The last time I did some research (and it was a while back), solar panels ran up to five digits. Since we were a young family and looking at solar to SAVE money, we did not thing this was the wise path to take.

An even better incentive than the price is the transformation in the panels. I recently went to a beautifully landscaped house that had two HUGE white poles sticking up in the middle of the yard. “Those are for the solar panels when we can afford to get some.” Now they are even making solar panels that are built right into the roof tiles, solar panels that are flexible (and aren’t going to break) and solar panels that are inflatable (although these are more for usage in the woods than in the home).

The best comparison that I can think of is satellite dishes. Just 15 years ago, the dishes were the size of a compact car and cost about the same. Today you get a dish free with your service and most people won’t even notice if you have one on your house. As the solar technology continues to improve and the prices continue to come down it is likely that more homes will turn to solar power.

Setting up solar power is not cheap. It could initially cost a business around $150,000 to set up a small and simple system. For business with some capital to invest back into the company, this could be a great choice. There are plenty of incentives offered in the Oregon area that help bring the final cost down to almost zero.

Unfortunately, not all states are so generous. The federal government is also decreasing tax incentives that it offers to citizens to go green. It is always a good idea to check out your local incentives and to talk with your accountant BEFORE you count on any rebates or deductions.

Even if you aren’t able to receive rebates or other incentives, going solar can be incentive enough of its own. You can save hundreds or even thousands of dollars each year if you go green. Some of the electric companies even offer payment for any power you generate that comes back into the general system so that you could potentially make money.

Switching your business is not just good for the environment - it’s great for the bottom line as well.

The benefits of filtering water have been touted for many years. Recent discoveries and improved technologies are making it easier and also proving that there are even more reasons to be concerned by what is coming out of your tap.

Researchers recently discovered that many city water supplies actually have traces of prescription drugs in them. This is most likely caused by people flushing old medications down the toilet. While the idea is good (it keeps the medication from getting into other people’s hands) it has had unexpected consequences.

People now have to worry about the medications AND the chemicals that may be clouding their water supply. Having a simple filtration system will limit your exposure to the different negative elements.

New technologies have also benefited consumers. There are now portable filtration systems (built into water bottles) that make it possible to have filtered water where ever you are AND to limit your contributions to the waste products piling up in dumps around the world.

There are now more reasons than ever to filter your water – in your home and on the go. Filtering your water can be simple and fairly inexpensive to insure that your water is the safest it can be, cut your costs by no longer having to purchase bottled water and helping to save the environment.

One of the directions companies, like SkyFuel, are aiming is the development of solar powered plants. Projects like these will make clean fuel a reality for more people in close quarters. Traditionally, the rural population has been more likely to grasp the technology around alternative energies.

The Department of Energy is helping to spur on innovation through its grants for research and development. The government seems eager to find ways to reduce American dependence on foreign energy sources and at the same time quiet the clamoring of green organizations that feel America is responsible for the depletion of the ecosystem.

As the interest in alternative fuels continues to find a home in the mainstream consumer, the options will also expand. The building of green power plants is surely to bring the industry to the forefront of the minds that don’t already have it there. With the government willing to back companies financially, the technology is sure to keep up with demand.

on the populous.

The only way for the technology to take off is for the industry to push its development.  The only way the industry will push the development is when a need arises.  Right now, there isn’t much need for cheaper fuel.  Even with gas prices running over $3 per gallon, people just kept fueling up the cars.  The initial scare did cause a flood of used SUV’s to hit the market, but the automobile industry responded in kind with more fuel efficient SUV’s.

There has been some talk lately that the government should support financial the green industry.  It was even a subject in a recent republican presidential debate.  Subsidizing anything is a bad idea.  It causes innovation to stagnate.  Necessity is the mother of invention, not government support.  Hopefully, the green technologies will find their own footing and take off.  Until that happens, the government shouldn’t get involved.

1.      Be a square.  Square-foot gardening gives you more bang for your buck, allows you to work your garden with less time, and rotates your crops without having to plan in advance. 

2.      Grow what you eat.  I know gardeners who grow onions because it is “time” and they end of giving away or trashing all of them.  Don’t waste your time on crops you won’t use.  Plant what you need and what you want and you will enjoy your garden much more.

3.      Extend your seasons.  By using some garden cloth and some plastic you can extend your growing seasons to almost a year round garden (depending on your region). 

4.      Add a few herbs and perennials.  Not only do they increase the attractiveness of your garden to people, but to beneficial insects as well.  Another great benefit is that many of the perennial flowers can be used for cooking – they add zing and color to your meal.

Planting your own, smaller garden, gives you control over what is grown and how it is grown.  You don’t have to wonder about just how organic the products may be.  You know exactly where the seeds came from and how they were grown.  Gardens don’t have to take up a lot of space or a lot of time, but they will save you a lot of money in the end.

Ethanol seems like a great solution to fuel needs.  After all, it can be grown in what ever amounts needed.  But many people forget that it takes fossil fuels to generate the ethanol.  This means that while the product itself is a carbon neutral fuel, its production is not.

There is also concern that existing forests will be cut in order to grow the corn needed for the production of ethanol.  It is the destruction of these forests that is the leading cause of green house gases.  The cost of moving to a regenerative fuel is just too much if this is the path we are going to go down.

Scientists have not quit searching for better fuels.  We shouldn’t be focused on something with all the potential problems that ethanol has when the real answer could be right under our noses.

The green industry has been working long and hard to find ways to bring down the costs and to improve the products at the same time.  There are now solar panels available that won’t cost more than the house you can attach them too.  Mini solar powered accessories are showing up everywhere - even in discounts stores and bulk shopping sites.

Our second sticking point for going solar is that we live under some HUGE trees.  It isn’t the shade, as much as the occasional falling limbs, which have me concerned.  Before I spend a chunk of savings on buying and installing solar panels, I want them to be nearly indestructible.

There is still wind and water.  Every few months, my husband starts plotting about how we could harness the power of the running water from the streams and creeks around our property.  A good breeze will get him off on his windmill tangent. 

I like the idea of having an alternative power source, even if it is just an emergency back up.  Until it becomes more readily available (and more designed for a modest checkbook), I’m afraid my Don Quixote will have to wait.

It actually makes sense that the military would use solar power, bio fuels, and hybrid vehicles.  Most of the time, there aren’t outlets that the military can just plug into.  It has to have a way to make its own power because being in the middle of no where is not conducive to “plugging in.”

The Army has been especially dedicated at developing tents that will power themselves.  Covered with thin amorphous silicon technology, these tents are like tiny power stations.  It these tents prove to be as tough as they are unique then they could give the Army a distinct advantage.

It is important that the military look at self-sustaining ways to deploy.  The last times that they have been in the field required the building of cities before forces could be moved in.  How much easier it would be if the forces had all the necessities neatly built in to their regulation equipment.

Growing organic food in small amounts (just enough for my own family) is not as difficult as people might think.  It involves some planning, some manual labor, and lots of attention. 

The first things you find out when you are determined to avoid poisons is that not all bugs are bad.  Even ants can have their place in a garden (native ants actually help aerate the soil).  Many beneficial insects (like the lady bug or the praying mantis) actually prey on the bad bugs.  Unfortunately, commercial insecticides can’t tell the good from the bad – one more reason to stay natural.

The next thing to know is that the very best fertilizer is a tea – compost tea that is.  This magic substance is made by “brewing” a liquid fertilizer from organic compost.  There are systems that you can purchase, or you can make your own.  The tea is then sprayed on the vegetables (or flowers) and has the added bonus of forming a film on the plants that will reduce the bad insects.

The most important thing about growing your own food is that it will be the best you have ever tasted.  Not only will it be the product of your own hand, but it will be picked at the very peak of freshness.  Who knows, the adventure of digging, planting, growing, and picking the vegetables and fruits may actually get your children excited about eating things that are good for them.