While green lawns aren’t necessarily a natural fit with desert living, many of us have them and want them to be green and lush at most any cost.  Oftentimes that means polluting the air, ground and water to maintain them.  But a new lawn service says the environment shouldn’t have to pay the price for us to have green grass and lush landscapes.

EcoGreen Lawn & Tree Co. is putting the green back into Las Vegas - one yard at a time.  That’s what it says on their eco-friendly mobile trailer, with two unassuming solar panels sitting on top!  Parked outside in the sunshine all day, the panels pull enough amps of energy to keep battery-powered lawn tools charged and running from sun up to sundown.  Then excess power is stored in batteries so it never runs out. 

Nick and Tim Militello started the business with the desire to use safe enviromental methods in their gardening.  They say it’s only natural for gardners to care for the environment where they make their living.  Natural nutrient-rich compost, organic fertilizers and weed killers keep chemicals out of the water stream.  Battery-powered lawn mowers, edgers and blowers work quietly to keep polluting gas fumes from filling the neighborhood air.  And while the solar panels weren’t cheap - the Militellos say they will pay for themselves within the first year of business.  There aren’t many start-up companies who can brag about that.  Why aren’t there more yard services using these methods?  It seems only natural to me.

Computers and other electronics are some of the biggest energy hogs in our homes and offices.  So anything that helps recude your power use is worth taking a look at and maybe giving it a try.

The EcoButton is a handy little power-saving gadget that sits quietly beside the keyboard to help remind you to save electricity when you step away from your computer.And it’s really simple to use.  It plugs into a USB port and then the L-E-D glowing disc sits on the desktop and waits for you to give it a press when you’re taking a break. 

The EcoButton website takes you through the easy install steps and includes a power consumption screen where you input the wattage of your computer, the size of monitor and the price per kw of electricity to help calculate your energy savings.

While most computers have a stand-by mode, the EcoButton takes your computer down to a deeper energy savings without totally shutting down your computer; it’s called S3 sleep state.  The beauty of that is when you’re ready for lunch or to slip away from your computer for awhile, just press the EcoButton and your computer takes a snooze without losing the work that’s open on your screen.  When you return press any key on your keyboard and the computer refreshes - right where you left off and you’re ready to work again in seconds.  Cool. 

The nifty gadget costs about $20 and the maker says it can save you up to $100 a year on your power bill - depending on how often you remember to use it.  The EcoButton works with Windows 2000, XP and Vista programs.  It is not Mac compatible yet, but they’re working on one.  And you must have the hibernate mode available on your computer for the EcoButton to work.  I couldn’t find it readily available at U.S. retailers, but you can get it on-line.  Here are some sites I found - other than EcoButton.  If you find it in stores - let us all know.  It might make a great stocking stuffer for the holidays!

It looks like a puffed up Alka Seltzer tablet BEFORE it becomes a moistened paper towelette.  It’s called the Ec’o Towel (not a typo - “Ec’o” is the right spelling of this product) and I think you’ll be amazed at how a few drops of water can produce a handy little wipe in a matter of seconds. (See demo.)  Pour a few drops of water on this hydrolic-processed thick nickel-sized pellet - and voila! - it grows into this moistened 10″x8″ handy wipe, ready for use to clean up whatever you’ve got - wherever you are!  I loved it.

The Eco’o Towel was discovered by a woman named Gertrude, who thought it was a fantastic product that could help clean up our footprint on the planet by cutting back on using paper towels, napkins, wipes, etc.  The little white wipe is 99% lint-free and it’s totally reusable.  You can wash it and use it again… and again.  When you do throw it away, it’s bio-degradable so it breaks down in the landfill. 

The towel is darn convenient, too.  You can carry it in your purse, your pocket, the briefcase, a lunch kit, the golf bag or the diaper bag.  I think the price is affordable for the convenience; $4.95 for a 10-pak and $8.95 for 24.  Check out Gertrude’s website for ordering and some other nifty products.  She also carries bio-degradable doggie poop bags and kitty litter pan liners by Bio-Bag.  Neat stuff to keep our planet a little cleaner.

Are you looking for some fun, new art to hang on the wall?  A lot of local personalities, organizations and even well-known celebrities have created one-of-a-kind decorated masks that can be yours - all to help raise money for a local school.  The Innovations International Charter School of Nevada is a bilingual K-12 Clark County school with a creative mind for learning. 

Donny & Marie Osmond, Patricia Arquette from CBS’ The Medium, Mayor Oscar Goodman, Disney’s Lion King, Terry Fator, Channel 8’s George Knapp, and even “The Donald” Trump (his mask is made of dollar bills!) are all helping to increase the mind power of the kids over at Innovations.  The school’s fundraiser is called “Unmasking the Mind Art Auction & Gala” and it’s this Saturday night at The House of Blues at Mandalay Bay.  Tickets are $60 to the event. 

Before the event, you have a chance to contribute by bidding on these beautiful, unique and even funky masks created with their own message in mind.  My son, Ethan, and I created our mask with the Living Green theme (up top) and naturally - I hope you’ll bid on it!  We spent a lot of time on it and it was great fun!  Bidding starts at $50 for all masks and the on-line auction is going on now until Wednesday, Oct. 21 at midnight!  So sign on and get in a bid.  I hear George Knapp’s mask has a hidden camera in it, so be careful where you hang it in the house!  Just kidding.

If you’re an avid cyclist or you just ride your bike for fun with the kids, biking is healthy for you and the environment.  And more people are looking at their bike as their commuting vehicle of choice.

RTC’s Viva Bike Vegas is returning this weekend to encourage Southern Nevadans to get out on the open roads to enjoy and help preserve the beautiful desert scenery.  The Saturday morning event will offer a 35-mile, 62-mile and 118-mile route for riders.  Cyclists will take off from the Regional Transportation  Commission’s office at 600 S. Grand Central Pkwy. (across from the Factory Outlet Stores).  Other family members can hang back and let the kids ride in the kids’ bike rodeo.  Lunch will be available for purchase, but the sunshine will be free of charge.  You can register at the RTC’s website.  While there, check out the plans for a new bike transfer station downtown where you can ride in, park and lock your bike, and even take a shower before heading off to work.  A bike repair shop will be on site, too for those flat-tire troubles and other necessities to keep you safe on the road.  Ride on RTC!

If you live in an apartment, how many times have you carried your trash bag to the garbage cans knowing it was full of recyclable bottles and newspaper?  Don’t you wish they’d put some recycle bins out there for you and your neighbors to live a little greener?

Well, SB 137 is one of the 150 new Nevada laws that went into effect October 1st, and it says that recycling bins will be made available for residents of apartments and condos in Clark County.  Haleluah, right?  Not exactly.  There are some challenges with the new law.

It will be easier for new apartments and condos to abide by it because SB 137 says ALL NEW construction of apartments and condo projects must have dedicated areas for recycling bins - separate from trash bins - worked into their building plans that must be approved by the county before ground is even broken.  But as you and I both know - the new apartment construction is at a slow drip now.

So where does that leave apatment complexes that have been around for years?  According to the new law, ALL aprartment and condo complexes must have recycling bins available - separate from trash - for recyclables.  That means your plastic bottles, cans and newspapers should have a place for them OUT of the garbage bins.  Because existing apartments have limited space, it may make it more challenging to make room for recycling.  But they will have to, according to the new state law.  And frankly, for many of those older complexes that have tried to provide bins in the past, it seems they oftentimes get contaminated with plain ol’ garbage being thrown into them.  So most of the residents have to be on board for it to work.

If you don’t have it in your complex, you can contact your apartment manager and ask for them.  You can contact your Clark County Commissioner.  And then if you still don’t get results, you can contact the Southern Nevada Health District and file a complaint.  They have a hotline just for complaints.  It’s 759-0600.  If apartments still don’t comply after a warning, then the fines kick in.  And they can run from $500 to $5000.  So I’d say, it really can pay to live green!

It’s Green Consumer Day and it may be a good time to reflect on our buying habits.  Many of us consider ourselves to be eco-conscious, but are we true eco-consumers?  Do you consider the resources used to make a product before you buy it,  and even if you knew - would it change your buying habits? 

A recent video called, “The Story of Stuff” shares a theory on how consumerism is stuffing our eco-awareness away in the closet, while we go do more shopping.  The video was produced by a group called, ”The Story of Stuff Project” and definitely has strong political views of how our buying of stuff has spun out of control.  Whether you agree with the point of view or not - just watching this video did make me think about how voracious our appetites for stuff has become and how readily available more and more stuff is all the time.   

And could we really change the cycle of the way stuff is produced, consumed and disposed of simply by demanding earth-friendly products from manufacturers and retailers and becoming more vigilant in reusing and recycling our own stuff?   I may not agree with everything in the video - but I sure wanted to clean out my garage after watching it!

Las Vegas is the halfway stop of a 16-city tour for the Living Zero Home.  All American Homes, GE, and Planet Green are showing off the eco-home featuring Energy Star products, with technical help from the U.S. Dept. of Energy. 

MGM Mirage - which has its own program for employees called, “Conservation Begins at Home” - is hosting the Living Zero Home to help educate the Las Vegas community on energy savings.  The Home provides hands-on demonstations of energy-efficient lights, insulation, windows, appliances and more in a real-life home setting. 

You can get info on tax credits, construction incentives and applicance rebates available for homeowners who make energy-saving changes in their home.  Check out the link to NV Energy with all of the energy-saving rebates available to Southern Nevadans right now.  There are some good savings to be had.

You can also sign up to win a 42″ LCD HDTV that will be given away at the end of the tour.  (Sheesh, I hope you don’t have to be present to win or you may have to fly to Saginaw or Kissimee to pick it up!  Just kidding.) 

The home will be open Thursday, Sept. 24 through Saturday, Sept. 26 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.  Look for it sitting on the strip, in front of the Luxor, on the northeast corner of the property.  Just don’t say, “Avon calling” when you ring the doorbell; that’s so overused.

Eco-products for our furry friends can be hard to find, but I managed to track some down at the SuperZoo pet convention this week at the Mandalay Bay.  If you ever doubt how people splurge on their pets - you should go to one of these pet product shows!

Grooming products are always in demand.  One company, called Earthbath, puts out bio-degradeable and chemical-free pet shampoos, lotions, potions and wipes.  The products are people-tested and cruelty-free (although having a poodle-doo can be cruel, ha ha.)

Natural shampoos with ingredients like tea-tree oil, eucaplytus and peppermint and tango mango help moisturize dry skin and give your pooch a nice shiny coat.  Their oatmeal flavor is the best for itchy or sensitive skin.  There’s even a conditioner and bubbly cleanser for kitties made from cherries.  Meowwww.

No time for a dunk in the tub, Earthbath has a variety of flavored spritzes to spruce up your pup’s fur and get the stink off until you get them in the bath.  All natural wipes are great between baths, too and super for the St. Bernard drooler in your house.  (You can even keep them around when your hubby’s watching the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders this weekend on TV)  ha ha!  They also have ear and eye wipes - cool.  They’re the same ones the San Francisco Zoo uses on their new baby gorilla. 

But maybe some of the best earth-friendly items I found at the show are made by a company called, West Paw Design, out of Bozeman, MT.  They have some cool eco-toys for dogs and cats that are made with various amounts of pre-consumer and post-product waste and are totally recyclable.  There’s the Tux, the Zisc, and the new Bumi (pronounced boomie) and when your dog is finished chewing and tearing them up - you can send them back to the company where they are ground up and used to make new toys!  Priced at $10 to $15.  Neat.  There are fluffy kitty toys, too, made from recycled plastic bottles.  Huh?  Purr-fectly safe for your pet.

The Renitz doggie sweater is made in the U.S. from 100% reclaimed cotton.  No pesticides, no dyes.  They’re adorable and the small runs $34.  And an awesome pet bed - called the Eco Nap - is made with a neat material called, “Intelliloft” that are fibers made from recycled plastic soda bottles.  The tags on each item tells you how many bottles were recycled to make the product.  Now that’s eco-cool.  And I LOVE their website.  Great pictures and explanations of products and shows pets <with> the products.  Plus they have prices on everything.  You’ll have to show some restraint in spending because you’ll want to buy it all.

The eco-chat group, “Green Drinks” meets tonight at the Arts Factory downtown.  The subject of discussion tonight is the film, “The Story of Stuff.”  It’s an interesting look at how we’ve come to be a consumer-driven culture of mass-production, over-consumption and horrible waste habits.  It just may change the way you look at all of your stuff!

The group meets at 6:30 at Studio West in the Arts Factory, located at 107 E. Charleston, Suite 250.  Some treats are provided for a small price, but there is no cost to attend the chew-n-chat.  You can RSVP on their Facebook page.  Now where did I put that weblink… I know it’s here in my stuff somewhere… oh - got it!