Your Ecological Footprint November 29, 2009

So you’ve got a handle on what your carbon footprint is and how you can go about reducing it. But what about your Ecological Footprint? The difference is more than semantics.

Your Ecological Footprint measures the area of land it takes to sustain your lifestyle. It is a measure of the land or marine area required to produce the food that you eat and the resources that you consume on an annual basis. The measure also takes into account the land required dissipate or absorb the waste that you produce. This measure goes beyond one year, as well. When an ecological footprint is calculated it based on the acreage needed to be able to sustain your needs year after year. If you calculate the global population and the planet’s total acreage, you find that each person has approximately 1.8 Global Hectares (gha) to use and live off of without exhausting our resources.

A comprehensive look at our actual resource use reveals a startling trend. Sometime in the late 1980’s the total of our collective Ecological Footprints exceeded the actual acreage of the planet. So what does that mean? Put simply, we are using more resources than we have, and can be reproduced, on our planet. That means it’s only a matter of time before we exhaust many of our resources. The guilty parties reside mainly in developed Western countries. The average US Ecological Footprint is 9.6 gha, compared to an average Footprint of 1.6 gha in less developed China.

So what can you do? For starters, you should determine your own Ecological Footprint. A great place to start is the Global Footprint Network, they have quizzes and suggestions for how you can lower your own use of resources. Many pioneering sustainable communities have been able to find creative ways of lowering their footprints as well. A list of some good resources is included below. Good Luck!

Precautionary Principle November 10, 2009

An additional alternative approach to environmental governance is the precautionary principle. Although it tends to garner very little support in the United States, it has made some headway in Europe. Much of the debate over the use of the precautionary principle has come out of a debate over the use of Genetically Modified Organisms or Foods (GMO) and the use of hormones in animal products. Europe’s use of the principle has, in fact, led to a ban on 7 different US foods. However, the discussion of stevia enhanced strawberries or rBGH induced cows will have to wait for another entry into this blog. For now, let’s explore what the principle is and discuss its advantages and disadvantages.

The precautionary principle, at its root, is one that seeks to protect the stakeholders of society from the potential negative externalities (unintended consequences) of actions , whether those actions be related to the environment or the food industry. As a result, the precautionary principle is a moral and political principle that emphasizes the need for scientific evidence that reflects reduced risks given the desire for action–precluding that action being taken. Central to this thesis is the notion that the burden of proof is not specifically the responsibility of the objector to an action but now the responsibility of the proponent of an action. If a company wants to produce pig-gene tomatoes, they have to prove without a reasonable doubt that there are no significant risks.

Advantages: At first glance, the precautionary principle provides policymakers with a simple common-sense approach to evaluating actions. Very simply put, if we are embarking on something new, we should think very carefully about whether it is safe or not, and we should not go ahead until we are convinced it is. This approach allows for, I believe, government regulators to catch up with private enterprise; allow government to create appropriate plans of action given “good” information; allow regulators the chance to examine the far-reaching effects of proposed action prior to that action being taken; allow for greater protection of the consumer and environment.

Disadvantages: There has been significant academic work on the precautionary principle. Much of what has been written relates to an ambiguity in notions of a weak vs. strong precautionary principle (see Cass Sustein’s Law of Fears).  Also, many advocates of agro-business, bio-chemical industries and pharmaceuticals put forward an import thesis regarding, what I consider, an important disadvantage of the principle. Basically, given the increased rigor of regulatory demands for proof of limited to no risk, many health related products may be kept from the market. There could be a potential drug that could be used to help cancer patients; however, it has not shown significant results in limited risks–although there are clear benefits–and is kept from the market. This raises the question: how much risk must be eliminated? Are all risks foreseeable?

Ultimately, as an alternative to the current command-and-control regime, precautionary principle does not stand firmly on its own, but would function best when coupled with the sustainability approach. In cases where consumer and environmental safety and sustainability are at risk, the principle would due well to address the concerns over such actions. However, in order to ensure the maintenance of well-being, precautionary principle could be avoided in instances of national security or health/life emergencies. Of course, defining such emergencies remains ambiguous but the point is that no policymakers, even the ones we disagree with, should be permitted maneuverability on issues like the environment that are continually changing.

Greening Your Commute – Take Advantage of Bike-Sharing Programs August 27, 2009

This month, Washington D.C. will celebrate the first birthday of its pilot bike-sharing program, SmartBike D.C., which has not only been welcomed by the public, but has greatly succeeded. Within the first ten months of their introduction, the fleet of 120 bicycles had made more than 11,000 trips throughout the District. In reaction to the ready acceptance of the program, city officials have decided to increase the fleet by 400-percent, with rental locations spread throughout the city. Of the 40 new terminals currently being planned, 28 have gotten final approval to build, and should be operational by Fall 2009, expanding service into the District’s outer-reaches.

Many of these new terminals will be located near pre-existing transportation hubs, giving customers a varied array of transit options including busses, trains, and the metro. Given these improvements, the program is expected to gain even more momentum, gradually replacing cars and taxis on the Capitol’s streets with SmartBike’s signature red and white bikes.

Similar to other bike-share programs throughout Europe and Asia, SmartBike requires that users subscribe to the service, a cost of forty dollars per year, giving them unlimited use of the bikes. After signing-up, a customer is issued a SmartBike card that can be swiped at any terminal, allowing them to take or return a bike to any of the secured bike racks.

A list of the District’s bike laws, and maps of bike routes can be found here, and SmartBike D.C.’s homepage can be found here. Lastly, the nation-wide cycling promotion group, Critical Mass, has a rapidly-growing branch in the District. They coordinate regular rides throughout the city, and their webpage can be found here.

The Forgotten Farmers March 13, 2009

We are now used to hearing about the greening of the economy. In principle, we would imagine green collar jobs would include local organic farmers, sustainable loggers, and others working closely with the land along with its cadre of workers in the green building and development, renewable energy, and transportation fields. But recently, these latter categories are dominating our sense of green collar jobs. They are the beneficiaries of venture investment and government subsidies. These are laudatory efforts, but we put ourselves and the planet in peril when we forget those who supply our basic needs in an ecological way.

This bifurcation in the green economy movement between technologists and land workers is both obvious and easily overlooked. Krupp and Horn’s “Earth: The Sequel” enumerates the millions of dollars Silicon Valley is pouring into its new favorite industry – renewable energy. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (the stimulus bill) provides billions of dollars for renewable energy investment, rail and mass transit projects, weatherizing homes, and other energy and infrastructure projects. Meanwhile, farmers are losing their land or forced to become as industrialized as possible. Not surprisingly, the tailspin of rural communities, beginning decades before our current economic troubles, has not ceased. Indeed, many local organic farmers must find a niche or produce value-added products in order to survive.

We urban and suburban folks hear very little about who is investing in and helping those who work closely with the land. The fact is renewable energy has more market potential than tomatoes. Venture capitalists will never throw money at small organic farmers. Fine, but if we have learned nothing else, it is that normal market principles are not so compatible with healthy, local, organic food. Even if we are on our way to recognizing this, our attention to the glamour of technologists and large investments reinforces our tendency to overlook the essential services and land-based knowledge of country folks.

Renewable energy technology is undoubtedly essential, but most would agree food is important too. And since growing food will always be around, making it as sustainable as possible is also important. This is not just because we need to eat, but also because farms and forests are an intersection of many of our environmental problems. It is in these locales that we can begin to restore ecosystems. This should matter to anyone who is concerned about environmental degradation, thriving rural areas, and human health. Industrial organic agriculture, for all its merits, still falls short of our vision for a healthy and sustainable food supply. But local organic farmers improve soil, water, and air quality. They promote wildlife and ecosystem integrity, which is responsible for invaluable ecosystem services that we depend on. They help create and maintain local economies and communities. They provide scenic and recreational opportunities.

With benefits such as these, those who work close to the land deserve more of our attention and resources. There are economic and non-economic ways of correcting the focus of the green economy movement. Economically, we can use our buying power. It sounds sentimental to patronize sustainable agriculture and forestry. But the point is that we can choose the economics of care, which is healthier for everyone and everything involved, over the economics of growth. This would give much needed clout to the forgotten farmers. Beyond economics, there are conservation and planning measures that we, as citizens, can take to preserve our rural lands and promote healthy farming. The American Farmland Trust is a national non-profit dedicated to this cause, and in the DCmetro area, we have the Piedmont Environmental Council. There are also state conservation programs and county planning boards which need citizen response. By getting involved in these ways we can avoid the risk, so often taken in the past, to overlook the humble and irreplaceable sectors of our economy.

Green Cooking December 29, 2008

Environmental friendly cooking involves making many choices that go beyond picking the right ingredients.  It includes green kitchen utensils, eco-cooking methods, efficient water usage and proper disposal of food leftovers.   Here are some simple green cooking tips to help you make more informed choices.

Shopping for a Green Cuisine

The best foods are local and organic since organic standards prohibit the use of synthetic fertilizers, toxic pesticides, and antibiotics. Growing and transporting food not only consumes a significant amount of water and energy, but also contributes to air pollution and global warming.  Therefore, buying locally and eating with the seasons promotes many environmentally friendly practices, such as reducing carbon emissions and supporting small farms.   To locate a farmers market near you, check out the local harvest website.  Also consider joining a CSA.

When shopping at the grocery store for your ingredients, your environmental impact can be significantly reduced by adhering to these basic rules:

• Buy as few things in plastic as possible– opt for metal or glass containers whenever you can (and don’t use a plastic bag for fruits or veggies – you’ll need to wash them anyway when you get home).
• Buy in bulk.   Remember that buying many little packages wastes paper and plastic.
• Use your own shopping bags (I know you’re heard this one many times, but it bears repeating).
• Buy less meat.

Green Kitchenware

Equip your kitchen with “green-ware” and utensils made from porcelain enamel, glass and bamboo.  When possible, purchase kitchenware that is reusable and/or made from recycled materials.   By using reusable housewares, you not only save money, but also conserve natural resources.    Examples of reusable kitchenware include:  cloth towels, cloth napkins, reusable baking pans, reusable lunch box containers, glass jars and cloth bags for grocery shopping.

Make sure your dinnerware is lead-free.  Plates and dishes now sold in the United States are subject to federal regulations for the maximum amount of lead they may contain. The federal standards require that plates contain no more than 3 ppm (parts per million) lead, and pitchers and other “hollow ware” that hold liquid can contain no more than 0.5 ppm.  If unsure of the lead content of your dishware, contact the manufacturer. Check out our kitchen gadgets blog for more thoughts on this.

Ovens

The best way to conserve energy in the kitchen is to use the smallest oven possible since it takes less energy to heat it to the proper temperature.   To ensure that heat is not wasted when the oven is in use, make sure that the burner fits the pan and use a lid when heating items on the stove. If you have a smaller item to heat or cook, consider a toaster oven – these use about a third of the energy of conventional ovens. Here are some tips for buying a new oven.

Water conservation

Reducing water usage in the kitchen before and after cooking has both financial and environmental benefits.  These are the easiest ways to conserve water:

• Don’t let the sink water run when rinsing dishes.
• Install a water saving aerator on your kitchen sink’s faucet.  Water saving aerators are helpful in reducing the amount of water you use when rinsing your dishes.
• Install a water efficient, Energy Star rated dishwasher.
• Repair leaky water faucets.  If your faucet is dripping one drop per second, you’ll waste as much as 2,700 gallons in a year!

Leftovers

If you do all of the above, but throw out your leftovers in the garbage, you are skipping one of the most important steps in green cooking.   Food debris has no access to oxygen once it reaches the landfills and therefore emits methane, a toxic gas.  The best way to get rid of food waste is by composting it – recycling food scraps by allowing it to naturally break down and turn into nutrient rich soil.  Donating your food waste is another option; there are food rescue programs that specialize in redistributing leftovers.

To test your green-cooking skills, take the following quiz, “How Green is Your Cuisine?” from the Sierra Club. So…are you a Green Chef?

Metal Poisoning December 17, 2008

The increased use of metals or their compounds in our day-to-day lives has made them poisonous. Some of these metals have no biological role and categorized as toxic metals. Examples include cadmium, lead, mercury, arsenic, chromium, aluminum, and many more. Radioactive isotopes of lead, cadmium, mercury and chromium have been proven to be carcinogenic. Toxic metals are the most commonly prevalent occupational hazard. The severity of the metal poisoning varies from metal to metal. The process of detoxification is difficult especially if metal or its compound is not water soluble. They can accumulate in the living bodies for long duration and can easily be the part of food chain.

Aluminum is the most abundant metal on the earth. The compounds of aluminum are used commonly in antiperspirants, cleaning agents, baking powder and water purification. Many of cooking and baking utensils are made up of aluminum. Aluminum is connected to breast cancer, Alzheimer’s disease. It accumulates in bones and decreases the calcium absorption. High doses of aluminum can cause growth retardation. The compounds in antiperspirants and food are considered as the potential sources of aluminum poisoning.

Cases of lead poisoning are the most heard stories because of recent litigation and recalls of products containing lead. Lead had been used in paints and fuel as an antiknocking agent for many years. The exposure to lead and its compounds can occur through inhalation, ingestion and skin contact. The metal affects the central nervous system and causes learning disabilities and schizophrenia among kids. It can contaminate the fetus if the mother has been exposed to it for a prolonged period of time.

Similar to lead, cadmium exposure can occur through air, soil and water. Both of these metals are commonly used in batteries. Tobacco smoking is also a significant source of cadmium. The metal can affect the respiratory bones, tract, kidney and liver. Mercury is used in fluorescent light bulbs, medical equipments and imported cosmetics. It is also found in seafood and has been seen the most common cause of mercury poisoning. The exposure to this metal can cause sensory impairment, lack of coordination. Children can show severe symptoms such as discoloration of body, loss of hair, teeth and nails, dysfunction of kidney and brain. To avoid the mercury poisoning, pregnant woman are recommended to avoid seafood.

Some essential metals such as iron, cobalt, copper, manganese, molybdenum and zinc are desired for the proper functioning of human body, but excess of these metals can also be harmful. Even though U.S. government is putting in place regulations to control the toxicity of metals, this is still not being adequately enforced, especially with imported goods.

The term for the accumulation of toxins, including all toxic chemicals, not just metals, is ‘body burden‘. There are many studies that have shown how toxic chemicals accumulated in the body of adults and babies. Other studies focus solely on different types of toxins, such as pesticides. This is why a periodic detoxification program is important – it is not just the planet that is being affected, our bodies are as well!

What is a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)? September 26, 2008

If you are a fan of fresh produce and farmers markets, look into supporting a local farm through a CSA (it stands for Community Supported Agriculture). CSA is a unique model of local agriculture that puts the consumer and the farmer into a mutually beneficial relationship. Members pay an annual or seasonal fee to receive a weekly basket of produce from the farm’s harvest directly to their front door, or to a convenient drop-off location.

Many farms offer a variety of subscriptions, where buyers receive a weekly or monthly basket of produce, flowers, fruits, eggs, milk, meats, or any sort of different farm products. There are over 2000 CSAs throughout the country so there is probably one near you – check out local ones at Local Harvest or get more information on the US Department of Agriculture site.

Green, From the Inside Out: The Benefits of Indoor Plants For Your Home or Office August 9, 2008

Research has shown that indoor air pollution is the cause of many of our common and even more serious ailments; from headaches, fatigue, and toxic and allergic reactions, to asthma, infections, and “sick building syndrome”, etc. Research has also shown that certain plants clean the air by removing carbon dioxide and dangerous airborne chemicals while releasing oxygen for you. But, the benefits of indoor plants don’t stop there. Additional benefits of indoor plants are as follows:

• Are welcoming and aesthetically appealing.
• Reduce light reflection and improve noise absorption.
• Soften harsh areas and hide imperfections.
• Can be used as banners to direct (foot) traffic or to partition off an area.
• Release moisture into the air.
• Can raise morale and reduce stress.
• Just might even enhance creativity and increase productivity.
• Just might make people feel calmer and more optimistic, and therefore, happier!
• Offer an inexpensive, easy to maintain, and locationally flexible way to have your very own “bio-filtration system” for your home or office.

A sampling of recommended indoor plants: Orchids, epiphytic bromeliads, anthuriums, snake plants, broadsword ferns, rubber plants, chrysanthemums, gerbera daisies, spider plants, majesty palm, spathiphyllum, golden pathos, and heart leaf philodendron. Most of us spend the majority of our time indoors, so why not make that air as clean and healthy as possible? Happy greening!

The Reel Deal in Lawn Care: Pushing Your Way to a Healthier Planet July 25, 2008

9 am- Saturday morning. You’re roused out of your deep sleep by the sound of your next door neighbor mowing his lawn with a gas powered mower. Ugh! Not only are gas powered mowers loud, but they are really bad for the environment! Well, what other ways are there to mow your lawn, you might ask? A great option is a manual (push) reel mower. A reel mower is a mower in which the blades spin vertically using a scissoring action to cut the grass. They typically have between 3 and 7 blades. They’re fairly inexpensive to buy, and easy to use and maintain.

Some good, green reasons to use a reel mower:

• Air Pollution- Every weekend, 54 million people mow their lawns, using 800 million gallons of gas per year and producing tons of air pollutants.According to the EPA, a traditional gas powered lawn mower produces as much as 43 new cars being driven 12,000 miles. Or put another way, 1 gas mower running for an hour emits the same amount of pollutants as 8 new cars driving 55 mph for the same amount of time.
• Noise Pollution- A bathroom exhaust fan noise level is 55 decibels. A snowmobile at 50 feet is 80 decibels. A reel mower noise level is 55 decibels, whereas a noisy gas powered mower noise level is 80 decibels. It would take 17 quiet reel mowers to make the noise of 1 of the quietest gas lawnmowers!

There are other options out there. If for some reason a reel mower does not work for you or your lawn, there are electric mowers. Electric mowers don’t totally eliminate pollution, but they produce no harmful emissions, are quieter than gas powered mowers, and eliminate gas spills, refining, and transportation.

That being said, a manual (push) reel mower is your best option. They’re better for the planet and better for you. With a 0 carbon footprint, the grass really is greener on the other (reel mower) side!!! Happy mowing…

Balcony Gardening: Have Your Green Space and Eat It Too June 25, 2008

There are few things in the world that are better than taking a big bite of a freshly picked home grown vegetable salad. The taste of a tomato that has been ripening on the vine up until only minutes before you eat it is worlds beyond anything that you would find in the store. This goes for basically any produce. Unfortunately, for many of us, having a garden in the backyard is simply not a possibility. Fortunately, vegetables cannot tell if the dirt that they are enjoying is part of a grassy expanse or five stories up on the balcony of an apartment. I know that many of you are currently pondering the pros and cons of filling your outdoor space with dirt, mud, worms, and plants, but before you start putting down that layer of manure based compost, consider for a moment the joys of container gardening.

Container gardening is pretty much just what it sounds like. Instead of growing vegetables in a garden, plants are grown in containers. There are several advantages to container gardening. First of all, you can have a container garden wherever the containers will fit and you can bring your garden indoors should inclement weather threaten your budding packets of nutritious deliciousness. Second, the only requirements for the containers are that they are big enough to hold adequate soil and that there is a hole in the bottom to allow for proper drainage. This means that you can recycle things from around the house, which will keep your waste production down. One thing to keep in mind is that you want to avoid using containers that previously held chemicals. Third, potting soil is less likely to contain weed seeds and pests, which means less time that must be spent weeding and grooming your garden.

One drawback to using “traditional” containers is that they will require watering about once a day. Luckily, the gardening industry has looked kindly on those of us who are too busy to let our green thumbs grow and has come up with the self-watering container. A self-watering container is a container with a water reservoir. The water reservoir supplies your plants with water for several days, which means that all you have to do is refill the reservoir.

Now that we have the dirt, one of the two most important factors to any successful garden, taken care of, we can move onto the next topic. The second, but equally important ingredient to your growing produce aisle, is the sun. Most balconies are going to be at least partially covered spaces, which means that there will be differential light distribution. To make sure that all of your growing green friends are fed and happy, the arrangement of your plants will have to conform to your light availability. While it is possible that plants as large as corn and squash can be grown in containers, it is more likely that the larger end of the spectrum will be in the range of eggplants, tomatoes, and peppers. It is very possible to grow all of the aforementioned plants in containers, but it is important that these containers are placed in full sun. For the shadier corners of your garden, try things like spinach, lettuce, bok choy, and other leafy greens.

With this new found knowledge, it is possible for even the busiest apartment dweller to scratch their green itch and grow some garden goodness. All it takes is a place to put some dirt and some sun. Container gardening is a great way to have your green space and eat it too. For more info on balcony gardening, check out this blog too. Happy gardening!