My pop eats a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and some fruit for lunch every day. Simple, tasty and inexpensive he’d argue.

Turns out, when compared to the American standard hamburger, a PBJ sandwich (or other non-meat meal) also saves as much as 2.5 pounds of carbon dioxide, 280 gallons of water and 50 square feet of land!

I found this info in the Jan/Feb 2008 issue of the Sierra Club’s Sierra magazine (which pointed to the PBJ Campaign) – not a very surprising source for a “green” lunch suggestion.

However, I was surprised to find a similar position and figures appearing in the American Chemical Society magazine Chemical & Engineering News’ July 28, 2008 issue.

It stated that, eating local doesn’t make a huge change in emissions as “transportation (of food) overall reflects only 11% of food related greenhouse gas emissions, with the final distribution from producer to retailer acounting for 4%. Instead, it’s pollution associated with production that constitute the major source of food related greenhouse gas emissions, and those emissions vary by type of food…..red meat is by far the biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions.”

Of course, switching to non-meat meals is only one part of reducing greenhouse gases. The C&E News article goes on to state, “In general, the average household’ activities that lead to the most greenhouse gas emissions are heating/cooling their residence and transportation. Food is in general third or fourth.” 

So, turn down the thermostat, ride your bike/walk for transportation and eat a PBJ sandwich for lunch!  You might want to un-bottle some ice tea too!

Mom always said, “Money is dirty.” But an article in the September 15, 2008 Chemical & Engineering News shows there is even more - much more - than dirt and germs on your bills.

“Researchers found that euro bills in Spain on average contain 155ug of cocaine, with a maximum of 889 ug. Previous studies on the US dollar yielded averages ranging from 2.86 to 28.75ug but the most highly contaminated bill in the US studies had about 1.33 mg of cocaine.”

A similar study was performed in Ireland where 100% of the Euros examined had cocaine residue.  Interestingly, the 20s and 50s showed more contamination than notes in 5 and 10 denominations. Makes me wonder, how much cocaine is in a pound?

Some have found money addictive but don’t worry about getting loaded from handling your dough. “Only people who handle many bills on a daily basis” says the C&E News article, ”need worry about the effects of cocaine contamination.” 

Your illegal legal tender isn’t in need of money laundering - but your hands are…. “Yes, mom.” 

YING. I’m very excited to see gasoline prices dropping! It’s less than $2.40 at a few stations near me. This means more $ in my pocket and a little less route planning as I get behind the wheel. And, it’s gotten too dark (and soon cold) for my occasional commute by bike.

YANG. For the first half of 2008, US drivers traveled nearly 20 billion fewer miles in their cars than during the same period in 2007. That’s a lot of fuel and emissions saved! 

And, according to the International Council on Clean Transportation (reported in Jan/Feb Sierra) the United States is one of the world’s worst when it comes to fuel economy of our autos. Europe and Japan are at over 40 miles per gallon. China is over 30 MPG and Canada is nearing that mark. The good ole’ USA is only 25 MPG.

Higher gas prices actually encouraged (forced) Americans to rethink their automobile driving and buying habits…

Recently came across the Jan/Feb ‘08 issue of Sierra magazine and noticed the following piece relates to a few of my posts about mercury and American Electric Power HQ’d in Columbus Ohio.

“The EPA has settled a lawsuit with AEP, the nation’s largest industrial emitter of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur dioxide, over the company’s failure to install the newest pollution controls when it expanded its power plants. The utility agreed to cut 813,000 tons of air pollutants annually at an estimated cost of more than $4.6 billion. Oh, wait – a tiny paragraph assures the utility that the EPA won’t pursue any enforcement actions against it until at least 2018.”

And so the mercury from coal fired power plants keeps falling…

From an Adventure Cycling Assn. press release…

“The United States is on a path to creating what could become the largest official bicycle route network in the world, thanks to the approval of a new plan by America’s leading authority on national route designations. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) has just approved a National Corridor Plan laying out the framework and guidelines for the development of this system.”

“The plan identifies corridors connecting America’s urban, rural, and suburban areas. The corridors cover well over 50,000 miles, which, if transformed into routes along roads and trails, would create the largest official bicycle route network in any country or on any continent.”

“Research is showing that well-designed cycling networks generate major increases in non-motorized trips. In the United Kingdom, for example, the national network triggered growth in these trips from 85.5 million in 2000 to 338 million in 2006. Similar gains are being seen in Quebec, which is also using the network to promote province-wide economic development and tourism.”

“Now that the plan has been approved, states and nonprofits are free to work together and develop official interstate routes. According to Sullivan, several states are already moving forward, including Virginia, Michigan, and Florida. Numerous other states have also shown an increasing interest in creating routes that link urban, suburban, and rural destinations.”

“For more information about the U.S. Bicycle Route System project, go to www.adventurecycling.org/usbrs. Web pages include the corridor plan and criteria, a corridor plan map, and information about other national and provincial route networks.”