Is green the first thing your think of when someone says “Wal-Mart”? Probably not, but the company is hoping to change that.

Wal-Mart is testing out what it calls it’s “high efficiency” superstore. It’s aim is to use 20 less energy in these stores and thus help to reduce some of the emissions generated by Wal-Mart’s city-block sized ultra-stores.

Wal-Mart is focusing on two aspects of it’s stores, it’s air-conditioning/heating and it’s refrigeration. These two systems work in a brilliantly designed symbiotic system. 100% of the heat rejected from the refrigeration system is piped into the heating system, where it is converted into usable energy. This design also reduces the amount of copper piping used.

The impressive thing about Wal-Mart’s green initiative is the scope of it. Wal-Mart has so much money available to them, they can afford to take chances on new green products. They are testing out brand new products we’ve covered here, such as waterless urinals and LED lighting.

There is a huge variety of other technologies used throughout the store to increase efficiency. They are using special quick-response doors for sealed sections such as the garden center, and skylights to help light the store.

One of the coolest improvements is motion-driven lighting on refrigerator cases. They use LED lights that only turn on when a customer approaches, then quicky turn off then they leave. Pretty cool!

These initiatives are expected to reduce the energy consumption of each store 20%, which is a heck of a lot when you think of how much energy these stores much use.

To celebrate the opening of the first of these high-efficiency stores, Wal-Mart is giving away 21,000 energy-saving CFL bulbs to seniors and low-income families.

Many eco-bloggers have dismissed Wal-Marts attempt at going green, but I for one welcome the change. Wal-Mart might not be the ideal picture of a green company, and there’s no doubt they contribute to a lot of the problem, but they are also the biggest retailer to date to embrace and test green technology.

It’s quite possible that more companies will start to look at green technologies if Wal-Mart’s experiment is successful, and whether Wal-Mart is doing all this for the right reasons or not, being more energy efficient can’t be bad!

via Green Technology

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Well it seems the green trend is percolating all the way down to the beer industry.

You’ve no doubt read about New Zealand’s Green Man eco-beer, but if beer imported from New Zealand is a little rich for your blood, there’s another option a little closer to home.

The Sierra Nevada brewery of Chico, California is aiming to 100% off-grid. Currently, they are running on fuel-cells, which account for about 75% of their power usage. They’ve been installing a brand new solar system however, and plan to be 100% off-grid very soon. In addition to solar power, they have several other green initiatives in place.

Already a model of sustainability, the brewery also focuses efforts in recycling, heat recovery, carbon-dioxide recovery, water conservation, energy efficiency, and byproduct recycling.

Wow, I have to say I’m impressed. Drink a beer and save the environment at the same time? What could be better?

Check out their environment page for more info. They’ve got a fantastic outline of all the green aspects of their brewery.

via Treehugger, Sierra Nevada Brewery

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EcoStreet posted a great article on how to get ready for winter using green products. Now that winter is almost here it’s time to really test how eco-friendly you are. It’s a lot hard to bike to the corner store in -10 degree Canadian winters!

This article has some great tips on how to save on your energy bill in the notoriously expensive winter months. Heat is valuable and you’ll want to make sure your house is properly insulted. EcoStreet talks about Cavity Wall insulation, Loft Insulation, Draught Proofing, and Double Glazing. Check their post for information but these are some great tips to conserve heat in your home.

Conserving heat is incredibly effective at reducing your energy usage during winter. A lot of energy is spent on replenishing wasted heat; heat that is lost to cracks or windows.

EcoStreet also has some easy tips to save some money if you don’t want to go to the trouble of re-doing your house’s insulation (or if you’re renting and can’t). Three simple tips can help you save a bunch: turn your thermostat down, turn your water heater down, and close your curtains at night.

A Great product they covered in this post was the low-energy Biobulb. It’s a full-spectrum CFL bulb that creates a natural light, which can be a godsend in the dark, cold, winter months.

Check out their post for all the green winterizing tips.

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