save money and energy  / (added 09/2005)
Centre for Science & Environment New Delhi:  Large US companies initiate reuse and recycling 
Cisterns to Collect Non-Potable Water for Domestic Use:  The Indian journey of rainwater harvesting 
Design tips for rooftop rainwater harvesting in Bangalore:  At present, the two leading desalination technologies are thermal and membrane 
Drinking Water Needs Of Farm Animals:  Innovative efficient ways to capture vapor in German greenhouses & urban structures
Environmentally friendly cruise ships an oxymoron:  Dairy and livestock farm water reuse practices 
Global Recycling Network :  Utilizing innovative fog collectors and effective rainfall collectors to make optimum use of natural atmospheric sources of water. 
Harvesting Rainwater For Landscape Use:  Simple systems use catchment areas such as roofs, sidewalks, and patios to direct rainwater runoff to vegetation. 
Healthy House water & wastewater technologies:  University of Arizona Cooperative Extension 
Home Use Of Rainwater & Graywater:  Innovative Canadian approaches to recycling water 
Houses of the Future Excellence in sustainable design:  Conserve, reuse and augment summarize Arizona’s strategy to meet new water needs. 
Humanure Handbook Online :  Water Reclamation & Management Scheme (WRAMS), Australia’s first large-scale urban water recycling system
Indoor gray water reuse:   filled with information about composting human waste.
Initiative recyclage :  Case studies, links and references for indoor gray water reuse. 
Interconnecting water tanks function as dividers:   / (added 09/2005)
Irrigation with recycled water in green houses:  Ongoing research at Henties Bay Marine & Coastal Resources Research Centre also includes solar desalination. 
King County Commission for Marketing Recyclable Materials :  Surplus water and fertilizer do not accumulate in the soil less substrate, creating a runoff of up to 40%. A pump returns water and nutrients to the greenhouse. 
Melbourne Water Autonomous House:  dedicated to finding markets for recycled materials.
Much water conservation in the home iscommon sense:  Rain catching pointers stress water efficiency and reuse 
New York Cityscomprehensive Water Reuse Program:  Grey water qualities & uses. Centre for Alternative Technology.
Pacific Northwest Collecting Rainwater:  Lower Murray Water’s desire is to protect riverine environments in Australia
QUALORG:  Do it yourself rain barrel construction. Resource listing. 
Rain Barrel Guide:  a quality procedure for biowaste management
Rainwater Catchement Systems Assoc:  Desert House at Phoenix Botanical Garden 
Rainwater Harvesting Calculator:  Roof washers, filters and ultraviolet light sterilize rainwater at 10 gallons per minute.
Recycling Gray Water can stretch your water budget:  Reuse the final rinse water in the initial wash water stage and consider reducing nozzle size 
Retention grading allows rainwater to percolate naturally:  WVU Extension Service, Center for Agricultural & Natural Resources Development 
Reverse osmosis membrane filtration systems:  These "Sunken Gardens" are capable of holding water in a flash flood
Runoff handling at feedlots:  Untapped opportunities
Safe Use of Household Greywater:  Helpful worksheets for manure and runoff collection from open lots systems 
Saving water through better systems & technology:  NMSU Guide for uses of treated and untreated grey water. 
Sequential water reuse:  Salt-tolerant forages may serve as needed link in water reuse system for agriculture. 
Smart Water Fund:  Farmers use ag drainage water from lettuce to irrigate the more salt-tolerant cotton crop and then used again on extremely salt-tolerant crops before the much-reduced volume of water is pumped into a comparatively small evaporation pond.
Space-saving secure and flexible rainwater storage:  One innovative approach to reduce the area’s potable water demands
The Humanure Handbook Online :  A primer of the basic principles of captured rainfall, with an emphasis on residential and small-scale commercial applications. 
Thermal treatment of municipal solid waste:  Untapped opportunities 
Unique and creative approaches to environmental sustainability:  Fog water technology help communities hours away from water get water. A Canadian and Nepalese partnership
Urban and rural household wastewater reuse:  Cancer Research Center in Seattle wins 3 environmental awards for saving water & energy 
Urban Water Infrastructure Assessment:  Savings reflected in water resources and your water bill. 
Water from waste:  A least cost planning approach two case studies in Sydney, Australia.
Water Gets A Second Chance:  Effluent waters from intensive rural industries are recycled in irrigation avoiding pollution and turning waste into wealth. 
Water Recycling cleaning water the way nature does:  Recycled pipes, valves and sprinkler heads are easily recognizable by their purple color 
Water recycling in the paper industry:  Explore an ecological wastewater recycling system in Chatham County, NC 
Water Reuse Association:  Environmental awareness reduces water usage 
Water Reuse in Texas:  A international organization dedicated to increasing the beneficial use of recycled water 
What is a Low Impact Development?:  Water reuse is a proven water management strategy for a growing population. 

What is "Natural Building"?

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Lighter colors for roofs absorb less heat, reducing cooling costs in warm climates.

Select energy-star appliances.

Energy-efficient windows, such as those with low-E glass coatings, gas filler between layers, and composite framing materials keep heat inside in the winter and outside in the summer.

Use environmental friendly products like oriented strand board (OSB).   OSB is a manufactured wood product that does not require large trees.

Vinyl siding on exterior walls is a green alternative to wood.  Vinyl siding is cheaper to install and requires little maintenance.

Increase the amount and R-value of insulation as a cost effective way to save energy and help reduce heating and cooling bills.

Sprayed insulation made of foam, cellulose or wool is an alternative to traditional glass fiber batting.

Large south facing windows (passive solar) helps heat the home in the winter and allows for increased natural daylighting.

Reduce the need for watering, fertilizers and herbicides by using native plants.  This method is called xeriscaping.

Tankless water heaters provide hot water on demand at a preset temperature rather than storing it, which reduces or eliminates standby losses.

Insulate foundations just as if they were walls in the living space.

Front-loading washers use about 40% less water and half the energy of conventional models.

Recycled plastic lumber and wood composite materials reduce reliance on chemically treated lumber and durable hardwood for decks, porches, trim and fencing.

Tree preservation reduces landscaping and future energy costs and helps provide winter wind breaks or summer shade.

Additional landscaping improves the environment even more: One tree can filter 60 lbs. of pollutants from the air each year.