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The Concord Municipal Light Plant offers rebates on new Energy Star appliances including:

• Refrigerators - $100
• Energy Efficient Washing Machines - $50
• Room Air Conditioners - $50
• Dishwashers - $50
• Central Air Conditioners - $150 (SEER rating greater than 14)
• Dehumidifiers - $50

Even driving a car once a week increases the amount of CO2 in the air, but since we all need to get around, the Union of Concerned Scientists made a report of the "Automaker Rankings 2007: The Environmental Performance of Car Companies" and a PDF of the full report.

Any existing oil-fired heating system can use biofuel with little or no modification. Test results show that biofuel use results in improved combustion, lower emissions, and reduced soot buildup. Contact Mass Biofuel for more information or to purchase biofuel for your home: http://www.massbiofuel.com/

The construction and maintenance of buildings are responsible for 40% of US energy use and 30% of wood and raw materials use (more on these statistics can be found at Green Cross International USA affiliate Global Green).

Biofuels are the future of transportational energy and that future is now. Biofuels are fuels made from plant materials that can help free America from oil dependence and cut global warming pollution. If produced the right way, biofuels will increase revenue to farmers, cost less than gasoline, and may actually improve the condition of land that is not usable for other crops.

It's nothing new, but it is still useful! Run errands or visit a friend on a bicycle and save the environment while getting healthy and fun exercise. Business owners: Have a 'company bike' that employees can use to run errands. For information on bicycle routes and bicycling in Massachusetts, see Massbike.org.

The phrase "carbon offsets" doesn't tell you a whole lot, which most likely accounts for some of the confusing around the topic. Carbon offsets are, in fact, purchased. Carbon offset organizations are essentially fund raising organizations which take the money you spend buying "offsets" and use it in big ways that individuals may not be able to -- for instance, to fund large alternative energy projects. So the idea is, if you drive your car 1500 miles and produce 1300 lbs of CO2, then you would buy enough carbon offsets to plant 82 trees and negate that 1300 lbs of CO2.

Some sites have come out with energy calculators so that you can find out how much carbon you produce. They also offer some ideas for lower impact lifestyle changes that can help the world be a greener place. See Energyrace.com to calculate your carbon footprint!