I'd like to start a thread about what y'all are doing to help protect our environment and your health. It's a huge issue I'm very passionate about and I'd like to discuss topics, share ideas, that kind of thing.

Or are y'all just a bunch of gas-guzzling, non-recycling, hummer-driving nature destroyers? :frown:

I thought I was such a good environmentalist - recycled, used cloth bags, tried not to drive the car too much. Then I got into researching it more on the internet - sheesh, there's a lot of stuff you can do.

On the environmental side, I'm just trying not to consume as much, buy things with as little packaging as possible, and drive the car even less, buy local food, compost, plant my own garden veggies, bake my own bread, do canning, that kind of thing. Basically live as my grandma did on her homestead! I'd love to get a clothesline but I don't think our neighbourhood would stand for it. Actually, what I'd love to do is have an acreage and raise poultry, sheep and goats, but that's not going to happen for a while.

As for personal health issues, it's really scary what our world has come to - how many toxins are in our environment and how little the FDA is doing to protect us. I've learned that I just have to do my own research and protect myself because governments (Canadian, U.S. - don't have personal knowledge of others) aren't - unless you buy everything 100% certified organic. That's the only way to make sure you aren't eating or applying toxins to your body.

Cosmetics are really obnoxious. There is so much BAD stuff in personal care products. Check out The Campaign For Safe Cosmetics site online, enter the ingredients of whatever is in your toothpaste/deodorant/perfume/lotion. You would be very shocked to find cancer-causing substances and endocrine disruptors in just about everything you have. Whatever you put on your skin gets absorbed just as if you drank it. Look for anything with paraben in it - it's an endocrine disruptor. It's used to make products have a long shelf life, and it's in just about every single personal care product you have. That's just one of the commonly found harmful ingredients - there are thousands others. Don't be fooled if your product says "green," "natural," "environmental," or use catch phrases or have pictures of idyllic scenes on them. Also, it can say organic and have only 1% of the total product being organic. It's not all organic unless it says 100% organic.

I used to assume everything in my local health food grocery store was all organic - I don't know why I did, but I just did. I have to really look closely at the labels there too to make sure I'm getting a 100% organic item.

I'd totally replaced all plastic and teflon items in the kitchen with either stainless steel or glass. Teflon has been found in cancer tumors, and plastics can leach crap into your food and Water and cause cancer, disrupt your endocrine system (as in it can feminize boys), and all kinds of awful things.

Right now we're in the process of getting organic latex and wool mattresses. Next item on the list is a whole house water filter to filter out chlorine - another awful ingredient which causes cancer. The chlorine in your water gets absorbed through your skin when you shower or bath just as if you drank it.

So, anyone else passionate about the environment, the organic movement, or personal health issues? Is anyone in any great environmental groups or simple living clubs? I'd love to talk to ya!

Linda

I love this thread. Thanks for starting it.

About a little over a year ago or so, my husband and I started making a conscious effort to have less of an impact. We stopped buying bottled Water, which the more I read about it, the more I find bottled water to be really evil on so many levels. We stopped driving so damn much, stopped accepting plastic grocery bags, started using eco and animal-friendly products, bought a hand-cranked washing machine and spin "dryer" so that we wouldn't have to rely on the water and energy guzzling machines at the laundromat, we only turn the heat on when it is absolutely necessary (usually when the thermostat falls below 58), we put insulation on the windows, and we rely on candles for heat and light. Not only are the changes that can be made great for the environment, but they have saved us a load of money as well.

A few websites that I like to frequent are noimpactman.com, freecycle.com, and orionmagazine.org.

I love how you guys can "live off the fat of the land." I so wish to be able to do that one day. It's a bit difficult to do now with a 5'x3' stoop, but I have grown spinach and herbs from seed in pots, but nothing in sustainable amounts.

The city that I live in has had a pretty good recycle programme for a long time now. We recycle plastics including plastic bags, metal cans, and glass containers. All wet garbage including diapers, used kitty litter, uneaten suppers, bones, sanitary products, and paper tissues are recycled, as is garden waste. All paper products are recycled, of course.

I have two composters in my garden and we bring our own cloth bags whenever we shop. I walk or use public transit. My tenant does the same. My husband only uses the truck to drive to work - it is difficult to access by public transit and he works off-shift - or to his parents' cottage or when we have a big shopping to do. I drink a lot of water but this is tap water. I only drink the bottled stuff when I am out on the town. I also use fluorescent light bulbs in a lot of my lamps.

I'd like to be more eco-friendly - It's just taking some time.

DH and I are remodeling our Farm House and currently have replaced all windows / insulation / roof to conserve energy. When we moved to the country, little over 2yrs ago, I wanted a green house - so we built one with solar panels. Granted it's not that Big of a Green House, but I'm married to an Engineer who wanted to "test drive" these panels .. we each have a vested interest in this project, though very different. We utilize a compost heap for nutrients for the veggies & herbs, which saves on our garbage disposal needs...like Jack we go to the dump but about every other month.

Our light bulbs are energy efficient, I use cloth bags for shopping, our tanks (texas term for pond) supply the horses with water from rain, our mowing is cut in half by having just 2 cows, and since we're in the country - we burn our "paper goods".

I'm sure there is a "little" something everyone can do, DH wants to take our ranch and be able to "live off it completely" at some point..., I know that will require me to do most of the lifting ...haha!

I like this thread, as I'm typing I'm thinking of what other ways to be "Planet Friendly" outside giving up my Hummer. :biggrin: Yes I have a Hummer, but it's a necessary evil for us. We have an all terrain ranch, and the pickups just can cross over ponds / creeks - and with the wench, drag trees / fencing / etc. We very rarely use it around town (it does only take 9mile to the gallon) - a Full tank will last approx 2 months.:tongue:

I work for a printing & media packaging company (for things like CD's and DVD's).. we've created a new package to replace digipaks that is 100% recycled, 64% post-consumer, NO PLASTIC. Woot. We're doing a whole campaign of going green, and I personally found us the 100% recycled paper, which is oddly enough-hard to find. (PREEN)

I like this thread, as I'm typing I'm thinking of what other ways to be "Planet Friendly" outside giving up my Hummer. :biggrin: Yes I have a Hummer, but it's a necessary evil for us. We have an all terrain ranch, and the pickups just can cross over ponds / creeks - and with the wench, drag trees / fencing / etc. We very rarely use it around town (it does only take 9mile to the gallon) - a Full tank will last approx 2 months.:tongue:

You are the first person that I have ever come across that actually needs and uses a Hummer for it's purpose. I live on Long Island in New York, and there is nothing rugged about this place, even out east in farm country where there are some rural spots. The people who drive Hummers here have no business doing so. they use them as a status symbol as they cart their kids around to soccer practices and dance classes. It's ridiculous. Especially when they come speeding up from behind me on the expressway doing 85-90...How many miles a gallon do those things get at high speeds? 2?

I do some, but not as much as I could, and I'm aware of it. We have weekly recycling of paper, plastics, glass, etc. I use reusable shopping bags, and get the funny looks when I tell the cashier not to bother bagging my pack of gum or already-packaged tomatoes. We have CF bulbs in about half our fixtures including outdoors, while I prefer true full spectrum lighting for most indoor fixtures - bathrooms being the exception. We have a reverse osmosis filtration unit and have started tapping into the waste Water as miscellaneous household water (watering the plants, etc.) I know people who have their systems rigs so that it feeds into their washing machine and outdoor reservoirs, but we're not that far into it.

Things I'm working on - baby steps. Using sponges to clean instead of paper towels. The thought still disgusts me but I'm trying. We go through a lot of pillows, and have to find a way to recycle them other than giving them to animal/people shelters. I drive an SUV and hubby drives a truck. To help offset this, we carpool together to work.

I would love to have a compost and grow our own fruits & veggies, but we aren't allowed, it's against neighborhood code. Although I can use patio pots for smaller tomato varieties. :tongue:

I'm glad y'all are all working so hard. You're making up for me :tongue:

I'm single and live in a 3000 Sqft house that I keep at 75 degrees all year round. I own 4 cars, and only 1 is new enough for a catalytic converter. The one that gets the BEST gas mileage gets 13 MPH, and it's a Hemi V8 powered pickup. My commute is 70 miles round trip, do the math...

I don't believe in man-made global warning, and I remember the articles in the 70s about the upcoming ice age.

Frankly, I don't care, and I enjoy ticking off the neo-hippies. I did the whole environmental thing in the 70 and 80s growing up on a farm, and I enjoy everything about civilized life. No more compost heaps, chicken pens and outside drying lines for me, thanks.

Especially when they come speeding up from behind me on the expressway doing 85-90...How many miles a gallon do those things get at high speeds? 2?

The LIE maybe?? I know the types your talking about, was born and raised in Suffolk County....left at College time and didn't go back.:tongue:

Wow, I was expecting a lot more responses like Manatee! You guys have all given me some good ideas.

Jack, what do you find is the best way to keep the freezer burn off your frozen stuff? We don't have a large yard to grow our own, but I'm planning this year to go to the organic orchards/farms, buying from them, and do a lot of preserving for the winter. Do you have any good tips?

Trixie, thanks for the websites. One I really like is Ideal Bite (Byte?). It gives you "bite-sized" pieces of enviro info daily, stuff you can do to make a difference, done with humor. Anybody else have good green websites?

Green, you're lucky to be able to recycle so much. We're only able to do the basics here.

Luluc, I'd love to have solar panels. Do they work good? I don't think we can install them because our roof is so steep. Unfortunately we bought in a very un-green neighbourhood (before my big enviro kick), and I'm regretting our choice now. I hope somebody soon we can move to an acreage where I can use solar panels, grey Water system, grow my own everything, clothesline, the whole nine yards.

FairyFacade - no plastic? That's awesome! I've heard of people using plant cellulose (?) instead of plastics which is biodegradable.

Wheetsin - I must admit I still use paper towels for cleaning the outside of the toilet. I don't think I'd be able to use a sponge for that over and over again! But I do use sponges in all other areas of the house.

Thanks everyone for your responses and tips. Keep them coming and we'll maybe be able to offset everything Manatee is doing! haha

A few things I forgot about. I use a big plastic container to fill with water when I'm warming up the water for the shower. Then I use that water to flush the toilet, instead of just letting it run down the drain as it warms. Also I've been buying a LOT of houseplants. They are excellent at absorbing chemicals in your house (the stuff that's found in paint, carpets, foam, etc), and giving off oxygen.

My new thing - I'm looking into homeopathic remedies. My son has been sick for two weeks and it really scared me taking him to a doctor and all the chemicals I now know are in medicines. I've got to learn to take care of him (and me) as much as I can without chemicals and with natural aids.

Once again I am so happy I am banded because the weightloss has given me energy to look into things that are near to my heart, such as this topic. I never had the energy even 30 pounds ago.

Linda

A little tidbit I just read about: Kids who eat a regular diet of non-organic food have organophosphates found in their blood and urine. After just 5 days of eating organic, the organophosphates are not traceable anymore. If nothing else convinced me to go organic, that info just did.

Great topic! We recycle everything our county takes, compost our produce trimmings, and instead of driving himself 80 miles to work, my husband bikes 15 min to the bus station, takes the bus to the ferry, then walks from the ferry to his job. I drive the kids around in our 45mpg civic hybrid.

For cleaning, instead of paper towels or sponges (I'm a microbiologist and I hate sponges!!!) we use cleaning cloths that we can wash. Same for mops - cloth covers on a flat surface mop. I got both from The Clean Team. - Efficient Housecleaning and Environmentally Friendly Cleaners, but some types of fabric rags would work well, I imagine.

After using cloth diapers on my children, at the risk of TMI, I switched to cloth menstrual pads. They're much more comfortable than the paper ones.

We're building a house and using as many energy saving techniques and technologies as we can afford. We wanted to use a geothermal heat pump, but they're too expensive at this point, so we're using an air source heat pump instead. The house has many passive solar features. All the lighting will be CFL or LED. The flooring will be sustainably harvested bamboo and cork. The fridge, washer, and dishwasher will be energy star certified, and we'll have an energy-saving induction cooktop. There's a root cellar for passive cooling so we can store more of the veggies we hope to grow in a year or two.

Another thing we've done that has been really worthwhile for our family is joining a CSA - community supported agriculture - a share farm. We pay for a share of produce from a small local farm, giving the farmer the surety of a paid crop and giving us lots of organic produce and eggs for half the year. We buy natural meat and some fish from local people plus we're lucky that my parents have a small non-commercial oyster farm and also catch dungeoness crab and are willing to share. We belong to a food co-op to reduce the overhead on other grocery items.

We found freecycle.org before we moved from MD to WA and it was fun meeting people who could use the things we found to be surplus for our new lives.

We enjoy finding new ways to save energy, reduce/reuse/recycle, and buy locally, and we're always looking for new ideas, so I'm avidly reading this thread!

There have been articles in the Canadian media about the 100 kilometer/mile meal plans. The idea behind these is that many of our foods travel from very far away and thus come with a large carbon footprint. The concept is to make meals using only such produce which can be sourced locally. The trouble with doing this in Canada is that our growing season is so short. This leaves us pretty much deprived of everything except for root vegetables and apples during most of the year. blehhh..... I eat a lot of fresh produce and thus my carbon footprint will remain large in this area.

And as for drinks, I much prefer scotch over rye and French wines over those produced in Ontario.

Alyson -wow, you go! What is TMI, by the way? I just subscribed to a CSA as well and I'm really excited about getting locally produced meat and veggies.

I was at Kroger today and just for sh!ts and giggles thought I'd ask if they have any organic meat (not that I thought they did), but he said they had chicken (gasp!), so I bought some. I couldn't believe it.

We've got a soon to be four year old boy and I used to bike with him a lot on the back of my bike but he's too big for that now, so we're driving a lot of places where we can bike. So I'm going to get one of those bike trailer things - not the one they just sit in and get pulled, but the one that has pedals and a wheel and a seat so they can pedal too.

What is TMI, by the way?

Too Much Information, lol

I just subscribed to a CSA as well and I'm really excited about getting locally produced meat and veggies.

I find kind of a fun challenge to make meals with the seasonal foods, and it's amazing how long it lasts - I've had mesclun greens last almost four weeks! I'm not too enthusiastic about canning, but we freeze quite a bit of the excess, particularly berries, which my kids eat almost every day. And we still buy organic bananas year round - definitely not in our 100 mile eating zone!

I was at Kroger today and just for sh!ts and giggles thought I'd ask if they have any organic meat (not that I thought they did), but he said they had chicken (gasp!), so I bought some. I couldn't believe it.

Cool - our costco has organic ground beef! I was shocked, too.

We've got a soon to be four year old boy and I used to bike with him a lot on the back of my bike but he's too big for that now, so we're driving a lot of places where we can bike. So I'm going to get one of those bike trailer things - not the one they just sit in and get pulled, but the one that has pedals and a wheel and a seat so they can pedal too.

Sounds like fun! I can't wait til I am thin enough to ride a bike again...

I love the shared farm idea. My one horse pony of a town, has each Sat a co-op type sale of fresh veggies/fruit/dairy/meat...Not just for those participating but a general sale of goods. Over the holidays my mom taught me how to can cetain foods, and DH and I bought a freezer for the garage to start storing our garden once they take off.

Lindata - The solar panels are neat additon to the green house, I'm not overly scientific like DH is, I do know that the seeds I started in Sept (that's when the green house was complete) are taking off - far faster than anything I had in a window. I get lost inside there sometimes, I put my Ipod on and examine every little pod / pot I have going on. Right now I have a whole wall of Sunflower seeds sprouting , that I'm hoping to plant around our stocked Bass pond. I'd like to have the pond surrounded by Texas Wildflowers, and the only thing really missing was the sunflowers. The pond is one thing I didnt' mention that we eat from (Bass and some Crappie), since my Labs get the most of the fishing it seems as of late.

Allyson - we wanted to go the geothermal heat pump route as well, but it's just astronomically outrageous in price. I love your floor choices, my preference was cork as well, but I got overruled. Too many dogs so DH choose heated concrete floors. They've been nice especially during and unseasonably cold TX winter.

I love everyones ideas - the sponge is something new to me, I seem to put it in the dishwasher every chance I run it - or the microwave. Have clorox wips as backup for bathroom & dog needs:)