You may have noticed in some of the surrounding towns such as Dedham that voluntary water conservation measures are currently in force. While we in West Roxbury are fortunate enough that our water comes from the Quabbin Reservoir—the largest manmade body of water in New England—so that our water supply is not presently in jeopardy of running low, it still behooves all of us to conserve this natural resource Read More »
Living Unplugged
So, what sort of exercise equipment do you own? At our house, we have a rowing machine, a few free weights, a rebounder, a rake, a broom, a push lawn mower, and some snow shovels (but let’s be seasonable about this, forget the snow shovels). Did I digress? Not really. Why not get the benefits of a workout while you go about yard work? Remember when summer lawns used to hiss (thank you, Joni Mitchell)? Now they fairly shout: “I’m being mowed! I’m being blowed!” Read More »
West on Centre Participates in “A Billion Acts of Green”
“A Billion Acts of Green” is the theme for this year’s Earth Day, April 22. Recognizing the power of millions of individual actions, the campaign aims to inspire personal, organizational, and corporate pledges to act sustainably. But billions of acts begin with one small act—so, with that in mind, I’d like to share some recycling ideas that our small restaurant business, West on Centre, believes are Read More »
“Low-Carbon Diet” in Good Taste
West Roxbury Saves Energy recently held its third Smart Energy Party and started this year’s program with some thought-provoking questions whose answers often surprised many of the event’s attendees. As an introduction to how residents of West Roxbury might want to think about their energy use, WRSE asked for guesses to such queries as how many plastic bags are taken each day by customers at the local Roche Bros., Read More »
This Car Runs on Veggie Power
“The use of vegetable oils for engine fuels may seem insignificant today. But such oils may become in course of time as important as petroleum.” To what forward-thinking person may we attribute this timely statement? Why, to none other than Rudolph Diesel, inventor of the diesel engine. Yes, when Herr Diesel demonstrated his engine at the Paris Exhibition Fair in 1898, it was fueled by peanut oil! Read More »
Green Eggs and Hamburgers at the Rox Diner
“Established in 02132″ is printed under the restaurant’s name on the front door, and at the Rox Diner, owners John Fortin and Paul Louderback take this pledge seriously, with “local, local, and more local” as their mantra. In this case, “local” also means sustainable, recyclable, all-natural, and just generally green. For starters, when West Roxbury residents Fortin and Louderback took over ownership Read More »
Green Group Summit
On Wednesday evening, December 1, about 60 people gathered at Suffolk University to hear from a panel of representatives of green groups around Boston about the various activities being mounted to make Boston greener and cleaner. Steering Committee member Ray Porfilio represented West Roxbury Saves Energy at this roundtable discussion. He gave an overview of the events WRSE has presented Read More »
How’s Your Green IQ?
Even if you follow environmental issues, it is sometimes difficult to know fact from fiction. The true-false statements here are intended to test your knowledge of all things “green.” We would also love to hear from you if you have ideas for future Ecophiles columns or topics you’d like to have us cover. Just send us an e-mail at wrse@westroxburysavesenergy.org. Read More »
West Roxbury Walks
Particularly in this lovely fall New England weather, it is hard not to want to get outside, enjoy the crisp air and colorful leaves, and walk. Walking accrues many benefits, of course, not least of which are saving energy (avoiding driving the car, which not only uses gas but puts harmful carbons into the air) and using energy (our body’s, which burns calories and helps keep us fit). Read More »
“Renew Boston” Makes Homes Energy Efficient
If you have been wanting to tighten up your house for some time now in order to keep the heating bills down, but haven’t really known how to go about applying the weatherstripping or where to put the insulation, and you’ve been wary of the cost of those and other energy-efficient measures, now may be your chance. The city of Boston recently launched an initiative that prompts homeowners and apartment-dwellers Read More »
