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Green eco-boutiques are springing up all over the Valley. Already, there's greenROHINI in Sherman Oaks and Deborah Lindquist's boutique in North Hollywood. Now, Valley Village is getting its own eco-boutique: Green and Greener.
Self-described as an "eco-living general store and design center," Green and Greener will carry everything from sustainable clothing to clay plaster to gardening supplies. In addition to the products, Green and Greener will showcase eco-living inspired art, as well as offer eco-consulting services. Alegre Ramos, who owns Green and Greener with her husband Sean, is an LEED-certified Accredited Professional as well as a businesswoman, and will continue her work in green interior and landscape design too. In fact, Alegre re-did the Green and Green building itself in eco-fashion; you can see the green transformation the building went through here.
Get there on opening day, June 10 from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., and you'll get 10% off your purchase -- in addition to a free gift with your purchase.
And while getting around the Valley without a car isn't always easy, Green and Greener shoppers will be rewarded for their de-car-ing efforts. Customers get a 10% discount on their purchase any day they get to the store without driving. Green and Greener's put together a handy public transportation map to help you out -- and bike racks are right out front!
Green and Greener. 4838 Laurel Canyon Blvd., Valley Village. (866) 337-5602
Photo by Joshua Targownik
>> Fuel: Still getting stolen -- except this time, it's old fryer grease from restaurants. "Processed fryer oil, which is called yellow grease, is actually not trash... Its value has increased in recent months to historic highs, driven by the even higher prices of gas and ethanol, making it an ever more popular form of biodiesel to fuel cars and trucks." Earlier: Thieves drilling into fuel tanks to get vehicles' gas.
>> "An Inconvenient Truth": Still inspiring -- so much so that the film's becoming an Italian opera. Italian composer Giorgio Battistelli has been commissioned to produce an opera based on the film for the 2011 season at the Milan opera house La Scala. (via Treehugger)
>> Man-made global warming: Still not good for Earth -- which is news to no one except the Bush administration, which finally admitted global warming is "very likely" due to man-made activity in a court-ordered climate report that was finally released -- four years late. (via grist)
>> Lead: Still not good for kids. A new study shows "even relatively low levels of lead permanently damage the brain and are linked to higher numbers of arrests, particularly for violent crime."
>> Dow Chemical: Still not cleaning up its dioxin pollution. After firing an EPA official for allegedly being too tough on Dow Chemical, federal officials have finally told Dow Chemical to clean up the dioxin contamination in the Saginaw, Mich., neighborhood. The company says it'll comply but is still dragging its feet, this time by disagreeing with government officials about how the cleanup should be carried out. (via grist)
 What perfume did you wear as a teenager? I went through a lot of Poison -- and now I find out that toxic stuff contained four different phthalates!
This I discovered reading "Not Just a Pretty Face: The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry," a new book by Stacy Malkan, cofounder of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. The reason for the book? Many of the personal care products people use on a daily basis contain lead, formaldehyde, phthalates, parabens, and other carcinogenic chemicals. Why? Because cosmetics companies are allowed to use the stuff -- and the stuff is cheap.
Instead of taking a precautionary approach as many European countries do, the U.S. goes by a "prove harm" approach. Writes Malkan: "The Environmental Protection Agency must prove a toxic substance 'presents an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment' before regulating it -- which roughly translates to 'show us the dead bodies.' "
Nor does the Food and Drug Administration require manufacturers to demonstrate that cosmetics products are safe. This means that the cosmetics industry regulates itself -- meaning products are only tested for short-term obvious health effects (rashes, eye irritations and the like). "Most chemicals in cosmetics have not been tested for their potential to cause long-term health problems such as cancer or reproductive harm," Malkan writes.
To prove its point, "Not Just a Pretty Face" covers a lot of ground, from scientific studies to the history of the Environmental Working Group (including its popular consumer cosmetics database, Skin Deep) to the inner workings of the Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Assn. And while there's much to be distressed about, Malkan also points to some positive signs -- most of which is actually happening in California!
For example, the California Safe Cosmetics Act, which mandates that companies let the state know if the ingredients used in products are linked to cancer or birth defects, went into effect January 2007. More recently, the California Toxic Toys Bill passed. That bill, which goes into effect January 2009, bans phthalates from children's toys sold in California. In addition, the California Green Chemistry Initiative was unveiled early this year, with three fundamental policies: "creating a new regulatory and enforcement system, strengthening consumer protection laws and better informing consumers about toxic substances in products," according to the L.A. Times.
"Not Just a Pretty Face" in fact, is also an encouraging and empowering story -- in which most of the heroes are women! Jane Houlihan of EWG, Jeanne Rizzo of the Breast Cancer Fund, and of course, Malkan herself, are all leading the fight to make consumer products safer. Even new beauty innovations are being done by women. "Not Just a Pretty Face" tells the story of Amy Cannon, the world's first PhD in green chemistry, who's used UV light to shrink-wrap hair into a non-toxic perm.
You too can be part of the effort to ensure the products on store shelves all become safe products. Until that happens, read "Not Just a Pretty Face" to get educated and get tips on making wise consumer choices. And when purchasing products, use the Skin Deep database to help you pick the safest and greenest products on the market.
Earlier: Simplify your beauty routine for your health and the environment's, says Stacy Malkan.
 Valley bicyclists: Want better walk-bike-rail connections in your 'hood? Then join the L.A. County Bicycle Coalition and Metro for a bike or walk tour and weigh in on a plan to improve bike and walk access to the Van Nuys Metro Orange Line Station.
When: Saturday, May 31, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
Where: Marvin Braude Constituent Services Center, Conference Room 1A., 6262 Van Nuys Blvd., Van Nuys
Cost: Free, with a free lunch if you RSVP to Dorothy Le at Dorothy@la-bike.org or (213) 629-2142.
According to Metro, this bike-walk deal is "part of a comprehensive study of existing conditions and recommendations for improvements at transit hubs across the Los Angeles County." The Saturday tour is just the first of five. The next four will all focus on Blue Line stations:
- Metro Blue Line Compton Station, Saturday, June 14, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Metro Blue Line Florence Station, Saturday, June 21, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Metro Blue Line Rosa Parks Station, Saturday, July 12, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Metro Blue Line Vernon Station, Saturday, July 19, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Put them in your calendars. Wondering what happens after you put in your two cents? The findings from the tours -- which are part of a study funded by a Caltrans Environmental Justice Planning Grant -- will be put together into a final report of recommendations, scheduled to be completed this fall. That report, in turn, "can be used by cities to apply for grant funds to improve access to the stations," according to Metro.
Yes, that means that Metro's using a grant to do a study to apply for more grants; actually bringing about the recommended changes that come out of these bike-walk tours will be contingent on whether or not we get these future grants...
Find out more about Metro Bikeway Planning here.
Photo by Frederick Dennstedt via Flickr
 >> L.A.'s greener than San Francisco and New York City, according to a study by think tank Brookings Institution. But Margot Roosevelt delves through the fuzzy math: "The calculations did not account for the fact that half the city's electricity comes from coal-fired power plants. Instead, Brookings used a state-wide average that included the hydroelectric and nuclear plants in Northern California. Omitted from the data are emissions from industries and commercial buildings, and from local roads apart from federal highways." Also omitted were CO2 emissions from long-distance commuters.
>> The L.A. River's getting revitalized -- and also getting tagged a lot. L.A. Times describes the graffiti as "tagging on steroids, with monikers big and bold, containing letters that often are as big as garage doors." Earlier: L.A. River, now with its own controversial mural.
>> Your own private L.A. traffic island. Guerrilla gardeners are taking over unkempt public spaces, bringing greenery to urban blights. "One of a slew of DIY gardening currents, such as permaculture (design of highly sustainable ecosystems), urban homesteading, composting and free fruit movement, guerrilla gardening is a response to dwindling green space, limited land and suspicions about food sources, say experts."
>> Go species scoping in the Santa Monica Mountains. BioBlitz 2008 starts at noon to end 24 hours later! Join scientists, naturalists, and fellow Angelenos to observe and record as many species as possible in a 4-hour-shift. Register on-site at one of the stations (PDF).
>> An organic burger-n-hot dog joint called O!Burger opens in WeHo this Saturday (via LAist).
Photo by Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times
 Nowhere would a plastic bag monster be so popular as at a Heal the Bay party. Earlier tonight, Heal the Bay -- a nonprofit dedicated to cleaning up SoCal beaches -- threw its 17th Annual Bring Back the Beach Benefit Dinner party.
And people were lining up to take pictures with the plastic bag monster, who became a bit of a celebrity!
The event brought out a big crowd to the Barker Hanger at the Santa Monica Airport on a beautiful, if a little windy, day. I randomly met Jack Sahl, director of environment and resource sustainability at
Southern California Edison, an eco-initiatives person at Warner Brothers, then ran into the usual westside eco-peeps like Andy Lipkis of TreePeople. 
 Everything from a guitar signed by Maroon 5 to a Ford Escape Hybrid was auctioned off while people tucked in "an organic and sustainable menu" catered by Patina
Restaurant Group while sipping on local beers and "sustainable" but
not organic certified wine from Kunde Estate Winery. Amy Smart, Julia Louis-Dreyfus (left), and Ingo Rademacher all took part in the ceremonies.
In general, the event itself was very eco -- aside from all the driving people did to get there (I received a free parking pass but no biking instructions; in the end I eco-cabbed it). Heal the Beach's little brochure for the dinner -- printed with soy based inks on 100% post-consumer recycled paper processed chlorine free -- bragged that the event used neither single-use serviceware nor bottled water.
 Strangely, each gift bag given to attendees contained a plastic (#1) bottle of water -- something Anna Cummins, also at the party, pointed out to me. To be fair, the stuff isn't just plain water -- it's organic certified "Bone Water," (right) meaning that the concoction also includes evaporated cane juice and other juices, oils, and flavors -- as well as calcium and other "nutrients" that make the "water" taste a lot like a less-sweet but still synthetic Gatorade.
Heal the Bay's dinner brochure included a plastic warning educational page of sorts, which said this about #1 plastic: "Unfortunately, studies indicate that with repeated use, PET containers may release di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, an endocrine-disrupting compound and probable human carcinogen." 
Granted, the info mainly advises against reuse of #1 plastic bottles, but in general, Heal the Bay is no fan of plastic. I mean, most disposable water bottles are made of #1 plastic, which Heal the Bay bragged about avoiding -- outside the gift bags. Plus the nonprofit's leading the fight against plastic bags.
Of course, Heal the Bay has to make a lot of compromises -- something I wrote about when the L.A. County Board of Supervisors' decision on plastic bags came down. Bone Water wasn't even the only plastic bottle issue of the night. Heal the Money must've also gotten money from FIJI water -- because that company got a page in the dinner brochure.
The entire evening was full of conundrums such as these. The Escape Hybrid -- auctioned off for $30,000+ going directly to Heal the Bay -- has better mileage than other SUVs, but it's still an SUV made by un-eco Ford. Both the Paul Mitchell and Murad products included in the gift bags have some eco-properties -- but are preserved using parabens. Even the gift bags themselves are reusable totes -- but appear to be made of pesticide-intensive conventional cotton.
I'm not saying Heal the Bay was wrong to accept these sponsorships or products, necessarily. I'm just pointing out the quandaries to say I don't envy the jobs of the people who work there. Sure, I really do have a bone to pick with this Bone Water thing -- but every environmentalist has her pet peeve, and every little compromise the nonprofit makes must bring forth a cacophony of complaints --
>> Above is the USA National GAS Temperature Map as of 10 this morning. The redder an area, the more expensive gas is -- and California's quite reddish.
>> Why gas is more expensive in Cali than in other places, and how the federal government could fix the problem with the stroke of a pen. "California's strict air quality regulations require a special blend of gasoline that only a few refineries outside of California are capable of producing. So when demand spikes in California, or a disaster (or simple maintenance overhaul) takes out even just one refinery complex for any extended period of time, prices rise quickly across the state because supply can't easily be found to replace the lost production." At the end of the article is the answer to how YOU can handle this problem.
>> Idling: Bad for your wallet and the planet. "If you're going to be stopped for more than 10 seconds, it's best to shut off your engine. The one exception is when you're stopped in street traffic — it's illegal to kill the engine in many states."
>> Driving fans are the ungreenest component at concerts. Radiohead commissioned an enviro-study of their last two North American tours. "The report revealed that 97 percent of the environmental damage done by the group's 2003 tour — nearly 10,000 tons of CO2, the equivalent of 4,000 trans-Atlantic flights — was fan-related." Stop driving to the Hollywood Bowl, people.
>> The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's getting sued all over the place:
- California joined 10 other states to sue the EPA in an effort to overturn weak ozone standards, which are said to be too weak even according to the EPA's own science advisory board. Health and environmental organizations led by Earthjustice filed a parallel lawsuit.
- A coalition of environmental groups plans to sue the EPA today to "force it to overturn motor vehicle emissions limits for Southern California, charging that the targets fail to address hazardous pollution faced by 1.5 million people who live next to freeways."
Image courtesy of gasbuddy.com
(Alex Thompson looks goofy with his tan arms and white hands . . . when will cycling manufacturers make "tan through" gloves?)
I've written about the most basic bike activism -- riding your bike in LA. I wrote about extending that to talking to friends and family, and taking that a step further to volunteer for a bike organization. What's left? A lot. There are many aspects of L.A.'s car culture that cyclists need to adjust in order for LA to be a bike friendly city. Right now there simply aren't enough people doing enough things.
So what can you do? The third way to bike activism is to get creative. You can create an organization, or become a lone wolf agitator. You could organize a group ride, pull off a media stunt, or become a regular at public meetings. You could document biking through writing, blogging, the ibikeu Wiki, film or photograph. You can take a leadership role in an existing bike organization. There are many needs, and even more approaches.
(Bike activists argue at the L.A. Bicycle Master Plan update meeting in West L.A. Photo by Franz Ellers, with Alex's camera!)
What you will do, if you get creative with activism, is fail. I know this because I personally have failed more often than I have succeeded at bike activism. I failed publicly on a joint project called Roll With It. I failed on my first project, Critical Commute, which I embarked on with almost no knowledge of existing bike activism and culture. I failed in trying to organize UCLA cyclists to lobby for a stronger UCLA Bicycle Master Plan. Ask me in private and I'll share my more recent failures. The point is to keep trying, and learn from your mistakes. It's OK to fail because, typically, when you succeed, your success will snowball and catalyze more change than you could have anticipated.
I think that documenting bike culture and bike activism is an area where more creative effort is needed. It's also an area in which one can have tremendous impact. Recently, Emerald City reader Nolen Clark recommended I watch "Return of the Scorcher," an influential movie from the '90s about a resurgence in cycling. As I watched it I felt as if the ideas it presented were useful, but unoriginal and commonplace. Then it hit me -- this movie has been watched by almost every bike activist in the United States who has operated in the last decade. It was so influential that everyone learned the ideas within it, making the ideas ubiquitous, and therefore the movie eventually made itself obsolete. It seems basic to me because it is part of today's base of knowledge; it has become an element of the foundation of knowledge from which bike activists operate. That is powerful.
(Two cyclists ride on the 405 during a traffic jam, a controversial instance of bike activism. Photo by Alex Thompson)
More recently a group called Crimanimal Mass mixed a creative ride idea with careful documentation to make a powerful statement about Los Angeles car culture. 25 cyclists (including me!), along with 3 rollerbladers, took to the 10 freeway, heading east onto the interchange to the 405 North, and eventually exiting onto Santa Monica Blvd. In the midst of the rush hour parking lots we call "freeways," I felt safe riding, since vehicle speeds were below eight mph. Organizers documented the ride using multiple video cameras and carefully crafted the footage for viewing on YouTube and Vimeo. The footage was picked up by numerous bloggers, and hundreds of thousands of people viewed the videos and read the articles.
Now, you might exclaim "what positive impact can breaking the law and riding where you don't belong possibly have?" "People are going to be put off by your wanton disregard for the law," you could argue. Many were, but the footage of cyclists passing cars stopped in bumper to bumper traffic on the gargantuan 405 raised interesting questions. Why is it that our transportation infrastructure is so broken that it doesn't function when it is most needed, at rush hour? Why is it that cyclists are better able to make use of a system designed for cars? Cyclists participating in the (second) Freeway Traffic Jam Ride succeeded in raising those questions in an intriguing way, a way not easily dismissed. They catalyzed conversations between citizens about highway infrastructure and cycling. By starting those conversations, they don't just help cyclists, but they help everyone who is stuck in traffic. It was a unique and creative instance of effective activism.
(Bikes and trees go together, a creative post-Freeway Ride use of trees. Photo by Alex Thompson)
Crimanimal Mass would have been far less effective had they received less media attention. That's the risk with more creative activism: there's no guaranteed payoff. However, the upside is that you can have impacts that conventional activism can only dream about. No mass e-mail by an established advocacy organization could have a similar impact as the Freeway Ride videos or Return of the Scorcher. This is true of other forms -- if you start a new organization there is a chance it will fail, but if it grows, then you have massive success. If you blog, there is a chance you will have trouble reaching new readers, but if you succeed you have created a powerful new voice for cyclists. These are higher-risk forms of activism, but they carry with them a chance of an avalanche of benefits for cyclists.
Next week I'll write about . . . I don't know what I'll write about. Perhaps I will write more about other forms of activism. What would you like to know about cycling in L.A.?
 >> Oil companies are hardly going green, writes Edward Silver in Money & Co. "In February, BP said it would regard its impressive solar and wind operations strictly for their equity value and might spin them off. So much for Beyond Petroleum. More recently, Royal Dutch Shell withdrew from a landmark wind project in Britain and in 2006 sold the lion’s share of its solar interests to a German firm."
>> Exxon didn't pass any green proposals considered at the shareholder meeting yesterday. "All were opposed by Exxon's board of directors," and the directors prevailed. Earlier: Exxon good at making money, not good at embracing change.
>> Chevron paid to have me shot in Nigeria, writes Larry Bowoto in an op-ed about his federal lawsuit against Chevron Corp.
>> Signs of green energy growth: Junk mail goes eco, moving beyond oil schemes to “Renewable Energy Technology System” schemes. (via Grist)
>> Real new green energy coming down the pipeline: "green crude" made from algae that could be used for fuel.
 Recycling odd, small items brings out two camps: The "Why're you wasting time with small meaningless things when we've got big problems" crowd, and the "Finally -- a solution for my mini quandary" crowd. This post's for the people in the latter granola group.
And I mean "granola group" literally, as in people who enjoy eating granola. Sign up for The Energy Bar Wrapper Brigade to get 2 cents per used granola bar wrapper and the peace of mind that those trashy things'll get upcycled into backpacks, purses, and other more permanent products.
That program's sponsored by CLIF bar, which has teamed up with the worm-poop eco-fertilizer company TerraCycle to create this upcycling project. CLIF isn't alone; companies ranging from the Stonyfield Farms yogurt company to the rather biz-as-usual Nabisco are also sponsoring TerraCycle projects. Got a Chips Ahoy or Oreo addiction? Pack your kids Capri Suns every day? Save the trash, earn money, and feel saintly green.
Of course, some die-hard environmentalists will argue that the real problem is not the disposal of the packaging but our addiction to single-serving convenience foods -- especially unhealthy, processed stuff like Oreos. I hear that, but still eat the occasional CLIF and Maya bar. I also get the local Redwood Hill Farm's yogurt sometimes, and once, I bought organic oreos.
The companies selling the food products are the ones paying for the projects, from the shipping costs of the materials to the 2-5 cent incentives. This allows TerraCycle to obtain zero-cost materials. "We don’t make a profit from the funds that [the sponsor companies] provide us with," says James Artis of TerraCycle. "We simply use those funds for operating expenses. Where we as a company look to turn a profit is the affordable eco-friendly products that we make from the garbage."
Unfortunately, unless you know of or have signed up an organization you're involved in with the upcycling program, disposing of all this packaging in an eco-manner still isn't easy. TerraCycle's website puts the recycling program info upfront, but the sponsoring companies' websites don't have anything about the programs in a place where consumers could easily find out about it. In addition, while many organizations have signed up with the program, those organizations aren't listed in any kind of public database that would let would-be upcyclers drop wrappers off at a nearby location.
My guess is that too much publicity -- like installing collection bins at every major supermarket -- might overwhelm TerraCycle's resources. Already, TerraCycle's taking a break from adding "brigades" for energy bar wrappers, yogurt containers or soda bottles.
Still, if your school or other group wants to participate, signing up is pretty easy -- and free. Plus the money collected could be used toward fundraisers. I'm wondering if my favorite grocery store, Co-opportunity, can be talked into getting a collection box.
Junk -- a raft made with 15,000 plastic bottles -- is ready to set sail! Last week, Anna Cummins wrote about the Junk voyage's effort to call attention to the frightening plastic pollution in the oceans -- and now you're invited to the bon voyage party:
When: Sunday, June 1, 2 p.m. - 3 p.m.
Where: Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific, 100 Aquarium Way, Long Beach
Meet Dr. Marcus Eriksen and Joel Paschal -- both of Algalita Marine Research Foundation -- before they set sail on their 6-week journey from Long Beach to Hawaii. Then follow their progress on the Junk blog!
>> Coal: Still dirty. And now we've got a new website -- Clean Coal Body Slam -- that has "pulled together some of the best and most outspoken leaders on the environmental, public health and economic effects of America's addiction to coal." There I found the best clean coal ad ever, below.
>> Umbra of Grist has a few tips on wearing skirts with bikes, but none seem particularly easy to implement. Anyone have better suggestions?
>> If your skirt-wearing habit keeps you off a bike, check out these other ways to green your commute. I use the "Stay home" method.
>> Continue to fill up your tank and you may have to deal with a new form of theft: thieves drilling into fuel tanks to get vehicles' gas.
>> In case you were having a good day, here's a debbie downer: Thanks to climate change, we're at increased risk of crop failures, outbreaks of invasive species and insects, and depleting the nation's water resources -- and those problems "will persist for at least the next 25 to 50 years," according to the Department of Agriculture.
It was bound to happen: We now have an Environmental Hall of Fame, which will hold its first awards ceremony next month.
While really anyone can create their own Hall of Fame (I just found the Ecology Hall of Fame and the Assault on Science Hall of Fame -- both basically on-line lists created by teensy nonprofits), the Environmental Hall of Fame is a somewhat bigger deal -- if for no other reason than the fact that its awards ceremony will mark its existence in real life, beyond the Internet.
The ceremony honors 20 environmentalists over three nights -- and some very cool people have already signed up to attend! Among them are Van Jones, an environmental and social justice activist, and Rainforest Action Network founder Randy Hayes. If you want to rub elbows with them, all you have to do is buy an $8 ticket.
When: June 5-7, 7 p.m.
Where: Westin LAX Theater, 5400 W. Century Blvd., Los Angeles
Cost: $8 for general admission. Purchase tickets on-line here.
The Environmental Hall of Fame could actually be seen as part of an elaborate book promo. It came to be through the research of Allen Rubin and Catherine Corbin, two life coaches who decided to write a book that "recognizes individuals, companies and organizations that have made the most significant impact on environmental issues." Before that book, titled "The Environmental Hall of Fame, 2008 Edition," comes out this summer, the authors are recognizing the people they wrote about in this awards ceremony.
Unfortunately for those hoping to see the really big names, neither Al Gore nor Bill Clinton are expected to attend -- though organizers are hopeful that the two men will send people to participate in the ceremony on their behalf.
(Thanks to Geoff for the tip)
 If you're a fan of David Byrne, you likely already know he had a little cycling accident and broke a couple ribs earlier this month. That snafu notwithstanding, Byrne's a big bicycling advocate -- and he promotes the biking life in "Transport," the latest episode from Sundance's "Big Ideas for a Small Planet."
"Transport" showcases the bicycle in a segment that centers around Portland, where bicycles even get their own signals at busy intersections. Find out what bike-friendly initiatives have been implemented in other cities, then see how those ideas stack up to the suggestions L.A. bicyclists have for improving the bike lifestyle in L.A.
The episode also highlights some MIT people inventing urban commuter cars that are electric, stackable, and can be rented with the swipe of a credit card -- much like those luggage carts at airports! These rentable cars aren't on the market yet, but green car geeks can still see what may be coming down the pipeline.
The show airs tonight at 9 on the Sundance Channel. If you missed previous "Big Ideas" episodes, you can catch up via iTunes. One of my favorite "Big Ideas" episodes -- "Grow" -- actually aired last week. The short program covered everything from xeriscaping to green roofs. Did you know green roofs can lessen urban runoff, create habitat for insects and birds, reduce energy use (primarily by cooling the building naturally), provide food, and triple the life of the roofing material? I don't actually have a roof to green, but I'm wondering if I can turn my balcony into a green roof-like surface ...
 >> Priuses: Still popular. Toyota's announced a third plant in Japan to make batteries for hybrids.
>> The "Give your car the summer off" campaign. Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels wants Seattleites to cut back on driving by 10%. "Local businesses and museums are dangling incentives to try to get people to take the bus, ride a bike or car pool to cut down on the number of miles they travel." (via Treehugger)
>> Redefining transportation. At Brayj Against the Machine, Josef El-Brayjerino lays out some bicycle transportation policy goals for L.A. -- which includes suggestions for tweaking the L.A. municipal code to include bicycling and walking in the legal definition of transportation. (via Streetsblog LA)
>> Cleaning up the Port. The Middle Harbor facility project for the Port of Long Beach just released its environmental impact review for public comment. "The 10-year, $750-million project would combine two terminals that are too old, inefficient and dirty to meet the port's goals for pollution reduction and greater productivity."
>> The "Future of Wine." Richard Selley of Imperial College London wrote a book about the future of British wines in the face of climate change. "Given reports that climate change is already raising the alcohol content of wines (warmer temperatures mean more sugar which is converted into alcohol) it looks like the taste of climate change is a boozy one."
>> Tuna calculator. Use Environmental Working Group's handy calculator to figure out how much Albacore or light tuna you can safely enjoy in a week. (via Green Daily)
>> Honey, I shrunk the frogs. "Human disruption to habitats not only causes populations to get smaller, it also seems to cause the individuals of some species to literally shrink."
Photo by Siel
 So factory farmed meat gets a lot of bad press -- but if you're not quite sure what the problem with the unnatural meat is, 'The Simpsons' can help you out. (via The Ethicurean)
In “Apocalypse Cow,” Bart gets to know a "scrappy little misfit" of a cow called Lou when he joins 4H. Unfortunately, Lou gets sent to a feedlot -- and more fortunately, the storyline educates viewers about growth hormones, slaughterhouses, and, um, Casablanca.
For more factory farming fun, watch The Meatrix, a cute short animation feature by Sustainable Table. My favorite character's Moofius.
Need a more realistic, less cartoonish video to get you concerned about factory farming? Check out the videos from the Humane Society that got Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Co. in Chino, Calif., in trouble -- and precipitated the biggest beef recall in history.
>> L.A. lifeguards get into hybrids. Ford presented 10 Beach Patrol Escape Hybrids to the L.A. County Lifeguard Headquarters in Venice last week. "With four-wheel drive, it'll return 29 mpg in town (or on the beach), and 27 mpg on the highway." The fleet will grow to 45 vehicles. (via Treehugger)
 >> BBC correspondent discovers that -- gasp! -- L.A.'s subway "system" is still incomplete. But kudos for him for taking the train to the Kodak Theatre.
>> Suits made of recycled PET bottles are coming to Sears, which plans to sell them for about $200 a suit starting on Father's Day.
>> Sex toys sans phthalates. Get more eco- and health-friendly beads and rings from natch snatch. (thanks to Susannah for the tip.)
>> The rise -- and hopefully fall -- of high fructose corn syrup. Hansen’s Natural Soda is replacing HFCS with cane sugar, and to mark the occasion, Mark R. gives us a little HFCS history.
Photo by Cathy Cole via Flickr
 L.A. tap water's won critics' taste tests, and tastes better than a lot of bottled water, IMHO. But for those who're convinced that bottled water tasted better than tap, a new to-go reusable water bottle's on the market that promises to make "ordinary tap water taste like bottled water."
The Fit & Fresh Liv Pure Bottle tries to change the taste of tap water via its filter, which reduces chlorine by 50%. That reduction probably won't be enough for the chlorine-phobic folk who install filters even on their shower heads, but it may be satisfactory for some who really feel their water palate's chlorine-sensitive.
Made of #4 plastic (LDPE), the Fit & Fresh Liv Pure Bottle is BPA-free. Each filter can handle 75 gallons of water -- equivalent to 500 regular-sized disposable water bottles. Replacement filters can be bought where the bottles are sold: Linens ‘n Things, K-Mart and online.
So if you drink filtered water at home, but tend to buy bottled water too to drink while on the go, Fit & Fresh Liv Pure Bottle might help you cut back on your plastic consumption.
Of course, as with Brita filters, the filters themselves are not recyclable. There's actually a movement afoot to get Brita to take back and recycle its filters. Apparently, the original European Brita company has a take-back recycling program for used filters; the Clorox-owned Brita Products Co. in the U.S. does not. Maybe both Brita and Fit & Fresh will be persuaded to think about the entire life cycles of their products soon. More on that later.
>> Exxon's really, really good at squeezing money out of its gas stations. "Major integrated U.S. oil companies, which produce crude oil, own refineries and sell gasoline, have been reaping billions of dollars in profit over the last two years, but they are still working to extract every penny they can from the marketing end of the business."
>> ExxonMobil really, really doesn't want to take action on climate change. According to Co-op America, ExxonMobil "sent its investment relations people to major investors nationwide to convince them to vote against resolutions urging Exxon to take action on climate change." ExxonMobil's annual shareholders' meeting happens May 28.
>> You're probably familiar with the EnergyStar logo, but what about the WaterSense label? This partnership program sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency makes it easier to identify water-efficient products. "The EPA has claimed that if every home in the US switched to WaterSense labeled fixtures, we would save 60 billion gallons of water a year," says Joel Bittle in Low Impact Living.
>> Eco-kitchen remodeling must be the in thing right now. In addition to the recent Wall Street Journal how-to guide of sorts, here's Chow's guide to building the ultimate green kitchen.
>> Today's the last day of World Vegetarian Week! Eat a PB&J sandwich in celebration -- or get some veggie burgers for the BBQs tomorrow.
Photo by Jeremy Stanley via Flickr
 I was going to write about Wired's over-the-top "everything you know about environmentalism is wrong" cover message -- then found a bunch of bloggers had done so already. That didn't, however, stop me from my impulse to still add my two cents! So here are the three main quibbles I have about Wired's wannabe contrarian feature:
Overblown headlines. For example, the "Keep your SUV" article doesn't actually encourage you to keep your SUV. It simply points out that if you own a relatively fuel-efficient car already, keeping that old car may be more eco than buying a new hybrid. "Crank the A/C" is another big headline -- as if turning your house into an icebox will save the environment -- when all the article really shows is that heating takes more energy than cooling.
 Out-of-date mantras. "Live in cities," Wired announces as some brand new idea -- never mind that new urbanism advocates have been pushing for walkable, close-knit neighborhoods that don't require lots of driving for decades now. Even Villaraigosa's been on board with this for years now. It's a little odd for Wired to say "The war on greenhouse gases is too important to be left to the environmentalists" -- before going on to advise we do exactly what environmentalists have been recommending for a long, long while.
 Oversimplification of complex issues. "Screw organic," says Wired, arguing that organic farming requires more land per unit of food -- without taking into effect the many environmental disasters (i.e. pesticide runoff) created by conventional factory farms that also increase their carbon footprints. Wired takes a myopic one-solution-cures-all approach and disses organic to champion local. In contrast, environmentalists in general caution against a silver bullet theory, and instead encourage a general move toward a less meat-centric diet favoring locally and sustainably grown organic foods.
For more Wired dissing, check out the rebuttal piece by Worldchanging's Alex Steffen also published in this Wired issue. In addition, Hank Green of EcoGeek provides a point-by-point analysis of each Wired topic, and David Roberts of Grist has a more sarcastic tirade of sorts about the tiredness of Wired ("This techno-futurist, hipster-libertarian, self-consciously contrarian shtick was fresh and interesting ... back in 1996, when Wired was founded").
 >> Green kitchen remodeling, explained and dissected by Gwendolyn Bounds in the Wall Street Journal. "When the sawdust finally settled -- just this week, in fact -- the $83,119 renovation cost for my 300-square-foot kitchen was about $26,000 less than the average upscale, 200-square-foot kitchen remodel last year, according to Remodeling Magazine." (via Jetson Green)
>> Easy-Off Oven Cleaner's really, really toxic, so here's how to clean your oven greenly. Get your step-by-step instructions on Lime.com.
>> Dump a computer in a landfill, pay $400 in fines. The state Department of Toxic Substances Control is cracking down on people illegally dumping e-waste and other hazardous materials in the landfill. Take the junk to your nearest e-waste or hazardous household waste facilities instead.
>> Two different eco-designers have come up with umbrella stands that water plants with residue rainwater. Which do you think is cuter?
>> The high cost of the virtual water trade. Virtual water = "the water supplies that make possible the world trade in commodities, especially food." "The world's biggest supplier of virtual water is, or was until a couple of years ago, Australia. It exported 70 cubic kilometres of virtual water, in the form of fruit and crops, a year. That's 70 billion tonnes, if you can imagine that better. Then came drought." Earlier: Roses are red and water-intensive.
Photo by Betsy via Flickr
 Santa Monica's gotten greener and greener of late -- too crunchy, perhaps -- to the point that now, we have about a biggish eco-event a day happening within the small city.
Take next week, for example. On Tuesday, we have "Smart Growth," a city-funded FREE Sustainable Santa Monica Event that centers around a presentation by Dimitris Klapsis, LEED Accredited Professional and a senior project manager with HMC Architects in Pasadena. Green building enthusiasts can stop by the Santa Monica Main Library, 601 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica, at 6 p.m. to hear Klapsis speak.
Then on Wednesday, we have "Green is the new Black," an environmental panel and reception organized by the Yale Club of Southern California, who despite their Ivy League education, couldn't manage to find a more creative title than this tired, now-hackneyed one. They're smart enough to charge $15-$25 to cover costs for the event, however. It goes down in The Haworth Showroom at the Water Garden, 1601 Cloverfield Blvd., Santa Monica, from 7 p.m.-9 p.m.
Thursday will take eco-activists back to the Santa Monica Public Library for a panel on "Running a Green Household." The FREE workshop will teach you how to make the best decisions while evaluating and purchasing products and services for your home. That happens in the Multipurpose Room of the SMPL at 601 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica, starting at 7 p.m.
I know there's green stuff happening in other parts of the city; I keep track of them here. It just seems that most of them seem to be happening in Santa Monica. Of course, I live in Santa Monica, so perhaps I get a disproportionate amount of notices about events happening here while I never hear about others. Know 'bout an eco-event that's not on my calendar? Let me know, and I'll add it on.
If your shopping list includes everything from a $3 natural wood crayon set to a $26 make-it-yourself eco-cleaning kit to a $500 Linda Loudermilk designer jacket, your new favorite eco-shop's just opened its doors.
Visionary, a new eco-boutique in West Hollywood, celebrated its launch on Wednesday with a fundraiser for Global Green, featuring organic cupcakes, fair trade Steaz tea, and carbon neutral Parducci wines. Self-described as "your one-stop eco-chic boutique," Visionary offers a very eclectic collection of household goods and green fashions -- with a price range to match.
Some of the items were oddly inexpensive -- like the handcrafted wooden toy motorcycle above, yours for just $15.99. Others were more high-end luxury products -- organic towels that ran $100+, eco-fashions at designer prices. Most goods fell somewhere in between.
What makes the products at Visionary eco? That depends on the product. According to owner Magda Rod, Visionary's products meet one or more of the criteria listed on the Visionary tag (pictured below) attached to each item:
 Some of these qualities -- such as the use of organic, recycled or reclaimed materials -- are clearly environmentally desirable. Others -- like handcrafted or locally-made -- are concrete, positive attributes, but are not necessarily eco in my book. A handcrafted toy cat made with sustainable wood I saw didn't seem so green, since it was covered with synthetic glitter that came off in my hands.
Yet other criteria, like promoting "peace and love" or being "enlightening" are just totally nebulous and rather arbitrary, IMHO. Fridge magnets of hands giving the peace sign don't qualify as "sustainable" if they're made of unsustainable materials. I wouldn't want kids putting that in their mouths.
Still, these less eco items stuck out mainly because most of the products at Visionary are sustainable and environmentally-friendly. Magda says that she expects the boutique's collection to evolve as she continues her research and learning about environmental issues.
I expect Visionary will get quite popular with the well-heeled West Hollywood crowd, especially since the store's located right across the street from Urth Caffe, making the boutique a nice post-organic coffee stop.
Visionary. 8568 1/2 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood.(310) 659-1177.
 >> California's average gas price tops $4 a gallon; the national average is above $3.83 a gallon.
>> Relatedly, hybrid sales are zooming and Ford's given up hopes of becoming profitable by 2009.
>> Metro riders can rock out for free at the Viper Room on Mondays. A $5 Metro Day Pass, or weekly and monthly Metro passes will grant you free admission to the weekly 103.1 Check One... Two.
>> Metro adopts a $3.4 billion budget for the coming fiscal year. Good news: No fare increases! "Up 7.3% from current budget, the increase is largely due to increased transportation subsidies for municipal bus operators, paratransit service, Metrolink, the County of Los Angeles and cities, preparation to start new Metro Gold Line service to East Los Angeles later in 2009, and rehabilitation of older Metro Rail cars."
>> Alaska plans to sue against polar bears' new status as a threatened species. "Alaska elected officials fear a listing will cripple oil and gas development in prime polar bear habitat off the state's northern and northwestern coasts." (via grist) Earlier: Politics and polar bears.
>> Why more companies are siding with environmentalists to push for government regulation. Writes Gregory Dicum in the Economist: "Alliances between companies and activists are not as strange as they might seem. For bosses planning long-term capital investments, says Michael Lenox, an expert on corporate sustainability at Duke University, 'uncertainty is more damaging than regulation.' This puts bosses in the same boat as activists: both want regulators to hurry up and set the rules."
>> The problem with nuclear power: Debates about costs and benefits aside, nuclear power requires bullying people into accepting radioactive wastes. The latest: Washington State got sued by the Bush admin for refusing radioactive waste, and the courts ruled against the state. Meanwhile, Italy plans to build nuclear power plants again, after a 20-year break.
Photo by Gregg Moscoe
 Have your organic locally-grown carrot cake and eat it too! The Hollywood Farmers' Market is turning 17, and the celebrations kick off with a carrot cake cutting ceremony at 8 a.m. -- Get there early and enjoy a free piece!
When: Sunday, May 25, 8 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Where: Hollywood Farmers' Market, at Ivar and Selma avenues between Hollywood and Sunset, Los Angeles
Cost: Free!
There'll be face painting and an arts and crafts workshop for kids starting at 9. For the cooks, a chef demonstration with Pace's Sandy Gendel -- a twice-weekly farmers' market shopper -- begins at 10 a.m.
Shop local, eat good cake -- and don't forget to take your own bag!
"In a city where everyone defines themselves by what they drive, who are you if you take the train or the bus?" asks Andrae Gonzalo, a fashion designer who, with choreographer Jamie Benson, forms the duo performing "Go Metro" this weekend.
A Metro-inspired dance comedy that incorporates vaudeville shtick, contemporary dance, and everything in between, "Go Metro's" described as a "surreal but comedic look at the metropolitan experience, exploring characters and scenarios inspired by real individuals [Benson and Gonzalo] have encountered on the elaborate caste structure that is L.A.'s public transportation system."
When: Friday, May 23 and Saturday, May 24, 8:30 p.m. both days
Where: Highways Performance Space, 1651 18th St., Santa Monica
Cost: $20 regular, $15 for members, students, and seniors. Buy tickets online
Get there by bus (or bike or foot), because the Westside's still got no rail.
>> Up to 24,000 Californians die from fine particulate pollution each year, according to state researchers. The revised figures are based on a review of new research across the nation about the hazards posed by microscopic particles, which sink deep into the lungs. "More measures will be needed, air board officials said, including eventually lowering the maximum permissible levels of soot statewide."
>> A Senate panel overturned the U.S. EPA's decision against California's bid to limit greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles. "In December, EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson turned down California's request for a Clean Air Act waiver that would have allowed the state to require that automakers cut global warming emissions by 30% in new cars and light trucks by 2016. Boxer's bill would deem the waiver approved."
>> 2,500 companies and agencies in the Bay Area will have to pay 4.4 cents per metric ton of CO2 they expel starting July 1, due to a decision by the Bay Area Air Quality district. "The fees are expected to generate $1.1 million in its first year to help pay for programs to measure the region's emissions and develop ways to reduce them."
>> Polluting paints are getting phased out from SoCal. "Starting July 1, all flat paints made, sold and used within Orange and major portions of San Bernardino, Riverside and Los Angeles counties must have 50 grams or less of volatile organic compounds per liter."
>> L.A.'s Civic Center employee bicycle facility project wins the Rideshare Diamond Award from Metro and the Ventura County Transportation Commission. The project was created with help from the L.A. County Bicycle Coalition, which is currently organizing the L.A. River Ride you should sign up for.
Photo by Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times
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