People...People Who Need People

If I counted up all the trees that People Magazine uses to produce a single issue of its glossy gift of gab, I'd probably never be able to look another forest in the face. But flipping through the May 7, 2007 issue, I found an interesting article titled "Meet the Greens: How One California Family Decided to Take on Global Warming - One Lightbulb and Paper Towel at a Time" written by Ellen Shapiro. I don't want to take steal all the joy of you reading it on the supermarket checkout line, so here are a just a few highlights:

They use solar panels that provide enough energy for their needs and enough to send back to the power grid (did you know solar panels need to be dusted?).

They make their own fuel for their two vehicles from old vegetable oil (apparatus is in their garage and it appears one of their cars is a Mercedes) for les than $1 a gallon.

They grow pesticide-free produce in their garden.

Their meals are meat-free and most of their vegetables, fruit, cheese, and tofu are organic.

The compost all their table scraps.

Their lawn (meaning grass) is very small and is mowed with a hand mower.

They use native, drought-tolerant plants for their landscaping.

Only cloth diapers get hot water; the rest gets cold in their front loader washing machine (Maya draws the line at the clothes line; her husband wants to ditch the dryer).

And another thumbs-up for sheets made from bamboo fibers!

And you know what the best part is? Maya, 30, a stay-at-home mom used to be a lights on all over the house usin' paper plates for every meal kinda gal. There's hope for me!

Next up for the Sharps, they are taking rainwater from their roof to irrigate their vegetable patch. Wait a second! My husband already does that! Yahoo!

The article also recommends National Geographic's TheGreenGuide.com; the EPA's EnergyStar.gov; and ClimateCrisis.net and provides some amazing energy statistics.

Now what exactly is People printed on?