Simple and responsible E-Waste solutions with Blue Star Electronics

Our computers are such a personal item. They are our lifeline, They contain a lot of secure information about us and we are always upgrading them to the latest greatest equipment about every 3-5 years.

So what is one of the most responsible ways we can reduce the clutter in our office, closets, warehouse or garage? Use a reputable and responsible company to dispose of all your e-waste as you do not want to throw it into your trash and you don’t want it going into the landfill.

Blue Star Electronics is a very reputable company located in Hayward, CA. They specialize in responsibly disposing, repurposing or recycling all your e-waste. In a nutshell, the highlights of their service include: picking up your e-waste, your items get sorted back at their Hayward facility for either destruction, re-marketing, and or the products are broken down and recycled. Blue Star Electronics supports a zero landfill policy and  nothing is shipped overseas to become another countries problem.

An extra benefit that they provide is erasing hard drive data utilizing software approved by the United State Department of Defense. Any proprietary materials are shredded or destroyed and you are issued a certificate of destruction.

They pick up all types of electronic equipment

Computer Systems Components (all types)
Monitors Keyboards and Mice
Printers Power Supplies
Circuit Boards Media - All Types
Data storage units- all types Sun//Cisco/SGI Equipment
All types of Test Equipment Raw Metals and Materials
Proprietary Equipment Semiconductor Equipment

TV’s VCR”S, DVD, CD Players and gaming consoles.

They have  several ways to pick-up e-waste. You can coordinate a community fundraiser. Delta Community Presbyterian Church recently had their youth group coordinate a E-Waste drive by passing out flyers and barbecuing hot dogs. Their efforts filled almost two semi trucks with computers, TV’s and various other electronics. The money they raised in collaboration with Blue Star Electronics is helping fund their Winter Youth Retreat.

If you are a large corporation Blue Star Electronics will bring a truck to your location and if computers can be refurbished they can be sold back to your employees on a private weblink.

Check out Bluestar Electronics here.

They are located at 23196 Foley Street, Hayward, CA 94545

Office: 510.259.1879 Fax: 510.259.0550

Or you can email them at recycle@bluestarco.com

You can request a pick-up by clicking here.

Have you ever lit a soy wax candle from Tierra Verde Soy Candle Company?

Don’t you hate lighting a candle that doesn’t have any scent? Does it take away the ambiance or mood or make you feel like you are missing an integral part of the candle experience? Have you ever lit a soy wax candle? If you haven’t got any worthy candles to light, you should investigate the titillating soy wax candle scents created by Jeanette Maurer, Partner and Co-Founder of Tierra Verde Soy Candles

Tierra Verde Soy Candles was conceptualized in June 2010 by Jeanette and her brother Bill. The economy and favorable circumstances brought the two of them together in realizing a vision that they wanted to step away from corporate America and be different by creating a quality sustainable product that was useful and kind to the earth. Tierra Verde means “green earth.”  The soy wax candles are produced locally outside Turlock in a 3,000 square foot “pour room” as creating soy wax candles is difficult without a controlled temperature.

A portion of Tierra Verde’s profits are donated to a non-profit horse rescue farm called “Heaven Can Wait” which is located outside  San Luis Obispo. It is home to many retired race horses or horses that are injured or abused.

I recently had the pleasure of meeting Jeanette at the San Francisco Green Festival in April 2011. I had to stop at her booth as my eyes feasted on the beautiful array of recycled alabaster glass. My nose enjoyed following the wafting scents as I inhaled the high quality aroma of each candle. I received an extra benefit from Jeanette as she educated me on the benefits of purchasing soy wax candles from Tierra Verde Soy Candle Company

Soy wax candles purchased from Tierra Verde Soy Candle Company are:

• produced from a natural and renewable resource.

• non-toxic and water soluble so it is easy to clean up.

• contained in stunning recycled alabaster glass

• clean burning candles that burn longer at a very touchable temperature

• eco friendly the lid is biodegradable with flower seeds that you can plant

• refillable so you can continue to use your favorite candle glass

Their candles are a versatile product that sells well in spas, salons, casinos and gift shops. They make affordable and memorable gifts. You can catch Jeannette at various spa shows or order on-line. If you can’t wait to try them you can purchase them at the following local Bay Area locations:

Artistic Edge (925) 454-0369
21 S Livermore Ave
Livermore, CA 94550

Charlottes Web
2160 Railroad Ave
Livermore, CA 94550

http://www.ci.campbell.ca.us (408) 866-2119
51 North Central Avenue
Campbell, CA 95008

Frizelle Enos
265 Petaluma Ave
Sebastopol, CA

Skinsense (925) 283-7546
925 Village Center #1
Lafayette, CA 94549

Good Vibrations 530-258-GOOD (4663)
278 Main St.
Chester, Ca 96020

KURE Wellness Retreat 925 837-7600
145 E. Prospect Avenue Suite 202
Danville, CA 94526

Patio Fireplace 925.648.0293
3426 Camino Tassajara
Danville, CA 94506

Sonoma Home (707) 939-6900
497 1st Street West
Sonoma, CA 95476-6608

Trinidad Trading 707.677.0711
460 Main Street
Trinidad, CA 95570

University Art Annex Palo Alto (650) 328-3500
267 Hamilton Avenue
Palo Alto, CA 94301

El Camino Hospital Gift Store (650) 940-7000
2500 Grant Road
Mountain View, CA 94040

Obtaining Transparency in Recycling Through Green Halo

What is the purpose of Green Halo? Green Halo Systems is a fully integrated web based management system that provides the necessary tools for contractors, recyclers and other businesses to transparently comply with local, state and federal recycling guidelines.

This online line software resource allows you to track, report and follow projects in real time with precision and accountability. The Green Halo project is taking a giant step forward in supporting the green movement and should play a very important role in meeting the newly enacted CAL Green guidelines.

Over time, Green Halo should be able to accurately predict how fast the momentum of the green movement will progress as builders join forces with like minded sustainable suppliers so the price of using the right materials will become more affordable. Building design techniques should take a giant leap ahead with the objective of designing with less waste. These trends should be easily visually documented in a short period of time.

As a big advocate of reusing and recycling I look forward to observing what creative and innovative ideas develop for repurposing the waste and recycled items that are introduced through this program.

Wouldn’t it be a great goal to eliminate the need for our landfills? By removing recyclable material from our landfills we can definitely slow down the rapid need for more landfill space. Our common goals should be to educate and train businesses and consumers how easy it is to change a few habits. Over time we can all collectively make a difference.

Check out Green Halo here.

Sunflowerproject.org Beeing environmentally proactive

At the November 2010 Green Festival I had the pleasure of meeting people from the Sunflower Project. I was asked to participate in the project and was given a packet of Sunflower Seeds. My mission should I choose to accept it is to plant the seeds in my yard in the hope of being able to attract and report back through their website on the bees that choose to extract pollen from my flowers.

I can honestly say I’ve been disheartened over the past few years as I look out in my yard and have to really squint and pay close attention to my blooming flowers just in case I miss a bee sighting. As a child I remember gardening and pulling weeds on a hot day and I was comforted by the gently lull of bees busily buzzing and carrying pollen all around me. Now I hear nothing but the whine of electrical current going through our power poles, street lamps and cell towers. Do you think the bees have had enough of emfs being released into our atmosphere?

I am not an expert on what has caused the demise of our bee population but I do know that without bees pollenating, our food supply will diminish very quickly.

I look forward to planting seeds with my family and am excited at the possibility of participating in a bee revival in my own backyard. What a worthy project and a great way to slow down and do something purpose driven that will make a difference.

How many different species of bees can you identify? I knew of two but after visiting the website I discovered there are more than just honeybees and bumble bees. Have you ever heard of carpenter bees and green bees? I recommend checking out their website they have great pictures and it is very educational.

The Sunflowerproject.org

3 Steps to Save Money, Save Energy, and Reduce CO2, Doing Your Laundry

I’ve been pondering ways to save money and reduce my energy consumption around the house and I stumbled upon interesting ways to save money doing my laundry.

First a few facts:
1) According to a laundry article I found on the City of Concord’s website, doing your laundry has a significant impact on our environment. Did you know that over the lifetime of a T-shirt up to 9 lbs of carbon dioxide can be release in the air just through washing and drying?

These are general usage cost for a family of 4 for a washer and dryer

Clothes washer (with hot water)  -

Electricity kWh/yr -    1,080

Cost /Year - $86

CO2 emitted/yr  1,544

Clothes washer (minus hot water)

Electricity kWh/yr  - 99

Cost /Year $8

CO2 emitted/yr 142

Clothes dryer

Electricity kWh/yr - 1,060  -

Cost /Year  $85 -

CO2 emitted/yr-  1,516

Surprising huh?

So what is my plan? Well, I have a few obstacles but I can still make a difference. First the simple fix……

1) Wash my clothes in cold water. I had no idea that the hot water consumed 90 percent of a washers energy usage.

Second fix a little more challenging but doable……

2) Line dry my clothes. This is FREE SOLAR ENERGY and another big way to save on energy, laundry supplies and to preserve the longevity of your clothing. Have you ever smelled line dried sheets and towels? They are the best! Did you know the sun is a natural whitener as well as a natural antibacterial? A couple of challenges are living in a community that doesn’t let you hang your laundry as mine doesn’t allow you to hand your laundry outside. I’m thinking about hanging my laundry in the garage or  you can watch this funny video clip that is trying to get a petition signed so it is a right to hang your laundry. Check it out here.

Another advantage to line drying is you don’t need to use bleach or fabric softener, just shake, snap and hang your clothes upside down. If you really don’t like the stiffness of your jeans just toss them in the dryer for a couple of minute on wrinkle release.

3) Finally, use a really good biodegradable phosphate free laundry soap.

Here’s a link to some laundry soap options to get you thinking about some eco-friendly brands thank goodness the stores like Walmart, CVS, Target and Safeway are starting to stock eco-friendly laundry products.

Two Free Ways to Go Green - Reuse and trade

I’m pretty excited about two websites that I’ve been using lately FreeCycle.org and Swaptree.com. It’s like a huge never ending online garage sale. What a great bunch of like minded people exchanging, and trading items that they don’t use anymore for something they do need. Virtually no money is exchanged and useable items are not being thrown needlessly into our landfills do to plain laziness or lack of options of what to do with the item you no longer need.

FreeCycle.org is free to join and it comprises of a continually growing population of 4,775 groups and approximately 7 million members worldwide. FreeCycle.org is a non-profit organization and it’s all about generous people giving and receiving all kinds of free items in the own home town.
Their primary goals are to:
• Keep useable items out of our landfills
• Reuse someone’s junk is sometimes someone’s treasure
The Freecycle Organization is a volunteer army. All towns participating in the program are moderated by a local volunteer. Here’s the link to sign-up.

Swaptree.com is a cool website that lets you trade books music and video games. There is no charge for listing ads and most items can be mailed for $2.50 via US Media Mail. It’s easy to list items you just type in the ISBN number located on the back of the item you are trading into their search engine. Trade requests are emailed to you. You don’t even need to go to the post office you can print postage directly from Swaptree. Currently, if you refer friends to the website you can earn free shipping.
You can even provide trader feedback similar to Ebay.

I encourage my fans to check out these two great resources and let me know what you think. I love books and I enjoy the thrill of the finding something free hunt. Happy hunting!

Go Green in Silicon Valley, California - Invest in a “Bloom Box”

What do five major companies in Silicon Valley have in common when it comes to investing in green energy and technology?
Fed Ex, Walmart, Staples, Google, and Ebay are among the first large corporations that recently invested in their neighbor “Bloom Energy” located in Sunnyvale, California. These green minded corporations purchased Bloom Energy Servers. This technology in a nutshell is comprised of thin fuel cells that are manufactured from beach sand and are painted with a patented green and black ink on both sides of the cell. They are then stacked together and are sandwiched with metal alloy. These skinny fuel cells utilize oxygen and various fuel sources to create electricity with no emissions. The end result of this cutting edge technology is changing the way people generate & consume energy. The number one benefit of the Bloom Box is unlike solar and wind power, it’s produces continuous and reliable energy 24/7 365 days a year. Therefore it has the capacity to provide everyone with clean, reliable and affordable power.

K.R. Sridhar, CEO of Bloom Energy originally invented the technology for NASA to produce oxygen on Mars. When the project was scrapped by NASA, Sridhar reversed his Mars machine and started pumping oxygen in instead of producing oxygen. After proving the effectiveness and versatility of his Bloom Box, Sridhar is setting very ambitious goals for setting up a Bloom Box server at the White House, as well as placing them in every American home within 10 years and creating opportunity for the product to be in homes worldwide.

Since July 2008 the Bloom Energy Servers have collectively produced over 11 million kilowatt hours of electricity - with C02 reductions estimated at 14 million pounds. The perspective of these statistics is comparable to powering 1000 American homes for a year and planting one million trees.

Bloom Energy was recently broadcast on 60 minutes. You can watch the episode here.

Is There a Green Light for the “Kia Ray” to Enter the Hybrid Market?

At the recently held 2010 Chicago Auto show, Kia unveiled a snazzy concept hybrid car “The Kia Ray” that turned a few heads at this prestigious show. Upon a first glance, this car proves to be very eye catching with its EcoDynamic inspired design. This amazing four seat compact sedan has a proposed mileage range of about 746 miles with an impressive fuel rating of 202 mpg. The battery alone can power the car for about 50 miles on a single charge. This truly green car reduces its carbon footprint by utilizing roof top cool glazing solar glass and recycled materials whenever possible

Kia’s popularity has been gaining momentum in the US market since it’s official entry into the market in 1994. Recently Kia opened a plant in Georgia employing 2,500 people and creating an additional 7,500 jobs in the surrounding area. Their best quarter sales were stated in 2009. They continue to diligently and methodically market themselves and are spreading their consumer awareness through providing an affordable vehicle and a solid 10 year 100,000 mile warranty.

If you are curious about how the various Kia vehicles perform, rent a Kia on your next vacation or road trip. Budget, Hertz, Thrifty, Dollar, National & Alamo all provide Kia car rentals. Do your own research, make your own decision and remember, invest your money wisely. Choose companies and products that resonate with your core beliefs.