Green Greed is Good

Today being Earth Day, I had the pleasure (and/or annoyance) of having pretty much every e-mail in my inbox reference Earth Day in the subject line. Most of them were boring and standard ("Happy Earth Day," "Earth Day Resolutions," "Call Your Senator/Representative This Earth Day," or "It's Earth Day: Give Us Money!"), but one of them really stood out, and it was from one of my favorite daily newsletter senders: Urban Dictionary. Their tagline: "Green Greed."

Urban Dictionary defines Green Greed as "companies and people who don't care about the environment at all, except when it will make them money."

So that got me thinking: is green greed really that big of a problem? Sure, I won't pretend I'm not irked to see GM hopping on the green bandwagon (and making crazy money on it) after they spent 20 years convincing people to buy giant, unnecessary gas guzzling SUV's and after literally killing the electric car. But that fact of the matter is that with the help of GM, people will have more access to green transportation over the next few years then they would have if GM hadn't gotten on the bandwagon. At the end of the day, that's all that really matters right?

As I've said before, I do enjoy some things that aren't good for the environment, and it seems to me that the best way to make sure those things get greener, and the best way to make sure those greener versions get into the hands of ordinary 'Mericans, is to applaud green greed. That doesn't mean we need to forgive GM their sins, that we shouldn't take them to task for the problems they still have, or even that we need to be their #1 cheerleader. But as far as I am concerned, why companies go green is not nearly as important as that they do go green.

You know what -- I think that is my Earth Day resolution. To paraphrase the immortal Gordon Gekko: green greed is good -- just don't forget who you're dealing with.

How to Green Your Oil Change

An oil change can improve your car's gas economy and cut down on its pollutants (not to mention make it last longer and perform better). Just make sure you know where that used oil ends up.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), estimates nearly 200 million gallons of used motor oil are improperly disposed of in the US alone every year. That’s not chump change (oil?). The oil from a single change can contaminate one million gallons of water. That’s a year’s supply for 50 people!

Here are some tips from the EPA to ensure your oil change process is as clean and green as it can be:

• After draining the oil, but before removing the drip pan from under the car, close and secure the drain plug and check for leaks.
• If you are changing the oil filter, drain it for a minimum of 12 hours into a clean plastic container with a tight-fitting lid (do not use a container that once held chemicals, food, or beverages). Then, carefully pour the oil from the drip pan into the container.
• Reuse your drip pan; do not rinse residual oil down the drain or into your yard.
• If you do accidentally spill any oil, use absorbent material like sawdust or cat litter to clean the spill, then dispose of it in the trash.

But here's the best part: used motor oil isn’t just waste; it can be recycled to make new motor oil or processed into fuel oils or other materials. After you have changed your oil, take it to a local service station or recycling center that collects used motor oil for recycling (click here for a recycling directory). Some of these facilities will collect used filters as well. If they don’t, make sure to check with your local waste collection service before you dump it in your trash can.

If you are really into using as little oil as possible, a 2008 study conducted by the California Integrated Waste Management Board shows that many vehicles can go more than the standard 3,000 miles between oil changes. I still have trouble believing that is good for your car or your cars performance, so make sure to balance your choices – and like I said before, changing your oil can reduce your cars emissions and improve fuel economy. You want to be sure you aren’t saving one tree by cutting another one down!

Image provided by Robert Couse-Baker

Proof That It Always Makes Sense To Turn Off The Lights

This is an old episode, but I recently had a discussion with a friend on this very topic so I thought I should post the answer here. The question: does it ever make sense to leave a light bulb on when you leave a room if you are going to come right back? The simple answer: NO. I'll leave the rest up to the MythBusters:

Mythbusters lightbulb experiment - Watch more Videos at Vodpod.