Eating Organic

Eating organic is the way to make sure no harmful chemicals enter your body, but also the environment. Organic Farms:
-do not release synthetic pesticides into the environment
-sustain diverse ecosystems (biodiversity)
-create less waste
-are more energy efficient
No matter how well pesticides are controlled, they always end up in the air and water around the farm, even in the workers themselves. According to the Consumer's Union, 77 percent of non-organic food has synthetic pesticide on it. Here's a list of fruits and vegetables ranked by pesticides found (from the Environmental Working Group).

RANK	FRUIT/VEGETABLE	PESTICIDE LOAD
1 (worst)	Peach	100 (highest)
2	Apple	93
3	Sweet Bell Pepper	83
4	Celery	82
5	Nectarine	81
6	Strawberries	80
7	Cherries	73
8	Kale	69
9	Lettuce	67
10	Grapes-Imported	66
11	Carrot	63
12	Pear	63
13	Collard Green	60
14	Spinach	58
15	Potato	56
16	Green Beans	53
17	Summer Squash	53
18	Pepper	51
19	Cucumber	50
20	Raspberries	46
21	Grapes-Domestic	44
22	Plum	44
23	Orange	44
24	Cauliflower	39
25	Tangerine	37
26	Mushrooms	36
27	Banana	34
28	Winter Squash	34
29	Cantelope	33
30	Cranberries	33
31	Honeydew Melon	30
32	Grapefruit	29
33	Sweet Potato	29
34	Tomato	29
35	Broccoli	28
36	Watermelon	26
37	Papaya	20
38	Eggplant	20
39	Cabbage	17
40	Kiwi	13
41	Sweet Peas-Frozen	10
42	Asparagus	10
43	Mango	9
44	Pineapple	7
45	Sweet Corn-Frozen	2
46	Avocado	1
47 (best)	Onion	1 (lowest)

There are a lot of resources available to help avoid these chemicals. A simple, but helpful organic cookbook can be found here. If you are willing to give a little more time to make sure your food is safe, why not go into HydroPonics? HydroPonics is growing food without soil, so it is perfect for anyone with limited space. Check out The HydroPonic Garden Guide to get started. Or if your into traditional organic gardening, then use this guide.

Solar Power

Solar power is the most abundant fuel available. Solar power is essential for a sustainable lifestyle. Using only a fraction of that power can solve all of our energy needs! It is the fastest growing market, with an increase of 48% a year since 2002. Once a solar panel is installed, you don't really have to worry about it much. Also, there is the potential to make money from the power company. When you use less than the solar panel produces, then the extra energy is put back into the grid. Make money from the power company? Why doesn't everyone do this? Well, solar power, although abundant, is the most expensive way to produce electricity. Oil, on the other hand, is cheap. Because there is relatively low demand for it, solar power does not grow to it's full potential; therefore, the panels stay as an expensive luxury, when it could slash the electricity bill.

Although the panels seem extremely expensive, they can be relatively cheap!Most solar panels cost in the tens of thousands of dollars. What most people do not know is that there are tax credits that can be earned from using renewable energy sources. These credits can help pay for some of the cost of the solar panels. http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=products.pr_tax_credits

The Battery Solution

The one problem with wind and solar power is their unpredictability. There might not be any wind on hot days when one might want to use an air conditioner. Also, it's never daytime 24/7. This is why power companies are reluctant to switch to these clean alternatives. They don't want the headache of predicting the weather, when they could just fire up a coal plant on a summer day. A way around this is to import electricity from the Mid-West (for wind power) to cities. Unfortunately, this type of infrastructure does not exist yet. A battery, although, works for most people to solve this problem. It captures the energy and stores it for use later on. It's like getting free batteries for your house. Why not use the energy from a windy night to power the lights for a couple days? Or why not sell the electricity created while your away on vacation to the power company. On a hot day, the power company is willing to pay extra for electricity. Batteries are important for people that have, or are thinking about getting, solar or wind power.

Other Resources

-Renewable Energy Solutions: I found a great way to start using solar and wind power, while keeping costs down. I recommend taking a look at this. This website also teaches how to make and buy the ever so important battery cheaply.
-Battery Reconditioning: What's another way to live green? Recycling! Use what already is made. Instead of tossing that dead, heavy, toxic car battery away, use it. All it takes is a simple reconditioning set-up and you'll bring that battery back to life.
-Solar Water Heater: In addition to solar panels, the sun can be used to heat water.