Some celebrities go all out and support various causes and put their money where their mouth is. Then there is Gwyneth Paltrow.

Gwyneth Paltrow Wearing (And Promoting) FUR

Ms. Paltrow who is in the uber popular Summer flick Iron Man, is a vegetarian/vegan who cares about what she puts in her mouth. But apparently doesn’t give a hoot when it comes to fashion that is cruel on animals.

Gwyneth Paltrow is sporting fur in a recent ad campaign for an Italian company called Tod’s. She has caused quite a stir with this move, and i for one don’t get it. It’s not just about the fact that she is wearing FUR, she is promoting FUR.

To me the move is totally un-progressive and is like taking 20 steps back. In a time where celebs are all shooting from the rooftops look at me, “I’m Green”. Gwyneth Paltrow is shouting, look at me, “I Don’t Care”.

Soda water is apparently something familiar to us as a social drinking substance or something that can hit the spot in times of thirst. But you would be surprised at its other uses, mostly by being a solution towards cleaning certain items such as rugs, mugs or your usual room carpet.

We have seen a lot of common items in the world in the past and if you are looking for another item outside the known items for cleaning healthily like vinegar, try to use soda water this time around.

For stains on carpet or clothing, try pouring on a little soda water, then dab gently until the stain is gone. This works best when the stain is fresh. You can also add salt, if the stain is particularly stubborn

Use it to make an inexpensive, healthy fruit soda for children by mixing equal amounts of your favorite fruit juice with ice-cold soda.

Remove stains from coffee mugs with soda. Fill the cup with soda and let it sit for a while, then rub with any type of towel to remove stains.

soda also works well for removing stains from silver items.

(Source) Hippy Shopper

Our yards need care and maintenance in order to continue to flash that great outdoor look. Among the needs, fertilizer is a necessity to make sure that they are nurtured in the proper way. We are all aware that fertilizer use may be dangerous, but if we look a little bit farther, we will see that organic fertilizer is a better, safer option. Among them include Terracycle, an organic lawn fertilizer that is safe and offered through recycled soda bottles.

“A natural product, it is made from organic manure, call it worm poop. It is lawn fertilizer and virtually has no environmental impact. Safe to use around kids and pets. Once you apply it, it is safe to walk on after that,” said Tabano.

Organic fertilizer is made up of natural animal byproducts and you will see a warning but that’s not because it’s toxic, just concentrated.

(Source) News 10

The Source Toothbrush

Normally we would find brushing our teeth as the last thing that can contribute to the environmental problems of the world. But as in everything else, we can always improve on them. For sure there will be one source material that can be replaced to a more socially responsible one and the Source Toothbrush is a best example to break it down further.

With its two piece design, you don’t need to throw away your toothbrush as a whole. Rather, with the Source toothbrush, you can retain the handle and just replace the brushing head which is important for cleaning your teeth. You save a lot on buying new toothbrushes and also limiting the waste of used toothbrushes that have resources such as plastic which can help improve the growing problem of waste and plastic.

You can buy this toothbrush and a packet of replacement heads at radiustoothbrush.com. The suggested retail price for the toothbrush is $6.95; a packet of three replacement heads also is $6.95.

(Source) Courier Journal

Samsung is a brand known in the electronics world but not in printers. But while they may be known for monitors or even mobile phones, their product line also has a few of these printers in tow. In fact, to jumpstart their eco-friendly efforts, they are offering a new trade-in program (TIP) that will allow their customers to trade-in their old laser printers valued at most at $200 and then get a new one.

Not a bad deal if you want to get these new eco-friendly devices these days. A new printer may be the best bet to go eco-friendly through proper disposal of your old printer and get a new one in lieu of that.

The program began on July 1, and will run until September 30, 2008. First, the customer needs to purchase any new model Samsung printer, including laser models and MFPs. Then, visit www.samsung.com/tip to enter details about their old printer model. Results will be tabulated to determine how much the printer is worth.

Then, just fax or mail back the confirmation e-mail, along with the original proof of purchase receipt and the old product (a shipping label will be provided), and Samsung will send a cheque for the appropriate amount within 6-8 weeks once the product has been received and inspected.

(Source) Market News

We have seen various alternative ways to create energy and this one is something worth looking into. From the usual solar energy panels to hydrogen power, imagine energy being generated from potato waste. Now that is something.

In my previous post I already put out a post that some groups in the world today are looking to transform their trash to energy. While there were no specifics, this is because there are a lot of different waste categories to choose from. It is not solely from “trash” alone.

Potato Waste

Farmer Philip Johnson asked Durham County Council for permission to produce electricity – enough to heat 1,200 homes – from potato waste from the Walkers’ crisp factory, in Peterlee.

With the request granted, about 1,000 tonnes of potatoes a year will be pumped through an anaerobic digester, along with about 7,000 tonnes of agricultural crops and 2,000 tonnes of manure.

That will generate 500kw of electricity for the National Grid and 8,000 tonnes of fertiliser.

(Source) The Northern Echo

What do you do with excess garbage that landfills can no longer accommodate? For most, the immediate answer would be to recycle them. But for Ineos, turning waste into fuel is similar to turning trash to gold.

By 2011, this is what Ineos predicts to happen. They are planning to put up a large scale waste to energy facility which will ultimately produce bioethanol and help address the growing fuel problem the world is experiencing at the moment.

Ineos claims that its bioethanol, which can either be blended with petrol or replace it altogether, reduces greenhouse gases by 90% and avoids using food crops in the production process.

Mr Williams said: “The fact that we have been able to decouple second generation biofuel from food is a major breakthrough, and we expect our technology to provide cost competitive, sustainable, renewable fuels.

(Source) Lets Recycle

Pollution is one of the contributing aspects of the greenhouse gases issue and while many have advised and come up with varying degrees of addressing this issue, nothing has really been seen to resolve pollution from driving.

Now the fuel and oil price issues are helping a lot but just the same it remains that there should be more solutions to address the growing pollution problems the world is experiencing right now.

Many may call this idea from Germany as old school. But if it helps address the greenhouse issues for their country then perhaps it can do the same for other parts of the world.

“Travolution blazes the trail for innovative traffic management of a magnitude unique in Germany. The result is a functioning prototype for the traffic control of the future,” said Dr. Werner Widuckel, Audi Board Member for Human Resources. Aside from Audi, participants include the city of Ingolstadt’s Office for Traffic Management and Geoinformation, the Professorial Chair for Traffic Engineering at the Technical University of Munich, and GEVAS software GmbH.

The system that was presented today is used at 46 traffic lights in the municipal area of Ingolstadt. In this process, software optimizes the entire network of traffic lights, significantly reducing the duration of stopping times for cars.

An additional part of the project is called “The informed driver.” For this, three traffic lights have been equipped with communications modules that send the time for the next green phase to the car’s on-board computer. Audi has made an Audi A5 and an A6 Avant available as test vehicles for this part of the project. The drivers of these cars are informed through the Audi MMI infotainment system at what speed they should travel in order to drive through the intersection without having to stop.

(Source) Verivox

There are two things that people want to resolve today: get proper ventilation against crazy climate changes and reduce energy consumption. Air conditioning is at its peak during hot days and apparently thanks to climate change, we no longer know when that is. In fact, if before you knew which months that your air conditioner would be less utilized, now you have to consider using it extensively.

So how do people address this? Well there is the usual ceiling fans which may solve this problem. Known to be lesser in energy consumption, they have their ways of providing the proper room temperature in your home. Some homes have them while others are contemplating on it. After reading this, do not be surprised if you find yourself rushing to the nearest store to get one and install it immediately.

Ceiling fans reduce energy consumption by decreasing the use of air conditioning. In summer, they create a downdraft which increases the rate of evaporation of moisture on the skin. In the winter, they de-stratify the air, displacing the heated layer that rises to the ceiling with cooler air from the lower levels of the room.

Fans are operated with a clockwise rotation in the winter to create an updraft and counter clockwise direction in the summer to create downdraft. This direction is determined as you look up at the fan.

The amount of air movement is a function of the size of the blades and their pitch, which varies from about

12 to 20 degrees, says Goemans. Other factors include the distance from the ceiling and between the blades, as well as the length of the blades to the size of the room.

(Source) Calgary Herald

The search for alternative energy solutions continues. As the world is looking to help address the rising cost of energy, as well as analyzing the effectiveness of current energy sources, we also need to determine whether we have sufficient enough sources to satisfy the world’s need for energy. While many are turning towards the usual hydrogen, solar and wind power solutions, another energy source, nuclear power has recently been inserted into the fray. But the real question is, would it do more good than bad?

We all know what nuclear power brings. It can provide a great solution for our energy needs, but a tentatively dire expense to our health. In fact, if you think of the nuclear disasters endured in the past, such as the nuclear disaster at the Soviet Union’s Chernobyl nuclear power plant in 1986 and the near-disaster at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania in 1979, they are reason enough to strike nuclear power from the list of acceptable non-fossil and carbon energy sources.

So, at the moment, where do we really stand? Do we conserve or simply continue to be ignorant in order to meet our demands?

One thing that is for sure, relying solely on nuclear power will be suicide. We have a lot of problems already as far as climate change and global warming is concerned, and with the possibility of another disaster, might push us to the brink of extinction.

(Source) The Olympian

In a world where you have to cover practically anything under your wing and do your part in the whole global warming process, India’s Envirofit offers eco-friendly cook stoves to cut down the pollution in homes. Now here is something pretty much welcome for women who love to cook a lot.

The first country to get a crack at it, assuming that they get the BIS certification, would be India. The Envirofit Cook Stoves are built of durable, high-quality material and engineered to suit the cooking habits of women today. Once they hit the market, expect a cleaner and healthier living indoors and lesser pollution issues in the process.

Envirofit is a US based non-profit corporation that designs, manufactures and markets world-class engineered technology products to improve the quality of human life across the globe.

Built of durable, high-quality material and engineered to suit the cooking habits of Indian women, the Envirofit cook stoves are a result of over five years of research and testing in coordination with institutions such as Colorado State University.

The cook stoves are currently available in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu and will be introduced in other states shortly. They are available with single pot and multipot cooking options. The cook stoves are currently awaiting BIS certification.

(Source) The Navhind Times

For most of us, recycling is as easy as being able to throw away used stuff such as cans or paper in the trash bin. But most countries today are also employing various measures to make sure that such practices as waste segregation to help the recycling and waste problem control process are met.

While we all know which materials can be recycled, our duties as concerned citizens sometimes tends to take a backseat. It is either we are doing it on purpose or are really lacking the understanding of what recycling really is. With the influx of Recycling police, a crackdown on erring people and the need to assist people who fail to realize what recycling does mean is a good way to help keep things in perspective.

With the launch of Manukau’s new recycling service this week the detectives have been going ahead of collection trucks checking recycling wheelie bins.

When they discover rubbish, plastic bags or anything else that can’t be recycled inside the wheelie bins, they slap a sticker on the bin so the truck doesn’t empty it.

They also leave a reminder about what can and can’t go in the recycling wheelie bins.

(Source) Stuff.co.Nz

In an effort to help sort out and identify the recyclable materials, blue trash bins have become a way to allow local citizens in Auckland in helping the recycling effort. They are now placed there so that people can help in the trash sorting process. Only recyclable materials are allowed to be placed there. Otherwise, they will not be collected.

But to date, many Auckland folks are still ignoring the real use of these blue trash bins. Stickers have been placed to remind them and should they continue, they will just find their trash piling up.

Perhaps this is a good example we can follow especially if we in our local areas are having trouble contributing to the entire green effort.

The city’s new collection service began on Monday, but blue crates still lined the kerbs alongside new 240-litre wheelie bins.

A council spokeswoman says recyclables put out in the old crates won’t be collected.

Instead a sticker is being put on the crates to remind residents to use the new bins.

“Rubbish detectives” have been going ahead of trucks this week to check for contaminants in the bins, and leaving notes for offending residents.

(Source) Stuff.co.nz

In case you haven’t noticed, proper disposal for CFL lighting has been advised to most people today since they pose a serious threat if they are simply thrown at a garbage can and allowed to spread the harmful mercury substance that can really affect human health.

Thanks to the efforts of groups such as Home Depot, leading the pack in the proper disposal of these harmful CFL bulbs will go a long way.

Home Depot customers can now bring in any expired, unbroken CFL bulbs, and hand them in at the returns desk. The bulbs will then be managed by an environmental management company who will coordinate CFL packaging, transportation and recycling to maximize safety and ensure environmental compliance, Home Depot said in a release.

In addition to the CFL recycling program, The Home Depot has also launched an in-store energy conservation program to switch Light Fixture Showrooms in U.S. stores from incandescent bulbs to CFLs by Fall 2008, a move that will save a projected $16 million annually in energy costs.

(Source) Sustainable Business

Just when you thought that you could have an eco-friendly burial, cremation seems to be hanging in the air as far as eco-friendly proportions of burials by cremation is concerned. A lot of questions has been hurled at the cardboard coffins for the reason that some safety issues as well as the issue of the ashes that they will be creating.

Crematorium Society of Canterbury general manager Barbara Terry said the Ecocoffins, imported from China, could be used for burials but not burnt in the crematorium because of the amount of ash they produced, coupled with safety concerns.

“There is no credible data or research that can make us feel confident the emissions from this product are of acceptable standards,” she said.

“This particular supplier has made the decision to bring these caskets into the country and the onus is on him to present information to the industry.

“They leave a tremendous amount of fly ash, which does not combust and settles amongst the remains of the deceased like a tacky attachment. It is a sensitive issue and we must take care to return ashes to the family to our satisfaction.”

(Source) Stuff.co.nz