My Green Switch Was Flicked On

I was watching Live Earth, I said, Self, what can you do for the environment? So I created this blog. I do a fair bit but I'm running out of ideas. I'm hoping people post comments or suggestions. Let's all do a couple of things to make the EARTH better.



Things I've done to help the environment:

1 Replaced 21 light bulbs with CFL's.
2 Put a few lights on motion detectors.
3 Use a real coffee mug and silverware at my desk.
4 Only buy fair trade and/or organic coffee.
5 Only buy organic produce and meat.
6 On the 100 mile diet. (90% Compliant)
7. Use my own grocery bag.
8. Try to buy products with less packaging.
9. Switched to paperless banking/bill payment.
10 Don't use air conditioning.
11. Take public transit.
12. Unplug instant on stuff, except for VCR and alarm clock.
13. Buy only sustainable power from Bullfrog.
14. Switched to Ice Melter instead of salt.
15. Offset the rest of my emmisions with a carbon credit.

Green things I still need to do:

1 Get rid of my extra beer fridge. (I don't know about this because I brew my own and it need's to be refrigerated.)
2. Quit smoking. (OK, so I'm working on this now)
3. Buy a hybrid. (So, I couldn't buy a hybrid this time cause I had to get a work truck but, I'll limit my driving and will buy a hybrid for personal use at a later date)

Please Note: I am not a writer. Most of these articles are shared from other sources. Please use the links provided to get the whole article from the source site. Please support these sites too! We all have a role to play.

Where I'm At Now

I've decided that organic may not be the way to go. What's the sense of shipping an organic product 3,000 miles if I can find a locally produced item? OK, so it may not be organic but I guess it's a balance between chemicals to grow or chemicals to ship. I've actually found local chicken, beef, pork, lamb and goat, all naturally raised, antibiotic free and free range where applicable. I've managed to find local potatoes, yams, carrots, onions and garlic all winter. I also have a local hydroponic lettuce grower and besides lettuce he grows cucumber, bell peppers and tomatoes.

I've switched to Bullfrog Power. Bullfrog uses only environmentally sustaining power sources like wind as well as low-impact hydro-electric.

I've also discovered Guerrilla Gardening. Take over an abandoned patch and make it grow. Stay tuned.

Well this year, I've decided to post more about what I'm doing. I'll still have cool products once in a while, especially if I've tried or switched to them.

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Conserve N.S. putting hybrid cabs to the test

The provincial government is giving about $25,000 to a new pilot project to help taxi drivers in Halifax and Dartmouth cut fuel consumption.
The initiative, funded through Conserve Nova Scotia, will give $2,500 to up to six drivers to purchase a new fuel-efficient or hybrid vehicle.
It will also provide $1,200 to those drivers and three others cabbies using regular taxis to keep data on their fuel use, mileage, and maintenance and repair bills.

Friday, March 26, 2010

Earth Hour 2010

Just a reminder that Earth Hour is tomorrow, March 27, 8:30 pm - 9:30 pm, your local time. Visit http://www.earthhour.org for more info

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Earth Day Guest Blogger

Todays post is from a guest blogger, Dan Grifen, http://everythingleft.wordpress.com/

Thanks Dan.

3/24/2010


Green Infrastructure, Earth Day and Global Awareness

Spring 2010 is approaching and there’s a lot of buzz around topics like the economy, taxation, global poverty, restoration in Haiti/Chile, and lastly, green awareness. With spring, Earth Day also draws nearer (April 22nd); as individuals, we must remember and realize the importance of global warming and all of its implications. Subsequent topics discussed as of late include space travel/burning of fossil fuels, deforestation and green building. As nations like Haiti and Chile prepare for rebuilding and new construction, there are many things to consider when advancing. Moving towards cleaner, greener infrastructure is vital in ensuring a successful restoration campaign.

The U.S. Green Building Council is a 501(3)(c) non-profit community of leaders working to make green buildings available to everybody. It’s one of the many organizations playing its role in green progression. Heavy discussion lies on green topics, especially the more recent ones like space travel; others include deforestation, green crops, clothing, energy, and much more. It’s important that we as individuals/citizens stay up-to-date on important global topics like warming. As organizations like the CGI (Clinton Global Initiative), AFH (Architecture for Humanity), and the USGBC (U.S. Green Building Council) conducts sustainability campaigns and enforce strict green constraints, our world will continue to become a better, cleaner place. Machines behind the CGI, Doug Band and Former President Clinton have been pursuing an emission reduction plan in the San Francisco Bay area. Meanwhile, GEC (Globetrotters Engineering Corporation) is underway with green building projects in Chicago, IL. Despite these few national examples, green infrastructure, particularly in places like Haiti, has become an integral part of restoration and construction.

This aligns with the implications of "economic viability" and long term sustainability, posing the questions, "Can Haiti really make it through all the costs of repair and reconstruction?" Infrastructure can take a toll on any economy, especially if the funds aren't there. This goes hand in hand with meeting modern day LEED standards and approaching this in a "greener" sense. Organizations like Architecture for Humanity will make this possible. Architecture for Humanity (1999) is a nonprofit design services firm building "a more sustainable future through the power of professional design." It was formulated through a group of building professionals whose overwhelming passion for construction drove them to provide a way for underdeveloped, suffering countries to rebuild. Through their dedication and hard work, these people will be able to not only create new buildings and infrastructure, but make them bigger, better, and greener.

To touch on just some of the things that AFH covers:

• Alleviating poverty and providing access to water, sanitation, power and essential services
• Bringing safe shelter to communities prone to disaster and displaced populations
• Rebuilding community and creating neutral spaces for dialogue in post-conflict areas
• Mitigating the effects of rapid urbanization in unplanned settlements
• Creating spaces to meet the needs of those with disabilities and other at-risk populations
• Reducing the footprint of the built environment and addressing climate change

As polluters continue to buy their way out of Carbon Cuts globally, and large organizations continue to dump their waste into lakes, ponds and rivers, communities and must play their role in ensuring sustainability. Organizations like the CGI, AFH, and USGBC provide repercussion and policy change for acts such as. Most of the results from warming and climate change are miniscule and unnoticeable now, but our youth and earlier generations will experience firsthand the effects of pollutants and unsustainable efforts. Feel free to visit http://www.earthday.org/ to learn more about what you can do to support your world.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Food Connect

Food Connect is an award winning social business that works in collaboration with brilliant local farmers around Brisbane to deliver the best food in the world efficiently, affordably and equitably. Our unique distribution system is flexible, convenient and most of all healthy for you and your community. We are passionate about changing the way food is grown and distributed in this and any country where exploitation of farmers and customers is rampant.

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Where I'm At Now (Part 2)

The next post in the series of some of the transitions we've made.
Anyone that knows me, knows I'm a big coffee drinker.
Coffee is actually one of my exception items on my 100-Mile Diet (Details in future post)

A lot of coffee is produced in countries that are politically unstable. What this means in very brief terms, is that the coffee is controlled by large coffee cartels. The cartels market the coffee and make the profit passing very little along to the farmers.
The farmers are then forced to enlist their families, since they have no money to pay workers, and are denied proper meals, education and medical treatment. 

Fair Trade Coffee is usually grown in farmer owned cartels or co-ops where the farmers make more of the profits allowing them to live better lives. Most Fair Trade Coffee growers also grow the coffee organically and are excellent stewards of the earth.
 
One of the companies I've found is Just Us! Coffee Roasters Co-operative Limited , http://www.justuscoffee.com/Default.aspx


I'm not trying to promote this company, I'm just using it as an example. Their site has a lot of info about Fair Trade.

 
Just Us! also has tea, chocolate and sugar, all from the Fair Trade variety.

For me, it's only Fair Trade Organic coffee at home and I look for it in coffee shops too.

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Are pet flea treatments safe?

This may be worth a read if you are a pet owner.

http://www.getwithgreen.com/2010/03/18/are-frontline-and-other-spot-on-flea-and-tick-treatments-safe-for-dogs-and-cats/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GetWithGreencom+%28GetWithGreen.com%29

Where I'm at now

My wife and I started our commitment to a lower carbon footprint in September 2007. Just over 2 1/2 years and we've changed just about everything in our life.
The next series of posts will be about some of the transitions we've made.

Switching to CFL's


These may cost a bit more but they last a lot longer. We've only had to replace 2 in the past few years. We changed 18 or so on the first blitz. When we compared our electric bill the following season, the change was a shocker.

 Blue - Winter       Green - Summer

The chart shows the drop in energy use from January 08 to January 09. Really, this was only due to the switch to CFL's with a little bit of diligence in turning out lights that were not being used. It took a year to compare since we had to wait for the proper season. You can't compare January with August since your utility uses are very different.
This kind of proved our effort wasn't in vain. This was one of the first things we changed. Now, a year and a half into our lifestyle adjustment, it was the third bit of proof we were on to something. Sometimes it takes time to see results.

Friday, March 19, 2010

Annihilation of a Fish

There is a series of photographs called "The Chase" taken off Nomans Land Island, near Martha's Vineyard, in 1986. The photographs show a giant bluefin tuna, weighing over 900 pounds, leaping, missing, leaping again, and capturing an Atlantic bluefish about two feet long.1 The giant bluefin has all the design characteristics of a fighter jet: supremely tapered shape, short fins like abbreviated wings, extreme speed.
 

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

TD’s Global Business Operations Are Now Carbon Neutral


TD Bank Financial Group, today announced that its operations in Canada, the US, and international locations - its entire footprint - are now carbon neutral.





"This is a significant milestone but we know there is still a lot to do," said Karen Clarke-Whistler, Chief Environment Officer, TD. "Thanks to the terrific effort of our employees as well as the helpful input we've received from environmental and community groups, TD is the first North American-based bank - and one of only a few banks in the world - to reach a carbon neutral goal. We look forward to engaging with key stakeholders as we continue to work on environmental issues."

Read here, http://www.zerofootprint.net/press/single/zerofootprint-helps-td-make-its-global-business-operations-carbon-neutral/#continuedReading

Ways to Go Green

A new analysis has an encouraging conclusion about individuals who "go green": If we all took a few simple steps, collectively we could reduce U.S. carbon dioxide emissions 15%. Each of these steps is cheap (or free) and won't cramp anyone's lifestyle.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010


Hi all,
Earth Hour will be held March 27, 2010 8:30PM - 9:30PM
Hope you can make it.

http://earthhour.org

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Detroit looks at downsizing to save city


Detroit, the very symbol of American industrial might for most of the 20th century, is drawing up a radical renewal plan that calls for turning large swaths of this now-blighted, rusted-out city back into the fields and farmland that existed before the automobile.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

How to make your electronics batteries last longer


Taking good care of your electronics batteries can pay off. The financial rewards of longer lasting batteries are obvious: You won't be forced to render a perfectly good gadget obsolete before its time or have to shell out money for a replacement battery.

Read more here,
http://www.getwithgreen.com/2010/03/02/how-to-make-your-electronics-batteries-last-longer/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GetWithGreencom+%28GetWithGreen.com%29

Energy vampires: Is it worth it to unplug your electronics?


It's common knowledge that appliances continue to draw a small amount of power when they're switched off but still plugged in. One solution is to unplug electronics and chargers when you aren't using them. Or you can plug cords into a power strip and switch it off whenever you want to cut off all power to ppliances.

Read the article here,
http://www.getwithgreen.com/2010/02/08/energy-vampires-is-it-worth-it-to-unplug-your-electronics/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GetWithGreencom+%28GetWithGreen.com%29

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

7 Companies You Can Trust to Use BPA-Free Cans


Here's a startling, almost amazing fact. Eden Organic has been canning beans since 1999 in BPA (bisphenol-A) free cans. For a decade. Concerns about BPA keep mounting - in January the FDA reversed its 2008 stance to say it was "concerned" about BPA and recommended limited exposure. So why all food manufacturers follow Eden's lead?

Read more and see the list here,
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/03/7-bpa-free-canned-foods.php?campaign=th_rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+treehuggersite+%28Treehugger%29&utm_content=FaceBook

Device mimics leeches, ejects plug when gadget is done charging


Leeches drink blood until they're full and then fall off of their host, but our plugged-in gadgets keep drinking electricity even once they're fully charged.
The Outlet Regulator changes this by ejecting the plug from the electricity source once the gadget is done charging, turning vampire electronics into leeches.

Check it out here, http://conorklein.com/index.php?/ongoing/outlet-regulator/

Monday, March 1, 2010

Freight Transportation’s Hidden Cost to Health and the Planet

Freight—nearly everything we buy, eat, manufacture, or build with is carried to us by a complex system of shipping routes, rail lines, highways, ports, and rail yards.
West Coast ports are expected to see a 138% increase in container traffic by 2035. Source: Port of Los Angeles.
Unfortunately, pollution from moving all this freight is significant and growing. Truck, locomotive, and ship engines spew greenhouse gases, toxic diesel soot, and other dangerous pollutants. These emissions contribute to global warming and are responsible for serious health problems. This is the first in a series of posts about how to address the huge environmental and public health costs of moving goods around the country.

Read here, http://blogs.edf.org/transportation/2010/03/01/we-gotta-clean-up-freight-transportation%e2%80%99s-hidden-cost-to-health-and-the-planet/

I've Started The 100 Mile Diet

Here is a sample market run. Not all of this is available during the winter

All Produce was Local & Organic, Lettuce - Romaine, Red Leaf & Green Leaf
Celery, Peppers - Green, Orange, Red & PURPLE, Radish, Green Onion, Cucumber
(That's my weekly salad stuff)

Spinach, Swiss Chard, Peas, Corn, White and Sweet Potatoes
Onions, Apples, Pears
Lots more available but I didn't buy.

Dairy, All Local & Organic (Naturally Raised or Free Range)Milk (In Glass Bottles), Cheese, Butter, Eggs, Yogurt, Cottage Cheese,
Sour Cream & others available but I didn't buy.

Bread and Rolls, Organic but not all grains local. I've been baking my own too, using local if possible.

And for the Meat Eaters, All Local & Naturally Raised
Chicken - Whole, Boneless & Skinless Cuts (Other Cuts Available)
Lamb Chops (Other Cuts Available)Pork Chops (Other Cuts Available)
Beef - Steak, Ground (Other Cuts Available)
There were other products such as Goat, Emu and others that I didn't buy.

Now, I know not everything is available to all but if you can replace half of your grocery list with local products you would be doing what you can as well as telling retailers you want local products.
I know I'll have a challenge in February. There won't be as much local produce available.
I've committed to starting a greenhouse garden in my basement and growing my salad.I'll let you know how that works out.
Barry

Update: June 2,2008

February produce was a challenge but I found lettuce, bell peppers, cucumber and tomatoes, all grown locally the hydroponic way. At least I had a small salad every day.

I don't have a basement greenhouse yet but I do have a backyard garden.

More later.

Update, August 18th 2008

Well the vegetable garden was a bust. I put in a 10' X 12' garden but I don't get enough sun in my yard. We have tomatoes and peppers in containers and they are doing much better. Looks like I need a new plan.

Update, September 12,2009

So gardening at my house is out. Too shady.
I switched to Bullfrog Power a year ago. My hydro comes from wind and non destructive hydro-electric.
I gave up driving to work a year ago as well.

With a friend of mine, we started Earth Hour By The Dozen.
It's Earth Hour but we have it on the 4th Saturday of every month.

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