Well if you haven't figured out from the title...I am going to profess to you that spraying your behind instead of wiping with toilet paper is greener...lol.

Come on people...think about it, you may find yourself asking: "But do I really need this?" I think Dr. Oz on Oprah put it best: "If you had pee or poop on your hand, you wouldn't wipe it off with paper would you? You'd wash it off." The Bathroom Bidet Sprayer let's you do that in the most efficient and comfortable way, much better than a traditional bidet.The savings on toilet paper will help your wallet in these tough economic times and help the environment at the same time!

Honestly, when I think of a bidet, the first thing that comes into my mind is some automatic cleaning thing that would come out of the toilet...but this is really nothing more than one of those extension sprayers from your kitchen sink, only this one is sitting near your toilet. You're able to really get in their and make sure your behind is really clean.

This would benefit the environment because less solid waste would be going into the sewer systems and you would also be preventing your dollars from reaching certain companies that are cutting down old growth forests so you can wipe.

I tried this bathroom sprayer and I must say, that it's nice to know that everything is really clean back their. People should really pay more attention to how clean their bum is after wiping...ya know...it's sort of just common sense.

Now besides saving trees and reducing waste their are other benefits:
1. Superior Personal Cleaning
2. More Convenient and Faster than Toilet Paper
3. Helps with Hemorroids and Rectal Itch
4. Makes Washing Cloth Diapers a Breeze
5. Great for Cleaning In and Around the Toilet

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It may seem strange to devote an entire article to vehicle acceleration and braking. Maybe it isn’t normal for drivers to consider the implications of stopping and going in their cars. Regardless of how often we think about the effects of driving our cars, they are having an impact on the environment.

The Environmental Protection Agency reports that releasing carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere in large amounts may contribute to permanent changes in Earth’s climate. According to fueleconomy.gov, a typical car produces 6 to 9 tons of CO2 yearly and "highway vehicles account for 26% of U.S. CO2 emissions (1.7 billion tons each year)". Many Americans rely on their cars as their primary mode of transportation. Investing in more fuel-efficient cars or switching to public transit could help reduce CO2 emissions, but many drivers simply cannot take advantage of those options.

There is a tool available to help drivers significantly reduce emissions from their cars. New Potato Technologies is a creative design firm interested in technology projects that reduce negative human impact on the environment. In order to put an environmentally-friendly tool in the hands of the growing population of iPhone™ owners, the development team at New Potato designed MyMPG™, a fuel-saver application for iPhone™ and iPod touch®.

The basic design of MyMPG is immediately easy to understand. It teaches you how to make small changes in your driving that lead to big savings on gas. A scale on the main screen of MyMPG changes color with acceleration and braking. Inefficient driving causes MyMPG to send out a sound while the scale jumps from green to yellow to red. Efficient driving keeps the scale in the green, helping drivers learn that easing off the accelerator and brakes saves gas. MyMPG also includes a way to enter gas fill-up information at the pump, and a graph that provides details of your fuel consumption and costs.

You don’t have to be tech-savvy to understand what makes MyMPG useful. A little research through Edmunds.com or fueleconomy.gov will reveal that slower acceleration and braking can result in as much as a 35% improvement in gas mileage. To put it in more global terms, if 100,000 people used MyMPG and each saved 100 gallons of gas this year, this would translate to 10 million gallons of gas saved. Although that information might have been good to learn back in Driver’s Ed, MyMPG can help people learn how to drive to make a difference now.

MyMPG is currently available in the iTunes® App Store?. To get some more of the story, you can visit the developer’s website at new-potato.com.

MyMPG is brought to you by New Potato, an Apple Developer and a creative design firm located on the sunny shores of North Carolina. Please contact Sarah Sheffield at sarah@new-potato.com with any comments or questions about MyMPG.

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^{Plastic bag photo credit to rphlegm on Flickr}

Save The Bay Introduces ‘Bucks for the Bay’ Challenge

The statistics are scary. Every year, residents of the San Francisco Bay area use more than 3.8 billion plastic bags. Of these, more than 1 million bags end up in the Bay, threatening wildlife and the overall health of the ecosystem. But plastic bags aren’t the only concern. Pollution and sprawl are major threats to the environmental health of the area.

Thankfully, San Francisco Bay has found a champion in Save The Bay – the largest regional organization working to protect, restore and celebrate the Bay. This summer University of Phoenix has committed their support to the cause by matching individual donations dollar-for-dollar (up to $40,000) before Aug. 31.

Every donation makes a difference – whether its $5 or $500 – and in this case, you get to feel like you’re giving twice as much! Plus, donors also get the opportunity to download a Bay screensaver and images to use as desktop backgrounds.

You can find more information at http://savesfbaygallery.org/landing.html

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The Portland Bureau of Transportation is studying bike sharing as a possible tool to increase the number of bicycle trips and the number of people using bicycles for transportation and recreation.

Although over 100 bike sharing systems are in use internationally, Washington DC and Montreal, Quebec are the only North American cities that have installed the latest iteration of bike sharing systems. Bikes are usually checked out by a credit card or Smart Card at an un-staffed kiosk adjacent to the parked bicycles.

More information is available at: http://www.portlandonline.com/transportation/bikesharing

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^{Photo courtesy of mosmancouncil on Flickr}
Today the Oregon DEQ posted a news release to announce that they have received almost collected 10 million pounds of television sets, monitors, and computers in the first 6 months of the Oregon E-cycle Program. The state originally estimated that they would collect 12 million pounds for the entire year.

The Oregon E-Cycles Program, which provides free, convenient recycling of televisions, computers and monitors throughout the state, collected 9.54 million pounds of waste for recycling during its first six months, far above originally projected rates. The program, which launched Jan. 1, originally projected collection of 12.2 million pounds of material throughout 2009.

The total amount of electronic waste collected at the more than 200 collection sites in Oregon in April, May and June was 4.81 million pounds, up slightly from 4.73 million pounds tallied for the first three months. Of the 9.54 million-pound total for the first half of 2009, more than half (56 percent) was from collection of televisions, 33 percent from monitors and 11 percent from computers.

Unwanted computers, monitors and TVs – referred to as electronic waste or "e-waste" – is the fastest growing waste stream in the U.S. With technology constantly changing, we replace our electronics every few years. In 2007 alone, Americans generated about 232 million units of computer and TV-related e-waste, only 18% of which was recycled. In addition, it’s estimated that 235 million more units are stored in our basements, closets and garages.

Did You Know?

According to the U.S. EPA, 40% of lead and 70% of other toxics found in landfills – including mercury, cadmium and polybrominated flame retardants - are from electronics.

E-Cycling Conserves Natural Resources
Electronics contain valuable materials – including copper, gold and aluminum – that can be recycled and used in new products. Recycling these materials prevents the need to extract virgin materials, conserving natural resources.

E-Cycling Reduces Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Using recycled materials consumes less energy than using virgin materials to make new products. Because less energy is consumed, less greenhouse gases are emitted.

E-Cycling Protects Our Health and Environment
Electronics contain a host of hazardous substances. Even small amounts of these toxics can be dangerous if released into the air, water and soil. E-cycling protects our health and environment by keeping these substances out of our landfills and incinerators.

Where can I find an Oregon E-Cycles collector? Click here for Oregon E-Cycles collection sites and services near you.

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^{Fremont Bridge, looking to the Pearl District, courtesy BikePortland.org}

Yes today was the annual Portland Bridge Pedal where thousands of Portland's bicyclists come out of the wood works to get a chance to bike across ALL of Portland's bridges.

A big thanks goes to BikePortland.org for taking these BREATHTAKING, AMAZING, BEAUTIFUL aerial photos of the event today.

Portland's Bridge Pedal is described as Iconic as it boasts 20,000 bicyclists strong. People have reported the event as very peaceful and successful. Words cannot describe these aerial photos, so I will just leave you all to ponder...

All the photos in this post are thanks to Bike Portland. Check out his really cool blog for everything about the Portland Bike Culture.

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Portland is in an unofficial race with San Francisco to be the first city to Electrify itself for EV's. I think that Portland, Oregon is now on top with a recent infusion of stimulus funds according to the Portland Business Journal. The journal wrote that Oregon was chosen as an electric vehicle testing market. The state of Oregon will receive 1,000 new Nissan Leaf EV's and funding for 2,500 charging stations by late 2010. The program will start out in Portland and then expand into Salem, Corvallis, and Eugene.

Three other Oregon companies will receive stimulus funds related to the building of an EV infrastructure. Since I am an owner of an Electric Scooter, I cannot wait for Portland to install more of these charging stations around downtown.

It looks like Portland will have one up against San Francisco in the Great Electric Vehicle Race as gas2.org points out.

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Safeway’s BRIGHT GREEN CLEAN TEAM will set out to clean up various public locations in Portland along with local volunteer organizations. The Portland community clean up will be the fifth stop of an extended six-city clean up campaign that will display Safeway’s new BRIGHT GREEN home care cleaning product line in a manner that actually makes a difference in the community and champions the importance of environmental responsibility.

Franklin High School Girls Varsity Soccer Team will be collaborating with Safeway’s BRIGHT GREEN CLEAN TEAM to clean up the Oregon Zoo, Saturday August 8th from 12pm - 2pm. Their will also be a cleanup at from 4pm-9pm @ Pioneer Courthouse Square.

Safeway’s Focus on Green

BRIGHT GREEN products are a part of Safeway’s greater company wide commitment to the environment. Safeway created a Greenhouse Gas Reduction Initiative to manage its carbon footprint, address climate change and reduce air pollution. Its conscientious commitment to environmental practices include being one of the largest retail purchasers of renewable wind energy in the U.S.; launching a solar power program to convert two dozen California stores to solar energy; implementing energy-saving strategies in stores by installing energy-efficient refrigeration technology and freezer systems and using LED lighting to significantly reduce electricity usage; and operating an extensive recycling program in which nearly 500,000 tons of materials are recycled each year. Safeway also offers reusable bags to customers and has plastic bag recycling programs at many stores.

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^{Telecommute (photo thanks to _e.t on Flickr)}

Telecommuting and outsourcing are really starting to take off as the worldwide economic crisis is forcing employers to find new ways to reduce costs and increase employee productivity.

At first, the thought of letting an employee work unsupervised at home may be a terrifying experience for managers. But if you trust your staff to be self-motivated in their work, the payoffs can be huge. The following is a short list of environmental benefits of telecommuting:

Outsourcing is a great money-saving option for companies looking to reduce HR costs. The software industry understands this, and has been outsourcing to India for years. Now, the trend is starting to take off in other areas of business as well.

What’s most exciting about this trend is that it shows how environmental stewardship and the free market economy can work closely together in a frictionless partnership. These 2 ideologies don’t have to be in conflict with each other.

Of course, the system isn’t perfect. From an IT and disaster-planning perspective, this move can be particularly challenging.

Most companies today will manually back up their computer data to some sort of physical digital media on a nightly basis. Some examples include backup tapes, DVDs, external hard drives, etc...

This is fine for corporate servers and systems physically housed in the main office, but it can quickly become a logistical nightmare when it comes to managing remote systems such as laptops. In fact, the Ponemon institute recently released a study that showed 42% of business travelers do not back up their data.

For this, and many other reasons, companies are turning to “cloud-based” or Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) systems for their data protection. SaaS data protections services, such as online backup, allow companies to effortlessly manage multiple remote locations without having to invest in additional equipment, staffing, or licensing.

SaaS backup systems are 100% digital, and send data over the internet using a secure connection. This means no more lost, stolen, or broken backup tapes. Also, because these systems are fully-automated, your IT staff can devote their time to more productive activities within the organization.

Of course, as your company grows, the task of managing these remote systems will eventually get much more complicated. That’s why it’s important to choose a provider that offers a centralized management portal. This way, you can manage accounts in bulk and group users into functional categories. This will ensure more efficient administration and fewer potential configuration errors.

For more information on telecommuting, I’d strongly recommend checking out COI.com’s excellent guide, filled with up-to-date content and resources. And if your company is planning to take advantage of the telecommuting trend, make sure to first implement a disaster recovery plan that’s able to handle it.

About The Author:

Storagepipe Solutions provides email archiving, online backup and server backup solutions that help companies manage the complexities of telecommuting and operating through many geographically-dispersed remote locations. Storagepipe also writes periodic IT management articles for CIO.com.

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I am always open and willing to try new ways to green my routine and everyday living. As I was getting ready one morning it hit me how much of a process it is to get ready. For a girl it may require more steps in being fully ready and groomed in the morning but there is plenty to learn for both guys and gals here. I've compiled some of my favorite tips for saving energy, conserving water, and consuming less overall, just in getting ready for the day.

You're alarm goes off and you groggily shuffle with half opened eyes to the bathroom. You grab your tooth brush and proceed to brush those pearly whites. And then next (if you're a guy) you will usually shave. First thing you can change about this picture here is to make sure that toothpaste and shaving cream is natural since most of these products contain phenols and carcinogenic chemicals that can be ingested by the skin and absorbed by the body. Choose toothpaste without artificial dyes, SLS, silica and other harmful ingredients and try shaving cream made with almond or coconut oils. Oh and never leave the water running while brushing or shaving!

Check your thermostat - Before hopping into that shower, check the temperature on your water heater. Changing the setting from 140° to 120° can save you up to 10 percent in energy bills!

Use Less water - I think most of can admit that sitting under hot flowing water is relaxing and leaves you with the feeling that you never want to get out of the shower. Well its time to be strong and pull yourself away from being seduced by the ever so relaxing hot water. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that a typical shower head uses two gallons of water per minute. If you take a 15 minute shower that's 30 gallons of water! Switching to a low flow shower head can also help in cutting down some water usage.

Let your hair air dry (for ladies mainly) - If you can manage some extra time in the morning then skip the blow drying. It is way better for your hair since blow drying sucks the moisture right out of your hair and makes it easily breakable. Towel dry your hair and then brush it straight. Run your fingers through it and give it a toss frequently. Doing this instead of blow drying will save a considerable amount of energy. Try to keep in mind to only blow dry when absolutely necessary. There are also energy efficient blow dryers and straighteners out there that use less watts than others do.

Get rid of the vinyl - A lot of us use or have used vinyl shower curtains in the past. just say goodbye to the PVC. Polyvinyl Chloride is the fancy name for vinyl and creates a nasty chemical called Dioxin during manufacturing use and disposal. Dioxin is a known carcinogen that can also disrupt hormonal systems and may cause reproductive and immune system damage. So don't bring any #3 plastic, vinyl, or PVC into your life.

Ditch the razors - 2 billion disposable plastic razors are purchased each year. Eventually they get tossed into the landfill. A more permanent razor with changeable razor heads would be a better choice to help reduce waste.

Your cup of coffee - Fair trade Organic is the way to go. Carry a stainless steel mug with you to work or school.

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Guerrilla gardening is a practice that many avid environmentalists use as a form of activism in land use. It simply the practice of planting food crops or decorative flowers/plants/or trees on land that does not belong to them. People who do it, sometimes do it in the secrecy of night, while others blatantly tend to gardens on other peoples property during the day.

The term also goes hand in hand with seed bombs or seed grenades. Seed bombs are used to throw seeds that will grow in unused or ugly land/lots. There is some land that I can think of that needs some seed bombing near my home.

If you plan to plant a guerrilla garden or if you plan to seed bomb...then using drought resistant species is important if you want better chances of your plants survival.

Please know that you possibly could get in trouble for seed bombing or guerrilla gardening. However, usually people are more welcome to the idea of nice flowers, trees, bushes, or crops being in a place where ugly barren unused land once was.

If you have before and after pictures of seed bombs or guerrilla gardens you've done, send us an email to JT [at] theEnvironmentalblog.org and we'll post em up.

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Bombs Away!

How have some decided to fight back against deforestation and desertification caused by humans?

With "Seed bombs!" a person named Jin Wook and some friends came up with the idea of seed bombs and the seed bomb mission. Mission seed bomb utilizes an aircraft carrying charges full of seed capsules. The capsules are dispersed over areas where natural vegetation has died due to deforestation and desertification.

The special seed bomb capsules that are dropped over these lands simply contain soil and seeds housed in biodegradable plastic. While the soil provides nutrients and moisture the seeds grow inside the capsule that is slowly melting away. By the time the capsule has melted the new life inside is strong enough in theory to continue on it’s own. Although these seed bombs are not being dropped quite yet botanists are currently researching the kind of seeds that will best be suited for the seed bombs. Pretty Cool!

To Make Seed Bombs

Set the balls on newspaper and allow to dry for 24 - 48 hours. Store in a cool, dry place until ready to sow.

Seed bombing is also known as "Seed Grenades". A seed bomb can also be a compressed clod of soil containing live vegetation that may be thrown onto empty lots or ugly unused land. The first seed grenades were made from condoms filled with local wildflower seeds, water and fertilizer. The seed grenades were tossed over fences onto empty lots in New York City in order to make the neighborhoods look better. It was the start of the Guerrilla Gardening movement.

Written by our contributor Steve Allen

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^{Courtesy of Allard1 on Flickr}

So many of us are trying to get in shape for the swimsuit season or just like to keep fit and healthy. Some of us dread going to the gym or going for a daily run, while others may enjoy it. Well if you make the choice to get out there and do your mind, body, and spirit some good, then brownie points for you! The next step maybe to think about greening your workout as best as possible. You don't need a gym membership so that the extreme regular gym goers can intimidate you into thinking to yourself "I can never look like that!" Forget that business! All you need is a pair of shoes. So let's get to some things you can do that will feel great and be eco friendly all at the same time. Here is our list of 5 ways to green your exercise routine:

1) Blow the dust off your bicycle and get involved with your community. If you've put it off in the past for fear of riding alone, there are many bicycle groups within communities across the nation. And if you don't own a bicycle, search the ads in your area and get one used (another way to green your routine). Riding your bike is free and helps you be one with the nature around you!

2) If you do choose to join a gym then pick one closest to your home. Then you can either walk, run, or bike there. This will cut down on carbon emissions and save you some gas money from driving, and possibly save you parking fees.

3) Lace up your shoestrings and just run. Running in the outdoors is the best form of cardio exercise (in my opinion). Actually out of all motorized pieces of fitness equipment, treadmills use the most energy. So why waste energy when there is the beautiful outdoors to enjoy? There may be some psychological perks as well. Their could be mental health benefits of exercise while working out in the fresh air. A study conducted by the City University of New York found that women who regularly exercised outdoors in parks felt that nature helped to revitalize their senses and restore their mental capacity. A similar study conducted by the University of Essex revealed that individuals exposed to images of the outdoors while exercising reported higher levels of self-esteem post-workout than those who were not. Personally I find that going for a jog on a nice day is a great way to clear your head and gather your thoughts. Being cooped up in a gym makes my mind focused only on the calories I'm burning, which sometimes leads to more stress and pressure.

4) Purchase a reusable water bottle. It's probably one of the more important things you can do. Since 38 billion plastic bottles go into landfills in the US each year. Plastic bottles take up to 1000 years to biodegrade. Also regular water bottles contain chemicals that may leak into your water...yikes! There are many reusable water bottles out there on the market that can fit whatever activity you may need it for. Besides that one time use water bottles are wasteful.

5) Eat Organically and Wear Naturally. Before your workout you will need some kind of food in your tummy, so make sure its energizing fresh and organic. Skip the artificial stuff and processed foods. Go with something light like an organic energy bar. Also if you feel like a new pair of yoga pants or biking shorts will help get you motivated to get into a green routine, then go with organic fabrics with soy and and organic cotton blends.

Don't forget to check out our tips on swimming green and tips on green summer fun.

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For those parent's out there that are concerned about toys being hazardous or toxic with all those recalls and lead scares lately, not to worry because purchasing toys will be a worry free activity (as it should be). The EcoLogo program has kicked off its first environmental standard for toys. EcoLogo is recognized worldwide and is the largest most respected environmental standard and certification mark.

You can be assured when buying a product with the EcoLogo that it has met strict standards and was produced to be as sustainable as possible. For the past few years many toy companies were marketing with the terms "all natural" or "earth friendly" with no proof to back it up. Can we say green washing? Over the next 12-18 months EcoLogo will be working to develop environmental standards for toys.

So there will no more misleading labels that can make you wonder if that plastic bumble bee your baby is teething on is toxic free. Scot Case, executive director of the EcoLogo Program, said in a statement, "The new EcoLogo standard will define clear criteria that products must meet before they can claim environmental leadership." There should be a peace of mind about what toys you choose to purchase for your children, and with a non profit organization like this, finally there will be.

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I am not sure if there is such a thing as being TOO GREEN, but I often find myself giving dirty looks to people in LARGE VEHICLES (especially when there is only one driver in it and they are not using it to tow cargo). I do drive a car for work like most, but I do drive a hybrid just for the purposes of work. When I come home, the car stays parked and goes not a single mile until my work week starts anew. On my days off, I happily walk, bike, and take public transportation to all my needs as I live in downtown Portland, Oregon.

When I go grocery shopping, I always bring my own re-usable bags (especially since their durable). When asked for paper or plastic, I often times find myself snobbishly saying "neither" with an uninviting tone. I am not proud of my eco-snobbery, but I do try to do my part. Some people claim that we never smile. That may be true during the long rainy winters in the Pacific Northwest, but we ARE happy when the sun comes out.

I also DO think that if you are someone who claims to be "green" then you are likely to have been classified by someone else as an eco-snob. Their are some pretty obvious characteristics that make an eco-snob who they are. Most of the time it is out of their control...it just happens. They don't mean to be snobby or snarky, but often times their is a feeling of being better then the other guy because 'you' made the better choice for the environment.

There are plenty of signs to watch out for when on the lookout for eco-snobs. Beware of their favorite hang out spots such as the local farmer's markets, any Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, or local Health Food Store (especially co-ops). They also like to hang in packs of bicycles in downtowns with flashy lights and hipster clothes. I even saw one them riding down the street with a boombox attached to the back of their bicycle with blaring indie music. Below is my unofficial list of How to Spot an Eco-Snob for yourself.

The Environmental Blog's Unofficial List of How to Spot an Eco-Snob

Beware of those that wear earthy clothing

Their are plenty more out their, if you have any more ideas, please share them in the comment section...this could get fun =P

**Note: This post is not intended to offend anyone, it is simply intended to be comical**

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