Read the rest of 7 Tips for a Red, White and GREEN Fourth of July!

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: compostable plates, eco-friendly fourth of july, fourth of july, fourth of july tips, green 4th of july, green barbecues, green bbq, green fireworks, green fourth of july, healthy eating fourth of july, Homemade Popsicles, recycling fourth of july, solar lanterns, sustainable fourth of july

Fireworks are one of the best parts of Independence Day, but with their captivating flashes of light, it’s all too easy to be blinded to the fact that they’re also explosives that spew dust, smoke, heavy metals, carbon monoxide and other toxins into the air. And it isn’t just the environment that we should be worried about. Chemicals like lung-clogging antimony, heart-toxic Barium and body-contaminating perchlorates are all health risks associates with our favorite night sky spectacle. Luckily, scientists are currently working on developing greener fireworks – read on for some informative links that we’ve rounded up on the subject.

Read the rest of Green Fireworks for an Eco-Friendly Independence Day

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: 4th of july, eco-friendly fireworks, green fireworks, green independence day, independence day

What’s not to love about fireworks? Bright bursts of color, awe-inspiring flashes of light… asthma??!!! More and more people have been voicing their concerns about the health risks (from particle-filled smoke and lung-clogging antimony to heart-toxic Barium and body-contaminating perchlorates) associated with our favorite nighttime spectacles, especially since we’ll be experiencing a ton of them tomorrow for 4th of July. Are there such things as eco-friendly fireworks? Scientists are busy working on them right now, but at the moment, they are too cost-prohibitive to make an appearance in displays this year.

Since we can’t purport to be green fireworks experts, here are the articles that we’ve found to be the most informative on the subject:

Eco-Friendly Fireworks Offer Safer Alternatives from Discovery News

Oh No Mommy, Will the Greenies Take Fireworks Away from Us? (haha) from Treehugger

Eco-Friendly Fireworks and Other Green Alternatives for July 4th from Greenopia

+ 5 Cheap and Easy Ways to Green Your 4th of July

Image credit: d4rr3ll and Mr. Magoo ICU

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: 4th of july, eco-friendly fireworks, green fireworks, green independence day, independence day

As our country celebrates its 231st birthday today, many of us are planning a fun-filled day of barbecues, sun, and fireworks. Whatever your level of patriotism towards the good old U.S. of A., we can all do our best to protect our beautiful earth by keeping green in mind for the holiday. Here are a few ways we can all make our star-spangled banner a bit more green.


Read the rest of RED, WHITE, AND GREEN 4TH OF JULY!

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: biodegradable plates, branch home, compostable plates, eco-friendly barbecue, eco-friendly grill, eco-friendly tableware, fourth of july, green barbecue, green fireworks, green holiday, green tableware, green vegetables, organic produce, Recycle, recycling, sustainable charcoal