Smartbike DC

So I guess Smartbike DC launched today, although I saw the bikes downtown yesterday so maybe that start date is a bit off. But, the idea behind it is similar to the Zipcar/Flexcar concept, where instead of buying a car, you can sort of rent one whenever you need it. Smartbike looks like it charges $40 a year and then you can borrow a bike whenever you need one in three-hour increments. There are initially 100 bikes at 10 locations.

Forty bucks a year isn't bad at all, especially compared with buying a brand new bike, but I kind of don't like that you can only ride the bikes in the District - there are plenty of great bike spots in Virginia. (via)

Earth Day, Plant a Tree

Happy Earth Day! I saw this apple tree-to-be you can buy and plant for $19.13 and I would so do it if only I had somewhere to plant it. Maybe someone else can do it for me! (via)

Save the Environment Comedy Central-Style

Comedy Central has launched a Web site called Address the Mess devoted to recycling and the environment. Pretty cool. (via)

An Environmental-Friendly Google

Google has launched Blackle, which is basically Google in Black... the Google search engine with a black background designed to save energy. On the site, there is a running count of how many watt hours are saved from this... apparently, it uses more power to show white screens than it does to show dark screens. I kind of like it and will probably use it; I even found a Mozilla add-on for it!

Go green next time you move

Oh right, I don't think I know anyone who moves anywhere near as much as I do. Anyway, this web site, UsedCardboardBoxes.com, recycles and reuses cardboard boxes and then sells them to you cheaply to prevent you from having to go to U-Haul and spend a fortune. I guess, having never price compared, I don't know that it's that cheap but it seems pretty cheap to me, particularly because shipping is included. You basically get all you need to pack up your crap in one shipment of recycled, yet sturdy boxes! (via)

Questions for this Monday

Earth Day
1. Do you make an effort to be environmentally friendly? Yep, although I'm sure I could do more.
2. Did you see "An Inconvenient Truth"? Did you find it effective? Yes, I enjoyed it and thought it was very effective. It should be required viewing of everyone around the world, particularly those of us in the U.S.! But, I think there needs to be a whole lot more on solutions or 'What Can I Do?' included in it. It focuses almost entirely on convincing us that there is a problem. After the first hour when you become convinced that there is a problem, I wanted to know what I could do to change things!
3. Would you drive a Smart Car? Like an electric car or a hybrid or one run on some other alternative fuel? Sure, I definitely would, depending on my needs and the accessibility to the fuel. I'd really love a hybrid as my next car. But, according to Wikipedia, a Smart car is just a really tiny automobile and I don't see that it has any great benefit for the environment. In fact, that Wikipedia article says that they don't meet US emission regulations.
4. How many continents have you been on? Just one.
5. Did you ever watch "Captain Planet"? Nope, never heard of it. Based on Wikipedia, I'm a little old for it.

(questions via)