Years ago, a friend told me a story of an acquaintance with strong environmental leanings who hoped to teach his children the importance of nature and environmental protection. One day, while riding in the car with his children, her friend was giving a friendly lecture to his children on the value of recycling. When he had finished, his son asked, “Dad, if recycling’s so good, why don’t we do it?”

Over the past decade, I’ve spoken to hundreds of audiences about environmental protection, many of which were populated by environmental educations and environmental enthusiasts. Numerous people in my audiences have admitted to me in private that they don’t do enough — or don’t do much at all. They talk a good talk, but don’t seem to be able really to walk their talk.

Leo Tolstoy may have said it best, “Everybody thinks of changing humanity and nobody thinks of changing himself.” A cynical friend once remarked, “Environmentalists are people who want to tell others how to live.”

While I know many dedicated environmentalists who really walk their talk, I know a fair number who “think globally, but act vocally.” They complain and provide advice for others, but don’t do much to help make a better world. To them, knowing the answer is not always living the answer.

If you’re one of those individuals whose sentiments and actions are out of alignment, here are fifteen steps you can take to dramatically reduce your impact and help create a truly sustainable future.

1. Install compact fluorescent light bulbs in the most commonly used light fixtures in your house.

2. Hire a professional to perform an energy audit on your home, then weatherize your home and beef up the insulation.

3. Install and use a programmable thermostat. It will cut your heating and cooling bills by 10 percent or more.

4. Plant shade trees to keep your house cooler in the summer.

5. Install water-conserving fixtures such as water-efficient showerheads and water-efficient toilets.

6. Replace worn out appliances such as clothes washers, dishwashers, furnaces and air conditioners with energy and water-efficient models. Buy Energy Star qualified models.

7. If you water your lawn, water early or late in the day and replace water-hungry grasses with low-water grasses, and remove sections of lawn that are hard to water and wasteful of water.

8. Recycle all household waste from newspapers to cardboard to aluminum to glass.

9. Compost all kitchen scraps (except meat and bones) and yard waste. Compost in your backyard and use the compost to enrich the soils in your flower and vegetable gardens.

10. Eat more vegetables and less meat. Buy organic vegetables whenever possible.

11. Carpool, ride a bike, walk, or take the bus whenever possible.

12. Replace gas-guzzling vehicles with fuel-efficient models getting 40 miles per gallon or more.

13. Curb consumption. Learn to live more simply. Buy less. Buy used goods. Practice green gift giving and.

Bill’s

Power & Light

SOLAR ELECTRICITY SHINES IN South Toms River

by Joe Gleason

Unlike a lot of solar enthusiasts, William Gleason said his  concerns were not environmental, when he first considered having a solar-electric system installed at his home in South Toms River His primary motivation? Dollars and cents, plain and simple.

In the summer of 2004, I was channel-surfing and landed on an HGTV program called “I Want That.” The particular episode was showcasing a solar-electric (photovoltaic; PV) system. As a self-proclaimed techhead—my house is full of computers, I write code and push local weather data up to the Web—I always have an eye out for cutting-edge electronics. The thought of having a roof covered with electricity-producing silicon made me put down the remote. I decided on the spot to do some more research and give PV technology a closer look.

Delving into the Details

Real-world data has shown that solar-electric modules will typically produce energy for 25 years and then some. Practically speaking, investing money in a system now is the same as buying your electricity decades in advance. The clincher is, as utility rates rise, the cost of the electricity I generate using solar energy will be locked in for a minimum of ten years under my current arrangement with the utility. This is a good idea if you live in a state where electric rates are on the rise—and that’s pretty much all of them. Average South Toms River residential electric rates have increased 24 percent, just in the past six years! Besides insuring myself against rate hikes, I’m protecting my financial future. Even though it’s still on the horizon, retirement is eventually headed my way. Fixing my cost for electricity will be a handy feature, since my income will one day be “fixed” too.

During my initial Web research, I discovered that the state of New Jersey, offered financial incentives for residential PV systems through New Jersey clean energy program. On top of that, I was hearing rumblings that a new federal solar tax credit was going to become available in 2006. I’d assumed that a PV system would be expensive, and up-front they are. But the possibility of using incentives to offset the initial cost really caught my attention, and was the motivation I needed.

To receive the maximum amount from the NJCEP incentive program, my system installer had to be certified by the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP), a nationwide organization that tests and certifies solar installers. I started to shop around for Solar contractors with PV system installation experience and NABCEP certification, and found many on the NJ clean energy website. So I contacted them  to evaluate my site, and put a bid together.

Getting the Site Right

Once his boots were on the ground, or actually up on the roof, I quickly determined that the four 75-foot-tall trees, to the south and southeast of the house, would need to be shortened. Another complicating factor was the electric lines under there limbs blocking some of my sun on the facing roof. Without it, I will have  about 600 square feet of clear, south-east facing roof. After my inspection it indicated that about 3,600 watts was the best I could do with the 175 -watt British Petroleum modules I had specified.