You can check the mileage on your car (or your dream ride) without even leaving your chair. The federal Environmental Protection Agency recently reconfigured the miles-per-gallon formulas to give a more real-world estimate. You can look at city, highway or combined mileage for almost any vehicle at the agency's FuelEconomy.gov site.Fast fact:Each year some 1.4 billion movie tickets alone are sold in the U.S. and almost every one of them goes into the trash.Myth No. 9: Millions of vehicles can run on ethanol.What is true: There are millions of cars and trucks on the road capable of burning E85 (85 percent ethanol, which is vegetable-based alcohol and 15 percent gasoline). But "owners may be paying a premium for the vehicle," says Pica, "and since most of the E85 fuel pumps are in the Midwest, nine times out of 10, they're going to be pulling up at a station that is dispensing E10 (only 10 percent ethanol)." And you don't need a special engine for that.Myth No.10: There's always one 'right' answer to your eco-dilemma.The paper or plastic debate is the best example of this. Not even the experts can agree which is a more eco-friendly way to carry home groceries. The better answer, of course, is neither: Bring your own cloth bags to the store. Another debate rages over carbon offsets -- when one company minimizes its responsibility for the amount of carbon dioxide it produces by buying or subsidizing another company's carbon-saving behavior. While many green groups support carbon offsets, others view them only as a solution of last resort. Everyone generally agrees we're poisoning the planet and ourselves with it. But conflicting information about what constitutes a green choice can leave many consumers stalled with indecision. The best way to break the logjam is to start by trying a couple of solutions that are doable and make sense to you.Dana Dratch is a freelance writer based in Atlanta. advertisementRelated Links:4 ways to slash college textbook costs6 steps to 'cash for clunkers'Sales tax holidays offer shopping bargainsRelated Articles:Make money moonlightingDid teacher save enough? 6 hobbies to make money
You can check the mileage on your car (or your dream ride) without even leaving your chair. The federal Environmental Protection Agency recently reconfigured the miles-per-gallon formulas to give a more real-world estimate. You can look at city, highway or combined mileage for almost any vehicle at the agency's FuelEconomy.gov site.
Dana Dratch is a freelance writer based in Atlanta.