The largest modular green roof ever installed, a beautiful 2.3 acres, is now happily growing atop the new “Court at Upper Providence” shopping center in Pennsylvania. The project was created using GreenGrid modules; which are made with recycled plastic and contain small but hardy plants like sedums. From the release,

Project developers were committed to using a green roof system to minimize the stormwater runoff and associated impacts on the surrounding watershed from these buildings. Occupants will also benefit from potential energy savings during hot summer months when the GreenGrid® system keeps the roof cooler than exposed roof surface. “We believe the benefits of adding a green roof to this large a project far outweighs the additional costs. We are not speaking of economic benefits, but of environmental benefits to our county: reducing stormwater runoff from the site, adding plant life and their beneficial air quality impact, and reducing the energy used by the retailers,” added Fred Levin, of The Highland Development Group, Ltd.

Damn. First the CIA gets a green roof and now a shopping mall? Would you even believe these developments a few years ago? So cool to see green building becoming a part of everyday projects across America. Rockin’.

I’ve got nothing against my bland square mattress — it gets the job done — but looking at this photo just makes sleep time seem that much cooler with the Float Bed. Of course, I live nowhere near the ocean, so this might look a little awkward in my house; but I digress.

The Float Bed comes to us from designer David Trubridge of New Zealand. His new company, Okooko, is an eco-friendly mattress and bedroom-furniture company. It’s a modern take on the traditional canopy bed — and is made of natural latex, bamboo and wool. From the product description,

“In exploring what sleep means to people, David came to the conclusion that beds needed to be more romantic, and more flexible in their design and application. The design elements drawn on in his concept come from the idea that the bed could be moved and used wherever required. The concept forms a cocooning space that gives a feeling of security and serves the purpose of sheltering sleep from the elements, creating a private sleep space within another space.”

Very cool — though as a kid, a couple cardboard boxes and a sheet would have created the same effect. As an adult, if you’d like to grab the Float Bed to recreate those memories, it will cost you $25,000. And it doesn’t even really float! Damnit!

When does a streetlight stop becoming something ordinary and turn into a self-sustaining work of art? Apparently, once it finds its way to Japan. Outside the Panasonic Center in Tokyo, one is greeted with several streetlights that incorporate both solar and wind energy systems. The design is called a ‘Seagull’ and takes advantage of light during the day to store energy for night; while producing electricity to push back into the grid thanks to the wind. The vertical turbine on this pole doesn’t appear to require too much wind to turn. No idea what the payback on this might be, but it’s certainly cool to see it in motion.

53 year-old Eddie House was proud of his efforts to reduce his waste. Being concerned for the environment, the single bachelor found that his sustainable habits left him with near-zero garbage. With nothing left to throw out that couldn’t be recycled or composted, he did what any individual might do to go the next mile: canceled his garbage service. As a reward for reducing his impact on the planet, House received a lawsuit from the San Carlos Deputy City Attorney claiming he was in violation of not maintaining garbage service. Wow. From the article,

The lawsuit claims House broke the city’s municipal code requiring all residential, commercial and industrial properties to contract with Allied Waste for pickup at least once a week — a standard requirement in most cities, San Carlos Deputy City Manager Brian Moura said. “It’s just me and my dog, so I don’t have a whole lot of garbage to begin with and I recycle everything,” he said.
Read More

National Geographic has a story about how the West in America is going to dry up in the future. Turns out the past 100 years is the especially wet period for this area, not the norm. That spells trouble for a lot of people, depending on how dry it might get.

Football player Tony Gonzalez has gone Vegan. That’s a big boy.

Treehugger has a survey up asking readers how they are planning to spend the rebate checks, if we get them. You should vote in it. The Green Options network also has a story about the stimulus package. I have yet to meet anyone who is going to spend it on much more than a small amount of things.

Our opinion on what you should do with it? Use it bulk up your food savings. Pick up some large packages of beans, rice, wheat and other supplies so you won’t be unprepared in the future. After that, look for cheap ways you can raise the efficiency of your house. Insulation, making rain barrels, starting a garden. Whatever you do, don’t go buying a plasma TV. If that’s one of your choices just save it, which you could do anyway.

Read More

While your busy making all those cool green upgrades in and around your house, don’t forget that your four-legged friends might also want a piece of the action. Well, at least that’s what one company called Sustainable Pet Design believes. They’ve introduced “Green Roof Animal Homes” that ‘smell good, grow plants, attract butterflies, filter water, insulate, and repeal fleas naturally.’

Each home is custom-built and uses only non-toxic materials, including untreated red cedar planks, zero-VOC paint, and beeswax waterproofing. All vegetation for the green roof is native to the region you live in.

Pretty cool idea — and something nice for those that would prefer not to take a hands-on approach. Otherwise, we’re pretty sure creating something similar wouldn’t be too difficult for the novice carpenter inside you. You might even be further encouraged to take that path when you see the starting prices for an extra-small green doghouse are just around $1,000. Want a really cool big one? $6K.

Makes me glad I have a porch for my pooch.

A company named Marquiss Wind Power has successfully finished raising $1.3 million for development of its Ducted Wind Turbines. Unlike their much larger counterparts, ducted turbines are boxy and stand about 19ft tall. Despite what appears to be aerodynamic disadvantages, this shape actually allows the turbine to re-orient itself according to the direction of air flow; something that can be a bit random in urban centers. The ducting is intended to increase wind speed as it approaches the blades. According to the website, these factors combine to allow the power output from the MWP turbine to exceed that of any traditionally designed comparable turbine. From the article,

At the moment, two models are sold — one intended for areas with wind speeds of 6-10 mph, and another for higher average speeds. The turbines are intended for buildings between one and three stories tall.

It sure ain’t elegant — but there’s a lot of science at play with this design. I especially like that AeropointT500 can operate in low wind speeds. I have no ideas on price — but hopefully that $1.3 million will go a long way to fleshing this product out a bit more.

A news story today discusses Monsanto and how they have obtained approval to release a genetically engineered sugar beet onto the market. You’ll be shocked to hear that the beet has been modified to live when Roundup is sprayed on it.

From the article:

“The law requires the government to take a hard look at the impact that deregulating Roundup Ready sugar beets will have on human health, agriculture and the environment,” said Greg Loarie, an attorney at the Earthjustice law firm, which is helping represent the plaintiffs. “The government cannot simply ignore the fact that deregulation will harm organic farmers and consumers, and exacerbate the growing epidemic of herbicide-resistant weeds.”

Read More

Viva la France! French engineer Guy Nègre has been working on the concept of an air-powered car for the past 15 years. Thanks to a new contract with India’s main car manufacturer, Tata Motors, Nègre’s technology is about to reap the benefits of a major corporate backer; not to mention access to a massive, growing market. Geeks Are Sexy lays out the details on the tech,

“The principle that makes this car work is very simple. Instead of using gas to create an explosion and make the pistons move, the vehicle’s engine is powered via three compressed air tanks located under its chassis. Environmentally speaking, this means all that goes out the exhaust pipe is cold, pure air, which can even be used as an air-conditioning source on a hot summer day.”

Read More

It doesn’t come in green, but Philips’ new 42-inch Eco TV is certainly sporting some earth-friendly credentials.

Announced at CES 2008, this television is packed with power-saving features; something a few of my off-grid friends might find interesting when considering their next (or first) television. From the article,

“Chief among them is the ability to dim the backlight–by up to five times peak brightness–in response to program material, much like the “local dimming” found on Samsung’s LED-based LN-T4681F. Dimming the backlight in darker scenes has the dual benefit of saving power and improving black-level performance, according to the company. The backlight can also be dimmed via a room lighting sensor, so in dark rooms it will use less power. There’s also traditional a “power-saving” mode that caps the peak light output.”

Read More