Green Your Mortgage
Our government has finally stepped in and now provides Energy Efficient Mortgages (EEMs) as part of a federal program to help new home buyers finance energy efficiency upgrades and purchase new energy efficient homes. These mortgages help you take a higher loan amount to purchase a new home that meets certain environmental standards. Energy efficient homes are cheaper to operate and maintain helping to offset the costs over the long run.
EEMs for EXISTING HOMES
Energy Efficient Mortgages are available for existing homes as well. You’ll need a Home Energy Rating System Report (HERS). These reports rate your home on an index scale and suggest improvements and display your costs. According to Energy Star, a HERS certification showing that a home is energy efficient can increase its value by around 5 percent.
THE FACTS
According to Energy Star, a HERS certification showing that a home is energy efficient can increase its value by around 5 percent.
Mona Vei Acai
Have you heard of Mona Vie? If not if won’t be long until you do. The mona vie acai juice is squeezed from a berry grown on the acai palm. Each berry is under an inch in size, and looks like a large grape. The reason for the recent craze is mona vie acai berries are a superb source of important fatty acids, oleic acids and phytosterols. Ccombined these acids reduce the bad cholesterol and increase the good cholesterol in our bodies. The acai berry also contains amino acids and vital trace elements needed for muscle contraction and regeneration. They possess vitamins a and e, high levels of calcium, and phosphorus, as well as high concentrations of polyphenols, making it a great source of antioxidants. In fact, it is a much better source of antioxidants than oranges, blueberries, and even red wine. Completed studies show a link between the use of antioxidants and increased longevity, and the antioxidants help in the fight against premature aging, cardiovascular, cancer, and eye disease. Acai may also boost brain activity, make the skin healthier, support healthy cholesterol levels, and provide natural energy.
Sounds pretty good huh? Well there’s one more thing, and it has to do with the environment. An acai palm also produces “hearts of palm” which has become popular on salads and entrees all over the world. The problem with hearts of palm is that, until the benefits of the acai berrya were realized, entire acai palm trees was harvested just for the heart of palm. These trees grow in our rainforests which means entire acres of acai palm trees were being harvested in our rainforests to provide hearts of palm. Today, thanks to the acai berry and its benefits, many of these trees are left to grow and bear the acai berry to produce mona vie. What does that all mean? It means consuming less heart of palm and more mona vei actually saves our rainforests.
THE FACTS
Littering
We all know what littering is and we all know its wrong. Throwing garbage on the ground is the most careless and laziness thing you can do. We’ve already done so much damage to our planet, it seems unthinkable to do it any more harm. Studies have shown that areas of high litter volume attract even more volume. That means places where people often litter only get worse - there’s already trash on the ground so what is a little going to hurt right? The most common forms of litter are fast food wrappers and paper. Fast food wrappers make up 33%, and paper adds another 29% of all litter on the ground today.
The effect of littering on the environment are unmistakable. Animals may get trapped or poisoned with litter in their habitats, and litter can end up in rivers and canals, polluting the water supply. About 100,000 sea mammals and turtles choke on or get tangled in plastic ocean debris each year. In the state of California, the punishment for first-time littering starts at a $100 (USD) fine and eight hours of picking up roadside litter. A defendant’s third offense and all subsequent offenses are punished with a minimum penalty of a $750 fine and 24 hours of litter cleanup (per offense). Not to mention, every 12 minutes a fire starts because of litter which is big problem for drier states out West.
Solution? Well obviously don’t litter… but if you’re reading the information on this site my guess is that you aren’t someone that does! Sometimes the only way to get something done is to do it yourself, so try and pick up one piece of litter every day. If we all do that millions of tons of trash will be disposed of properly every year. Clean up around your own house or office. Volunteer with your state or town to help clean up parks and common areas. Not only will you be helping the environment, you’ll be setting a great example as well.
THE FACTS