Did you know that less than 2% of the Earth’s water is fresh? Why conserve it? Well, the plants and animals need it. We do not replace the fresh water that we consume as fast as it is used. When you use water wisely you save money and you save energy. Aren’t these great reasons to cut back on your usage?  

This product is great to teach youngsters to conserve water. Build these habits early on and our children will hold onto them for a life time.  Conditioning our kids to live a green life and do their small part can make a significant difference for their own future and their kids and their kids… you get it.

This device is easy to use, contains a mini hour glass and teaches young and old alike to conserve water in a fun way!  All you have to do is rotate the timer and when the sand runs out you stop your shower. After a few times, you will know exactly how long it will take to wash your hair!

Here are some websites that you can buy this item:

• http://letsgogreen.biz/pages/water.html
• http://www.kaboodle.com/reviews/shower-coach-shower-timer
• http://www.yeebiz.com/c/17/666-173/Promotion-Gifts.html
• http://www.amazon.com/ChangeForGreen-Niagara-Shower-Coach-Timer/dp/B004HEBTH8

By Dena Fritz

Recycle, reuse and reduce. That is the mantra of anyone who is environmentally conscience. There is no better way to to be eco friendly than to recycle old goods into new decor for your home. Antiques are an excellent way to reduce your carbon footprint, you know, someone’s trash can be someone’s treasures and all that…. Possibilities are endless when it comes to antiques and that shabby chic vintage look which is so “in” right now. The lovely patina (wear and tear) that antiques hold is what makes them so desirable. Shopping for antiques can be tons of fun and educational too. You can learn much from things that are old, they represent a different era, a time in history, sometimes more than 100 years old.  Craftsmanship is another reason that antiques are so alluring, made from a time when manufacturing with quality and a personal stamp on an item meant great pride. Antiques are almost always unique in their making, some handcrafted and one of a kind. Usually the more unique, the more expensive an antique is. Get started, begin small, take your time and look around. There is something out there for everyone. Good luck!

 The Nature Conservancy offers 5 practical steps to prevent nutrient pollution

Harrisburg, PA – (May 12, 2011) – Everyone needs clean, fresh water. Keeping our water clean is crucial to supporting life, for both people and nature. As spring weather spreads across North America, The Nature Conservancy wants consumers to know that the decisions they make about lawn and garden care can affect the fresh water in your local river and everything downstream – all the way to the ocean.

Hundreds of millions of people across the country rely on fresh water for drinking water and recreation, and these sources need to be protected so they can stay clean for us and for future generations. One frequent way that water becomes polluted is through excess nutrients – fertilizers, both chemical fertilizers and manure, running off farm fields and suburban lawns.

 “Every living thing needs nutrients, but overloading a freshwater system with nutrients can be disastrous,” said Jeff Opperman, a senior freshwater scientist with the Conservancy. Too many nutrients cause algae to grow in unnaturally high quantities, leading to fish kills, drinking water problems and “dead zones” in places like the Great Lakes, the Chesapeake Bay, and the Gulf of Mexico.

“Globally, agricultural chemicals are a primary source of these nutrients, but the way people manage their lawns and gardens has a real effect on the streams and lakes in your neighborhood,” Opperman said.

What can you do to make your lawn truly “green,” and not just lush?

Five Ways to ‘Green” Your Lawn and Garden Care

Use Less Fertilizer
Excess fertilizer flows off your lawn and garden and ends up in nearby rivers and lakes and eventually make its way to the sea.  If you must use fertilizer, get a soil test first. Find out what your lawn needs.    Many lawns don’t need phosphorus, for example, so phosphorus-free fertilizers might just work for you. Use only what you need, and make sure it stays on the lawn. If you spill some on the sidewalk, sweep it up. And only use it when the lawn is growing.  Remember that any kind of fertilizer, organic or chemical, can be over-used.

Slow Your Runoff
We all want to keep our properties from flooding, but when all the water washes off city streets and our rooftops and yards, it carries a lot of nutrients and sediment with it. These materials can be harmlessly processed by the soils and plants on your property, but in a lake or river they can cause real problems. To slow that water down, don’t cut your grass along a creek or drainage swale.  Better yet, replace grass with native plants that will bind the soil and slow down the water. Or maybe create a water garden, which is both functional—it holds and slows down stormwater—and an attractive landscaping feature. Or buy a rain barrel for the water coming off your roof.  The rain in the barrel can then be used to water your gardens and lower your water bill.

Create Less Waste
Grass clippings are high in nutrients so you want to keep them out of the water.  Use a compost bin or use a mulching mower or both. Often, mulching your grass clippings can help reduce the need for fertilizer. And it’s good to keep the nutrient-rich grass clippings and leaves out of storm drains and of ditches.  Cutting your lawn high (3-4 inches) also increases its vigor, shades out unwanted weeds, and requires less water.

Use Native Plants
In general, using more native plants that are right for your part of the world reduces the need for fertilizers, pesticides and watering.  Replace some of your lawn with wildflower gardens, for example.

Buy Sustainable
Although home lawn care can play a significant role in keeping fresh water clean, you can also help promote healthy land and water with your food choices: what you buy, when you buy it, and the producers you support with your purchases. You can make choices about food that support the kind of farmers who work to minimize water pollution. Organic farms, for example, don’t use chemical fertilizers and are required to demonstrate that they are protecting their watershed.

For some practical steps consumers can take to reduce the amount of excess nutrients they add to the watershed where they live, see the video “Green Choices for Lawn and Garden, by visiting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWey6JtlTEY

Read more about protecting fresh water resources at www.nature.org

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. The Conservancy and its more than 1 million members have protected nearly 120 million acres worldwide. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org/pennsylvania

By Dena Fritz

Mrs. Meyers Clean Day Dish Soap is great! I use this on our boat to be environmentally friendly on the bay. It smells good, like lavender, which is what it is. I was surprised at how sudsy this soap was. A little goes a long way, lasting through more than a sink load of dishes. In a bucket, this soap was excellent for cleaning the bathroom, the hallway walls and the bedroom laminate and it still was sudsy. Easy to rinse, clean feeling, it left my hands feeling soft and supple. Mrs. Meyers is a green cleaning product and not tested on animals. It comes in a recyclable container and the ingredients are biodegradable and free of petrochemicals. All information of their products are listed on their website.  At only $3.99 per bottle, this product is clearly a great value.

Did you know that some of your  power cords continue to draw energy even when you are unplugged or not using your electronics? It is true. For your electronics that need charging, unplug your cords when not using them.

As far as appliances and electronics that are always plugged in, there is a solution, it is called a smart strip. As well as acting as a surge protector, this strip has a feature called “AutoSwitch Technology,” shutting down devices that are not being used. Not only does it save you money but it saves our environment. This is the kind of tool/technology we need in our every day life to help us do our little part in conserving energy.

This strip uses very little energy and is clearly marked on each outlet for those items that you want to use the AutoSwitch on and the ones you always want hot. With a wall mountable design, an angled space saving plug and a six foot cord , this strip is versatile and convenient.

By Dena Fritz

Great idea founded in 2008 by Mike Marone in New York, the world’s largest recycling event on May 14th in North Chili, NY. Kudos to Mike for coming up with this idea! It is an event held to give away your goods to save them from ending up in a landfill. Are you a hoarder or on you way to being one? This event can help you help others! Wouldn’t it be great if the idea spread to more neighborhoods? How about a national event? This is what I am talking about. Your trash is almost always someone else’s treasures. All you do is place your items on the curb for others to take away free. It’s like a “curb alert” for all in the neighborhood. No cost and very little effort, you can clean out your junk and help out someone who may need that item. I do this all the time with craigslist offering things for free that I would have to pay to have hauled away, you wouldn’t believe what people look for. Start an event in your neighborhood or just give it away on a site like craigslist, you will be happy you did!

Shirley and Eugene Goles and their family, from Baltimore, Md., have camped at the Jellystone Park Camp-Resort in Quarryville, Pa. almost every Easter for nearly 40 years.

 ”That’s when our family starts our summer camping trips,” Shirley said, adding that the tradition started even before the 175-site campground joined the Jellystone Park chain in 1991.

“We just love the park and the area that it’s in,” Shirley said, adding that their children, grandchildren and many other family members have all grown up having their Easter egg hunts and other holiday activities at the Quarryville Jellystone Park.

Jellystone Parks are nationally famous for their family friendly activities, which take place most weekends throughout late spring, summer and fall.

But while most activities are geared toward children and teenagers, some Jellystone Parks also have Easter activities specifically for adults, including the Jellystone Park in Hagerstown, Md., which holds separate egg hunts for men and women with about 200 to 300 plastic eggs that are stuffed with coupons that can be redeemed for soda, candy, game room tickets and other assorted adult beverages.

“We have to hold these egg hunts separately. Otherwise, the men will push the women out of the way to get the eggs,” said park co-owner Vicki Vitkun.

The Quarryville Jellystone Park also offers separate Easter egg hunts for children and adults as well as an egg rolling and decorating contest, a visit by the Easter bunny, and nighttime DJ dancing with a light show.

•  Here’s a sampling of what’s being planned at Jellystone Parks in several cities east of the Rockies: Bremen, Ga.: This park’s Easter egg hunt involves hayrides with an antique tractor and real bunnies. The park is also planning train rides, Easter egg basket making and other children’s activities. www.georgiajellystone.com
• Burleson, Texas: Activities include making an Easter basket, and parents will have the option of filling them up or having Yogi Bear deliver them to their children. A big egg hunt is also planned. Additionally, a local church hosts a live Easter Pageant, and they will send their cast members – including a high priest, a blind man and Jesus – will come to the park in costume to share their experiences.

www.rusticcreekranch.com

• Canyon Lake, Texas: Activities at this park include a nighttime flashlight Easter egg hunt for the older kids with thousands of eggs and a church service on Sunday. www.jellystonehillcountry.com
• Frankenmuth, Mich.: This park mirror’s the Osterbrunnen Easter decorating traditions of Franconia, Germany, and decorates the park with thousands of eggs and ribbon. The park will also have an Easter egg hunt, Easter decorating, movies, games and crafts. www.frankenmuthjellystone.com
• Fremont, Ind.: This park will have egg dying and an egg hunt as well as other activities, including bingo, cartoons, wagon rides and free pancakes. Real baby chicks and bunnies will also be on hand. www.jellystonesbest.com
• Horn Lake, Miss.: This park is planning egg dying, an Easter egg hunt, spoon races and a coloring contest. www.memphisjellystone.com
• Nashville, Tenn.: This park’s activities include crafts, such as decorating you own Easter basket, egg games and an Easter egg hunt. www.nashvillejellystone.com

The Goles Family doesn’t limit their Jellystone camping to the Quarryville Park at Easter. They also visit the Jellystone Park in Hagerstown, though they have a tradition of closing out the camping season with a visit to the Quarryville Park in October, when the park hosts its Halloween themed weekends, with costume contests, trick or treating and campsite decorating.

“About 15 families will join us for camping for Halloween. At times we have had as many as 65 in our group,” Shirley said. For more information on activities and events at the Quarryville Jellystone, visit www.jellystonepa.com. Activities listings for the Hagerstown Jellystone is available at www.jellystonemaryland.com.

About Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park™ Camp-Resorts

Launched in 1969, the Jellystone Park system now boasts 75 campgrounds with more than 15,000 campsites in 30 states and three Canadian provinces.  Its Camp-Resorts are among the best campgrounds in the industry with a quality reputation for being fun, friendly, clean and customer service-oriented parks. Additionally, each Jellystone Park is themed with Yogi Bear elements providing instant recognition and consumer appeal.  It is truly a place “Where You Camp With Friends.”®   

Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park Camp-Resorts are franchised through Leisure Systems, Inc. (LSI), a wholly owned subsidiary of The Park River Corporation, Cincinnati, Ohio. For more information, visit www.campjellystone.com.

On my last blog I wrote about turning clean water into greywater to flush with. Well on my quest to find the best uses for greywater, I found another clever appliance that costs around $300 dollars (not including installation) and offers a similar service. This is an AQUS System from Water Savers Technology. It fits right under the vanity sink and uses standard PVC tubing. The system comes with a reservoir to hold disinfectant tablets (which makes reused water safe for humans, but not potable). Holding 5.5 gallons the reservoir has built in screens to keep and hair or debris from the clean tank. It is a patented system that delivers treated, reused water to the toilet tank for flushing.

Here is an interesting item that may appeal to some green folks out there. It is an easy-to-install system that uses clean water for hand washing and turns it into grey water for flushing. Looks like a smart product and even I could install it. There may be some family members out there who would resist using such an item but if the endeavor is to go green and you are serious, this may be just the ticket! It is called the The Sinkpositive Sink/Toilet Combo. Watch the below video to get the full effect of what it can do.

By Dena Fritz

Streamlining your life can benefit you in many ways. Minimalists swear by this saying that clutter can burden your life and add stress needlessly. De-cluttering your life can help you be more efficient, organized and happier. When I talk about clutter, I am not just talking about the junk you have laying around. I am talking about all of it, the emotional baggage you carry around with you, in your relationships, in your past, your guilt, anger, the files on your computers and the junk laying around your house, all of it. From an eco standpoint, you can begin by starting small, working on one room at a time in your living space. If that seems insurmountable, you can start even smaller, a corner of a room, a closet, a shelf. Cleaning out even a small space can give you gratification and the motivation to go to the next small space. Keep going and soon you have your house organized and then you can move to your computer, if you haven’t used it in over a year, back it up and pack it away on a disc consolidated with all old files. This takes very little space and holds a lot of information. Then you can start with the emotional stuff. See a therapist, face your greatest fears and de-clutter. It’s wasted energy to carry all that around. You can live a more efficient life by doing this and feel more productive by focusing on the things you can change.

In your living space, remember that you can reuse items instead of buying new. When de-cluttering, keep only the essentials, I don’t recommend keeping the old manual for that boom box that you used in the 80’s. If you haven’t used it in a year, is it necessary? Analyze this for yourself. Some things have sentimental ties for absolutely no reason. I have these things myself and I have learned to rethink what is meaningful and what is not. You can do this too. Did you ever clean your purse out? What is the first thing you do? Dump it all out on the kitchen table and going through it bit by bit, throwing out the trash first then separating items in order of significance. You can’t keep too much because it is a small space so most of it goes in the trash or reused somewhere else in your space. Clothing can be one of the biggest space hogs of all, donate the stuff that you don’t wear, why keep it hoping you will fit back into those size 5’s? Not worth it. Give it some realistic thought and don’t be afraid to go with it. You will feel incredibly empowered and unburdened when you are finally done. Good luck, you deserve it!