Its been what seems to me like forever since I posted to BeGreenMinded but I am thrilled to be easing back into my regular posting position with some great news for some major U.S. cities. Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency annouced the top 25 cities that are home to the most buildings certified as ENERGY STAR energy efficient. Nationwide there are more than 3,200 buildings, representing 750 million square feet.

Take a moment to see if your hometown made this years list.

ENERGY STAR certified buildings help reduce our nation’s reliance on carbon-based fossil fuels – energy sources which contribute to global climate change. In 2008 alone, ENERGY STAR buildings and plants across the country have saved more than $1.1 billion in energy costs and reduced more than 7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions-savings equal to the emissions associated with the electricity use of more than 1 million homes for a year.

2008 showed an increase of 130% from the number of ENERGY STAR buildings built the year before. With the passage of a “green” economic stimulus package in Congress which includes incentives for the construction of energy efficient buildings, it’s likely that in 2009 and 2010 we will see an even greater bump in the number of ENERGY STAR buildings.

And what is good for the environment, is good for the economy too. Building energy efficient buildings reduces the amount of energy the building will use over the life of the structure. ENERGY STAR qualified office buildings cost $0.50 cents per square foot less to operate than average office buildings. Even better, ENERGY STAR qualified office buildings consume nearly 2x less energy per square foot as average buildings.

While the buildings included in this latest announcement are commercial in their use, everyone can take a lesson in energy efficiency. Check out ways you can incorporate energy efficiency and ENERGY STAR into your home.

Have a tip that you think others can use to improve their home’s energy efficiency? Share it below in the comments.

Real Christmas trees benefit the environment by providing greenscape, absorbing carbon dioxide and giving off fresh oxygen. But, with more than 25 million real trees sold in America each holiday season, its important that we look at the end game of all where all these trees go once the glitter of Christmas wears off. It shouldn’t be news to you that simply throwing out your live Christmas tree is a clear environmental faux pas – but what should you do with it? The answer may depend on available programs near you, but most everyone should be able to find at least one eco-friendly option which suits their needs.

Every year, millions of Christmas trees are sent to landfills or dumped on public property in America.

Decorate for the Birds

Prepare for your tree for its environmentally-sound end by decorating with compostable decorations such as popcorn garlands. Using compostable décor on your tree means that you don’t have to undecorate the tree before putting it in your compost pile, sending it to your community’s compost facility, or (and I think this is the best idea!) putting the tree outside to be a feeder for the birds. That’s right, simply put your compostable, decorated tree in your backyard and enjoy your natural bird feeder.

Community Composting for Xmas Trees

There are more than 4,000 Christmas tree recycling programs in the Unites States. Go to your community’s municipal webpage or contact your local trash pickup service to inquire about composting programs they offer. Still can’t find a local resource? Go to Earth911 and type “Christmas tree” and your location into their search to find local programs. Many services offer curbside pick up. Considering that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that about 24% of landfilled waste is yard clippings and compostable, doing your part to utilize your local programs can make a big dent in your personal contribution.

Still can’t find a local program in your area? Start your own Christmas tree recycling program and give the gift that lasts… less waste in our landfills.

For next year, use the buy local, buy organic rule for the purchase of your next real Christmas tree. Check out Local Harvest to find one of the more than 5,000 choose and cut Christmas Tree farms in the U.S.

And, if you are looking to the next step in low-impact living, consider purchasing a potted, living Christmas tree next year. Then, plant the tree in your yard after the holiday or consider donating it to a local arbor organization dedicated to greening your community. For those of you in the ever environmentally chic San Francisco, next year, rent a tree which will be picked up from you after the holidays and planted in the city.

Hope you had a happy holiday!

Image by Flickr user BowBrick used under a Creative Commons License.

Adena, Spain’s branch of the World Wildlife Fund, says that nearly 30 per cent of the country is becoming desert because of global warming. I suspect that some options might be constructing underground watering systems, irrigation above ground, or designing Safari vacations. But no, Spain is going to plant 45 million trees from 2009 to 2012 in a bid to halt the country’s increasing desertification.  The Socialist Party, which was re-elected in March, made a campaign promise to plant a tree for each of Spain’s inabitants.  A tree for every person.

The value of trees and the consequences of losing trees is quite well known but the idea of massive planting is a simple, relatively inexpensive ecological contribution to helping solve multiple problems.

Perhaps we, the US, might consider what  effect a similar approach to the  changes we are experiencing this might have, as well as contributing to the aesthetics of any community taking on such a project.

Environmental Science and Technology will publish the results of what researcher, Heidi Geisz of Virginia Institute for Marine Science, found in her study of Antartic penguins. DDT, banned by the US in 1973 and later by most of the world due to the effects found in animal and human health, appears now in the penguin tissues at the same level as found in the 1970s. In fact, tests reveal a “new DDT” which appears to be DDT broken down having a different chemical signature than the original. How could this happen? DDT and other toxic pesticides were never used in this geographical area. Due to climate change and the melting of the glaciers, pesticides which have been locked into the ice are now being released into the water. This is consumed by the krill (small shrimp- like crustraceans) which make up a large part of the penguin’s diet….and there it is! DDT and other toxic pesticides were carried through the atmosphere, deposited on the ice and snow then absorbed by the microbial organisms and locked into the ice. The movement through the ecosystem is clear.

Goodness! One has to wonder other precious creatures on the earth are being affected by changes in the ecosystem due to global warming and climate change.