February 2010 Archives

Buying reused stuff is the most environmentally friendly way to shop. What is even better is getting it for free. A new service called Yoink lets you use your iphone to locate free stuff stuff near you.

While other sites like Craigslist and and Freecycle offer a similar service, Yoink allows stuff to be located using GPS and never requires shipping.

The app includes a way you can upload a picture from the camera on you phone and immediately post it with a short description and your location. If you don't have an iphone, you can use the website to upload photos and post the location of your items.

We all have stuff that we don't need. Any way to efficiently get that stuff to those who need it, reduces our overall environmental impact and saves on energy and money. It's a win-win!

In a recent post, we reported that the City of Vancouver had failed to stop bottled water from being the beverage of choice at the Winter Olympics. This was unfortunate because Coke, who is serving drinks at the event, was estimating that they would serve 7 million beverages during the games. That's a lot of bottles!

It is worth noting that Coke has some of its own sustainability plans for the Winter Olympics. The goal is an ambitious net zero carbon impact for the games.

To do this they are first using their new Plantbottle, which is made from 30%  plant based material, for all beverages. Second they are delivering the drinks from their energy efficient coolers with electric carts and hybrid vehicles. Lastly, after the bottles have been used, they will be up-cycled in to clothing such as vests and jackets and given to locals in need. While all this takes a bit of energy, carbon credits will most likely need to be purchased to reach neutrality.

It is important to give Coke credit for this effort. At least they are trying. But they are trying to improve on a pointless practice. The bottom line is that bottling water in any kind of bottle and shipping it around is always going to be unsustainable. Using filtered tap water refill stations serving local water and offering biodegradable cups would cut out the transportation, plastic recycling and a need for massive coolers.  

On January 1st, 2010, Washington D.C. implemented a 5 cent tax on all plastic bags used in the districts grocery stores. Now, when shoppers are checking out, they have to pay 5 cents for each plastic bag they use for their groceries.

While this does not seem like a hefty price to pay, after only a month, shoppers have been going out of their way to avoid those bags. Shoppers all over town are bringing a reusable bag or simply trying to carry all their groceries or takeout in their arms to their car or office. A Safeway in the Northwest area has seen 6,000 less bags being used a week!

By most measures, it has been a huge success. DC's experiment proves that a price on something that was previously free has a huge effect on people's behavior. The downside, of course, is the outrage from some of the public who may be slow to understand the benefits of such a tax and only see it as a scam.

There have been states to implement bottled water taxes, but never with this kind of success. What kind of policy do you think would work to make bottled water less appealing? Ideas?

I recently rediscovered Good Magazine's video animation series on topics from wireless parking to viruses to the world water crisis. These mini educational films are perfect for a getting the basic idea on a subject and they are also quite enjoyable to watch.

I decided to find all the clips on water and post them here for you to watch. The first one illustrates the dwindling world water supply and potential crisis. The second video highlights inexpensive solutions for people without clean drinking water. The third shows ways that we can reduce our water use in our daily lives, with some surprising tips.

Enjoy!

 



 



 



 

A proposed law put forward by the Los Angeles Department of Public Works would require many new developments to build rainwater catchment and reuse systems to their buildings.

Unitl now, urban rainwater catchment has been a concept mainly used in developing countries such as India. But with California's looming water crisis, these kind of measures are getting more attention.

Water crisis or not, urban rainwater catchment has many benefits. First off, catchment reduces a buildings water footprint by giving it a new source of water. Buildings can use filters to allow rainwater to be used for anything from heating to drinking water. Secondly, catchment systems prevent rainwater from running through the streets of urban areas, where they pick up pollutants and then run-off into other bodies of water such as rivers or lakes, bringing the contaminants with them.

To strongly encourage this water conservation and water pollution prevention, the LA Department of Public Works has also proposed a fine of $13 per gallon for water that ends up as run-off and not caught in the catchment system. While the fee is quite high, it sends a strong signal that rainwater is important.

I'd like to see this kind of legislation introduced in other cities so people recognize the importance of rainwater in conserving water.