Clearly, BlogHer members have eco-smarts -- and by that I mean both ecological and economical smarts. Judging by the response to Her Bad Mother's anti-disposable plastic water bottle post, most of you've already ditched the money-draining, polluting, and totally unnecessary blight that's bottled water.

Once upon time, not so very long ago, carrying a water bottle around with you was a sign of good health and - by extension, because healthy people are usually assumed to be environmentally sensitive - green consciousness. It showed that you valued water! It showed that you valued water enough to pay for it instead of just drawing it from your tap! It showed that you were the sort of person who needed to have water at her side at all times!Now, of course, it just shows that you're way behind the times, or, at least, terribly misinformed about water and plastic.

I'm serious about starting off the new year greenly -- which is why I saved not just one, but two guides to eco-friendly bubblies: Grist's guide to distinctive, affordable, eco-friendly sparkling wines and Low Impact Living's guide to 9 domestic sparkling wines.

Teflon doesn’t have any enviro-allies these days, since news broke about the nonstick material’s potential health risks. Why not? Environmental Working Group warns consumers that Teflon offgases toxic particulates at 446°F according to DuPont studies — and it only gets worse from there:

Never quite got what fair trade coffee is all about? Lucky for you, here's a one-paragraph explanation of why fair trade coffee's necessary, brought to you by a travel article titled "Destination: The Java Zone" in Sierra magazine written by Gregory Dicum, eco-journalist and coffee enthusiast:

Unless you follow blogs and Twitter, you probably didn't catch the news that an environmental disaster is unfolding in Tennessee that, according to experts, dwarfs the damage done by the Exxon Valdez oil spill. 

Chances are a new game system, computer, iPod, cell phone or other electronics will come into your house this holiday season. What are you going to do with the older version the new goodie will replace? If you don't plan to use it yourself or pass it on to another member of the family, here are some ideas for recycling or freecyling those electronics.

Honey's become a major environmental topic these days, what with huge numbers of bees vanishing mysteriously in North America. The phenomenon, dubbed colony collapse disorder, has everyone from foodies to farmers to filmmakers buzzing about what's causing the problem and how to fix it.

As President Bush announced yet another bail-out, this time for American automakers, it's hard to remember that there are other important problems that will need some serious attention when the administration takes over in January.

As the White House debates helping Detroit's automakers, BlogHer is giving you the opportunity to speak directly to those involved. This week I will be interviewing Ford Motor Company's Susan Cischke-and I want your questions. Cischke is Group Vice President, Sustainability, Environment and Safety Engineering where she is responsible for establishing Ford's "long range sustainability strategy and environmental policy." I get the feeling that last line will peak your interest.

Time to wrap up the year with a look back at the changes and events in the area of science and technology. These are my picks for the most interesting.

Pescatarians who shop at Trader Joe's: I have bad news! My favorite supermarket chain got the worst score in Greenpeace's latest seafood sustainability scorecard (PDF), scoring even lower than Target and Wal-Mart!