Green Makeover Includes Rain Barrels

Last Saturday, September 10th, Arid Solutions Inc. was proud to be part of the first Green Makeover held in Albuquerque, NM. It was hosted by the USGBC and the GreenBuilt Tour. ASI donated a set, Standard and Doubler, of rain barrels for the winner. The winners Roby and Yvonne, live in the house her grandparents built in the 1930s. Needless, to say it needed some "greening up". Along with rain barrels they also received solar thermal heaters, low VOC paint, drip irrigation, solar powered motion detecting lights, and the list goes on.

Here at Arid Solutions Inc. we would like to encourage groups across the country to hold green makeovers. It is a wonderful forum to show the general public some of the changes that can be made and in many cases just how easy it can be done. We hope you enjoy some of the pictures included from the day.
New Mexico
Green
environment
sustainability
water conservation
rain barrels

Growing Peaches In The Desert

We have been thinking of moving...again. Where we live is absolutely beautiful, and pleasant and the only other word that fits is nurturing. We live about 14 miles outside Albuquerque and the air is clean and the diversity of the folige and wildlife is entertaining. But I spend too much time commuting, sometimes I have to drive into town up to 3 times a day! So that brings me to the price of peaches.

We looked at a wonderful home owned by equally nice people. They had a small yard, most newer homes have small yards. The front yard was xeriscaped. The back yard had a pond, waterfall, a deck, some bushes, assorted trees and a perfect white peach tree. The lush grass in the backyard was so green and so manicured I had to ask if it was real. I took one shoe off to test it, yes it was real.

What's important to remember here it that this house is in Albuquerque. The DESERT southwest. We really liked the house. Being the person I am, I called the water department to check on the water usage. The perfect patch of grass and that perfect peach tree, neither of which would grow here without human intervention, used 43,000 gallons of water a month!

To get a better idea of just how much water that is, our household with two adults and two teenage daughters averages 3,000 gallons a month. The house with perfect peaches only had two adults.

When you do the math, 14 water conserving families could live using the amount water one couple does growing Georgia peaches and Kentucy bluegrass in New Mexico.

What I am asking here, is for people to adjust their behaviors to their environments. It's not nice to fool with Mother Nature. If we live as the environment calls for, we aren't going against nature and resources will last. Remember New Orleans was build 20 feet below sea level.
New Mexico
New Orleans
environment
sustainability
water conservation
nature