January 12, 2011
National Commission Final Report on BP Oil Spill
written by Steven Barrymore

The National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill And Offshore Drilling has issued the Final Report to the President. The final report, Deep Water — The Gulf Oil Disaster and the Future of Offshore Drilling, featuring fiery cover art is available through the Government Printing Office or Amazon for $39. For immediate gratification you can download the pdf version at the link below.

The Commission’s Highlights of Key Recommendations contain a lot of “should”. But one recommendation that stood out is “The oil and gas industry must adopt a culture of safety.”

If you need to occupy your time on a flight from San Francisco to London, or a cozy read in front of the fireplace, this 380 page turner may be ideal.


Link: National Commission Final Report on BP Oil Spill

October 5, 2010
Bay Area Green Drive Expo — Consumer Event
posted by Steven Barrymore

On October 9, 2010 the San Francisco Bay Area will host the first consumer expo dedicated to ecofriendly vehicles including hybrid, plug-in, and ev. Join over 35 exhibitors and sponsors at this evolutionary event. This hands-on event will showcase alternative energy source vehicles including electric, hybrid, natural gas, hydrogen and other vehicles. Test drive the new Toyota Plug-In Prius and upcoming technologies from Ford. There will be an Owners Showcase so private owners can show off their vehicles (website states that registration is closed for new entries).

Panel sessions throughout the event will feature industry leaders, nationally known experts and the grass roots sector.

Date: October 9, 2010
Time: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Where: Craneway Pavilion is located at
1414 Harbour Way South, Richmond, CA 94804
Cost of Admission: Adults $10* at the door

Mitsubishi iMiEV all-electric car (photo credit: Mitsubishi Motors)

July 24, 2010
Get Rid of Your Used Batteries By Oct 1, 2010
written by Steven Barrymore

Have you been throwing used batteries in the trash? This is bad for the environment and may be illegal. California Department of Toxic Substances Control has a Universal Waste rule banning batteries from being thrown in the trash and must be disposed of at an appropriate recycling center.

Call2Recycle has a challenge in place for all North Americans – Recycle (one) 1 million pounds of batteries by Oct 1, 2010. Call2Recyle is encouraging the drop-off of used rechargeable batteries and cell phones for their program at any of Call2Recycle’s 30,000 public drop-off locations.

A million pounds is not that much. I probably have a two pound bag of batteries headed to a recycling center, and I am only one person. What are the other 300 million Americans doing with their used batteries?

All used rechargeable and regular batteries Single Use Batteries, AAA, AA, C, D, button cell, 9-volt, you may have lying around from TV remotes, digital cameras, battery operated toys need to be recycled at any appropriate recycling center. These batteries contain Cadmium, Copper and in some older batteries, Mercury. Not stuff I want to find leaching into my drinking water.

For a list of recycling centers near you. Go online at Earth911, and enter your zip code for a list of available resources.

What inspires you to recycle? Create a video and enter at MyCall2Recycle for a chance to win cutting-edge wireless gadgets. I was hoping for something that did not need batteries, like a pony, or free groceries for a month — but, cutting-edge wireless gadgets are cool too.


Via: TreeHugger

Image Courtesy: Call2Recycle

PHEV bumper sticker

July 21, 2010
EPA National Water Conservation Campaign Road Trip
written by Steven Barrymore

The EPA has launched the WaterSense program designed to encourage Americans to make better choices to save water. In partnership with American Water, the WaterSense program will go on a road trip across the country educating consumers about WaterSense products which can save about 20 percent water over standard non-conserving models.

The road trip kicked off in Los Angeles, California on July 14 and is scheduled to reach New York by July 30 after stopping in over a dozen cities across the nation.

The 2009 EPA WaterSense program helped consumers save more than 36 billion gallons of water. Learn more about the road trip and if it will be in a city near you: Road Trip.


Link: EPA