Helios: Greek Sun God and Rad Gas Station
The sight of a gas station, especially recently, usually inspires feelings of shock, denial, bargaining, guilt, anger, depression and finally acceptance. But what if I told you there's a gas station right here in the Southland that can inspire hope?
Helios House, located at the corner of Olympic and Robertson Boulevards here in L.A., is striving to prove that even gas stations can be environmentally responsible and maybe even motivational. Helios House, operated by British Petroleum (BP), is bursting with eco-innovations that both reduce its carbon footprint but educates consumers on all things great and green. BP doesn't freak completely out and call their newest station "revolutionary," but just "a little better."
So what's going on at Helios that's so cool? Let's be honest, the gas itself is your basic same-oh non-PC gasoline found at any gas station, BUT...
In addition to its sexy, steel Disney-Center-esque outer shell, the station uses solar panels and motion-sensor lights, collects rain water to irrigate its CO2-reducing green roof (meaning its covered with naturally insulating plants), serves as a recycling station for cell phones, is lit with LED lights AND the building itself is constructed from recycled or sustainable materials. Even the promotional flyers available at the pumps are impregnated (yeah, I said it) with wildflower seeds so if one accidentally blows away or is tossed, the paper biodegrades and sprouts new flowers. Is the gas always greener?
This you got to see. Where's it at? 8770 W. Olympic Blvd. LA, CA.
Here's the question, though: can a gas station that still dispenses gas be green or is it simply a case of making the best out of a systematically bad situation? You make the call.
For more info straight from BP about Helios House, read HERE.
(In case you wondered, Treehugger weighs in to say THIS.)
About this blog
Roxanne Kotzman is a Daily News Photo Department veteran of nine years. When she and longtime friend Stacy Long
discovered their love all of all things environmentally responsible, they launched Happy Monkey Planet and jumped head-first into the vibrant eco-community.
Wow, so much to learn! But initially the idea is a pretty simple one: Let's change the world through information, education and action.
Rox & Stacy are a lot like you: ecologically minded but sometimes just plain overwhelmed when charged with the task of making a far-reaching difference in the environment. They have jobs, families, homes, lives and pets.
But what if doing better was a simple as a light-bulb change, a reusable canvas grocery bag, recycling that soda can or a cold-water wash?
These eco-chicks just hope to have a little fun, learn a little more, share a lot of information and maybe make the planet a happier, greener, cleaner place.
Leave a comment