Green Meter: light green

In lieu of purchasing bottled water, take you own water along with you in your new, trendy containers! Here are a few suggestions for plastic, coated aluminum and stainless steel containers that are safe and eco-friendly.

First and foremost, recycle your pastic polyethylene terephthalate (PET/PETE) (#1 plastic) bottles rather than dishwashing or rinsing them out. PET/PETE plastic is designed to be a one-time-use, low quality, disposable plastic. There has been a fair-share of debate on the topic of chemicals leaching into the liquid inside of the bottle, especially after experiencing temperature changes and after sitting for extended periods of time. For my family, I opt to take what I've deemed the safe route and don't reuse the disposable plastic bottles; however, reusing the bottles is a much better alternative than purchacing a new bottle of water!

If you are ready to make the swich, check out some of the following bottles:

Americans purchase more than 8 billion gallons of bottled water annually, which is estimated at one 8 ounce serving per person per day; this amounts to approximately 22 gallons per person per year. The bottled water industry boasts over $11 billion in sales. But environmentally, bottled water consumes a tremendous amount of resources and ditching it is a fast and easy way to green your living.

What is bottled water? Bottled water starts out as plain old tap water. In fact, Pepsi Co.'s Aquafina labels each bottle with "PWS": public water source.The water then goes through a rigorous purification process, including filtration or reverse osmosis. However, the bottled water industry isn't well regulated, and is in fact much less regulated than tap water. Tests have revealed traces of arsenic, disinfection byproducts and bacteria in bottled water. On their website, the FDA states that "Bottled water plants generally are assigned a low priority for inspection."

Green meter: dark green

Raising a small flock of chickens in your backyard is a excellent way of creating a more sustainable atmosphere for your family.  Chickens are excellent pets, require minimal care, and are relatively inexpensive to purchase and care for.  And in turn, chickens provide you with a rich, healthy source of food: eggs!

To answer that lingering question that always pops up: NO, you do not need a rooster to produce edible eggs.  You do need a rooster to produce fertilized eggs and in turn raise a flock from hatchings.  Hens lay approximately 4 to 5 eggs per week (about one egg every day and a half on average) in healthy conditions. Our flock of seven hens give us approximately a half-dozen eggs per day in optimal conditions; on average, they lay a little over three dozen eggs per week.

Chickens support sustainable living not only by producing backyard food, but also reduce your overall waste by consuming table scraps. 

Look good in your new (to you) green wardrobe this coming fall! Greening your wardrobe is as simple as shopping at a charity re-use shop (like Goodwill or the Salvation Army) or consignment shops. I am always surprised at the finds at our local Goodwill. I have often found like-new or brand new garments for all the members of my family. Most consignment shops are very selective in the articles of clothing they will take, so finding hot fashion at good deals are par for the course at many consignment shops.

Buying used is especially green for children, who outgrow clothing so quickly. There are a myriad of large consignment sales in the Triangle that provide an unfathomable amount of second-hand clothing and gear for children.

Love your clothes. Treat them with care and protect the fibers. Following the washing instructions, hanging clothes out to dry rather than using a clothes dryer, and washing minimally help protect clothing fibers so that your favorite

Green meter: medium green

Harvesting rainwater is an easy way to green up your lifestyle. Rain barrels can be purchased at local gardening centers or are made at home with a recycled food-grade barrel and a few parts from a home improvement center. Recycled food grade barrels vary in price from $15 to $30 dollars and the parts to manufacturer your own rain barrel cost approximately $25.

However, for me, a rain barrel was a mere drop in the bucket for the amount of water I use on my small, urban food-producing garden. The large 300-gallon green tank shown in the photo above is my rainwater-harvesting machine. With a small transfer pump, I am able to run a sprinkler to water my garden. For the serious gardener, or someone interested in maintaining a small lawn, a large water holding tank will prove more useful than a 50-60 gallon rain barrel.

One square foot of roof surface yields 0.62 gallons of water with one inch of rain. The average two car