View Full Version : Your contribution to our environment
What do you do for our environment?
I often take the bike. In summer I go to school by bike every day and when i go to the supermarket to buy sth to eat, i take the bike almost thw whole year expect when thereīs snow and itīs too icy. i care about where my food is coming from, so i prefer buying german apples instead of ones from argentina and in our garden we (try to) grow some vegetables and fruits.
what do you do for our environment? or donīt you care at all?
The single-biggest thing? My wife and I decided to only have one child, and to raise her well.
We do a few other odds and ends as well...
I absolutely do care. Some of the things we do:
- We live within walking distance of a supermarket, a hardware store, some restaurants, and a few other shops. We walk to them when we can.
- If we must drive, we bunch together errands. We hardly ever fire up the car to go to one place and back. Both of us drive what are considered very small cars by American standards and we'll drive them until they drop. (The not-so-green part: neither one of them was built in North America.)
- We try to buy locally. If we can, we try to buy products made by our fellow Minnesotans, and, if not, then by Iowans or Wisconsonites, and so on. We're very conscious of "air miles" so we don't tend to buy much exotic fish or produce from South America in the winter time; we try to eat citrus fruits, canned fruit, or fruits, vegetables, or herbs we've dried or frozen, minimizing the use of food that has traveled long distance.
- Buying locally goes for services, too. If we have to hire a repairperson or have something cleaned professionally, we prefer to do that as close to home as we can.
- We try to buy in bulk, or in recyclable containers, or in the largest containers we think we can use, to minimize packaging waste.
- Every light bulb in this house that tends to be on for hours at a time is a fluorescent bulb. We still have incandescent bulbs, but some lights are not used very often and it seems anti-environmental to throw away a bulb that has been in intermittent use for 9+ years just to use a new fluorescent which probably will die prematurely for being switched on and off so often.
- Every appliance in our house except the furnace, which was here when I bought the house, is Energy Star rated. So are the computers and the TV. We tend to repair our stuff rather than toss it for new stuff.
- The windows have had solar film added to them to cut down on UV rays and the need for air conditioning.
- The set-back thermostat manages winter temperatures set between 60 and 68 degrees in the winter and 75-78 degrees in summer. We use "spot" heating sources for where we are rather than heat the entire house.
- The carpet in this house is fully recycled and fully recyclable.
- We try to use less-toxic cleaners and cleaning methods, fertilizers, and pesticides. Non-animal food waste is composted.
I'm sure there are other things, but I can't think of them right now.
decemberlov
9-5-12, 5:45pm
The single-biggest thing? My wife and I decided to only have one child, and to raise her well.
We do a few other odds and ends as well...
oh how I love this answer :~)
I'm not as green as many, but I do a number of small things like: use reusable bags, recycle, compost, grow my own herbs and veggies, have a high mpg car (out in the middle of no where, public transportation is not available), group errands, limit my purchase and use of toxic chemicals and have no kids.
Gardenarian
9-5-12, 6:00pm
I do try to consider my actions carefully and hope to help the planet. We also chose to have only one child - though we have two dogs. I don't travel much and really limit my air travel. I plant a lot of trees. I give to organizations that I hope are doing something to counteract human's negative impact on the environment.
It's all kind of sad.
I volunteer to clean up trash on Earth Day - I've also done a number of events going after invasive plants. I know they are all drops in a bucket, but I enjoy seeing the bags I fill knowing they are my drops :-) - and being with others doing the same is a positive experience.
I try to live light - buy local. I'm carless and I (at least for now) work from home.
I mow my lawn with a hand mower, dry the clothes on a line, shovel snow with a shovel, drive my high-mpg car as little as possible, for currently 133,000 miles, buy food at local farmer's markets, use cloth bags, turn the lights off, keep the thermostat low in winter, avoid the use of AC unless fainting from the heat, wear clothes out. That's all I can think of but I'm sure there is more I could do.
While I do all the 'right' things to reduce my impact on the environment from reusing plastic bags to eating local/organic to taking public transportation to not running the A/C even in 90+degree heat, most of my efforts are negated by a single flight back to the states.
Just doing the best I know how.
The single-biggest thing? My wife and I decided to only have one child, and to raise her well.
We do a few other odds and ends as well...
YES, Bae! That decision makes a huge difference.
I've updated my 1950's smaller sized home with energy savings measures including efficient windows and insulation, EPA rated wood burning stove, and several enerstar rated appliances, though a few older appliances in good working order are still there. I subscribe to wind energy from our local public service provider so theoretically much of my electric come from wind turbines. I'm in the process of replacing grassed areas of the lawn with xeriscape landscaping.
Mostly vegetarian.
I do many errands on my bike and live close to shopping and other businesses. I've cut down vacation travel and try to keep any longer distance travel to one or two trips a year. Since I am not employed, business travel and work commutes are not an issue. I've considered buying carbon credits to off set vacation travel, but haven't got there yet.
In the spring I volunteer doing migrating raptor counts a couple of days a week for a non-profit and do amphibian and bird surveys for our county open space in spring and summer. This is actually great fun.
No children, though probably more by chance than choice.
Oh this is a wonderful post and I am so inspired by all I've read!! After reading what others do, I feel I'm not doing enough...but so far this is what I'm doing:
recycle
no children (more just as a lifestyle choice but also has a green impact)
vegetarian (again, it's about the animals but also has a green effect)
For cleaning supplies I use vinegar and baking soda mostly
try not to use things like: straws, coffee stirers, napkins, disposable items
very little shopping
pick up bits of litter as I'm walking my pup
Things I plan to do in the coming year:
compost
veggie/herb garden
If you haven't seen this site, this family is an inspiration: http://zerowastehome.blogspot.com/p/about.html
ApatheticNoMore
9-6-12, 4:07am
Drive a fuel efficient car
Usually bring reusable bags or if not try to carry what I've bought
Recycle many things
Sometimes hang dry my clothes, often indoors (50% of the time?)
Eat lots of organics, pastured meat, try to eat only sustainable fish. Don't buy many fruits out of season (please ignore my imported banana addiction). Try not to waste food.
Unplug or at least turn off lights, appliances, electronics when not in use
Use fans instead of AC until it gets too hot to do so
Always ask myself the environmental cost when buying a new non-consumable item and if it really seems worth it (it usually doesn't, still it's not total abstentation)
Look for energy star products when buying that non-consumable electronic item
Keep a drinking cup at work to cut down my disposable cup use
Try to buy recycled paper products (TP etc.), green cleaning products, have bought some other supposedly green (and perhaps just greenwashed) products
buy all green energy electricity (and pay extra for it)
often walk to nearby stores
use other alternatives to flying domestically
take electronic and other toxic waste to proper toxic waste disposal
have rescued things, recyclables, and electronic waste (not usually food) from the apartment trash bin, make use of it, give it away, recycle it, or dispose of it properly
personally put out entirely still smoldering embers someone left in the mountains recently (idiots!)
buy some things used (not as much as many on here, then again don't buy much period)
I'm sure an EQUALLY long list could be made of things I should do and don't (ie haven't given up paper towels entirely (though of course they are made of recycled paper), use the shared dryer 50% of the time, throw away a few things that could be recycled, usually buy new clothes etc. - sometimes good intentions meet exhaustion of life ... :)). It's all so small in the scheme of things. Individuals really can't save the world alone.
Another 1-child family here. She's been trained to compost, recycle, eat at home and pack meals when out, and drink water (as opposed to other beverages) from a reusable bottle from a very early age.
We live in a small house We've added insulating window covers, insulation to the attic, high efficiency furnace and a/c, and as we replace appliances they are also more efficient. In this home we're able to line-dry laundry as well, from about April through October. We love our local farmers' markets.
I've used cotton grocery bags, grown many vegetables & fruits, purchased local and organic when possible, minimized meat and dairy, recycled avidly, used cloth napkins and other reusables around the house, xeriscaped my house, cleaned it with vinegar and baking soda for over 15 years.
Where we could improve:
We live in the suburbs so transportation is lacking. DH drives an efficient car to work (13 miles one-way). I don't drive many miles - most of DD's and my activities are within a fairly small radius.
We travel a fair amount because our family and many friends are out of state, and not in nearby states, either. We also make an international trip every 5-7 years. However, compared to the amount of travel some of my business friends undertake (e.g. flying every week), our flight miles are nothing.
Do NOT drink out of plastic; minimize plastic/packaging use overall
Telecommute
Drive a Prius
Grow veggies
Compost (just started!!)
80% of my furnishings are hand-me-downs or thrift shop
Eat 90% vegetarian
When I eat meat it's grass-fed
Long-range plans are to continue learning permaculture so that I can eventually teach it after all my debt is paid (4-5 years). Also plan on downsizing out of my 3 BR house. Would LOVE a tiny house someday. In the meantime, we do what we can to insulate and minimize fuel use.
Can't say I follow you guys who have chosen the Zero Population Growth model. I do have 4 kids, but three live in a very walkable city so they zip car it on those few occasions they need a car, they live very simply, and all my kids are all involved in "right livelihood" so I'm confident that will help bring the world to a better place.
Plus, NONE of them have produced ANY offspring so we may get a net ZPG anyway!
I know they are all drops in a bucket, but I enjoy seeing the bags I fill knowing they are my drops :-)
For whatever we do, I agree that it's drops in a bucket compared to the industrial-scale waste that is generated. And it's almost always a tradeoff -- do I buy the food item in the glass or metal container knowing I can recycle the container but that it put on hundreds of air miles to get to me? But it's good to know I'm doing what I can. "Personal virtue", indeed.
My contribution to the built environment is to pull out with my bare hands aielanthus trees that grow in window wells, grout lines, rooftops of buildings. Here it is a battle of trees vs. buildings, and I will always defend the buildings.
But since I suspect that's not what you are looking for, I will say that we are urban farmers and grow tons of veg and fruit. We were recently on the Permaculture tour in this city. I like the concept of square mile living and both DH and I pretty much live and work within a 1.5 mile radius in an urban core. We rehab old houses (as opposed to building new"green" ones which consumes enormous resources) and in doing so recycle building materials. 12' framing timbers are much cheaper, and better quality, when they are 100 years old rather than new. Old brick is cheaper, beautifully weathered, and more appropriate aesthetically to our patio than ugly concrete even when it masquerades as stone. etc etc.
We rehab old houses (as opposed to building new"green" ones which consumes enormous resources) and in doing so recycle building materials.
I'm amazed how few people "get" that. I recently discontinued a subscription I had to a modern-architecture magazine because there were so many "green"/off-grid/"sustainable" houses being newly-built miles from anywhere. Even if the building used NO energy once it was occupied, it would take decades to work down the overall carbon budget of building it. Ditto with trading in one's car on a hybrid. IMHO, the jury is out on how green it is to build hybrids anyway, but to expend the energy involved in manufacturing a brand-new car instead of maintaining the one you have isn't really green or sustainable ...
Tussiemussies
9-6-12, 3:46pm
We use glass plates and glasses, never paper plates or plastics. When we could we had zinnias in our garden to feed butterflies, we had them last year and the deer had a good meal with them. We try and use cloth napkins but I need to make or buy some more. I have been taking military showers and also turning off the faucet when I brush teeth/was face. I do re-use my plastic grocery store bags by cleaning up after my dog when walking her. Have had my own garden in the past when we move I will do the same again. Used to feed the birds and provide w bird bath for them, will return to that again too. :)
Forgot I am 100 percent vegetarian...Unplug appliances when not in use, turn off all lights when leaving area. When we owned a home, which we will again, hung out all my clothes on a clothesline. Have a car that gets at leat 55 mpg on highway and only has a 10 gallon gas tank. Motion sensor lights outside, we don't keep a porch light on. And we recycle. I hope to get a composer for my birthday this year!
Oh, fun thread!
Tread as lightly as we can. Reusability, is order of the day around our home, and avoiding tossing things out falls under the frugal commandments.
Additional contributions as follows.
Lights out/off when not in use.
Manual dish-washing/clothesline drying.
Practice the 3-R's.
Things we do (not nearly enough)
We live in town on a small lot
We live in a small house, and although our current house is pretty extravagant in size (for us) at 1800 square feet, our houses tend to be smaller, and that is for a family of 5.
We participate in CSA. Have tried to grow our own food, keep failing
DH bikes to work, I walk or bus most days. Our kids walk or bus to school.
We make food at home and try to do left overs.
We hang our clothes out when we can.
We buy almost everything used
DH is planning to get his masters in environmental studies so that he can do more. Right now he is writing a series of columns in our local newspaper, to promote making our city more bike friendly.
A lot of this stuff we do for frugal reasons more so than environmental
Ok, here we go...
Reuseable bags,
cloth napkins and dish rags (no paper towels since 2006)
One child (until this forum, was unaware anyone else did this)
Cloth diapers, and cut up old clothes for butt wipes
All glass bottles, and food storage containers
Organinc cotton linens, clothing, and vegan footware
I own an organic hair salon, and only use organic and sustainable products
Organic skin care and makeup ( I have dreadlocks, so no styling products, just organic shampoo).
Recycle everything
Xeriscaped yard
Vermacomposting (indoor)
5 minute showers
Fuel efficient car 2 dr, even with having a kiddo!
Live 3 miles from work , and daycare is a block away.
Make all cleaning product, except bleach
Only buy used or energy star appliances, comuters, phones, ect
VOC free paint!!!
I feel that when you make a purchase you are voting with every dollar you spend. The more people who vote organic, vegan, fair trade, and sustainable, the less exspensive the products become. Its our responsibility to support the industry that saves our planet!
I feel that when you make a purchase you are voting with every dollar you spend. The more people who vote organic, vegan, fair trade, and sustainable, the less exspensive the products become. Its our responsibility to support the industry that saves our planet!
I agree, so I'm trying to greatly minimize purchases made by big box stores and "vote" in favor of the small, local businesses and farms. In the summer, I try to stay out of supermarkets and buy all my food from local farm markets. It's really not that hard! You'd be surprised, but Jersey is still "The Garden State." We have a lot of places to go if you want to avoid supermarket shopping and buy local. If I need a larger market, I have two or three really nice privately owned small markets I can go to that sell largely local products.
Oh, and one more way I'm going to vote for the environment. Based on what I heard in the conventions, I'm voting for Obama. Unlike Romney, he doesn't feel environmental issues are a joke.
I'm amazed how few people "get" that. I recently discontinued a subscription I had to a modern-architecture magazine because there were so many "green"/off-grid/"sustainable" houses being newly-built miles from anywhere. Even if the building used NO energy once it was occupied, it would take decades to work down the overall carbon budget of building it. Ditto with trading in one's car on a hybrid. IMHO, the jury is out on how green it is to build hybrids anyway, but to expend the energy involved in manufacturing a brand-new car instead of maintaining the one you have isn't really green or sustainable ...
Yep. The whole issue of saving the planet by building new, "green" houses or switching from a an already-built car to a new Prius is one that gets under my skin. There's no nearly enough discussion of the trade-offs involved.
To me, this problem is symbolized by those tiny two-seater Smart Cars that I see everywhere in the highly affluent area where I live. Doubtless those who bought them mean well, but they are deluding themselves if they think they are helping the environment. I understand Smart Cars get 25-50 mpg, which isn't all that much better than my Toyota Corolla. Of course the kicker is that it's a new car, and its construction probably consumed as much energy as building most other cars. If these folks really wanted to save resources, they'd find a 1995 Honda Civic, rehab it, and drive that. But that wouldn't be nearly as much fun as having a new toy.
oh that's right, we also drive old cars into the ground. Sadly, we had to get new cars in 2009, but at the time DH's little truck was about 20 years old but didn't have all that much mileage on it, around 100,000. But other things just fell apart.
We try to focus on what we can do because it looks pretty dismal for the future environment. OK, some of the things we do:
1. We chose to have one child
2. We have a very energy efficient home.
3. We drive fairly efficient vehicles. I have to have a van to transport my electric scooter and lift.
4. We limit our driving as much as possible. I have 3 days a week that I have committed to not taking the van out of the garage.
5. We use reusable grocery bags.
6. We plant trees on our 4 acre property. The trees and shrubs that we plant are all native and provide food and/or cover for the birds and wildlife.
7. We are members of the Texas Nature Conservancy and have them in our wills.
8. We are avid recyclers of paper, plastics, and metals. We have a composting system for all compost able material.
8. Reduce, reuse, and Recycle are more than a catchy phrase with us.
I'm currently carving out our little piece of paradise. We're doing all the standards to make the house very efficient and we already do all the typical RRR's. Tuned up the bikes because its a very pleasent ride from the new place to the grocery store (reusable bags, of course). I've been doing this kind of thing with buildings as part of a career for 25 years so nothing radically new there. The exciting part for me is the permaculture we are working to develop on the lot. It won't save the plantet, but as it develops people will see that it is cool and lush and filled with life and who knows, maybe it will catch on.
I'm amazed how few people "get" that. I recently discontinued a subscription I had to a modern-architecture magazine because there were so many "green"/off-grid/"sustainable" houses being newly-built miles from anywhere. Even if the building used NO energy once it was occupied, it would take decades to work down the overall carbon budget of building it. Ditto with trading in one's car on a hybrid. IMHO, the jury is out on how green it is to build hybrids anyway, but to expend the energy involved in manufacturing a brand-new car instead of maintaining the one you have isn't really green or sustainable ...
On a smaller scale there is the replacement of perfectly working older appliances with enerstar rated. Although it might make sense for a clunky old refrigerator or incandescent lights, I'm not sure about other things like a dishwasher. I suppose some one some where has done the math, but I am keeping my older dishwasher and washing machine until they fail or I find out otherwise. When you trade in a car, in all likelihood someone still gets use from the old one but I would imagine most older appliances just go away.
To me, this problem is symbolized by those tiny two-seater Smart Cars that I see everywhere in the highly affluent area where I live. Doubtless those who bought them mean well, but they are deluding themselves if they think they are helping the environment. I understand Smart Cars get 25-50 mpg, which isn't all that much better than my Toyota Corolla. Of course the kicker is that it's a new car, and its construction probably consumed as much energy as building most other cars. If these folks really wanted to save resources, they'd find a 1995 Honda Civic, rehab it, and drive that. But that wouldn't be nearly as much fun as having a new toy.
In fairness, Smart Cars do much better in Europe, where they are fitted with smaller engines that get much better mileage than they get here in North America. They also can legally park on the street perpedicular to the curb, so two Smart Cars will fit in a parking spot designed for one "ordinary" vehicle.
But the big selling point of a Smart Car on this side of the pond is that it looks like you've gone "green". That's a main reason why Toyota can sell almost as many Priuses as they can stamp out, but Honda has tried three times on hybrids and seen almost no sales success -- and, in fact, why even Toyota's other hybrids don't sell that well. It's a display of status, much like wearing a Patagonia logo on your clothes. Kind of a shame that such consumer rivalry pretty much negates any actual benefit.
Lots of 1-Child-Families here :D We are 3 kids andd i wouldnīs say that itīs too bad. Because we keep clothes and so some things ware worn by at least two of us. I go shopping by bike except we buy a lot of things or heavy things like sth to drink and we are always like a carpool with the whole family.
And I didnīt look at the environmental aspects when i chose to live vegetarian more than a decade ago, but i feelt guilty of all those animals beinng killed just because of some meat... as if there werenīt enough other things to eat in this world.
@ Bomahmie (http://www.simplelivingforum.net/member.php?46852-Bomahmie) : Iīd like to get my hair cut at your saloon :) In Germany, I donīt know a single green hair dresser.. Thatīs why I never get my hair washed in a hair saloon... Because at home, I always use natural products... Maybe you can check some if they are good for hair if i send you the ingredients? =)
As with a number of other people, we have areas that we could improve. I consider our lives a work in progress, but here are some of the things we do:
-- childless by choice
-- heat with a high-efficiency outdoor wood boiler
-- use solar electric and solar hot water to minimize our use of oil
-- our primary vehicle is a diesel that has been converted to run on waste vegetable oil, which we filter ourselves
-- composting
-- growing some of our own vegetables and fruits, plus keeping bees for honey (and pollination purposes)
-- our gardening/farming activities are almost entirely organic (we use pesticides, herbicides, fungicides only when absolutely necessary)
-- I am a strict vegetarian, my partner eats limited amounts of meat
-- try to buy as much food locally as possible, but do have a fondness for coffee, tea, and chocolate :D
-- recycle as much as possible
-- buy used when appropriate
-- rescued our five pets as opposed to supporting puppy or kitten mills
-- well insulated house, keep the heat set low in the winter (62 degrees) and the A/C set high in the summer (80 degrees)
-- combine driving trips whenever possible
-- work from home, primarily, so no daily commute
-- limit travel as a hobby and instead choose to trail run, mountain bike, hike, cross country ski, snowshoe, or do other outdoor activities locally
-- use cloth bags when shopping
-- use cloth napkins and rags instead of paper napkins and paper towels
-- use low flow shower head and faucets and water efficient toilets
-- plant low water use ornamental plants and overwinter them indoors
-- plant lots of trees
-- use an electric mover for our lawn whenever possible
-- mulch everything!
I don't diss people who drive hybrids or Smart Cars. I have no way of knowing how many of them drove a car into the ground (as Iris Lily and I do) and THEN made the choice to purchase one of those instead. Sure, some didn't, but some did. When my truck finally coughs for the last time at 300K and I ponder whether to buy a new vehicle, those are the very ones I'll consider (along with the Leaf, if we have solar electric by then) and I'm mystified that someone will almost certainly judge me without even knowing me. I think it's become very, very fashionable to bash Prius/hybrid/smart car owners, which I find its own kind of elitism. If someone needs a vehicle for whatever reason, who am I to say they should say no to those choices?
I have a push mower, a badass thing from Fiskars. It does a pretty good job, but some things end up looking ragged even when the blade is dead sharp. My neighbor, who has an electric mower (to do her part for the environment) looks askance at my not-perfectly-mowed wildflowers. You just can't win - there will always be someone on your back.
My mentor used to say, "Educate, don't judge. Educate, then let it go and focus on your own life."
I'm teaching an entire community how to compost in two weeks, followed by a harvest party of vegetables home-grown in a new permaculture community garden space, most by first-time gardeners. Next year we'll have a full-on community garden and I'll do my best to teach people that potatoes don't come out of the ground wrapped in plastic wrap and celery doesn't come up as little 3" sticks :D We all just do the best we can.
try2bfrugal
9-11-12, 5:15pm
Recycle
Compost
Cook a lot from scratch
Limit preservatives and canned foods
Work from home
Walk to the store, post office sometimes
Make many of our own cleaning products
Try not to use disposable anything
Phosphate free dish detergent
Bought better mileage cars this last time
Bunch our errand into one trip
Getting better at using up leftovers
Pay our bills online
Have our mortgage from a local credit union
Got our dog from a shelter
Once we decided to cut back and not have 8 - 5 jobs any longer we had less trash (less purchases, less packages and less fast food wrappers) and could use a smaller size trash can. :)
try2bfrugal
9-11-12, 5:17pm
-- use solar electric and solar hot water to minimize our use of oil
-- our primary vehicle is a diesel that has been converted to run on waste vegetable oil, which we filter ourselves
Sounds great. Where did you get your solar systems and car from?
Sounds great. Where did you get your solar systems and car from?
We bought a brand new VW Golf TDI back in 2005 and had a conversion kit from Greasecar Fuel Systems installed. We've driven it more than 230,000 miles at this point and it's still going strong.
Both of our solar systems came from PV squared. We had the hot water system installed about 9 years ago and the solar electric system installed about 3 years ago.
try2bfrugal
9-12-12, 12:05pm
We bought a brand new VW Golf TDI back in 2005 and had a conversion kit from Greasecar Fuel Systems installed. We've driven it more than 230,000 miles at this point and it's still going strong.
Both of our solar systems came from PV squared. We had the hot water system installed about 9 years ago and the solar electric system installed about 3 years ago.
Okay, thanks for the info.
awakenedsoul
9-12-12, 2:08pm
Great thread! I'm impressed with everybody. Here's my list:
~Live in a 567 square foot older house. It's very cheap to heat and keep cool.
~Planted 20 trees on the property. They provide food, shade, beauty, and attract all types of birds.
~All pets are rescued. Most came with their own supplies, that I recycle and reuse for the next group.
~Use cloth napkins, rags, t.p. and menstual pads. No paper towels. I use real t.p. sparingly.
~Make my own laundry powder, cleaning supplies, and air freshener.
~Make my own dog biscuits.
~Appliances are old, used Kenmores that I keep serviced. Stove is a used O'Keefe and Merritt that I had restored. Donated the 1960's Magic Chef stove to the Salvation Army. He said it would be sold in one day. Had it serviced before donating.
~Limit driving to once a week. I take the bus and ride my bicycle for errands.
~I grow as much produce as I can. Each year the vegetable garden and orchard are producing more and more.
~When I do buy produce, it's from a local organic co op. I also buy their raw milk, raw cheese, grass fed beef, and free range chicken.
~Have a chicken for eggs. Use her manure in compost.
~Have a cottage style potager garden with flowers that attract many bees, butterflies, wasps, hummingbirds, ad beneficial insects. I feed it homemade compost with horse manure I pick up in my wheelbarrow from my neighbor. My fruits and vegetables are so much bigger and healthier with the addition of manure to the compost pile.
~Use blood water for fertilization.
~Have always turned off water during showers, brushing teeth, etc. Fill the tub halfway for my bath.
~I only do full loads of laundry and hang my clothes out on a clothesline to dry.
~Have flourescent bulbs in my lights and some LED's. I try to use only one light, if possible. My nightlights in antique lamps are low usage.
~My furniture is well made antiques that I inherited or bought second hand at the Salvation Army.
~Fixed my old toilet instead of replacing it. Will reglaze the bathtub next year instead of replacing it.
~I use straw mulch to reduce watering.
There are more things, but I've got to get outside and take care of my vegetable gardens before it gets too hot!
~
I don't diss people who drive hybrids or Smart Cars. I have no way of knowing how many of them drove a car into the ground (as Iris Lily and I do) and THEN made the choice to purchase one of those instead.... I think it's become very, very fashionable to bash Prius/hybrid/smart car owners, which I find its own kind of elitism. If someone needs a vehicle for whatever reason, who am I to say they should say no to those choices?
... My mentor used to say, "Educate, don't judge. Educate, then let it go and focus on your own life."
It wasn't my intention in my post to come off as judgmental, but I suppose that I did (I'm often judgmental, but I'm working on it). But my larger point was that I don't think people really think much about the trade-offs between "green" technology (especially as it is promoted by corporations) and recyling/repurposing/reuse. There's so much stuff in the world, at least the industrialized world, that most of us could get by without ever buying anything new (well, maybe underwear).
I also must admit that I don't actually know the trade offs involved in buying a Prius versus rehabbing an older car. What's the crossover point? Anyone got any data?
I also must admit that I don't actually know the trade offs involved in buying a Prius versus rehabbing an older car. What's the crossover point? Anyone got any data?
Are you talking about the crossover point in terms of cost of ownership, or gas consumption, or both? Because DH also scoffed at my buying a Prius (in 2007). He LOVES his Honda Fit, which also gets great gas mileage. He would tell me that his cost of ownership was less, if you looked at the savings in gas consumption vs. the cost of the cars (the Fit was about $10k less than the Prius).
But I would tell him that I didn't buy the Prius to save money. I was mostly interested in gas consumption, and also in supporting and advertising products that were better for the environment. I really like the fact that Toyota designed a car where people could say, "there's another hybrid," unlike the Honda Civic hybrid, where you have to be stopped at a red light behind one to see it. I think it's important for people to SEE that there are an increasing number of people making different choices. I guess if someone wants to buy a Toyota Highlander hybrid that's fine, too, but I think the idea is to get as many people to the tipping point where the MORE ecologically sound choice is "the new normal." Sometimes less bad is better than bad, and it takes a LOT of messaging to people, verbally and visually and politically, to get them to see and behave differently.
I do plan on running my Prius into the ground. I put about 1k month on it and I fill the tank every other week. It's a nice mid-sized, very comfortable car. When it dies, I'll probably buy a 2-3 year old Prius.. That is, if IT dies before I do.
SteveinMN
9-13-12, 10:21am
But I would tell him that I didn't buy the Prius to save money. I was mostly interested in gas consumption, and also in supporting and advertising products that were better for the environment. I really like the fact that Toyota designed a car where people could say, "there's another hybrid," unlike the Honda Civic hybrid, where you have to be stopped at a red light behind one to see it. I think it's important for people to SEE that there are an increasing number of people making different choices. I guess if someone wants to buy a Toyota Highlander hybrid that's fine, too, but I think the idea is to get as many people to the tipping point where the MORE ecologically sound choice is "the new normal." Sometimes less bad is better than bad, and it takes a LOT of messaging to people, verbally and visually and politically, to get them to see and behave differently.
In many parts of the U.S., one could reach that tipping point just by buying something smaller than a Ford F-150 or a Chevy Suburban...
The problem I have with hybrids like the Prius are that, cradle-to-grave, they're not as "green" as many people make them out to be. The materials for the batteries are mined in Africa and then shipped to the battery manufacturer which then ships finished batteries to Toyota so they can assemble the Prius. Then the car is shipped (in this case) from Japan to the U.S. That's a lot more mining and manufacturing than most cars the Prius' size require, and manufacturing is somewhat inefficient and dirty -- not often a green process. In addition, though the battery pack is designed for years of use, it is a "consumable" item and will require replacement during the expected 15-20 year lifespan of the car, requiring reconditioning or replacement of materials which, again, likely will not be the most efficient process. So while I applaud Toyota for the vision and for getting it right (anyone remember GM's pathetic "alternative" engines of the 80s?) and you for buying a car that generates little pollution in use, I wonder just how long one has to drive a Prius before one makes up for the extra carbon footprints of battery mining, shipping, and fabrication as well as for shipping a finished vehicle across the Pacific. To say nothing of people (not you, catherine) buying a Prius to replace a functional vehicle so they can look "green". Yes, someone else using the older vehicle can extend its life. But there's little green about tossing an existing something that is perfectly adequate for something brand new.
@oldhat and Steve, thanks for those thoughts on alternative-fuel cars. Always educating myself here. I'll always look for a used car over a new one. I've never bought a new car in my life (by intent, not by necessity) and don't intend to start now. My 1995 Toyota Tacoma is hovering around 200K, but I do so many alternate forms of transport that it may take me another ten years to reach the point where it's unserviceable.....at least that's what I hope (I love my little truck)
People who shift to a hybrid when they have a running car aren't usually "tossing" anything, unless they're driving it off a cliff. They will sell it used to someone else (like us) who buy used cars, or if it's really trashed, it will be picked clean for scrap of all kinds. I don't see that as a bad thing. But I like to squeeze every drop of usefulness out of everything I have before letting it go.
Seriously, there ARE no good choices any more other than "do without," and I don't yet have that option, and many others don't either. Every vehicle involves mining, transport, fuel-burning, resource consumption, toxic products in maintenance....even solar panels and wind power and hydro involve those things, but we each have to decide the right trade-off for ourselves. I'm delighted at knowing so many people (here) that are trying to do their part, in their own way.
We put a deposit down on a solar array yesterday, which was terrifying, exhilarating, AND educational. Scary because of the expense, exciting because of the possibility of reverse metering and getting off the coal train, and educational because of how the power company handles that: They would only allow us the .15/kWh credit for a certain sized system, based on our consumption for the past year -- I suppose to keep people from making a living off the power companies by building massive solar arrays :) So our system won't be huge because, you guessed it, we conserve energy like crazy around here, and so our bills are low. Oh well.
Tussiemussies
9-13-12, 3:47pm
@oldhat and Steve, thanks for those thoughts on alternative-fuel cars. Always educating myself here. I'll always look for a used car over a new one. I've never bought a new car in my life (by intent, not by necessity) and don't intend to start now. My 1995 Toyota Tacoma is hovering around 200K, but I do so many alternate forms of transport that it may take me another ten years to reach the point where it's unserviceable.....at least that's what I hope (I love my little truck)
People who shift to a hybrid when they have a running car aren't usually "tossing" anything, unless they're driving it off a cliff. They will sell it used to someone else (like us) who buy used cars, or if it's really trashed, it will be picked clean for scrap of all kinds. I don't see that as a bad thing. But I like to squeeze every drop of usefulness out of everything I have before letting it go.
Seriously, there ARE no good choices any more other than "do without," and I don't yet have that option, and many others don't either. Every vehicle involves mining, transport, fuel-burning, resource consumption, toxic products in maintenance....even solar panels and wind power and hydro involve those things, but we each have to decide the right trade-off for ourselves. I'm delighted at knowing so many people (here) that are trying to do their part, in their own way.
We put a deposit down on a solar array yesterday, which was terrifying, exhilarating, AND educational. Scary because of the expense, exciting because of the possibility of reverse metering and getting off the coal train, and educational because of how the power company handles that: They would only allow us the .15/kWh credit for a certain sized system, based on our consumption for the past year -- I suppose to keep people from making a living off the power companies by building massive solar arrays :) So our system won't be huge because, you guessed it, we conserve energy like crazy around here, and so our bills are low. Oh well.
Hi pug logic, I'm interested in cutting down on my utilities as much as possible. Can you share how
you are saving energy in your household? I'm always looking for new ideas! Thanks. Christine
What I do now is very different then what I did 10 years ago at least with my thinking on saving the world. 10 years ago I thought I could save the world or at least change my family, now I do my small part that makes me feel good. I do all the things we who are aware of the environment know to do and keep learning to do. I realized I can not ever change my husband no sense asking him to recycle or conserve anything. Such is life. My peeve is trash, when most can be recycled and the recycle center is 1 mile away. Yet I watch the families in our neighborhood put out 4 and 5 cans a week, I am amazed have they never recycled???
Smart Car, I had one for two years. It should have been called Dumb Car. Guess cute and brains did not go together with the car.
Hi pug logic, I'm interested in cutting down on my utilities as much as possible. Can you share how
you are saving energy in your household? I'm always looking for new ideas! Thanks. Christine
Christina, we do the usual things here:
--Had an energy audit with the local power company to find all the places we were wasting. Probably the smartest $100 we ever spent, because it identified dozens of small things we could do ourselves to save energy.
--Turn down the heat in the winter and acclimate to the cooler house. No air conditioning in the summer.
--Insulate, weatherstrip and seal as best we can to keep the heat in the house
--Use glass strategically, for example: on winter mornings we undrape the "hot" sunny side of the house, and the sun beating onto the dark tile in our entryway pretty much heats the whole livingroom
--Use a clothesline for much of the year
--Wash clothes on cold, once we found the right detergents for our needs
--Turn down the water heater to low but safe levels
--Never, ever run a washing machine, dishwasher, dryer, etc. unless it's full
--Have a few lights on timers and motion sensors
--Heat foods on the stove WITH lids to speed up heating
--Take fewer, slightly cooler showers
--Blanketed the water heater
--Replace dead-and-gone appliances with Energy Star superefficient ones
--Careful about doors, windows, refrigerator doors, and other places where we're heating spaces that shouldn't be! In winter, we plan multiple things before opening up the doors to go outside, so we don't let the cold penetrate the warm envelope of the house as often....kinda like planning multiple errands before getting in the car
--Use our hands instead of electrical gadgets whenever possible, with manual tools in the garage and kitchen
--Use LCD and CFL bulbs where we can (once we found a good recycling facility for them)
--Unplug "vampire" devices like computers, TVs, etc at night or when not in use for a while
--Never have lights on in the house other than the room we're in
....you know, all that stuff. There's a good list in the original YMOYL, I think, or most large utility companies provide them
We pay a lot of attention to those things, and our utility bills are the lowest of anyone I know in our area. Using nothing would be perfect for me but, well, not yet. I've always liked this little commercial Frank Zappa did for Portland GE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J02NJ6ga4MM
Tussiemussies
9-13-12, 5:15pm
Christina, we do the usual things here:
--Had an energy audit with the local power company to find all the places we were wasting. Probably the smartest $100 we ever spent, because it identified dozens of small things we could do ourselves to save energy.
--Turn down the heat in the winter and acclimate to the cooler house. No air conditioning in the summer.
--Insulate, weatherstrip and seal as best we can to keep the heat in the house
--Use glass strategically, for example: on winter mornings we undrape the "hot" sunny side of the house, and the sun beating onto the dark tile in our entryway pretty much heats the whole livingroom
--Use a clothesline for much of the year
--Wash clothes on cold, once we found the right detergents for our needs
--Turn down the water heater to low but safe levels
--Never, ever run a washing machine, dishwasher, dryer, etc. unless it's full
--Have a few lights on timers and motion sensors
--Heat foods on the stove WITH lids to speed up heating
--Take fewer, slightly cooler showers
--Blanketed the water heater
--Replace dead-and-gone appliances with Energy Star superefficient ones
--Careful about doors, windows, refrigerator doors, and other places where we're heating spaces that shouldn't be! In winter, we plan multiple things before opening up the doors to go outside, so we don't let the cold penetrate the warm envelope of the house as often....kinda like planning multiple errands before getting in the car
--Use our hands instead of electrical gadgets whenever possible, with manual tools in the garage and kitchen
--Use LCD and CFL bulbs where we can (once we found a good recycling facility for them)
--Unplug "vampire" devices like computers, TVs, etc at night or when not in use for a while
--Never have lights on in the house other than the room we're in
....you know, all that stuff. There's a good list in the original YMOYL, I think, or most large utility companies provide them
We pay a lot of attention to those things, and our utility bills are the lowest of anyone I know in our area. Using nothing would be perfect for me but, well, not yet. I've always liked this little commercial Frank Zappa did for Portland GE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J02NJ6ga4MM
Thanks pug logic, there are a few things that you are doing that we are not doing, so I will start on those, we did save on our electric bill last month so we are moving in the right direction...:). Thanks for taking the time to type out your whole list...
Thanks pug logic, there are a few things that you are doing that we are not doing, so I will start on those, we did save on our electric bill last month so we are moving in the right direction...:). Thanks for taking the time to type out your whole list...
Christine, what do you do that isn't on my list? I'd love to have more ideas too :D
Tussiemussies
9-13-12, 6:13pm
Christine, what do you do that isn't on my list? I'd love to have more ideas too :D
Well we saw on TV where they have insulation pads that go behind the outlet cover where your electrical socket is, we plan on doing that.
We have always had motion sensor lights in the hallways. It is great if you have children, we don't but it was just a way that we knew the lights would be turned off.
We only use a motion sensor porch light we don't leave the light on but we plan on moving out to the country where I would feel more safe leaving it on, unfortunately.
Try to take military showers, some days are harder than others. We plan on getting the appliance that automatically heats your water, it is supposed to really cut down on energy that goes to heat water that isn't always being used.
These are the only things that I can think of, you're doing a great job!:)
San Onofre Guy
9-14-12, 3:00pm
Tore up sprinkler system planted entire yard with California Natives. Bought and placed four wine barrells to catch rain from gutters. Compost. Eat 98% Vegetarian, Small vegetable garden and kitchen spice garden, All citrus eaten is grown on property, Ceiling fans to minimize air conditioner. Historically I have driven cars to over 200,000 miles for over 15 years but this will change soon to a purchase of a high mpg car.
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