Green Lifestyle Blog

February 14th is tomorrow, and if you’re a last-minute shopper who is planning on buying a gift to show your love to that special someone, here’s some startling information to consider before you make any purchases: Supplying the U.S. with our traditional Valentine’s Day gifts causes a major amount of environmental damage and exploitation of workers in developing nations, resulting in severely compromised human health and well-being. Yikes! Not so romantic. Obviously, it’s a highly commercialized holiday and people feel pressured to buy something for their sweetheart, yet many consumers are unaware of the negative impacts that come with the traditional Valentine’s Day gifts of chocolate, flowers, gold, diamonds, lingerie, and greeting cards. So as not to kill the mood, I will spare you the depressing details and instead offer some green alternatives to buying these gifts.

I’ve been composting with worms for years in my apartment and have gotten pretty good at it. However, as a person obsessed with lowering the amount of waste they contribute, Vermicomposting left a lot to be desired. If you know something about it, you know that not everything can be processed by worms. You can’t compost things like meat, cheese, citrus, or onions. I like eating these things and that meant I just had to toss the scraps from this stuff into the regular garbage. I thought I had no choice and it was always kind of killing me…until I discovered Bokashi.

Bokashi is a method of composting that was developed by the Japanese a few decades ago and is now used in over 54 countries all over the world. Essentially, it relies on the natural high octane composting power of “Effective Microorganisms” (EM for short), bacteria like yeast and lactic acid which are found everywhere. These things normally break down our waste in nature over years, but in using a closed anaerobic Bokashi system, you can turbo charge the process and do it yourself.

So, who cares about the Science? Fine. Here’s how it works.

1) You get a bucket with a tight fitting lid.

2) You throw your waste into it. Anything goes; veggies, meat, cheese, eggs, paper, old cereal etc. You can even throw bones in but it will take a bit longer

3) Each layer of waste, sprinkle with a mixture of “Bokashi Bran” the medium for the bacteria (something you can make yourself like I did or buy in some specialty stores)

4) After 2 weeks, the PH and the putrefaction levels are changed so that the food is no longer rotting but actually pickled. Interestingly enough, it won’t look any different but chemically, it is. The caveat here is that Bokashi doesn’t smell like lavender or anything…but if kept airtight it should result in an almost sweet, vinegary smell.

5) Either bury this in your garden or compost pile where the rest of the decomposition process will be carried out odor free OR put it in your worm bin and have them turn it into compost that way

I’m setting a personal goal to throw out only one bag of landfill garbage a month and by using a combination of my existing worm bin and my new Bokashi bin, I’m confident I’ll be able to do that. Also, my trash bin doesn’t make me gag when I get near it. It’s really a win-win.

If you’d like to learn more about this amazing process, there are tons of resources on how to do it and also on how to make your own Bokashi Bran for free at home. As for now, I recommend this site:

http://mycrobz.com/bokashi-2/

Keep it green

By: Sam Harper

Lighting is one of the largest consumers of electricity and contributors to emissions in the United States. The US Energy Information Agency estimates that in 2010, 499 Billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity was consumed for lighting in residential and commercial buildings. This accounts for 13% of all electricity consumption! Fortunately, technology exists today that can reduce these numbers in a meaningful and affordable way.

There are four main categories of energy efficient light bulb categories to consider when selecting lighting options. Many can be used both indoors and outdoors; however, each has different pros and cons depending on its use. Light bulbs can be bought in a variety of forms and color for depending  on the application.

Incandescent bulbs are the standard bulb that with recognizable shape - think Thomas Edison and the light bulb image over someone's head representing a brilliant idea. New laws, though, are now in effect that will phase out older models due to their high energy consumption. Recent innovations have improved the efficiency of incandescent bulbs by using halogen gas and automatic controls that reduce power use by 25-30%. Look for these in the store.

A better option are fluorescent bulbs. They are now very affordable, 75% more efficient, and last 8 times longer than incandescent bulbs - meaning they pay for themselves for quickly by saving energy and materials. Fluorescent bulbs and come in a variety of shapes like long tubes or the very popular spiral shaped compact fluorescent lamp (CFL).

Other lighting options include light emitting diodes (LED), the next wave of technology featuring over 10 year life spans and higher efficiency. Gas discharge bulbs create high intensity light for large scale applications and can be the most efficient of all existing technologies, although they are not necessarily appropriate in a residential setting. To see a comparison of all these different categories and types of light bulbs, download our latest energy efficient lighting fact sheet, or visit the CCGT and see them for yourself.

By: Laura Murphy

Since the close of Green Depot - Chicago, I have been pondering where to stock up on non-toxic cleaners and asking friends about their favorite places, while also scoping out new sources and digging deeper at my current haunts. So far the results are encouraging.  

A good place to start is Green Home Experts in Oak Park, which carries several brands of cleaners (as well as health and beauty supplies) such as BioKleen, Earth Friendly, Mrs. Meyers and 7th Generation. If you want some help figuring out which products suits your lifestyle, check out Whole Foods’ “Eco-Scale” rating system.  Decide which ingredients you want to avoid and you can easily choose your cleaners by color code in the store.

As a former Target employee, I may be slightly biased.  But they have a fairly broad selection of green cleaners from Method, Mrs. Meyers, J.R. Watkins, GreenWorks and 7th Generation. However, you may run out of something mid-week and need a more convenient location to shop. Don’t overlook your local grocery or shopping spots!  I was looking for automatic dishwasher liquid and just by reading the label I realized the store brand (Reeva) liquid at ALDI is phosphate and chlorine-free...and under 3 bucks! Convenience stores have also been known to carry various eco-friendly items, especially when requested by regular customers.

At times specific items will be hard to locate, even in a big box retailers.  In those cases I’ve ordered from an online vendor like Soap.com or Drugstore.com. If you cleanup project includes minor repairs, don’t be hesitant to look for greener options at Home Depot.  These days it’s easy to find non-toxic paints, caulks, strippers and spackle.

Of course the best option may be already at home: making your own green cleaning products. The most common ingredients - distilled white vinegar, salt, lemon, baking soda, olive oil - are already readily available at any grocery store. And they are cheap too! There are few things that cannot be cleaned by using a home made product. Plenty of recipes are available on the internet.  

Let us and other readers know your favorite places in Chicago to find green, non-toxic or biodegradable cleaning supplies!

By: Steve Pincuspy

Biking is a healthy activity, and a great way to help with air pollution (goodbye tailpipes, hello clean air). While Chicago is a very bike friendly city, getting around town can be a little scary and at times dangerous without proper planning.

In order to avoid getting caught on a busy street without a bike lane, check out Ride the City website. Plug in your starting address and destination, then watch as it plots a bike friendly route. The interactive map shows both independent and shared bike lanes, as well as bike repair shops along your route.

Also check out The Chainlink, an online community for Chicago bicyclists, to get more route suggestions, safety tips, and resources. The City of Chicago's Bike Program has an online bike map, and includes more information about the Department of Transportation's bike initiatives - including the addition of dedicated bike lanes through out the city. Pick up a printed City Bike Map at CCGT the next time you visit.

By: Nicolas Galleguillos Riffo and Steve Pincuspy

Everyone wants to have a beautiful garden, and there are as many options and color combinations as people in Chicago. Residents who enjoy vegetable or ornamental gardens need to have plenty of time to care about care for them, a lot of money for chemicals product and vitamins, and a lot of water. Yet even with all this attention, the unusually hot and dry weather has left many plants already dead or dying. Fortunately, that is not the case at CCGT.

Thanks to our onsite native prairie and wetland, things are still green and flowering. Native plants are evolved to thrive in our natural conditions and once established require little maintenance. They can withstand a range of wet-to-dry conditions, and their long roots absorb more water. Plus, they are beautiful and attract birds and beneficial butterflies and insects. CCGT has a list of list of natives on-site, or check out the City of Chicago's recommended native plants list.

Also, the Sustainable Backyards Program is an educational and rebate incentive program offered by Chicago Department of Transportation. It highlights the many ways residents can create more environmentally-friendly landscapes, as well provides rebate forms for specific materials purchase by Chicago residents. The rebates can really add up, saving you money upfront. The use of natives also reduces maintenance costs overtime.

To find out where to purchase native plants download this list of Chicago-area retailers, or click on this Google map for their locations. Of course, CCGT has seminars on this subject and many more featuring local knowledgeable industry experts...and they're free! Check out our summer schedule for more information.

By: Nicolas Galleguillos Riffo 

What can people do with their old mattress? What should they do with their old refrigerator, sofa, or broken stove? If people cannot sell it or throw away it, where can they recycle these appliances?

If you want to help the environment by recycling, a good resource to start with is Earth911.com where you can find recycling centers for electronics, hazardous products (paints, pesticides, chemicals, etc), plastics, papers, metals, glass, furniture, carpet, and more in your city or suburbs.

Chicago residents can check out the City’s Recycling Program website, where they can learn more about the Blue Cart Recycling Program, what types of materials it accepts (paper, plastics, glass and cardboard), and where the residential recycling drop-off  locations are for people who do not yet have a blue cart. Click here to see a Google map featuring all drop-off locations.

Of course, CCGT has seminars on this subject and many more featuring local knowledgeable industry experts...and they're free! Check out our summer schedule for more information.

By: Steve Pincuspy

Everybody talks about green vegetated roofs. Yet what are the options for people who want to make their roof more environmentally friendly, but just don't want to spend the money on installing a vegetated roof system? There are a variety of paints and materials that can keep the roof 'cool' (i.e. it doesn't heat up as much in the summer time) while still bringing environmental performance.

A good place to start is with the Chicagoland Roofing Council, which has information on roof types and local contractors. Another source of information is the Cool Roofs Rating Council, which has a directory of cool roof (radiative) rated materials. Of course, CCGT has seminars on this subject and many more featuring local knowledgeably industry experts...and they're free. Check out our summer schedule for more information.