Evergreen takes on new meaning this season with gifts that give back to the Earth.
Does this sound like you? You are doing The Right Thing. You are thinking globally and acting locally. You eat what's in season, and you buy it at the farmers market. You opt for paper at the grocery store; you recycle the bags. You compost. Maybe you even drive a hybrid.
My recent column on vampire energy -- also known as standby power -- generated well-deserved heat. Standby power is the energy wasted when electronic products are turned off, but plugged into an outlet.
Contamination in sugar fields, though typical, could add tens of millions of dollars in cleanup costs to a proposed Everglades restoration land deal.
'Drought-tolerant'' is a characteristic high on every gardener's plant list these days since water restrictions are about to become permanent.
For the past five years, office supply giant Office Depot has trumpeted green initiatives to environmentally conscious consumers in the United States.
Trappers prowl the canals of South Florida in search of iguanas to capture and sell. But Broward County commissioners believe the practice needs regulation.
Miami leaders have ambitious plans to turn the city into a bicycle-friendly metropolis. They start with Bike Miami, an event next month the city hopes will become a regular happening.
Flexible, thin film solar panels offer increased efficiency, better hurricane resistance and can be installed like conventional roofing materials.
Two South Florida women have created a virtual Little Green House -- an online business selling eco-friendly products for activities ranging from walking the dog to remodeling the kitchen.
As the temperature rises, so too does the cost of cooling your home. Last week Florida Power & Light revealed plans to seek a 16 percent hike in electric rates in August. That makes it even more important to conserve energy. The following suggestions, put together by the U.S. Department of Energy and Alliance to Save Energy, can both help residents stay cool and save on electric bills.
A court ruling requiring FEMA to consider endangered species before issuing federal flood insurance could have ripple effects in other states
A switch was pulled and the shelves of equipment murmured softly and turned on the lights. A house in Miami's Bay Heights quietly went off the grid and onto hydrogen power.
South-facing small windows and Bahama shutters, light paint and a white roof offer clues to the character of this house within a hammock: It is a ''green'' home that proudly wears a photovoltaic system and thermal water heater on its roof and envelopes a 7,500-gallon cistern within its walls.
Albert Harum-Alvarez, a software designer and consultant, grew up in Kendall and has spent years planning his home among the trees. Now under construction, it will catch the southeast breezes, use a geothermal pump for optional air conditioning, and employ a composting toilet system. Harum-Alvarez believes it's the greenest home in Miami-Dade County.
If you are building a home, there are ways to make it energy-efficient: Orient it so the long axis runs east and west. Limit west-facing windows.
Standards now qualify homes, commercial buildings and neighborhoods to be green. Certification is gaining in popularity.
Pompano Beach houses will reduce water use and energy costs.
This is one in a series about living green. Next week, we explore contemporary green homes. Forty years ago, Gwladys and Eugene Scott combined their lives and families and set out to design their dream house: a Japanese-inspired home in a South Florida hammock. It was to be without air conditioning, using salvaged pine beams, and open to the trees.
RSS|
My Yahoo|
Newsletters|
Widgets|
Mobile|
Alerts|
Twitter
About The Miami Herald| About the McClatchy Company| Terms of Use & Privacy Statement| Corrections| Contact Us| Advertise
Partners: El Nuevo Herald| Newspaper in Education| WLRN | Miami Herald News| CBS4 WFOR-TV| More
Copyright 2008 Miami Herald Media Co. All rights reserved
