Weekly Action List

Packing Peanuts

Sun, 28 Dec 2008 00:26:09 +1100

Hi!

If you're like me, you and your family members received gifts packed in styrofoam peanuts, which protect the product during shipping.

PLEASE take those styrofoam peanuts to your local UPS (United Parcel Service) store or outlet, as they will reuse them. I just dropped off a big bag-full of styrofoam peanuts at my local UPS Store and they were cheerfully received. That felt really good!

Please don't throw the styrofoam peanuts in the trash, as they'll just sit in a landfill, as they aren't recyclable and they don't de-compose over time . . .

Thanks so much! Think of any time or effort involved as a holiday gift to Mother Earth.

Love and Gratitude,
Doreen

What About Peanuts?

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 00:24:36 +1100

Peanuts are one of the most common food items in use today. The amount of food that we consume that either contains peanuts or was in close contact with them is evidenced by reading the warning labels on packaged foods. When you see "This product was made in a facility that processes peanuts," you can be sure that what you are about to eat has come into close contact with peanuts. Typically these labels are warnings for those individuals who are unfortunate enough to have a peanut allergy.

Peanut allergy is unique from other nut allergies and is particularly dangerous among allergy sufferers. In fact over 54% of all food allergy related deaths are caused by peanuts. It is not only those with allergies that must be cautious of peanuts however.

The majority of peanuts tested in labs specializing in mycotoxins, that is toxic fungus, have found to contain traces of Aflatoxins, a toxin produced by the Aspergillus fungus. Aflatoxins are carcinogenic and in higher concentrations can lead to cirrhosis of the liver. Studies show that the large name brands of peanuts are better at removing the diseased peanuts, but no brand was 100% free of the fungus. Shelled peanuts were the largest offenders because detection by sight is that much harder. Roadside boiled peanuts are not tested at all so can logically be assumed to contain more infected peanuts than average, and while boiling does kill the fungus it does not remove the toxins they leave behind. Fortunately studies have shown that diets high in apiaceous vegetables, such as carrots, parnips, parsley and celery reduce the carcinogenic effects of aflotoxins.

The other major concern with toxic peanuts have to do with crop rotation in southern states. In the southern states peanuts are rotated with cotton seasonally. While pesticides used on peanuts and other foods are heavily regulated to ensure safety, the same does not apply for pesticides used on non food crops such as cotton. Cotton is plagued by the boll weevil and consequently large amounts of pesticide are used during it's production. Because these pesticides are unusually strong they tend to have more persistence in the environment than common food pesticides. This means that the pesticide used on cotton today is contaminating the peanut crop next year. It is for this reason that buying organic peanuts can sometimes not be enough, because one would have to ensure that the rotational cotton crop is also organic.

One positive side effect of peanut allergy being as common as it is, it is increasingly easier to find peanut free alternatives. Soynut butter, Freenut Butter (consisting of sunflower seeds), and other nuts make a very tasty and healthy replacement for peanut butter. Nearly any recipe that calls for peanuts can be replaced by cashews. It is a rare confectioner these days that does not also offer an almond substitute for it's traditional peanut fare.

Recycle Your Phone

Thu, 4 Dec 2008 08:52:13 +1100

Technological waste is amounting to a larger and larger segment of landfills. One of the fastest growing segments of this class of waste is mobile phones. It is estimated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency that this year alone over 130 million mobile phones will find their way into landfills nationwide. This completely preventable trend has the potential to have a very serious effect on our environment.

Cell phones contain many dangerous elements such as lead, cadmium, arsenic, antimony, beryllium, mercury, and brominated flame retardants. In some places such as parts of Washington state, California and New York it is actually a crime to dispose of your old phone in your household waste because of the environmental impact. One very important mineral component in cell phones is known as "Coltan" or Columbite-Tentalite. Coltan is a relatively rare mineral, witch much of it being mined in Central African countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo. The main mining within the DRC occurs within the ranges of the Eastern Lowland gorilla habitat. Further it is stated that the proceeds from mining coltan have funded the civil wars that have continued to plague central Africa. Fortunately Coltan is very much recyclable.

Mobile phone recycling has become easier and easier. Most major chain stores across the United States, United Kingdom and Australia have bins setup for the express purpose of recycling these devices. Everything from the battery to the buttons has the potential to see new life as a new product. Additionally several sites exist for this purpose such as the EarthWorks sponsored recyclemycellphone.org. The goal of these services is to make it just as easy to send your phone to the recycle bin as it is for you to send it to the land fill.

If your phone is in working condition and is at least passible in cosmetic appearance you could have some luck selling it on eBay. Some people get an attachment for a particular model of phone and your old one could be the answer to their prayers. If the hassle of selling your phone does not appeal to you but you would still like it to be used consider donating your phone to either local domestic violence center or a charity that benefits them such as donatemycellphone.org. Alternatively you can use your old phone to bring joy to our men and women in uniform by donating it to cellphonesforsoldiers.com, which will allow soldiers stationed overseas to call home.

The vast majority of people simply keep their old cell phones because they are not sure what to do with them, or they suppose it may have a use in the future. This is understandable considering the cost of these devices. The fact is though that most simply end up collecting dust when they could be used for a greater good. Even if your cell phone is just recycled and sold again by some large company, the lack of new minerals that had to be used is well worth it.

Adopt-A-Turkey

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 09:53:48 +1100

The advent of the vegetarian Thanksgiving has grown in popularity over the years. These days it is not at all uncommon to see "Tofurkey" on the table along with the regular Thanksgiving fare. This tasty choice allows anyone to enjoy Thanksgiving without even really noticing the difference. The amount of turkeys saved every year by eating alternative meat substitutes goes a long way towards alleviating the ecological impact of this holiday.

If you feel that you would like to do more to help this year why not consider adopting a turkey? Farm Sanctuary has been rescuing and caring for Thanksgiving turkeys since 1986 and are perfectly suited to ensuring the health of factory fed animals. Because of the conditions they are brought up in and the diet they are forced to consume, the life expectancy of these animals is usually quite short. In fact the two turkeys pardoned by President Bush in 2005 lived less than a year at their Disney sponsored retirement home. Farm Sanctuary has successfully treated hundreds of factory farmed turkeys and allowed them to live have a normal life expectancy.

We have all seen the accounts of what life in a factory farm is like for turkeys and other birds. Needless to say the conditions are unpleasant and unsanitary at best. By adopting one of these turkeys you are sparing not only it's life in such appalling conditions, but also going a long way towards promoting a more natural approach towards poultry raising. Organizations such as Farm Sanctuary bring awareness to the public of what it is exactly that is on their dinner table. Most, if not all, people would prefer a vegetarian or at very least organic and free range alternative if they were only made aware of the conditions inside these "Turkey Factories."

If you simply must have a real turkey on Thanksgiving, I would encourage you to make sure to buy a free range, naturally fed bird. That way you know that at least the bird had a normal life and is much likelier to have been a healthy animal. Then go that one step further and adopt a turkey so that at least one more is out of the factory.

adoptaturkey.org has a plethora of information about factory farms, turkey adoption and even a great selection of vegetarian recipes perfectly suited to the holiday. Regardless of your dietary choices this holiday season you can make a terrific impact on the life of these animals.

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving, and thank you for reading!

High-Fructose Corn Syrup

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 18:15:52 +1100

High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) was rapidly introduced to many products in the United States during the late 70s and early 80s. Because of America’s large production of corn and comparatively small sugar industry HFCS became a cheaper ingredient. Practically overnight the ingredients in sodas, candies and commercial baked goods switched from cane sugar to this new sweetener. Today this product is used in nearly everything sweet, to the point where one can really only find cane sugar sweetened products in health food stores.

Regular Corn Syrup has been in use since the late 1800’s as a thickener and sweetener for a variety of products. It had a nice pleasant taste that suited some foods better than others. It wasn’t until 1967 that the corn industry successfully made enzymatic changes to the corn syrup to artificially increase the percentage of fructose compared to glucose. This made the syrup much sweeter and also yielded a more neutral taste.

Unfortunately despite claims from the Corn Refiners Association HFCS is not nutritionally the same as sugar. A study by Chi-Tang Ho, a food scientist in America, found that sodas containing HFCS were much more likely to increase levels of carbonyl compounds. These carbonyl compounds are generally associated with being elevated in persons with diabetes, and are implicated in some of the nerve and eye conditions diabetics contract.

With the average American consumption of 70 pounds of HFCS per year, it also comes as no surprise that it can be blamed for part of America’s growing obesity problem. A study by George Braw, Samara Nielsen and Barry Popkin in 2004 found a direct correlation between sodas that contained HFCS and obesity.

While it can be argued that fructose is also found in fruit, it is primarily the concentration in HFCS that is at issue. In order to consume the same amount of fructose as one can of soda you would have to eat about four apples. While it is very common for someone to drink a soda while eating food, it would be highly unusual for someone to eat four apples and then have a meal. HFCS has enabled us to consume vast quantities of fructose without the natural satiation that it would normally entail, causing people to greatly over consume Calories.

While the Food and Drug Administration allows Corn Refiners and other manufacturers to label HFCS as “all-natural”, it is in actuality a highly processed and refined food. The fact remains that while it may not directly contain any genetically modified ingredients it does require the use of genetically modified enzymes in its manufacturing process. For this reason alone be sure to check the ingredients very carefully even on products labeled “All-Natural”.

Meatfree Day

Thu, 30 Oct 2008 08:28:37 +1100

According to the USDA the average American consumed 227 pounds of meat in 2007. When you take into consideration the prevalence of Vegetarians in todays society the quantity per meat eater raises even higher. While we realize that eating meat is a personal choice and vegetarianism may not be for everyone, consider the advantages to both your personal health and the environment of skipping all meat for just one day of the week.

For every pound of beef produced upwards of 2,500 gallons of water is used, 36 pounds of CO2 are emitted, several pounds of grain and hundreds of pounds of hay consumed. Beef is also a major contributer of methane released into the atmosphere. This is all combined with the runoff that the typical farm produces, the machinery that is built, purchased, and retired and the massive amount of transportation that is involved with beef production. The pork and the poultry industries are not quite as wasteful as the beef industry, but they too use an unbalanced amount of resources per pound.

The average family of four eating the average amount of meat will consume roughly two and a half pounds of meat per day, or nine hundred and twelve pounds per year. This 912 pounds of meat will produce approximately 50,000 pounds of carbon dioxide, and consume a staggering 2,280,000 gallons of water. We can do some rough estimations based on the population of the United States and come up with 68 billion pounds of meat eaten, 2 trillion pounds of CO2 and 170 trillion gallons of water used. Now because of the way averages work and because I am using some pretty course estimates these numbers may not be entirely accurate, but they are not out of the park either.

The effect of this much meat on a persons health is quite acute as well. The average one pound cut of beef has about 150% of your daily dose of fat, 200% of saturated fat, and 150% of suggested cholesterol intake. The method in which it is cooked, especially barbecuing and frying, can compound the health risk. The amount of potential heart and digestive diseases that this sort of diet can produce is quite dreadful.

Now let's take that hypothetical family of four and have them give up meat one day a week for a year. Those fifty two days would see them consuming 130 pounds less meat, which equates to a savings of 4,680 pounds of CO2 and a whopping 325,000 gallons of water. And that is just one family, on just one day for just one year. Imagine if they took the weekend off from meat, there's close to 10,000 pounds of carbon dioxide saved. Let's also imagine that the entire state of Rhode Island decided to take one day off of meat for a year, that would mean they consumed 40 million pounds less than the average, and save 1.4 billion pounds of CO2 and 100 billion gallons of water.

When talking about return on investment few things in your daily life can bring about as much change as your diet. No one expects you to become completely meat free unless it is something you decide for yourself, but taking just one day off a week can provide immense benefits not only for your own personal health but for the entire world for generations to come.

Reducing Household Waste

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 08:22:31 +1100

Quite a few items in your house may warrant replacing from time to time, but are not quite done with their useful life. Often times we through out old furniture simply because we are just sick of the sight of it. Perhaps it isn't as cushioned as it once was, or has faded a bit in the sunlight. The fact of the matter though is that this furniture is still useful and is going to take up an awful lot of room in the landfill. Because of the materials used in construction it is nearly impossible to recycle so it simply goes to waste.

Fortunately there are several organizations that will happily take your old furniture off your hands. They clean them up and either sell them to raise money for the needy, or donate them directly to people who need them. The furniture is still being used for several more years and the needless waste is saved. Why stop here though? There are lots more items in your house that you don't want, and like the old saying goes "One man's trash is another man's treasure."

LPs, 8-Tracks, Cassette Tapes and CDs will always, and sometimes quite bafflingly, find someone who wants them. At one point you wanted that music, and chances are there is someone who still wants it. Locations such as St. Vincent De Paul Society and the Salvation Army usually have stacks of music for sale in their locations. Try your luck and you'll find some organization to take them. Again because of their construction these items generally cannot be recycled so every album you donate is one less piece of garbage overflowing our dumps.

Clothing of course should never be thrown away. If a clothing item is in good condition, but simply out of fashion or no longer fits you, donate away. You will find that clothing makes up the lions share of floor space in thrift stores. They wouldn't stock it if it didn't sell, so bring it down to them and let them work their magic. Someone will love those pair of pants that you are just too small for. If the article of clothing in question is a complete and utter write-off, cut it into rags for cleaning and mechanical work. Chances are you know someone who is into cars, and these guys can never have too many rags.

Old glasses are of particular value to the underprivileged. Not only are they quite vital to the people that need them, they are generally prohibitively expensive. Nearly nothing can be recycled in the average pair of glasses so you really are doing two good deeds in one by donating these. Perhaps the most visible, no pun intended, donation sites for old eye glasses is the Lion's Club "Recycle for Sight" boxes that pop up in community halls and public libraries. If you cannot find one of these boxes simply give your local Lion's Club a ring and they should be happy to tell you where you can donate.

Televisions and computers will always find a second life in the thrift store. Not only are these items incredibly expensive new, they contain enough harmful material to make throwing them away almost negligent. These items however can be recycled so if they are completely busted contact your local recycling center for disposal.

Children's toys are another popular item that is always in need. Since the average child tends to outgrow their toys almost as fast as you can buy them chances are you will have quite a glut of them on your hands before long. As long as they are not mangled too badly these will be well appreciated in everything from the local thrift store to women's shelters. Nearly everywhere humans congregate could use a few toys on hand to keep kids occupied, you can even try your local bank.

You will find that most anything that you were willing to pay money for, there is someone else out there who still wants it. Not only are you helping to vastly reduce the amount of waste your household creates, you are actively making people's lives better.

Carbon Offsets

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 08:17:57 +1100

Every time you drive your car to the grocery store, use your stove, turn on a light or take a transcontinental airline you are contributing to the excess buildup of carbon in our atmosphere. At the present moment we have more carbon entering our atmosphere than the planet can remove by it’s own power. Eventually we are going to have to reverse this trend.

While scientists are trying to devise methods of removing carbon from our atmosphere, the easiest solution at the present is to simply reduce our carbon footprint. The lofty goal that we can set for ourselves is called being “carbon neutral.” This is more or less attainable goal can be achieved through not only reductions in our usage of carbon but also with the process of purchasing carbon offsets.

Carbon offsets work on the premise that we as humans would like to find carbon neutral ways of creating energy, but at the present moment we simply lack the funding. When you buy a carbon offset you are putting that money towards environmentally friendly generation techniques such as solar and wind generators. The owners of these power plants then put through an equivalent amount of electricity back into the electrical grid, offsetting the need for that much electricity normally generated from carbon unfriendly plants such as coal and oil.

Another type of carbon offset comes in the form of reforestation credits. With these credits the receivers plant the maximum amount of trees viable on land that your credits help purchase. The idea is that these trees will absorb a massive amount of carbon over their lifetimes that will go towards balancing the impact of your daily life. While it is true that not every tree will survive into old age, enough of them will that you can rest well knowing that the activity you offset has been rendered carbon neutral.

Various calculators exist on the web that can help you figure out exactly how much carbon you are personally responsible for per year. A great and accurate one can be found at http://www.climatecrisis.net/takeaction/carboncalculator/. On some of these calculators they even allow you to purchase credits in the exact amount of carbon you have found that you use. If the calculator you use does not offer this option, simply note down how much carbon you would like to offset; you will find that nearly every offset sales site allows you to specify how many pounds or kilograms you would like to purchase.

This is not the ultimate solution to the problem. Eventually we as a civilization will have to figure out how to clean up our daily activities. The advantage of the carbon offset credit right now is that it changes the idea of global warming from not just a social and survival issue, but to a real monetary one. Companies around the globe are starting to see that vast amount of money can be made, or lost, depending on their environmental responsibility. Now that it is starting to affect the bottom line, the world is taking notice and our air gets that much cleaner.

Vegan Clothing

Wed, 8 Oct 2008 16:27:51 +1100

Few people today own or even wear real furs. These articles of clothing have fallen out of usage as a sign of high class and fashion and are now strongly looked down upon. People who are trying to achieve the old time upper class look can use a wide range of faux-fur products that are readily available. What about the rest of our clothing, how cruelty free are they?

A visit to any shoe department in nearly any store in the entire world will give you a glimpse at how much leather is involved in shoe wear for the average consumer. While it is possible to find shoes that contain no leather whatsoever, they are in the strong minority amongst the possible purchasing options. The same can be said for wallets and to a lesser extent purses. It is still considered high class to have animal skin rather than natural fibers.

Leather jackets have thankfully dwindled in popularity over the years, with only brief reprises in both male and female fashion. The availability of imitation leather jackets has further decreased the amount of leather required by the clothing industry. Unfortunately there is still quite a market for them, as can be evidenced by their appearance in nearly any department store in existence.

While silk can be considered nominally a byproduct of an animal rather than an animal itself, the fact remains that in normal silk production the animal has to be killed to harvest the product. The reason is because once the silk worms start to pupate into moths they secrete and enzyme that will destroy the silk threads, so they are usually boiled alive to prevent this from happening. Up to five hundred silk worms are killed to produce one kilogram of silk.

Down jackets, pillows and blankets are another source of animal products invading our lives unnecessarily. Not only are these products incredibly expensive compared to natural fiber alternatives; they are quite delicate and have to be replaced often. While down can be plucked from Geese and Ducks without killing them, but it is an intolerably painful and cruel practice.

Alternatives to these products are quite common, usually look just as good and are generally quite a bit less expensive. Cloth wallets, imitation leather jackets, nylon shirts and cotton blankets will all do the required job just as well, if not better, than the animal based products without having to hurt any animals in the process.

Silk lovers are in even more luck because people that abhor killing in any variety have produced a cruelty-free variety in India for hundreds of years. This “Tussah” silk is harvested from wild silk worms as they leave the cocoon, leaving the worm in peace afterwards.

Green Road Trip

Wed, 1 Oct 2008 16:29:08 +1000

With the increasingly high cost of air travel the road trip is an inevitable part of modern human existence. It is likely that you either have taken one this year or you will by the end of it. Whether it is for vacation, work or just exploration chances are you will travel for at least four hours straight. If you absolutely cannot travel on public transportation for this voyage there are a number of ways you can reduce your carbon footprint throughout the entire journey.

Perhaps the simplest and most effective way to reduce your fossil fuel usage during the trip is to make sure to always go the speed limit. The amount of time saved while speeding is inconsequential, especially when you take the added time of fill ups and possible traffic tickets into consideration. The fuel usage difference between traveling at 55 mph and 65 mph is usually around 15%, and this number tends to increase exponentially as you travel over 75 mph. Since your car is likely not geared for these high speeds the fuel usage can be quite extreme at high speeds.

Ensuring that your car is well maintained can also dramatically reduce your fuel usage. Improperly inflated tires can reduce fuel economy by another 15% all by themselves. Fouled spark plugs, old oil and dirty air filters can not only rob performance but quite a bit of economy. Of course ensuring your breaks are in proper order is just good common sense before a long trip

Another one of the high waste areas in road trips is in packaging for food and drinks. You can save yourself quite a bit of money, as well as a much needed boost to your health by packing your own snacks of homemade sandwiches, fruits and cut vegetables. Not only do you skip out on the fabulously unhealthy road trip fare of chips and candy, you also prevent the excessive packaging of those foods from ending up in a land fill, or worse the side of the road. Bringing your own water in a reusable container can save money and packaging as well.

Bringing your friends along can help defray the cost of fuel and keep you from getting bored on the long hours of driving. Doubling up on your hotel can also keep costs down and cut energy usage for heating, air conditioning and lighting. Sharing the drive is also quite a bit safer because there is less risk of driver fatigue in between rest areas and hotels.