than half a home’s hot water needs.
side the home, where the temperature
Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency).
Wrapping a water heater in a space-age
remains stable; these move heat from
For solar panels, tap into a Residen-
insulation blanket and hooking it up to
the ground via encased fluid to the
tial Power Purchase Agreement (PPA),
its own timer, at about $200, installed,
home’s ductwork during cold months
where a customer pays a small upfront
is another way to cut energy usage and
and reverse the process in hot months.
cost to a company such as SunRun to
utility bills.
The overall system costs about $7,500,
guarantee a set electricity rate for the
Residential wind turbines—as
more than a $4,000 furnace and central
next 18 years.
tall as 80 feet or more—depend on a
air system, but it requires little mainte-
host of factors to make them feasible,
nance. Payback can come in as little as
Contact: American Wind Energy As-
including unobstructed land, building
two years.
sociation, awea.org; Database of State
codes and cost considerations. A 10-
Many incentives help. A 30
Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency,
kW system will cost about $40,000.
percent tax credit is available through
dsireusa.org; Energy Star tax infor-
For anyone building a new home,
2016 for home renewable energy sys-
mation, EnergyStar.gov, search “tax
a geothermal heat pump is one of the
tems (search the Energy Star website).
credits”; Solarbuzz, Solarbuzz.com;
best long-term energy investments.
Local utilities often offer further rebates
SunRun, SunRunHome.com.
Pipes are buried in the ground out-
and incentives (search Database of State

Organic Clothing
and Linens
While major brands like Levi, Gap
and American Apparel have introduced
organic clothing lines in the last few
years, organic and natural fiber fabrics,
including sustainable bamboo and
hemp, is still a niche market. While
people now better understand the
health benefits of organic foods, “Most
consumers don’t understand organic…
when it comes to clothing,” says Mark
Messura, executive vice president of
Cotton Incorporated.
Patagonia makes all of its sports-
wear from 100 percent organic cotton,
a practice it began in 1996. Recently,
a more widespread advance in green
standards for all consumer products
has emerged from an unlikely source:
Walmart. In July 2009, the retail gi-
ant announced that it is developing a
universal rating system and “eco label”
that lets shoppers know the environ-
mental impacts of the products they are
buying, from energy consumption to
water use.
For cotton clothing and bedding,
pesticide and water use are major con-
cerns. Petra Kjell, of the Environmental
Justice Foundation reports, for example,
that it requires 500 gallons of water
to produce one conventional cotton
T-shirt. Traditional cotton production
continues to be tied to dangerous levels
of toxic pesticides and insecticides.
Eco fashion offers an eclectic mix
from emerging designers. They may
use surplus designer fabric, T-shirts
made from bamboo, or fleece made
from recycled soda bottles. Vintage and
consignment clothes work well, while
“refashion”—like dresses made from T-
20 www.VOFLnatural.com
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