Steve Luxton

When the U.S. Green Building Council created its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) sustainability measuring stick in 1998, the overwhelming assumption was that obtaining LEED certification would ensure a building’s “greenness” and translate it to energy-cost savings. Did LEED keep its promise? A New York Times story published Aug. 31 exposed the fallacy […]

When Progress Energy announced that it would shut down 11 coal-fired power plants at four North Carolina locations, including the Cape Fear plant in nearby Moncure, it was viewed as an environmental victory. “It’s good news for the environment of North Carolina and the world,” said Stephen Smith, executive director of the Southern Alliance for […]

When a Cary McDonald’s restaurant was torn down and replaced this past summer by a new “green” one, the chain received national attention for the effort. In addition to a green roof and PHEV charging station, the new McDonald’s incorporates many sustainable practices, such as low-water use faucets and toilets, and energy-efficient lighting and air […]

And the green goes to … Ecovative Design (www.ecovativedesign.com), a Green Island, N.Y., ecostartup whose Ecocradle and Greensulate products just might change the way you package shipping items and insulate your home. Ecovative Design picked up a cool, green $10,000 for its efforts. Ecovative Design’s monetary prize was for “Best Venture” at the 22nd annual […]

Just because the college football season is winding down doesn’t mean that it’s time to pack up your tailgating tools. Ice hockey is a tough sport, and its fans are tough lot, too. Don’t believe it? Slide on over to the RBC Arena on game day and follow your nose. You’ll likely find a grill […]

With the promise to be greener and cheaper to operate, Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs) are creating quite a buzz in the auto world. PHEVs have been converted by installing an additional storage battery that allows the car to operate more in electric mode and less with the gasoline engine. Full-scale, commercial production could happen […]

For many years, an abandoned Coast Guard base along the Pasquotank River in northeast North Carolina leaked fuel into the soil and groundwater, an environmental legacy left over from when the military stored aircraft fuels there from 1942 to 1991. Now 3,000 hybrid poplar and willow trees planted on the five-acre site may be the […]

So you’re headed west to the mountains, and the 32-ounce soda you downed in Winston-Salem has finally run its course. If you can make it to North Wilkesboro, stop at the state’s first environmentally friendly rest area, the Northwest North Carolina Visitor Center. On Oct. 1, the N.C. Department of Transportation opened the center, located […]

Former New York Yankees baseball great Yogi Berra is often remembered as the Master of the Malaprop. When asked why he thought attendance at the Kansas City Athletics ball field had fallen off so badly, Berra responded with a classic “Yogism”: “If the people don’t want to come out to the ballpark, nobody’s going to […]