Earth, Wind & Power Blogazine

Ford Motor Company Named Most Earth Friendly Automaker

Ford Motor Company Receives
5th Annual EARTH ANGEL AWARD
as Most Earth Friendy Automaker

by Martha Hindes

Going green has become a way of life at Ford Motor Company. From company President and Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally to those who tend to company property and grounds, protecting the environment is a primary responsibility on a daily basis.

Those familiar with buildings near company headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan can see some of that commitment first hand, where fields of air purifying flowers bloom during summer months and a nearby production facility wears a "green" roof of plants to help purify and recycle runoff water used there.

Ford was one of the earliest companies to recognize the need for an environmentally sustainable way of doing business and to begin that transformation to achieve it. That commitment has become reflected in every Ford facility, in the materials used in production and in the atmosphere it encourages throughout the company.

In the 12th annual Ford Sustainability Report Ford put out last June, it cited progress in improving fuel economy and safety and a decrease in greenhouse gas emissions and water use among its sustainable operations.

"Since 2000, our manufacturing facilities worldwide have reduced overall energy use by 40 percent, decreased CO2 emissions by 49 percent and cut water use by 62 percent," said Mulally in presenting the report. Full story.

Hybrid Houses of the Future

Suited to Jetson-family taste with its shiny exterior and sleek lines, this off-the-grid hybrid house in California is made of plain old shipping containers, despite its futuristic façade. Using high-efficiency construction methods that go beyond standard prefab building, this smartly designed home is a sustainable, affordable option for green-minded families and features a whole slew of eco-friendly features. 

With a solar home shading system and “living roof” that uses grey water to nurture native plants, the all-steel construction house is unusually strong, offering earthquake, fire and wind protection alongside extreme efficiency. In fact, the simply designed home can be pre-engineered so that its cargo container pieces are assembled in less than an hour, according to sustainable architecture company, EcoTechDesign.

Plenty of sunlight, lots of space for greenery, and an outdoor breezeway add up to the perfect Mojave desert home, if Southern California’s warm-weather atmosphere suits your style. We'd add some solar panels to the roof, park an electric car or hybrid in the driveway and host one heck of an open house if we had the keys to a green home like this. Tell us, what would your dream green home look like if you could design it from the ground up?

For more information on green news, visit Earth Tones.

New Technology Finds Solar Hot Spots

If you’ve ever thought of solar power for your home, you may have wondered how capable your home is at receiving those sun rays. Depending on where you live the same array of solar panels can either produce enough energy to heat your entire house, or barely produce enough energy to reduce your utility bill at all. Well a resource is available for homeowners to find out the solar potential of their actual rooftop.

Engineering company CH2M Hill has paired up with the U.S. Department of Energy to provide virtual solar maps of 25 American cities, to chart out solar potential of neighborhoods and even your rooftop.

The company has recently charted it’s first city, San Francisco, using Google Maps technology. Originally, the city wasn’t considered to have a lot of solar hot spots; however, since mapping CH2M Hill has found 925 solar systems around the city.

Imagine all the solar spots that can be found once all 25 cities have been charted.

Source: Time Magazine