“I do nothing all year and get paid $93,803 per year just for showing up at my work place and this has been going on since 2002! I want to work, but I have been shoved off to a little corner and am paid no attention, but the pay is great.” — Source

[Source]

He spends much of his workday at the State Insurance Fund donning headphones, listening to rock ‘n’ roll, blues or classical tunes, watching cars go by, sometimes just sitting doing nothing and his superiors are cool with that.

His work agenda involves placing his feet up on his desk, staring out his office window and counting cars on the New York State Thruway. He arrives at 7:30 a.m., leaves at 3:30 p.m., sees no one and talks to no one.

He never does any work. It’s been this way for Randall Hinton for most of this decade.

From ALBANY N.Y., TimesUnion.com:

As he tells it, Randall Hinton is paid $93,803 a year to do nothing. “I just sit here,” said Hinton, 55, of Niskayuna, a 27-year state employee who has held several high-level posts at various agencies.

At 6 feet 4 inches and 265 pounds he is an imposing figure who begins to tear up when discussing his situation. A member of the Passamaquoddy Tribe in Maine, he said he is being discriminated against because of his national origin and retaliated against for having sued the state.

[Source]

Since February 2002, Hinton has been director of investigations for the Insurance Fund, but he said he has never been allowed to investigate anything. Instead, he builds up pension credits, year after year, but is unproductive at work because his superiors are blackballing him, according to he and his former boss.

Hinton contends he is without portfolio as retaliation for suing Gov. George Pataki’s administration 10 years ago, alleging discrimination then, too. That was after getting stuck in a storeroom for two years for refusing to leave his post at the Department of Environmental Conservation, where he headed investigations.

“This is not about me,” he said, asserting that he is trying to make a name for Native Americans in public service. “I’m ashamed of my situation. I’m embarrassed. Nobody cares. They don’t care about Indians.”

What in the world is going on? The state of New York is in dire financial straights and they turn their heads on this situation? New York taxpayers are worried and a fiasco like this won’t make them any happier. To top it off, New York is adding additional taxes to help pay for a stupid decision to pay one man nearly $100,000 a year for not working.

What do you think the state of New York is affraid of? Bet it might be a discrimination lawsuit because the man is Native American!

1. Musee du Quai Branly [Paris]

One of the best loved vertical gardens inhabits the walls of the Musee du Quai Branly in Paris. Created by Patrick Blanc, the inventor of vertical garden systems, this living wall is simply stunning. Not only do these types of vertical gardens improve the appearance of buildings, but they also improve air quality and lower energy consumption.

2. SkyFarm [Toronto]

This 714 foot structure in downtown Toronto, Canada is a superb example of how living walls and vertical gardens can actually be profitable as well as beautiful. The 58 story building only requires 1.32 hectares of land and yet will have 8 million square foot of agricultural space due to the vertical design of farm. It is said that the crops could yield up to $23 million in revenue per annum.

3. CaixaForum Museum [Madrid]

Another amazing living wall design created by Patrick Blanc, the CaixaForum museum has become a popular tourist attraction largely thanks to this creation. Approximately 15,000 plants of 250 different species were used to cover this 24 metre high wall. The juxtaposition of the old building with the vibrant and alive wall makes this a truly spectacular and memorable building.

4. Vancouver Aquarium [Vancouver]

This award winning living wall was created to act as a noise buffer from the city street and to prove that buildings and ecology can be integrated to enable cities to become greener. Covering 500 square feet the wall is made up of thick modular panels and supported by a galvanized steel frame, making the installation of replacement plants easier and more cost effective.

5. Marche des Halles [Avignon]

Another fabulous living wall design by Patrick Blanc, this creation illustrates that not only are urban vertical gardens ecologically beneficial but they can also prove to be highly artist creations as well. The ingenious design means that no soil is required and the careful selection of plants means that maintenance is kept to a minimum.

6. Qantas First Lounge [Sydney International Airport]

Traveling, even when on holiday, can be stressful. Airports are busy, noisy places and waiting for a flight is incredibly boring and sometimes frustrating - but not if you are one of the lucky few to wait in the Qantas First Lounge in Sydney Airport. Here everything is designer, and the presence of a living wall automatically de-stresses a person. Simple, elegant and a great work of art - this is definitely one of Patrick Blanc’s best pieces.

7. Parabienta [Japan]

This eco-friendly living wall is the result of a collaboration of two Japanese companies, Shimizu and Minoru Industries. Said to be relatively inexpensive to create and maintain, the living wall makes a significant contribution to cooling the building thereby helping to lower energy consumption.

8. Siam Paragon Shopping Centre [Bangkok]

The Siam Paragon Shopping Center would have looked positively dull if it wasn’t for the living walls strategically placed in the interior of the mall. Creating a calm atmosphere and adding color, the architecture now looks absolutely stunning. It is a great example of how bringing gardens indoors can spruce up any interior, especially 0% credit card carrying locals and tourists looking to splash some cash.

9. Rica Talk Hotel [Stockholm]

The restaurant in the Rica Talk Hotel was transformed into a botanical oasis by Michael Hellgren, a landscape architect. To fill the 82 meter square space, he used approximately 3000 plants from more than 100 different species. The effect is a cozy, natural environment making this a truly unique restaurant.

10. Oulu Bar & Eco-Lounge [Williamsburg]

Cited as Brooklyn’s first living wall, the Oulu Bar & Eco-Lounge certainly attracts attention with its huge external living wall. Manufactured by a company called ETL and installed by Green Living Technologies, this stunning vertical garden covers the entire front facade of the building and makes a beautiful contrast against the wooden door and window frame. The entire building looks designer chic proving that being green can be trendy.

11. Another amazing green wall that was completely missed as pointed out in the comment section of this post.

Comment: You’re missing the amazing green wall in Terminal 3 of Changi Airport, Singapore. http://www.airport-technology.com/projects/changi/changi7.html

pictures don’t really do justice to the amazing scale of the thing. it’s a weird experience to arrive into this building when you’re paying attention

[Source]

The Pros and Cons of Legalizing Marijuana To Financially Save the Golden State.

The Newest California Legislation: AB390-Marijuana Control, Regulation and Education Act.

The Argument for Legalizing Marijuana:

Assemblyman Tom Ammiano’s landmark bill (AB 390) to tax and regulate marijuana just like alcohol and tobacco is being considered by state lawmakers.

Courtesy, Times-Standard: A grainy black-and-white film fills the dark room. The audience shifts in their seats nervously as a young woman walks into her room and looks in the mirror and suddenly starts to scream! The words “Marijuana Madness” appear on the top of the screen.

The myths are starting to lift like fog dissipating in the light of day. The lies and racist reasons for making marijuana illegal are dropping out of the sky like a steady rain, forming puddles destined to dry up.

Californians, and the other states that allow medical marijuana, have received some good news. Assemblyman Tom Ammiano’s landmark bill (AB 390) to tax and regulate marijuana just like alcohol and tobacco is being considered by state lawmakers.

This is a legitimate effort to legalize marijuana. The bill would make recreational use of marijuana legal. Users would have to be 21 years old, the same as for alcohol and tobacco. It wouldn’t change the medical marijuana guidelines for those involved in that growing industry, according to Ammiano.

There’s no way to tell how many California residents smoke pot, but according to the Zogby Poll “Fifty-eight percent of respondents residing on the West Coast agree that cannabis should be taxed and legally regulated like alcohol and cigarettes.”

The failing national economy makes headlines every day across America. Wouldn’t it be nice to lead the country out of this depression with an unprecedented economic recovery in California? We could be the model and other states would follow with similar legislation.

Betty Yee, who chairs the state Board of Equalization, which collects the sales tax in California, is in favor of this landmark legislation.

Right now Californians pay $170 million a year for arrests, prosecution and imprisonment of pot offenders, according to statistics released from NORML. Poof! That would go up in smoke, and reduce the prison population as well.

Right now there’s talk among lawmakers of an early release program for as many as 58,000 prisoners in the next couple of years because of overcrowding and fiscal shortfalls. There are plenty of good reasons to support AB 390. As It Stands, it’s time to legalize marijuana and jumpstart California’s sagging economy into the 21st century.

[Source]

The Argument Against Legalizing Marijuana

[Source]

Courtesy San Jose Mercury News : California Cannot Afford to Legalize Marijuana.

Legalizing marijuana will not solve our budget woes, nor will it be good for public health. Introducing marijuana into the open market is very likely to do some other things, however: increase the drug’s consumption, and with it, the enormous social costs associated with marijuana-related accidents, illness and productivity loss.

The example of legal alcohol and tobacco reveal an unsettling pattern. Legal drugs are by definition easy to obtain, and commercialization glamorizes their use and furthers their social acceptance. Their price is low, and high profits make promotion worthwhile for sellers. Addiction is simply the price of doing business. Any revenue gained from taxing these drugs is quickly offset by the heavy costs associated with their increased prevalence. Because today’s high-potency marijuana is much more harmful than once thought, a spike in use from legalization would result in a financial burden California cannot afford to bear.

Assemblyman Tom Ammiano’s justification for AB 390 relies on the myth that marijuana laws are costing taxpayers millions of dollars and wrecking the lives of otherwise law-abiding citizens. But a closer examination of the facts reveals a very different reality. Although there are thousands of arrests for marijuana possession every year in our state, most of these arrests result in little or no consequences. Most of those who are charged with possession plead down from more serious charges, such as trafficking. Researchers from Rand report that many marijuana arrests result from drinking and driving violations at alcohol checkpoints. “The police also find joints, and then (the offender) is in jail for both offenses. People’s images of the casual (marijuana) user getting hauled off to jail are not true,” a Rand researcher recently commented.

Rand-sponsored research reveals that in the Netherlands, where the drug is sold openly at “coffee shops,” marijuana use among young adults increased almost 300 percent after a wave of commercialization. The country has also become a haven for producers of high-potency marijuana, and other drugs like ecstasy and methamphetamine. These unintended consequences have led many Dutch officials to advocate for rolling back the status quo.

O.K., time for your opinions. Chemically Green wants to here for you, for or against.

Rhino Virus not as big as a real Rhino, but much more troublesome.

A New Breakthrough for a Vaccine to Stop the Common Cold?

Scientists have unveiled lab-made human antibodies that can disable several types of influenza, including highly-lethal H5N1 bird flu and the “Spanish Flu” strain that killed tens of millions in 1918.

Tested in mice, the antibodies work by binding to a previously obscure structure in the flu virus which, when blocked, sabotages the pathogen’s ability to enter the cell it is trying to infect, according to the study.

Because this structure — described by one scientist as a “viral Achilles’ heel” — is genetically stable and has resisted mutation over time, the antibodies are effective against many different strains.

The breakthrough “holds considerable promise for further development into a medical tool to treat and prevent seasonal as well as pandemic influenza,” said Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which helped fund the study.

Clinical trials on humans could begin within a couple of years, the researchers said.

Seasonal flu kills more than 250,000 people every year, and pandemic flu, which occurs with the emergence of deadly viral strains against which people lack immunity, remains an ever-present threat.

Kill The Rhino!

Read the Complete Article [Image Credit]

Greenopia Green Leaf Ratings for ALL 2009 Automobiles!

SANTA MONICA, CA - (Marketwire - February 19, 2009) - Greenopia announced today that it has released the green industry’s most comprehensive automobile ratings. Available on its popular website, www.greenopia.com, the car ratings use Greenopia’s EPA-recognized 4-Leaf rating system to provide definitive indications of over 100 models’ impact on the environment resulting from their manufacture and operation.

The most eco-friendly model year 2009 cars available on the market today are the Honda Civic Hybrid Sedan, VW Jetta TDI Clean Diesel, Toyota Prius, and VW Sportwagen TDI Clean Diesel. Each model earned a Greenopia 4-Leaf rating.

This was an independent study conducted by Greenopia’s Research Labs using an extended list of test criteria that included fuel-efficiency, manufacturing materials, EPA SmartWay vehicle emissions and proxy data representing manufacturing processes. The criteria data was gathered, calculated and analyzed using Greenopia’s proprietary lifecycle eco-cost methodology. “Automobile operation logically has the most significant impact on the lifecycle eco-costs of a car,” said Douglas Mazeffa, Greenopia’s Director of Research. “However, we wanted to extend measurement to actual production processes so that green consumers will have a more complete picture of the impact of their purchase decisions.”

Chevrolet, Honda and Toyota rated high for their eco-friendly manufacturing processes. Ratings were conducted within vehicle classifications so that green consumers could choose the lowest eco-cost car within a class.

Where are the American made cars? Achieving 29-35 miles per gallon simply isn’t good enough to make this environmentally friendly list.

Australia is in a drastic situation due to a drought that has been causing severe water shortages. The Australian government has decided to take action against home owners and their toilets to increase water supplies; you flush, you pay.

HOUSEHOLDERS would be charged for each flush under a radical new toilet tax designed to help beat the drought.

The scheme would replace the current system, which sees sewage charges based on a home’s value - not its waste water output.

CSIRO Policy and Economic Research Unit member Jim McColl and Adelaide University Water Management Professor Mike Young plan to promote the move to state and federal politicians and experts across the country.

“Some people may go as far as not flushing their toilet as often
because the less sewage you produce, the less sewage rate you pay.”

Professor Young said sewer pricing needed to be addressed as part of the response to the water crisis.

“People have been frightened to talk about sewage because it is yucky stuff, but it is critically important to address it, as part of the whole water cycle,” he said.

“We are looking at reforming the way sewage is priced and this plan will drive interest in the different
ways water is used throughout Australia.”

Professor Young said “a sewage pricing plan, like the one proposed, was already used in the US.”

“In places like the City of Bellaire, Texas (a virtual suburb of Houston), they do it and the system seems to work,” he said.

“As nearly all of (the homes in) mainland Australia’s cities and towns already have water meters, introduction of a volumetric charge, such as that used in the City of Bellaire, would not be difficult to implement.”

The reform would see the abolition of the property-based charge with one based on a pay-as-you-go rate and a small fixed annual fee to cover the cost of meter readings and pipeline maintenance, Professor Young said.

The pay-as-you-go rate would provide financial savings for those who reduce their waste water output.

Other considerations for saving the crapper are dry toilets & low water-use toilets; both types are expensive. There’s always the old the Australian Dunny!

New Solar Power Crappers in Portland, Oregon at your Disposal!

PORTLAND - The City of Portland unveiled the first in a line of new solar-powered public toilets that will be popping up throughout the city and it’s now open for public use.

Low Water-Use Crappers May Not Be The Answer. Crappers using less than 2.0 gallons of water for flushing cause problems for Waste Water treatment plants!

Waste water officials who originally had hoped to reduce flows into the sewers now say they’re concerned that the new toilets may reduce flows too much. They’re worried that without enough liquids in sewer lines, solids will settle into the lines, causing corrosion, odor and even sewage backups.

The new toilets use 1.6 gallons of water per flush, compared with 3.5 gallons in older toilets.

Well, it seems you are damned if you do and damned if you don’t. I am fortunate, I have a well, and as long as my well does not go dry, I can flush, flush and flush. However, to do my part for the environment on the land I occupy, I am going to put in 3 new low flush toilets. I have plastic fill lines and I use bacterial formulations to enhance my septic tank performance. How about you?

One man leads Chicago Floor Traders rebellion against Obama’s plan (as seen on CNBC).

It’s Tea Party Time!

[image credit]

I wonder who’s mortgage payments I will be helping to pay? How about it folks, will you enjoy paying another person’s mortgage while you struggle to make your own?

What does this have to do with Green? Billions of dollars that could be used to increase green technologies are instead being directed towards the care of irresponsible people. If the economy continues to falter, and these folks lose their jobs, who’s going to take up the slack then? My answer: all of us.

Green Gold Ray Energies Inc. announced today that its biodiesel refinery in Nasipit Port, Agusan del Norte will be opened in the next 90 days. Below is the perspective view of the GRYE Processing & Refinery Plant, capable of producing about 180 million gallons per year (680,400,000 liters per year).

(source)

The Research and Development Team of Green Gold Ray Energies has designed a unique biodiesel processing and refining technology that fits best to the Jatropha oil market requirements. The plant is designed to produce high quality biodiesel oil, based on fast enhanced growth, cultivation period, increased production efficiency, reliability and better productivity.

A minimum of 1% by volume shall be blended into all diesel engine fuels within 3 months from the effective date of the Act and will increase to 2% in the next 2 years. The Philippines is in need of 150 million liters of bio diesel per year and that figure is expected to double in the next 5 years.

CEO Tecson says, “There is only one existing biofuel company here in the country, Chemrez Phil., with only 60 million liters production per year, not enough for the country’s bio fuel demand and Chemrez is using coconut oil as feed stock. Food-fuel competition will be their future problem.”

About the Company:

Green Gold Ray Energies, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: GRYE) is a rapidly growing biodiesel, green technology, environmentally friendly and alternative energy company. The Company has already solidified its position through a highly successful land acquisition program, acquiring large parcels of land ideal for the cultivation of the Jatropha plant. Jatropha Curcas grows almost anywhere, even on gravelly, sandy and saline soils. Jatropha oil can be processed to produce a high-quality biodiesel that can be used in a standard diesel car, while the residue can also be processed into biomass to power electricity plants.

(source)

Company Switching from Waste Grease & Cooking Oil to Jatropha Curcas for Biofuel Production.

Sirona Fuels claims it can make cheap biodiesel with fixed-price agreements for jatropha with farmers in Haiti, India and other emerging nations.

Sirona Fuels wants to move from the fryer to the farm.The small San Francisco-based company – which is holding its coming out part at the National Biodiesel Conference and Expo in San Francisco – says it can make economically competitive biodiesel from jatropha.The company’s strategy essentially revolves around its ability to negotiate. It received a 15 million gallon-a-year refinery and a limited number of customer contracts by purchasing Blue Sky Biofuels, which had been producing biodiesel from waste grease harvested from the multitude of American deep-fat fryers. Thus, the self-funded Sirona is getting into the biodiesel refining industry quickly and inexpensively.

Second, it will ramp down its use of waste grease in favor of jatropha, a shrubby plant most commonly found in India. Jatropha is relatively oily, grows on marginal land and doesn’t need much in the way of water or fertilizer.  Since it doesn’t compete with food and isn’t typically grown on food ideal for edible crops, jatropha isn’t as subject to commodity price fluctuations as other feedstocks, he claimed.

To get its jatropha, according to CEO Lacrouciere, Sirona is lining up fixed-price agreements with farmers in Haiti, India and Indonesia. Sirona will plant 2,000 acres of jatropha in its pilot-farming project in Haitia. That will result in 600,000 gallons of oil a year, or 300 gallons per acre. Technically, the company doesn’t have contracts with customers. Things like liquidated damages clauses are tough to enforce in emerging nations. But the company is trying to build strong local links, which is even more important. Jatropha is also tough to displace as a crop because it’s a bush. Farmers can’t simply pull it up and switch to another crop.

California will run out of money in February or March and if action is not taken soon, a 15 billion dollar cash shortage will have to be faced as California gas stations say ‘no’ to new green pump mandate.

ARCADIA - Dozens (potentially hundreds) of gas stations around California are choosing to shut down rather than comply with a state mandate that would require owners to purchase new equipment to reduce vapor emissions at the pump. Small station owners have decided going out of business is preferable to meeting the mandate.

California’s New Phase II Enhanced Vapor Requirements go into effect April, 2009.

The requirement, known as Phase II of the states Enhanced Vapor Requirements, calls for gas station owners to individually purchase tens of thousands of dollars of equipment designed to prevent harmful vapors from escaping into the air when gasoline is pumped. Small retailers say the new law is unfair and that the law will not be very beneficial because they do not sell enough gasoline to offset the higher costs of the new pumps. Many of those shutting down their pumps are actually city facilities and businesses with their own dispensers, such as fire stations and construction companies.

“Seventy-six — or 2.4% –  of the station owners indicated they will be shutting down on April 1, 2009 rather than upgrade their sites,” said Dimitri Stanich, public information officer for the California Air Resources Board.

Will New Mandated Law hurt California More than it will Help?

April’s regulations promise to cut what are known as reactive organic gas emissions by 7 tons per day statewide, but opponents point to the fact that California produces 2,322 tons of such gases per day. In theory, 822 tons of gas emissions will be removed from California’s air.

How much will this cost the state in revenue from station owners not paying taxes after they shut down gas purchases in their operations. Losing revenue from these stations must not be too important to California since they have asked the feds for a Bail Out and want our tax dollars to save their bacon.

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Small independents closing up as green mandated government policies shut them down.

Small station owner George Fasching, who after 31 years of selling gasoline at Fasching’s Car Wash in Arcadia said no, shut off the flow of gasoline from his station in December. “I came to the decision that I was too small a volume operator to continue on with the expenses imposed by the bureaucracy of the state,” Fasching said.

April’s requirements would have cost him $35,000, he said. Fasching only sold the gasoline as a convenience for his car wash customers and blames the new regulations for forcing him to stop. According to Fasching, “It will have some effect on my business, but at least I have the relief that I don’t have to deal with these people anymore.”

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Renewable energy, it turns out, does grow on trees. The fruit pods plucked from jatropha trees have seeds that produce clean-burning diesel fuel. But unlike corn and other biofuel sources, the jatropha doesn’t have to compete with food crops for arable land. Even in the worst of soils, it grows like weeds. Sound too good to be true? That’s why brothers Paul and Mark Dalton chose to name their Florida jatropha company My Dream Fuel.

Jatropha, like other nonfood sources such as algae, will revive a biofuels movement battered of late by charges that it diverts too many crops from too many mouths. India has set aside 100 million acres for jatropha and expects the oil to account for 20% of its diesel consumption by 2011 (read the entire article: Time Magazine)

Jatropha Curcas has many uses besides being an oil for biodiesel. Jatropha is also used as an oil for lubricating machinery and softening leather. Listed below are the numerous ways in which Jatropha is being presently utilized.