By Shermakaye Bass
In the 1918 silent film starring “Scraps,” the canine hero, Charlie Chaplin asserted, “It’s a Dog’s Life.” Back then, “a dog’s life” was a good thing.

Photo: American Humane Association
But these days environmentalists are wondering: What exactly does a dog’s life consist of? Just how safe are our dogs and cats, our birds, […]

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By Michele Chan Santos
On a quiet street in the tree-covered city of Rollingwood, a suburb of Austin, Texas, sits a house designed to epitomize everything technology and modern design can do to make a home environmentally friendly and safe for families with children.

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By Barbara Kessler

Getting to the bottom line on green cleaners is like trying to slice through the soap scum on your neglected shower door with a spritz of glass cleaner. You won’t be seeing a clear picture right away.
Much is in progress with “natural,” “environmentally friendly,” “biodegradable,” “certified biodegradable” and “non-toxic” products designed to […]

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By Barbara Kessler
Cleaning our bathroom presents a special challenge with its white shower tile, white tub and white floor. What were we thinking? On the other hand, dirt can’t hide and it’s a great place to test cleaners. Here are our favorites:
COUNTERS, SINKS AND TILED NOOKS
After rolling up our sleeves, we pulled out the […]

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By John DeFore

Our cleaning trials continue…

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 By John DeFore
Among the indulgent goods and fashion accessories in this year’s popular Oprah’s Favorite Things gift guide is one humble item of interest to the talk-host’s environmentally minded viewers. The “Get Clean” starter kit from Shaklee is both an alternative to sending out the annual gift-basket of snack food and a discounted way to […]

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By Barbara Kessler
Environmentalists have long been nudging consumers to think about the real cost of the paper products that they use, to understand that toilet paper and paper towels exact a price in the loss of the trees required to make them.
This green price tag is highest when manufacturers of household paper goods use […]

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By Barbara Kessler
Cleaning the household drains is one of those chores that’s got to be done. But the job just sucks! (Get it, sucks, ha!) The caustic chemicals you have to use can burn your skin, scorch your sinuses and are not environmentally defensible.
Yet safer substitutes that effectively de-clog drains don’t leap to mind. […]

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By Barbara Kessler
Leaf blowers. We see these everywhere. And it raises a lot of questions, like what are these guys really accomplishing?
Are they efficiently blowing dirt and leaves off the sidewalks, or is this just another way to needlessly burn precious fossil fuels? Those are gas engines on their backs, right? (Some leaf blowers are […]

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