[Wrecked944]

A few of our Pelican brothers are already working hard to save the planet. Pelican member "NotFarNow" has converted his vehicle to run on used veggie oil. And a member named "Dean" has converted his diesel truck and two TDI VW's to run on biodiesel. LubeMaster77 also has an additive that may make biodiesel stable and usable during the cold weather months.

I am very interested in earth berm houses - especially since they don't seem to require exotic materials or construction methods. So they may be a good candidate for DIY construction. I also believe some of the designs using slanted windows for passive heaating are quite modern and beautiful looking.

Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find a source for DIY plans that would meet the stringent building code requirements of my state (Massachusetts). Most of them say things like "Dig a big hole and pour in some concrete"...and while that may work just fine in northern Montana, I think I'd need something more rigorous to get past the Planning Committee in MA.

Also, if you are interested in saving energy, there is a new product out there called "aerogel" that provides almost unbelievable insulating properties. It was developed by NASA to protect space craft components from the deep cold of space. And it has only become available to consumers in very small quantities two months ago. Given time, it seems likely it will become more widely available and cost effective and will make home heating and cooling costs plummet.