May 2006 | Conscious Business

Give an Iota, Drink BIOTA

One thousand years. It’s the life cycle of 10 Galapagos Island giant tortoises. It’s around the time lapse since King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table celebrated the new millennium. And it’s how many years it takes a plastic water bottle to decompose. Unless it’s Biota.

Biota, pure Rocky Mountain spring water, comes in a biodegradable plastic bottle made of a renewable resource: corn. Great news, especially considering the fact that Americans toss out over 65 million water bottles every day, 85 percent of which are not recycled.

But don’t chuck your canteen just yet. Although Biota bottles are a more eco-friendly alternative than their petroleum-based relatives, they’re not reusable. Plus, Biota bottles must be placed in a commercial compost (backyard composts won’t heat up to the required 120°-140°F temperature for breakdown). But once there, Biota bottles degrade into water, carbon dioxide and organic material in 80 days—that’s just 12 short weeks, or the life cycle of six butterflies.

Biota can be found at Whole Foods Market, PC Greens (Malibu) and Wild Oats. biotaspringwater.com. —Jenny Rough

Can You Dig It?

Got ants in your pants lounging indoors on a beautiful spring day? Looking for a funky alternative to your average, garden variety lawn furniture? Give new meaning to the term “living room” by finding a suitable patch of ground and growing your own outdoor easy chair. The Terra by Nucleo grass armchair kit will help you get started from the ground up with easy to assemble, pre-cut cardboard pieces. Fit together, plant, fill and cover with dirt, sprinkle some grass seeds, water and watch it grow. It’s one part Lazy Boy, two parts Chia Pet. Pick up the kit at Fitzsu Society in Hollywood or Pasadena for $125, or online at fitzu.com (add $25 for shipping).

We all know money doesn’t grow on trees—so if you’re not quite raking it in but you’re green with envy, you can do it yourself, dirt-cheap! Muchas “grassyass” to Ready Made magazine for their complete DIY directions for sprouting your own outdoor couch: readymademag.com/feature_6_sodcouch.php. —Jolia Sidona Einstein

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