Ok, yesterday I meant to post some Earth Day links, but got majorly behind what with Earth Day going on. But no worries, today is a great day to read some Earth Day tips because really, one set Earth Day is no good anyhow. If you want to be green and help preserve the planet you should celebrate all year long.

Following are some of the best Earth Day pieces I saw yesterday. Read up for ideas about how to stay green all year long…

Political Habitat: Notes from an Earth Day realist - this was my favorite Earth Day read yesterday. Very smart and sums up the issues nicely.

Grist rounded up what folks thought of their whole screw Earth Day event in; We screwed Earth Day—get over it. A great round up and hey, they even mention the post I did on the event - Screw Earth Day! which yes, is cool beans even when redirected to Glam.

Treehugger, of course, had some nice pieces up for Earth Day; among my faves…

• 11 Environmentalist Heroes: an Earth Day Tribute
• “Anything’s Possible”: A Video Interview with Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips
• Turning Earth Day into Every Day

Plan for 365 days of green this Earth Day - a full year’s calender of ways to stay green.

Love to your mother: Earth Day facts and figures - this cool piece looks at how this holiday is shaping up after 39 years worth of Earth Days.

So read up and see if you can find some green to love. You can also share your favorite Earth Day reads in the comments.

[image via stock.xchng]

Today, April 22, is Earth Day, a celebration of the planet and a day to highlight efforts to conserve resources and live a sustainable lifestyle.

The day was created in 1970, sponsored by a far-thinking Wisconsin senator named Gaylord Nelson. Today, Earth Day is recognized in nations around the world, not just in the United States.

To commemorate Earth Day, a variety of businesses are offering freebies:

Walgreen’s is offering a free canvas shopping bag (you are using these instead of plastic, aren’t you). In addition, they are giving a 15 to 20 percent discount on purchases today. Visit the Walgreen’s site and print a coupon for the bag before you go.

Kroger’s, too is offering a free canvas shopping bag.

Disney Stores are giving away free, reuseable water bottles.

(photo credit: stock xchng)

Reynolds Wrap is rolling out their newest product, recycled aluminum foil!

The green foil is 100% recycled from a mix of pre and post consumer aluminum, and even the cardboard packaging and core are recycled. It’s food safe and available in standard or heavy duty strengths.

For today only you can get yourself a free roll via rebate in honor or Earth Day!

[image: reynoldsrecycled.com]

So I’m going to take the lazy route and repost an article I posted last year for Earth Day. Why Post the same post? Frankly because I couldn’t really write anything to top this one. Enjoy.

Image: sxc.hu

Unless you were born yesterday you know that the earth and our ecological balance of nature is being disturbed by our lack of caring. By technological advances in mankind we have discovered and created many great things to the benefit of human kind. However with every great thing we do there are consequences and repercussions. The great Isaac Newton said for every action there is an equal or opposite reaction in his third law of physics . I didn’t really think about that very much the first time I heard it in 3rd grade science class, but it just goes to prove how brilliant of a man he was even if it is such a common sense type statement. Unfortunately 99% of the time we discover things by accident that advance us, we take a giant step forward… but something else has to suffer in our wake.

We are so dependent on oil in this world that we drill and drill away for more fuel. This same fuel that gets us where we need to go, heats our homes and is used for the production of plastics and such, has a great effect on our environment. The exhaust from automobiles to include airplanes pollutes the air we breathe. We use and use without a second thought. Plastics that are used everywhere today are not biodegradable and are almost always made from a petroleum based product. Some cd manufacturers are going to a less plastic media where the cases are made mostly of cardboard. Where we save on plastic, we use more papers from what? Trees. While the papers are biodegradable in the end, more trees are cut down in the process, so where we save a little bit of petroleum on the non-biodegradable plastics something else suffers. You would think that with music downloads becoming more popular the production of “Hard” media would lessen and in some ways it has. But the use of petroleum products on packing materials has increased greatly. Ever try opening a package to a toy or electronic device these days? It’s extremely difficult and it goes to waste as soon as it’s opened and not enough recycling programs are available. Plastics from disposable drink bottles are filling up landfills instead of being recycled or refilled. The governments should invest more money into recycling programs instead of weapons, but no matter how much presidential candidates talk about environmentalism, sadly action is rarely taken. Read more

If you are earth-loving, this is a pretty big day for you - how awesome would it be if it was also the day you found your equally minded other half?

I am a true believer in opposites attracting. That said, sometimes common ideals work out for the best.

That’s why I found it amusing (but awesome) timing when I read today about PlanetEarthSingles.com.

I mean, there’s tons of niche sites out there, but this is one especially designed for people who are…well…tree-huggers. (I am sorry, couldn’t resist.) So, whether you are all about carbon footprints or a raw foodist, you’ll find the person for you.

I think this is potentially a really cool thing - is it any different than joining a club or taking a class to meet someone with common interests? I wonder how many sites like this exist, though…are there groups for bloggers???

Happy Earth Day, everyone!

Image: Sxc.hu

If you haven’t caught on yet, this entire week will be dedicated to Environmental health. I’m not talking about how healthy your home is; I’m talking about the Earth. Wednesday is Earth Day and I’ve decided to write something everyday to talk about environmental risks and such.

Image: Newscom

Shortly after I quit my full time job to start blogging, I wrote an article on E-waste and RoHS (Restriction OF Hazardous Substance ). RoHS is a directive put in to place in 2003 and went effective in 2006. It’s a process of restricting hazardous substance in the manufacturing of goods and products. There are 4 main substances that are restricted to very low levels. This substance are heavy metals such as Lead , Hexavalent Chromium , Mercury and Cadmium . All of these were widely used in manufacturing of electronics for a long time and the e-waste (electronics waste) has been piling up for years, a lot of which contain the 4 heavy metals that can cause cancer and other health problems. Read more

And here I thought I was the only one thinking this…

The ever opinionated Grist is running a campaign - Screw Earth Day, that pretty much shouts out my concerns about this one day a year event. I bet they didn’t like Earth Hour either (although, don’t quote me on that). But I digress. Each year I post about my Earth Day concerns, talk about my Earth Day concerns, and while some agree with me, others get a little huffy about it. It’s nice to know someone cool (Grist) is on my side.

Here’s what Grist has to say, (among other things), “One day is for amateurs… Screw Earth Day was born from mixed emotions about a day that we purists think doesn’t do enough to get the message across about what individuals can and should be doing to protect the environment. While even the most jaded Grist staffer gets a little excited on Earth Day, as lots and lots of people gather together in communities around the world to do something good for our dearly loved Mother Nature, in the back of our heads we’re thinking, “It’s not about a single day, dude, it’s about living green every day.””

Amen. TreeHugger responded to said campaign with their own green take, which I get, but don’t totally agree with because saying that Earth Day is not enough, is not particularly “Crapping all over Earth Day” - if anything I think Grist’s take is the greenest way to think and go.

Bonus, as part of the Screw Earth Day event, Grist is offering an exclusive free download of their award winning book, Wake Up and Smell the Planet just for registering for a free Grist account. This book, by the way is awesome - I highly recommend it.  Register at Grist and you’ll also be entered for a chance to win tickets and airfare for two to the 2009 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, TN June 11-14.

What’s your take? Do you think Earth Day is cool as beans, or are you more Grist flavored?

[images via Grist]

April 22 is Earth Day. In the spirit of this event, Worldcatch.com, a manufacturer of sustainable-certified seafood products, shares this recipe for Aloha Salmon Burgers:

Aloha Salmon Burgers
Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 10 minutes Makes: 4 servings
Ingredients

1 package MSC Certified WorldCatch Wild Alaskan Salmon Burgers (SeaPak
Salmon Burgers may be substituted) (found in the frozen food section)
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
1 small can pineapple slices, drained
4 slices red onion
4 slices Swiss cheese (if desired)
4 leaves green leaf lettuce
4 hamburger buns

Directions
Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Grill salmon burgers according to package directions brushing periodically with teriyaki sauce. Grill pineapple slices until slightly browned and
warmed through. Remove both from grill. Lightly toast hamburger buns on grill. Plate by placing salmon burger on toasted bun and topping with pineapple slice, lettuce, onion and Swiss cheese. Serve immediately.

(photo credit: Newscom)

Do you think Earth Day and sex toys have nothing in common?

Guess again: “Sex is part of our lives, so any issue that concerns us out of the bedroom has implications inside it: if we recycle, buy local produce, watch our carbon use, and think ecologically in other ways, it makes sense to
do the same when we make sexual choices. Our well-being and that of the earth are connected, so consider where you can go Ecorotic!” says  Dr. Carol Queen, Good Vibrations‘ staff sexologist.

Just in time for Earth Day (cause it’s ALWAYS time for good toys), Good Vibrations has a new earth-friendly Ecorotic collection of all-natural and organic products, like the awesome Ooh La La Kit, shown at left.

Going green has never been sexier!

Image: Goodvibes.com

This Earth Day I’m going to run crazy through my yard and pick dandelions from the vast weed garden in my yard and boil some potatoes (that I didn’t grow because that would require a green thumb whereas dandelions do not) and whip up some DandePotatoes.

Turn this nuisance into dinner!

Ok, maybe not. But my father’s wife Anni did. No kidding. A couple weeks ago they were in town and Anni asks me if I was going to use my dandelions. Really, it looked like we had a garden of them out there. (And it dawned on me our fruitful supply was likely due to Truman’s love of plucking them when they spout their fuzzy spherical heads and blowing the seeds about.) Anni said she wanted to pick them and I told her to have at it. Maybe, while she was out there she could pluck some crab grass and whatever other weeds were out there keeping company with the dandelions. Maybe she could mow and edge, too.

She plucked a generous amount – it was the leaves she was after – enough to fill a plastic shopping bag. She said it would make a nice side dish to their dinner that night. This is what I love about Anni. She isn’t afraid to try her hand at any dish. And she is a brilliant cook. She grew up on a farm in Germany and has an understanding of food that fascinates me. She tells us how as a kid her family would grow their own vegetables and render every ounce of a pig for months’ worth of meals. The original Slow Food, right? My father says the animals would live under their house in the winter to keep warm – which he said, in turn, would keep the family’s house warm. I’m not sure how much of the latter part of that statement is true, but it sure is fun to hear my father’s elaborations as if he were right there living with the livestock.

Dad and Anni said the Homewood, Alabama-dandelion mashed potatoes were fabulous. (Official name – Green Potatoes From Liguria.) Really, I’m looking at the Mark Bittman video and I’m thinking I might just try it myself. Rick’s game and Truman will try just about anything we put in front of him. It could be our salute to Earth Day later this month. (April 22.) Want to give it a try, too? What? Don’t have dandelions in your yard? I’d be happy to send you some, or no-freaking-sheet, you can buy them on E-bay!

Check out the recipe here:

Mark Bittman’s Green Potatoes from Liguria (New York Times)

(photo, Flickr, q8)