Biota is the first spring water to be packaged in a compostable bottle. The bottle is made of a corn-based bioplastic, which was exclusively created for Biota by Naturework PLA. The bioplastic is an alternative to PET which is the petroleum-based plastic commonly used to bottle beverages. PET takes about a thousand years to decompose.

The bottle will break down completely in 75-80 days but only when conditions are right. It will not decompose even if you leave the bottle in a hot car for weeks. The decomposition only takes place when exposed to constant heat (120-140°) and humidity. The bottle label is also biodegradeable, but unfortunately the bottle cap is not, although Biota hopes to change that.

Another advantage to the bottle is that it will not leach unhealthy residues into the water, and thus the water never gets a “plasticky” taste to it.

The water itself comes from a spring in Ouray, Colorado. Biota is currently only available in Colorado, California and Nevada. It is priced as a premium spring water.

Web Site: Biota Spring Water

We like the “Boomtube” portable speaker system from Virgin, because, unlike other portable units we have tried, this one is designed to be durable enough to carry in your backpack for years.

The tube has an anodized aluminum housing which resists stains and scratches, but weighs in at only two pounds. The speakers are 2” aluminium cones with dual neodymium magnets. The system can be disassembled for stereo separation purposes, and then reassembled back into tube form. It runs for approximately 20 hours on 4 AA batteries. It is available for $99 from Virgin.

Coming soon is the Boomtube Ex, which is has a sub woofer-like bass tube and more than 40 watts of total system power generated from rechargeable batteries at $199.

NOTE: Virgin Electronics has been closed down. We are not sure if these speakers are available anywhere.

Home Page: Virgin Boomtube

Whitepod is a zero-impact camp for ten guests situated over 1700m high in the Swiss Alps. It consists of five portable pods on platforms, which are removed in spring and leave absolutely no trace. The emphasis is on comfortable accomodation close to nature without negative environmental impacts.

Access is by ski or snowshoes only. There are no cars. No buses. No hotels. Nothing at all in fact, apart from the scenery of the Alps.

A creation of Swiss local, Sofia de Meyer, the pods are dome tents with wood burning stoves. Solar and rechargeable energy is used for lighting, sustainable local wood is used for heating and Ecover products are used for cleaning. Fresh local or organic meals are prepared by a chef. Sofia aims to completely eliminate all the camp’s carbon dioxide emissions, for full Ecotourism accreditation.

Home Page: Whitepod

Expanko makes flooring out of two regenerative materials: cork and rubber. They also make a unique product which combines both cork and rubber, called XCR³, an example of which is pictured here.

To produce cork flooring, virgin cork bark and cork waste from the manufacturing of other cork products is recycled and ground into small granules. The granules are baked in molds at varying temperatures, allowing shade variations, from light to dark, in the finished tile product.

The rubber used in the flooring is a blend of recycled tires, post industrial waste rubber and virgin rubber.

Home Page: Expanko

Patagonia is one of the more well-known environmentally conscious corporations, and rightly so. Not all their materials and processes are metaefficient, but they are definitely an example of a viable eco-effective company.

Patagonia makes use of organic cotton, organic wool, cashmere, hemp and recycled plastic fleece in their clothing. They also have many environmental initiatives in place, the details of which can be found here.

The men’s shirt pictured above is lightly sanded organic-cotton poplin fabric which needs with little maintenance. The retail price is $65.

Home Page: Patagonia

American Apparel has a range of men’s and women’s organic cotton shirts and underwear at reasonable prices as part of their “Sustainable Edition” line.

The clothing is made in California in sweatshop-free conditions. The jersey T pictured is available for $15.

Web Site: American Apparel

Icebreaker, a New Zealand company specializing in merino wool performance wear, has just introduced a new line of jackets named PurePlus. The jackets are constructed from two merino fabrics: a stretch knit interior laminated to a finely woven exterior. They are wind resistant, warm and highly breathable. We’ve noted the virtues of merino wool in a previous post. It is great to see the wool being used innovatively in these jackets. Both men’s and women’s jackets are available. They are priced around $280 USD.

Available from: Outdoor Sports (New Zealand)

Home Page: Icebreaker

Soy in clothing isn’t exactly new. Henry Ford first talked of it in the 1940s and was photographed wearing the first known soy suit and tie. Soy fibers largely disappeared though, until recent developments in China.

Now, soybean protein fiber is being marketed as a “vegetable cashmere” — a new eco-friendly luxury textile. Those who’ve tried it speak enthusiastically about soy’s soft feel, lustre, combined with washability and durability.

Soybean fiber also has the advantage of being a renewable natural resource and a by-product of food manufacturing. Some soy textiles have organic certification.

Soy costs approximately 30% more than organic cotton and hemp due to accessibility issues and the raw fiber material costs today. However it is higher end fabric, and many feel its softness and lustre are worth the extra cost.

Where can you get soy clothing? Right now only the leading eco-clothing stores carry it: Under the Canopy and Of The Earth.

The only soy clothing we could find for sale online was at Pangaya and Sahalie.

An article about soy clothing can be found here.

This is a refillable, pressurized air duster, used for cleaning computers and other electronics. It can be refilled using a standard bike pump, by attaching the pump to the valve at the back of the can.

This is more efficient and less wasteful than the conventional disposable air dusters. According Adam Fields, who tested the product:

I use this in my home office, and it works well. It’s a refillable pressurized air duster. While it doesn’t provide quite as much pressure, or last as long as a commercial Dust-off can, it is refillable using a standard bicycle pump, so there’s no danger of running out and it’s better for the environment. The product description says it requires their expensive compressor to refill, but that’s not true — you can use a bike pump to recharge it by connecting to its standard bike tire valve. (It explicitly says on the can you can use a bike pump.)

It’s available here.

Ibex makes a range of performance wear, using merino wool as their primary ingredient. Merino wool is much softer against the skin than regular wool.

Pictured is their men’s “Full Zip” merino wool jacket, priced at $140.

Let’s review why merino wool is hypereffective: it’s renewable, biodegradable, an excellent insulator, lightweight (warmest material by weight), naturally moisture wicking, doesn’t smell when wet (anti-microbial), soft, durable, washable, quiet (doesn’t rustle when moved), flame-retardant and self-extinguishing.

Home Page: Ibex

This linen bread basket doubles as a warmer because of it has a filling made of cherry pits.

You can heat the bread basket for 60 seconds in a microwave. The cherry pits filling retains heat and keep bread warm for your guests.

Unfortunately it is a bit overpriced at $65.

Available from: Illico Design

Under the Canopy has one of the largest collections of metaefficiently produced clothing available in the U.S.

Their fashion line is made of innovative organic fibers and fiber blends such as organic denim, organic cotton angora and soy.

The women’s Lux Sweater ($29.99) pictured on the upper right is made of a blend of organic Peruvian cotton and luxe angora. The angora comes from the fur of rabbits that are not harmed in the collection process.

Included in their catalog is a collection of men’s clothing.

Website: Under the Canopy

These low-rise pants are made of organic cotton and a little lycra ($76).

Pangaya sells a line of women’s clothing made from Organic Cotton, Tencel, Hemp and Eco-Spun.

Pangaya’s environmental statement: “Pangaya is dedicated to offering our customers the finest environmentally friendly products in the world. While most of the time this means organic, we also offer products that are made from other sustainable fibers, botanically based personal care items, and products made from recycled materials. Regardless of the ingredients or materials used, Pangaya maintains a devotion to only offering those products that promote healthy lifestyles and a healthy environment.”

Home Page: Pangaya

This women’s top cross-front is by Liz Clairborne and is made of 100%
Tencel.

Tencel is an environmentally sound fabric produced from wood-pulp, which is twisted or spun into yarns, and then woven or knitted into fabrics and garments. Travelers often use Tencel clothing because of its resistance to wrinkles.

Tencel is the brand name for lyocell - the fiber’s generic name.

Available from: Liz Clairborne ($11.70)

The Mandarin Jacket to the right is made from 60% hemp, 25% Wool, 15% Yak with 100% silk lining. The colors are produced by fiber-reactive dyes. This dying process creates glowing colors, which slightly differ, making each garment unique.

Created by designer Bi Li, Earth Speaks combines pure fashion with a strong commitment to the environment and fair labor practices. The entire line is produced in China in sweatshop-free facilities.

Available from: Earth Speaks: Mandarin Jacket ($214) and Curie Blouse ($98)

Shafer Vineyards practice organic and sustainable harvesting. They are also Napa’s first 100% solar powered winery.

Organic Style and Wine Spectator liked their Firebreak 2001 offering. Donna Binder, co-owner of Counter, a hot Manhattan vegertarian restaurant and wine bar, says it is “A real crowd-pleaser, Firebreak has aromas of spicy black pepper, black currant and dark plum that pair well with rich tomato-based Italian dishes. It retails for $35 a bottle.

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Endlessly flexible, nurturing of creativity, cost — and energy-conscious, tented structures are an ideal means to address many concerns of modern architecture — a creative means to not only define space, but also to transform it into something to meet all sorts of design needs, for projects both grand and small.

Recent years have seen an increase in the use of such structures, in part because advances in computer technology have made it easier to render and model such projects, and in part because such structures are ideally suited to sustainability.

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EnviroGLAS™ Terrazzo is flooring made of 100% post-consumer recycled glass. Recycled glass bottles are crushed, mixed with an epoxy, and poured to form a very appealing surface.

Terrazzo, from the Italian word for terraces, was created several hundred years ago in Europe when Venetian workers discovered a new use for discarded marble remnants.

EnviroGLAS™ Terrazzo is the latest Terrazzo innovation — in lieu of marble and synthetic materials, terrazzo applicators and designers can use an abundance of recycled glass.

Home Page: EnviroGLAS™

Found via SynEarth

EPatch is an innovative sticker that doesn’t use glue or water. The stickers are non-toxic, very durable, and are able to be bent, stretched or folded without losing their shape.

Made of rubber-silicon, the stickers are fade resistant, resistant to UV radiation and to temperature extremes up to 220 degrees - which means it is useful for industrial purposes. Epatch is already being used for parking permits. The Australian inventor, James Shen, is hoping to expand into the pharmaceutical and hospitality market.

“We’re hoping to do away with those little triangular cardboard signs in hotel bathrooms that ask you to save water,” says James. “They get so wet they need to be replaced regularly. Printing a water saving message onto the Epatch, it can then be used and reused as it sticks to any surface, doesn’t leave a sticky residue behind and can be peeled on and off easily.”

Home Page: Epatch

SilenceAir looks like a transparent brick, and uses “passive resonators” to allow fresh air into buildings while leaving 85% of the noise behind.

“Cities are noisy. When we block the noise from our offices and homes, we usually reduce the ventilation…the result is sick buildings and people,” says the inventor Chris Field.

Chris developed the concept during his doctoral research at the University of Sydney, Australia.

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