(reprinted from Eclectic Mind, February 19, 2007)

(For related information on Rana's personal energy conservation program see: Killing the Kilowatt)

According to R., the Super Bowl was televised last evening specifically to mess up her Sunday viewing. For being a reasonably mature woman about most subjects, she has the patience of a three-year-old when it comes to TV. I managed to placate her with several episodes of "What Not to Wear," before she declared, "I don't want to watch this anymore." Since one of her favorite crime dramas was scheduled to air post game in approximately 30 minutes, I convinced her to watch some of "Living with Ed," a program that follows the lives of environmentally obsessed Ed Begley and his wife Rachelle. Let's just say he's a little bit solar and she's a little bit Rodeo Drive.
According to livingwithed.net:
- their white-picket fence is made out of recycled milk jugs
- the landscaping is all drought tolerant
- much of said landscaping is edible
- there are solar panels on the roof
- his toaster is bicycle-powered
In the episode we watched, Ed received a call to attend the Sundance Film Festival. He opted to drive to Utah in his hybrid, which he charges from the roof top solar panels. (He also has a wind turbine for good measure.) Rachelle decided to fly. She also had to squeeze in time to meet with her publicist (who is also a part-time chicken farmer) before the trip. The most interesting part of the Begleys preparations to me was their use of a TerraPass (mainly to atone for Rachelle flying). This program, which I'd never heard of before, allows you to contribute to the sponsorship of a clean energy project to balance out the emissions your own activities create.
I checked it out at terrapass.com and discovered that even with the little driving we do (I guessed about 2,000 miles a year), we create 1,624 lbs. of Co2, which could be offset with a one-year $29.95 TerraPass. Going with the averages for electrical and gas usage for Texas, the house produces 20,843 lbs. of Co2 (the equivalent of 1,065 gallons of gas), which could be offset by a $104.49 TerraPass.
Some of the energy tips on the calculation page were interesting:
- washing in cold water (which we do) saves 1,066 lbs of Co2 a year
- getting rid of the second fridge (which I need to do) saves 931 lbs.
- replacing three bulbs with compact flourescents (we use nothing else) saves 629 lbs.
- unplugging chargers (which I try to remember to do) 491 lbs.
Frankly, I can't afford the $104.49 TerraPass, but I've put the $29.95 one on my "work into the budget" list. Some of my regular readers may remember entries from summer before last when I was changing light bulbs, calculating energy usage per appliance, and tinting windows in an effort to lower our electrical bills. (Thank to the high rates in our oil-saturated state, I have markedly lowered consumption but am still paying ridiculous monthly bills.)
When I wanted to add a solar panel to the roof and participate in net metering (generating electricity to be fed back into the grid to offset our consumption), I was informed by the electrical company that they would be happy to help me as soon as I took out a $1 million insurance policy on the house to offset the inherent dangers of this "untested technology." In last night's episode Begley's neighbor Bill Nye the Science Guy installed a net metering system with the help of the electric company. [See previous remark re oil state.]
Unlike some folks who have gotten themselves elected to high places in Washington, I know global warming is with us and I am trying (albeit not as assiduously as Begley) to do my part to help. I don't think we can say any longer, "I won't live long enough to see that happen." If you don't believe me, ask the polar bears whose habitat is melting out from under them.
And check out Living with Ed. It will make you laugh, but it will also make you think. A rare combination in television today.