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MARCH 9, 2012
THINK GREEN
“Family Owned And Operated Since 1996”
Foreign & Domestic
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• Air Conditioning • Brake Service • Fuel Injection Service • Shocks & Struts • General Maintenance • Tune-ups • Manufacturer Recommended Service 30,60,90,000 mile
Voted One of the Best 9 Years! MEDA L LD AWARD
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4B
Safely disposing of households hazards
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the corner, and soon we’ll be removing expired or seldom-
205 Oak St. Brentwood
516-0417
Common household items can be toxic to the environment if not disposed of properly.
pring-cleaning season is around
The only Certified Green Auto Repair in Brentwood!
(Corner of 2nd & Oak)
Photo courtesy of DDSD
used products from the garage, household cupboards, under the kitchen sink Brentwood Chamber of Commerce 2010 Business of the Year
www.kendallautomotivebrentwood.com
or bathroom vanity cabinet. It might surprise us to learn that some of these products are considered household hazardous waste (HHW) – and require special methods of disposal. They
should not be thrown in the regular weekly curbside trash pickup, taken to a landfill or flushed down the toilet. Household hazardous waste is the leftover or unused portions of chemicals and products used to clean and maintain your home, garden and vehicles. HHWs can also be pharmaceuticals and electronic waste such as computer components. These materials are often labeled with terms such as Caution, Warning, see Hazards page 5B
Recycling Center & Transfer Station Recycle Your Waste At Our Place! www.ContraCostaWaste.com Open 7 days a week 7 AM to 6 PM 925.473.0180
Recycle for Our Future Mt. Diablo Recycling
We’ll buy back your recyclables! www.MtDiabloRecycling.com Open Monday-Friday 8 AM to 4 PM 925.682.4518
Loveridge Road, Pittsburg, CA Please call for pricing
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MARCH 9, 2012
THINK GREEN • Decorative Curbing • Full Landscaping • Lawn Care • Irrigation Installations & Repair
Call for
r Summe 15 years experience End-ofp-ecial Locally owned S
Lic. #944784 Carl Yost, Owner
• BMX • ROAD • MTB • CRUISERS • COMFORT • AND MORE!
If green living is on your mind, there’s an app for that.
(925) 628-3181 www.carlscurbs.com
Apps for green living
SALES • SERVICE • PARTS • ACCESSORIES
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2011
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6B
Save Gas!
Ride a bike! GET ON IT! Hours:
www.brentwoodbikeco.com
Mon. 12-6pm Tues.-Fri. 10-6pm Sat. & Sun. 10-5pm
925-634-5000 7750 Brentwood Blvd., Suite C, Brentwood
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iving an eco-conscious life can be tricky. But smart phones are turning the tide, offering applica-
tions that do much of the groundwork for you. Whether you’re trying to maintain a vegetarian diet or looking for sustainable seafood at the market, these apps help you make earth-friendly choices: Locavore Become the locavore you always wanted to be with this fun app that identifies seasonal produce in your area and locates the closest farmers’ market. It also finds local
farms and shares recipes – which is helpful when kholrabi isn’t on your regular ingredient list. Locavore is free and available on Android and iPhone. Happy Cow VeginOut Being a vegetarian is easy when you’re in charge of your meals. But it can get difficult when you’re at the mercy of eating establishments. Happy Cow VeginOut finds local vegetarian restaurants and provides reviews. The free VeginOut app is available only for Android. Fooducate Reading food labels is a pain. Fooducate allows you to scan the item’s bar code and check out all of its ingredients. It goes even see Apps page 8B
MARCH 9, 2012
East County is notorious for hard water that can smell and taste bad. While federal and state laws regulate water filtration standards, chlorine-cleaned tap water leaves something to be desired. But Delta Pure Water, Etc. in Brentwood has a solution. Rather than use a water filter pitcher or a filtration system that hooks up directly to the faucet, Delta Pure Water, Etc. offers a salt-free filtration system that connects to your home’s main water source, cleaning all the water in your home in one step. The system is called Next Scale Stop. The Next Scale Stop system uses template-assisted crystallization technology, which converts hard minerals in your tap water into harmless, inactive microscopic crystals that give water a fresh, clean flavor your nostrils and taste buds will appreciate. “This is not a water softener,” said Delta Pure Water, Etc. owner Joe Trebino. “This system improves the tap water in all areas of your home. Hard water shortens the life of water-using appliances such as dishwashers and laundry machines. It clogs pipes and reduces flow rate in showerheads and faucets, but water treated with the Next Scale Stop system is filtered and clarified, which limits the side effects of hard water.” While basic water filtration systems peddled by Brita and PUR are more popular, Trebino said the Next Scale
Stop system is more environmentally friendly because it doesn’t use salt or other minerals to clean the water; thus it doesn’t introduce any new minerals to the water, altering its composition. The system also retains tap water’s beneficial minerals such as fluoride and calcium. As chlorine is known to make hair brittle and dry out skin, limiting the amount of chlorine in the water is good for your skin and hair. The Next Scale Stop system enhances all the water outlets in your house, saving you the time, trouble – and cost – of installing special filters for each showerhead. The Next Scale Stop system costs $2,295, which includes tax and labor at Delta Pure Water, Etc. Despite what appears to be a high price tag, Trebino believes it’s worth the investment. Unlike store-bought filters, which last through 100 gallons of water (good for only two to four months of use), the Next Scale Stop system is viable for up to 10 years. Trebino has owned Delta Pure Water, Etc. for the past 17 years and offers an array of services to meet all your water needs. From water bottles and crocks to purified water for 30 cents a gallon, Delta Pure Water, Etc. does it all. Delta Pure Water, Etc., located at 41 Sand Creek Road in Brentwood, is open Mondays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information, call 925-634-6658. To comment, visit www.thepress.
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THINK GREEN
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SPRING BREAK AT HARVEST PARK BOWL
Brentwood Rocks
March 20, 21 & 23 and March 27-March 30 1pm-3pm
THINK GREEN
Shrink your carbon footprint
I
t might be your dream to make a big impression on the world, but as far as the environment is
(Thurs., March 22 12:30-2:30)
concerned, you’ll do everyone a favor by
$7 per person for 2 hours of bowling including shoes, music & lights.
reducing your impact.
Reservations Suggested
Harvest Park Bowl 5000 Balfour Rd., Brentwood 516-1221 • www.harvestparkbowl.com
Come join the fun!
A carbon footprint measures your contribution to global climate change, taking into consideration factors such as the size of your house, your mode of transportation, and the source of energy you use at home and work. You can calculate your carbon footprint online
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a step further, offering healthy alternatives. Available for Android and iPhone, Fooducate is a virtual nutritionist hiding in your pocket or purse. ShopNoGMO Determining which products contain GMOs can be a mind-boggling process, but this app makes sense of it all. Not only does ShopNoGMO give a list of non-GMO products, it offers tips for how to decipher ingredient lists and how to avoid GMOs when eating out. ShopNoGMO is available for iPhone.
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by visiting www.comfortableresponsible.org and clicking on Carbon Calculator. Here are some ideas to green your daily life: Turn it off There’s no reason to keep your electronics and appliances running when you’re not using them. Better yet, unplug your electronics. Some products consume energy when merely plugged into the wall, including chargers for your phone and camera. According to ENERGY STAR, the average U.S. household spends $100 per year to power devices that are off or in standby mode. Choose clean energy When it comes to water heating, room heating, cooking, generators and laundry, use natural gas. According to the Department of Energy, 90 percent of the natural gas delivered
Apps from page 6B
2010
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MARCH 9, 2012
to your house is useful, as opposed to electricity, which loses more than two-thirds of its usable energy in its generation and transmission from the producer to your house. The carbon footprint for a house using natural gas appliances, instead of electric appliances, is up to 46 percent smaller. Go veg A United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization report found that the meat in our diets produces more greenhouse gases than transportation or industry. If you can’t forgo burgers for life, go a day without meat on in a while. Reducing your carbon footprint needn’t be painful. Little changes can go a long way. – Courtesy of StateMedia
Seafood Watch Want to know which fish is safe to eat, or better yet, which fish aren’t endangered? Seafood Watch is an app created through the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program, which educates the public on oceanfriendly seafood and sushi choices. It also offers an interactive map, allowing you to identify ocean-friendly eateries providing sustainable seafood choices. Seafood Watch is available free through Android and iPhone. – Courtesy of Vivian Nelson Melle, www.greenlivingideas.com
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FRIDAY NIGHT FISH FRY! 4-8 PM at IHM Church hosted by Knights of Columbus
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20 2 100
Drive thru Now Open! 500 Fairview Ave., Brentwood (Corner of Fairview & Central) For more info, call Art 437-8082
$12.00 Includes Fish, French Fries, Cole Slaw & Soda Dessert Only $1.50 2011 R MEDA VE AWARD
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Eat in use our c or urb p i c k- u p s i d e fo take out r !
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2011
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Good thru March 30 A great reason to get together with old friends - or come meet some new ones!
MEDA L LD AWARD
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2011
FRIDAY NIGHT FISH FRY! 4-8 PM at IHM Church hosted by Knights of Columbus
R MEDA VE AWARD
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20 2 100
Drive thru Now Open! 500 Fairview Ave., Brentwood (Corner of Fairview & Central) For more info, call Art 437-8082
$12.00 Includes Fish, French Fries, Cole Slaw & Soda Dessert Only $1.50 2011 R MEDA VE AWARD
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Eat in use our c or urb p i c k- u p s i d e fo take out r !
SIL
GO
2011
SIL
MEDA L LD AWARD
Good thru March 30 A great reason to get together with old friends - or come meet some new ones!