Being Green 
There are currently 48 blog entries related to this category.
New Green Certification Program for Homes in the Twin Cities
Wednesday, March 14th, 2012 at 1:11am. 419 Views, 2 Comments.
A new green building certification program is available for homes in the Twin Cities area.
The Builders Association of the Twin Cities has developed and recently rolled out its MN Green Path program. This program aims to encourage energy efficiency for green or energy efficient homes. Compared to standard homes, green homes are healthier, safer and more cost-effective to maintain.
Minnesota’s Green Path provides many options for developing more efficient homes. Some of the opportunities that could lead to a MN Green Path home include:
- Energy efficiency features such as high performance windows, insulation, and energy-efficient appliances and lighting.
- Water conservation features designed to encourage on-site water recycling and water-efficient…
Greening Minnesota ~ September 2011
Monday, October 3rd, 2011 at 12:59am. 1299 Views, 0 Comments.
Fall is in the air! The leaves are turning gold and red, but there are still some great green initiatives and events happening in Minnesota. There are plenty of people ad local communities working towards a cleaner environment for all Minnesota residents. Read on to find out more.
The annual report on organic farm performance from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture and University of Minnesota said 2010 was a good year for organic farms. "Profits improved but were not outstanding." Balance sheets, however, were on average very sound as they headed into 2011. The report said that after a difficult 2009, the median organic producer earned a net farm income of $62,463 in 2010. That was a sixfold increase over 2009 and was consistent with returns earned in…
Greening Minnesota ~ August 2011
Sunday, August 28th, 2011 at 7:24pm. 517 Views, 0 Comments.
There are some great green initiatives and events happening in Minnesota, contributing towards a cleaner environment for residents. Read about how local communities are working towards creating a more environmentally-friendly world. There are more entries than usual this month!
Prodded by a homeowner whose prairie plantings were mowed against his will, the city of Minneapolis has come up with a plan to let lawns go natural. Some suburbs have already taken the step of allowing natural plantings in place of grass, accepting their environmental benefits over the objections of some neighbors who think they look unkempt. The proposal defines the new type of landscaping as an intentional planting of native or non-native grasses, wildflowers, ferns, shrubs,…
Greening Minnesota ~ July 2011
Tuesday, July 26th, 2011 at 5:34pm. 576 Views, 2 Comments.
It's summer in Minnesota! The sun is shining, the rivers are flowing and the winds of sustainable change are blowing throughout Minnesota. Read about how local communities are working towards creating a more environmentally-friendly world.
Edina's new public works building, which formally opened this spring, was built with sustainability in mind. It has geothermal heating and cooling and used recycled materials and its landscape was designed to minimize the development's impact on the environment. A rain garden holds and infiltrates water from sloping parking lots. Native grasses and plants are growing in "no-mow" areas between the sidewalk and the parking lot. Once they're mature, those native plantings should need little care.…
Greening Minnesota ~ May / June 2011
Thursday, June 30th, 2011 at 11:32pm. 545 Views, 1 Comments.
May and June are great for undertaking activities in the green movement. Read on to find out about how Minnesota communities are working towards creating a more environmentally-friendly world.
First of all, businesses along University Avenue could use your patronage. Construction on the light-rail track installation for the Central Corridor is taking its toll on businesses left struggling. In some cases, revenues have decreased by half as customers forgo trying to get to their favorite places due to the mess. The construction zone stretches from Emerald Avenue on the Minneapolis border to Syndicate Street N. Go have a bite to eat, have some coffee or shop at local businesses as our Twin Cities try to make more public transportation options available to…
Greening Minnesota ~ April 2011
Sunday, April 24th, 2011 at 11:49pm. 537 Views, 1 Comments.
With the presence of Earth Day and the start of spring, April is a popular month for mobilization in the green movement. The future of the real estate industry has a lot to contribute towards reducing humanity's impact on the environment. Homes use a lot of energy and by reducing how much they use, we can be more gentle on the earth while lowering how much money we pay toward lighting, heating, cooling and more. Additionally, the way our communities are constructed and what services are offered within it can affect whether we even have the option to pursue other modes of transportation, like light rail, buses, even biking or walking. Read on to find out about how Minnesota communities are working towards creating a greener world.
The Community Partners Bike…
Greening Minnesota ~ March 2011
Thursday, March 31st, 2011 at 1:12am. 334 Views, 0 Comments.
Spring is in the air, the snow is melting, and hearty Minnesotans are beginning to stir from a long winter. With our local world getting ready to turn green, its only natural that more projects to Green Minnesota have been popping up. Here is a roundup.
According to the quarterly U.S. wind energy rankings published by the American Wind Energy Association, Minnesota is ranked fourth in the nation in installed wind capacity. Three new, large wind farms that came online late last year pushed Minnesota to No. 4, up from No. 7 the previous quarter. Minnesota ended 2010 with wind energy production capacity of 2,196 megawatts.
Coon Rapids' Homes for Generations program aims to take houses that are older but otherwise solid and "recycle" them by transforming them…
Greening Minnesota ~ February 2011
Monday, February 28th, 2011 at 11:10am. 717 Views, 1 Comments.
With all eyes looking towards spring, there have been some environmental developments happening around the Twin Cities and Minnesota, particularly in regards to parks and natural areas. Here are some of the community-related green news and stories that broke in February.
All over the Twin Cities metro, registration for local community garden plots has begun or starts quite soon. Community gardens are popular right now, due to tough economic times and a desire for chemical-free, home-grown produce. People applying for community plots include homeowners, apartment dwellers, senior citizens, immigrants, people who are trying to save money on food and gardeners looking for green-thumb fun. The size and cost of renting a plot varies from city to city. In most…
Greening Minnesota ~ January 2011
Monday, January 31st, 2011 at 11:59pm. 469 Views, 0 Comments.
There have been some interesting environmental development happening around the Twin Cities and Minnesota. Here are some of the community-related green news and stories that broke in January.
An in-depth survey of 3,000 households in Ramsey and Anoka counties is providing environmental researchers at the University of Minnesota insight into what it would take to get people to make more of an effort to reduce their impact on the earth. They asked about thermostat settings, number of children, cars, bedrooms, miles driven to work, lawn size and fertilizer use, even whether there were vegetarians in the house. As it turns out, most people really do care about their impact on the environment. But what really drives them to change is knowing how they rank on…
Greening Minnesota ~ December 2010
Thursday, December 30th, 2010 at 11:20pm. 353 Views, 0 Comments.
With all the white stuff that has been flying lately, December has been a slow month for green news in Minnesota. There are still a few stories worth noting.
Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson has filed suit against the 3M Co., demanding that it pay the cleanup costs for decades of pollution caused by chemicals that have seeped into the Mississippi River and the drinking water of communities across the eastern Twin Cities metro area. The suit was filed in Hennepin County District Court after months of fruitless out-of-court settlement talks between the state and Maplewood-based 3M.
Forty-six new solar-powered parking meters went online in downtown Minneapolis recently. And quite literally. The meters are solar-powered and use Minneapolis’ Wi-Fi to allow…
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