save our planet: Save Our Planet and some $$$ - 05/22/11 05:46 AM
Although there are some studies that do not confirm the following, there are also studies that do... Three pragmatic and cost-effective ways to improve your gas mileage, reducing the money you spend on fuel and the negative effect on the environment are: 1) Oil - there is evidence that synthetic oil is much more "slippery" than conventional oils and will help improve your gas mileage.  I have used synthetic oil in various gasoline and diesel powered cars over the last fifteen years and will attest that synthetic oil flow much better and maintains viscosity at temperature extremes.  Most manufacturers will allow … (3 comments)

save our planet: Make every day Earth Day - 05/19/11 11:43 PM
Earth day is over for another year, so is April, Earth Month. The short term effects of our changes, if they were only for the day or the month have been realized. Have your thinking, your choices been influenced for a lifetime?
The Give It Up for Earth Day campaign identified four daily changes that could add up to a great environmental savings.
1) Turn off the TV,
On average, Canadians spend 1,500 hours out of 5,824 waking hours a year watching TV, about 10% of their residential electrical consumption. If you can't turn it "off", can you reduce the … (4 comments)

save our planet: April is Earth Month - Develop Earth Friendly Shopping Habits - 04/06/11 12:16 AM
Do you want to make better choices in the foods you buy? Are you trying to navigate the minefield that is food and nutritional labeling in an effort to buy healthier and more "eco-friendly"?Here are some tips that will result in choices that our better for our health and our environment:
Reduce your food waste - regardless of how "good" your choices are, if you are wasting your food, our planet suffers. Buy locally from farmers that are producing their crops in environmentally sensitive manner - it is much easier to ensure that your local farmer is environmentally sensitive practices. … (5 comments)

save our planet: Save Money Saving Our Planet! - 03/27/11 02:02 AM
Did you participate in Earth Hour Last Night? If you did, GREAT!!  Even small changes and better choices, if made continually will save you some money and can have a great cumulative effect on our environment and in Saving Our Planet.
Here is some great information for those of us interested in starting the journey to help Save Our Planet.
Saving $$$ Saving Our Planet

10 ways to save $$$ going green
Home and Garden
Go Green at Home
Green Home and Gardens
Food and Health
Food and Health Green tips
On the Road
Tips on optimizing your car
… (8 comments)

save our planet: Participate in Earth Hour Today and make some positive changes in your choices "tomorrow" - 03/26/11 01:31 AM
Last year, due to the participation in Beeton, Alliston, Tottenham and the rest of New Tecumseth in the 2010 Earth Hour, Power Stream, our local electricity provider reported a 7.4% drop in consumption for this one hour period.
Earth Hour might be great for raising awareness, but its overall effectiveness, if just for one hour, is minimal. The key to Saving Our Planet is to make better choices in the way we consume energy and our finite resources.
I challenge everyone to make more environmentally friendly choices in their daily life. Make a game out of it, rather than seeing it … (9 comments)

save our planet: Choose whole fuits and vegetables over supplements!! - 02/04/11 06:48 AM
It seems that every few months the Television, Radio, and Newspapers inform us of the new "Superfood".  Noni, Goji, Acai, Blueberries, Cranberries, Quinoa, Kale, Seaweeds..., as well as old standbys like Oat, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Carrots, Beans, etc... 
It is hard to keep a scorecard of what we should be eating anymore.  And in the months following the "breakthrough" news, we usually start to see advertisements and infomercials for bottled products, pills and other supplements that promise us concentrated amounts of whatever new superfood the mass marketers happen to be pushing, then we start to see a proliferation of products in our supermarket, drug … (19 comments)

save our planet: Time of Use Electrical Pricing - Off-Peak hours extended during summer - 11/22/10 06:27 AM
As of May 1st, 2011, the Government of Ontario will adjust Off-peak hours during the week to start at 7:00 pm rather than the current 9:00 pm.
This will give Ontarians an extra 10 hours of "off-peak" pricing a week.  This means that people trying to save the maximum amount of electrical usage dollars can start running their dishwashers, washers and dryers two hours earlier. 
The 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm hours Monday to Friday were previously designated "mid-peak" hours and we were charged for electrical usage at the second tier of pricing.
Click on the following to read previous posts on … (2 comments)

save our planet: Unplug your appliances, Save Our Planet and some $$$ - 11/09/10 08:53 AM
Phantom electrical usage is the term coined for elctrical usage by appliances when not in use. Unplug your appliances and electronic devices from power outlets and save money on your electric bill and save a significant amount of energy.  Some energy wasters in people's homes are the chargers of cell phones, digital cameras, music players, and power tools. Unplug these adapters and electronics (televisions, DVD players, computers, microwaves, lights, entertainment systems, toasters and blenders) after using them.  
These chargers and appliances draw power whenever they're plugged into an outlet, regardless of whether the appliance is fully charged or even connected.   
If … (2 comments)

save our planet: electrical meters become SMART in New Tecumseth Today - 09/30/10 05:30 PM
Time of Use Charges for electricity usage has been in place for different areas in Ontario for a while now, but today, October 1st, 2010 is the day that time of use periods and pricing will apply to residential properties in New Tecumseth.  Our old electric meter was replaced by a new digital electric meter last summer, but until today, it had been playing "dumb" ;-) As of today, all our meters become "SMART" Perhaps this is incentive enough for you to start making "better" choices resulting in less energy wastage and keeping more of your hard earned $$$ in your … (5 comments)

save our planet: Save Our Planet, Think "green" when thinking Roof - 09/06/10 04:53 AM
Green roofs have been coming to North America.  At the present time you will more likely notice a green roof on a government building, a hotel, school, office building or even some factories, but the movement is starting to gain momentum in residential housing. My thoughts on green roofs are evolving as more information becomes available and more examples of practical applications are found.  They are becoming a more pragmatic alternative to conventional roofs and offer benefits to the homeowner, society and our planet. Green Roofs: 1) Capture rainwater and absorb it, reducing storm water runoff 2) Insulate a building both … (3 comments)

save our planet: Save Our Planet - Think "Green" as you go back to school - 09/04/10 03:58 AM
Do you have school aged children? Or know of someone who does?
A lot of these ideas can be applied to each and every one of us and implemented at home, work and play... please consider changing your habits and Saving Our Planet!
Here are a few tips that you might be able to incorporate into your (their) routine that  both individually and collectively could have a positive impact and help Save Our Planet.
Rather than buy a new backpack, consider re-purposing last year's backpack by adding patches, buttons or beads Buy recycled paper and school supplies and look … (6 comments)

save our planet: "Pin it" for the Planet - 05/31/10 10:08 AM
WWF-Canada is inviting you to drive less this week!!! Are you up for the challenge? Pin your car keys to your shirt to show people you are making a BETTER CHOICE! Can you try, for ONE week to make "better" choices when it comes to travelling? Choose not to drive and stay home. If you have to drive, can you make a conscious effort to drive LESS? Choose to carpool rather than drive alone. Use public transit, bike, walk rather than use your car. Pin it for the Planet (May31-Jun6)
… (4 comments)

save our planet: Earth Day 2010 - Will it make a difference? - 04/21/10 01:43 AM
Another "Earth Day/Hour"!!! ...whatever... Is that what you are thinking?The purpose of these "hours", "days", events are definitely symbolic.  Very little "measurable change" happens as a result of these events, especially when compared to the effort in publicizing such events...Then WHY? Because evidence shows that there are so many of us that are not "getting" the message.  And if we are getting the message, we are not doing a lot about it.Its as simple as this:IF WE CONTINUE TO LIVE THE WAY WE DO, CONSUMING & POLLUTING AT CURRENT RATES, OUR EARTH WILL BECOME UNINHABITABLE BY HUMANS, at least in the … (3 comments)

save our planet: Should you be "politically correct" during this "Christmas" season? - 12/17/09 02:02 AM
At this time of year, Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. There might be those among us that argue that December 25th was probably not the actual birthday of Jesus Christ, that He was probably born in March or perhaps even early summer... That may (or may not) be true, but does it really matter? December 25th is a day we (Christians) set aside and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. I always wish people a "Merry Christmas" and possibly a "Happy New Year".  I personally am not comfortable with the generic "Happy Holidays"... I recognize that other people of … (18 comments)