Hey everyone! My name is Mallory and welcome to blog! Here I'll document 52 weeks of green resolutions to develop a environmentally-friendly lifestyle and learn how to respect our Mother Earth! A little history: I live in Phoenix, AZ with my husband, Colby, and our 2 cats, Zoe and Chloe. I just started my career as a teacher. I'm currently working at a middle school in an Autism classroom. I'm a member of the Baha'i faith I used to be SUPER eco-friendly but now.... not so much. I'm really banking on my green resolutions to turn my bad habits around!
There are currently 7.8 billion people living on Earth today and as the world’s population continues to grow, our requirement for food will also increase.
As I continue on taking on new Green Resolutions, I am thinking of how I can create lasting environmental changes in my life that will go well beyond this 52 weeks this "green challenge" I've created is asking for. I am attempting to slowing adjust my diet to eventually become vegan. I am SLOOOOOOOWWLY taking steps to increase my protein, reduce (or eliminate) sugars, and eliminating meat from my diet. I struggle with it daily in the decisions I make on what I should eat, but I am conscious to being kind and forgiving because I know this is a habit transformation and I should celebrate the baby steps and, eventually, succeed in that will lead to lasting change in my diet.
I'm reading Potatoes Not Prozac to help increase protein and reduce my sugar intake.
This week for Green Resolutions, I have eliminated all meat from my diet (aka became vegetarian).
I was tested day 1 of this decision. I was invited to a friend's mothers birthday party where her mother served a delicious Oaxacan dish, the main part of the meal being a freshly killed goat. There definitely is a social aspect of being a vegetarian that actually makes it difficult to be a vegetarian. A plate of goat meat and soup with goat meat was placed in front of me by the birthday girl herself and... well.... I couldn't be rude and reject her meal! So I ate the meat. I did ask where the goat was raised and what the farm was like and I am somewhat happy to report that the goat was grown on a local, small farm where the goats are treated very well (comparatively speaking).
It's really been an adjustment, luckily Colby and I have a delicious vegetable soup we LOVE to eat, so I made a big pot of that and plan on living off of it for several weeks until I adjust.
Of course, the main reason I want to stop eating meat, and eventually go vegan, is environmental. If you're interested in learning the environmental impacts of the Agriculture industry and livestock farms, check out the facts I've gathered below!
Cows and sheep are responsible for 37% of the total methane (warming the Earth 23times more than CO2) generated by human activity.
The livestock industry also generates 65% of human-related nitrous oxide, which has 300 times the Global WarmingPotential (GWP) of CO2. Most of this comes from manure. One cow’s annual output of methane — about 100 kilograms — is equivalent to the emissions generated by a car burning 235 gallons of gasoline!!!!!!
Pollution of our waterways is caused by animal waste, antibiotics and hormones entering the water cycle alongside chemicals from tanneries, fertilizers, and the pesticides used to spray feed crops
Manure, or waste water containing manure, severely harms river and stream ecosystems. Farmed animals produce about 130 times as much excrement as the entire human population of the United States. Since factory farms don't have sewage treatment systems as our cities and towns do, this concentrated slop ends up polluting our water, destroying our topsoil, and contaminating our air.
Thirty percent of the earth’s entire land surface—a massive 70% of all agricultural land—is used for rearing farmed animals. Much of this is grazing land that otherwise would host natural habitats such as valuable rainforests. And, of the entire world’s land suitable for growing crops that would otherwise directly feed humans, a third of it is used to produce feed for farmed animals.
Livestock production is responsible for 70% of deforestation in the Amazon region of Latin America, where rainforests are being cleared to create new pastures.
From tropical rain forests in Brazil to ancient pine forests in China, entire ecosystems are being destroyed to fuel humans’ addiction to meat.
Deforestation increases greenhouse gas emissions by releasing carbon previously stored in the trees.
A single pig consumes 21 gallons of drinking water per day, while a cow on a dairy farm drinks as much as 50 gallons daily.
It takes more than 2,400 gallons of water to produce 1 pound of cow flesh, whereas it takes about 180 gallons of water to make 1 pound of whole wheat flour.
Livestock account for over 8 percent of global human water use.
Have you every seen The Story of Stuff? If you haven't, STOP READING AND WATCH NOW! If you have, STOP READING AND WATCH AGAIN! Then please continue reading my blog :)
"The Story of Stuff Project’s journey began with a 20-minute online movie about the way we make, use and throw away all the Stuff in our lives. Five years and 40 million views later, we’re a Community of 750,000 changemakers worldwide, working to build a more healthy and just planet." http://storyofstuff.org/
Want vs. Need: Basic Economics
A need is something you have to have, something you can't do without. A good example is food. If you don't eat, you won't survive for long. Many people have gone days without eating, but they eventually ate a lot of food. You might not need a whole lot of food, but you do need to eat.
A want is something you would like to have. It is not absolutely necessary, but it would be a good thing to have. A good example is music. Now, some people might argue that music is a need because they think they can't do without it. But you don't need music to survive. You do need to eat.
The average person living in the United States uses 300 shopping bags worth of raw materials every week - weighing as much as a large luxury car. We would need the resources of three planets for everyone on Earth to live as people in the United States do. World Resources Insitute, Center for a New American Dream
We are targeted by over 1,500 commercial messages a day, up from 560 per day in the 1960s. Advertisers are increasingly targeting young people. Companies spend more than $200 billion on advertising in the U.S. each year (and $435 billion worldwide). Less than $50 billion a year could provide adequate food, clean water, and basic education for the world's poorest. People around the world spend much more than this amount on makeup, perfumes, pet food, ocean cruises, and ice cream Center for a New American Dream, Worldwatch Institute
The world's richest countries make up only one-fifth of global population but account for 45% of all meat consumption, 58% of total energy use, 84% of paper use, and 87% of vehicle ownership. At the other end of the spectrum, the poorest fifth of the world's population - more than one billion people - still lack food, shelter, housing, water and sanitation, and access to electricity. United Nations Development Programme
I read this amazing book called The 100 Thing Challenge. The author, Dave Bruno, spoke beautiful words on our American consumer culture. Some quotes I found inspiring:
"What is we all stopped making foolish credit card purchases that placed us in debtors prison? What if, as a result of making do with fewer things, we prioritized buying BETTER things that were a little more expensive and make by tradesmen instead of factory workers? What if we stopped using our homes as storage facilities and de-cluttered the places which we live so they can become SANCTUARIES from the daily grind?"
"The crux of American-style consumerism is that our common lives lack provision. Somehow we have come to believe that there is always a purchase that will transform what is ridiculously amazing into what is perfect... as if a sunset is more beautiful when I'm watching it while wearing the "right" brand clothing. As if owning the right things would clarify my faith and make my hopes more real. As if possessions, instead of love, were the force that could knit my relationships together more tightly. As if the accomplishments of my life were largely about the stuff I used to get things done."
Because of the above reasons/thoughts, and so many more, I decided to limit the wants in my life to 1 new "want" purchase a month. My January purchase? Jasmine Essential Oil
Documentary Recommendation:
"Consuming Kids throws desperately needed light on the practices of a relentless multi-billion dollar marketing machine that now sells kids and their parents everything from junk food and violent video games to bogus educational products and the family car. The film focuses on the explosive growth of child marketing in the wake of deregulation, showing how youth marketers have used the latest advances in psychology, anthropology, and neuroscience to transform American children into one of the most powerful and profitable consumer demographics in the world."
I believe my "environmentalism" began with a very strong desire to get people to recycle. It seemed to me like such a simple yet important action.
Over the years, my knowledge of caring for the environment in a more profound way has developed and, frankly, recycling is now a minute (extremely small) thing that I do and assume everyone else in our country knows how to do correctly.
This is NOT the case. From elementary schools to big-named businesses, people's homes to colleges, people are NOT applying correct recycling practices.
This is why I decided to write a blog about correct recycling practices, while also applying them to my own life. I've made a list of common things that should be recycled and other items that can be recycled that you may not have known.
For the record, I pretty much copied and pasted this information from 2 sources:
1) http://search.earth911.com/ This website is AMAZING. Type any item you are questioning to recycle and it will tell you where it can go.
2) https://www.phoenix.gov/residents/garbage The City of Phoenix (or whatever city your from) website tells you everything that is able to go in your curbside recycle bin.
Recyclable Materials for the City of Phoenix:
Paper
Cardboard, Food Boxes, Junk Mail, Wet Strength, Paper Board, Newspaper, Magazines, Phone Books, Juice Boxes
Shredded Paper (Must be placed in Clear Plastic Bags)
Not recyclable: photographs, hardback or paperback books, blueprints, heat sensitive receipt paper
Plastic
All hard plastic containers, including buckets, plastic jugs and bottles with or without caps
Not recyclable: Plastic bags (you can take them to your local grocery store as part of the Bag Central Station program) and Plastic Pipe
Glass
Glass Bottles and Jars, Food Grade Glass Containers
Not recycleable: window panes, mirrors, light blubs, windshields, car windows, treated glass, glass table tops, televisions (for TV’s contact Westech Recyclers at 602-256-7626)
Metal
Aluminum Cans, Metal Cans, Small Metal Appliances Small metal appliances, such as toasters, irons, pots and pans, may be placed in your blue Phoenix Recycles container.
Small lawn mowers and barbecues may also be recycled., Empty Aerosol Cans
No paint, pesticides, oven cleaners
Household Hazardous Waste and Electronics
Do you have the following items you're trying to dispose of?
Auto related fluids (up to 5 gallons total)
Vehicle batteries
Rechargeable batteries
Electronics
Household appliances
Fire extinguishers
Propane gas cylinders (5lbs or 1lb)
Pesticides-herbicides/insecticides
Pool chemicals
Household Paint (no more than 10 gallons total)
Tires up to 5 (Oversized tires are not accepted)
Take them to the City of Phoenix's Household Hazardous Waste Event.
Click this link to find future dates: https://www.phoenix.gov/publicworks/garbage/hazwaste/collection-events
Batteries:
Places that accept batteries are Batteries Plus and Staples. They accept:
lead acid (Pb) batteries used in cars, trucks and emergency lighting, Nickel Cadmium (NiCd) batteries used in cordless phones, cordless tools and two way radios, Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries used in camcorders, bar code scanners and digital cameras, Lithium Ion (Li Ion) or Lithium Polymer (Li Poly) used in cell phones and laptops.
Even though styrofoam is completely recyclable, Phoenix does not accept it because it is not a marketable or cost effective commodity. However, UPS accepts #6 plastic peanuts
What I learned was recyclable that surprised me:
1) Aerosol Cans – Empty- However, City of Phoenix does not accept pesticide, oven cleaner, or spray paint aerosol cans.
2) Aluminum Foil
3) Small Appliances- City of Phoenix accepts scrap metal under 25 pounds including small appliances.
Just to reiterate, the following items are NOT to be put in the recycle bin:
· No plastic bags of any kind, whether they have a recycling symbol or not
· No pool chemical/household hazardous waste containers
Putting Bamenda on Blast! The Environmental State of Bemenda, Cameroon. (Weeks 18 and 19)
As stated in my last Green Resolution, Present on Climate Change, I recently took a trip with my husband, our friend Brian, and my father-in-law to Cameroon, Africa. The intentions were the following:
1) Help out in whatever way with our Cameroonian brother's environmental non-profit called The Greens.
2) Film a "documentary" for The Greens to promote their work.
3) Film music videos for Colby and Awu (Awu is another brother of ours in Cameroon we met on our first trip. Colby and Awu have created a CD of beautiful music since our visit in 2012).
4) Celebrate the holidays.
I'm happy to say we were able to accomplish all of the above! I also took this trip as an opportunity to learn a lot about the environmental state of Bamenda. I was quite stunned at certain environmental practices I noticed this time that I was oblivious to my first trip to Cameroon, specifically in the realm of waste management, water and energy use. I'll get to my observations/learnings that may seem like I'm putting "Bamenda on blast" shortly. First, let's look at the positive things we did for the environment during our trip:
1) Adopt-A-Street: The Greens coordinates a street clean-up periodically and collaborates with the "quarter head" to ring a gong and make an announcement of the clean up. This advertises the clean-up and allows for more members of the quarter to participate. Boy was there a lot of trash. Not even a half mile stretch of road took about 10 of us associated with The Greens to clean up- not to mention the various community members who also came out to support the clean up. It was a serious reward to see the dirt road we cleared after the 2 hours.
2) Green Radio: Each Saturday morning Ngalim, along with other members of The Greens, host a 1 hour radio program called "Green Radio". Here they "bleed green blood, live green lives, spit out green words, think green, eat green." This was my favorite Green program of the trip. There is something SO empowering about having your voice heard on the radio. This particular radio station (ABAKWA FM) is the most listened to in Bamenda, among other areas. While on the show I was able to share about this blog, my suggestions to Bamenda to "go green' over the holidays, and we all shared our "Green Resolutions" for the New Year!
3) Planting Trees: I've found a rival to my favorite spot in the world, the Grand Canyon. It's called Manna Gardens. This was one of the most beautiful, peaceful, and sustainable places I have seen. Pa Willie created this location in hope for future tourists in Cameroon to come and be one with nature. He's still in the process of putting the place together for people to come and stay, but he has formed a partnership with The Greens to plant trees at Manna Garden that were good for the following 4 uses: beauty, shelter, medicine, and food. We had the bounty of going there twice and both were highlights of our trip to Cameroon.
Now for the blasting......
Of course everything I am writing is not actually intended to put Bamenda on blast. It's just fun alliteration. Some of the practices I've observed, I believe, are a result of western influence Cameroon has adopted without proper follow-up procedures. Other issues are still a mystery to me and other Cameroonians. My Green Resolution for our trip was to learn about environmental issues apparent in another part of the world. One thing I've learned in the Climate Change course is that it is a global issue in terms of its consequences and causes. The impacts are long term and will affect various parts of the world in different ways and to different degrees. I know a bit about what is happening here in Phoenix and in the U.S., but what about Bamenda?
Water Scarcity: The Case of the Missing Water
When I turn the knob on my sink, I expect water to come out. If it doesn't, I call someone to come out and fix the problem. I've never been without running water. In Bamenda, thousands of families have been without running water for several weeks. One day it just stopped flowing and has yet to resume.
The city gets its water from 2 sources: community reserved water and state owned, privatized water. The community water is collected at a spout that can be found somewhere within a neighborhood within walking distance and is available for all. The state privatized water is the water that flows into homes. This is the water that, in several parts of Bamenda, has stopped flowing.
Why, you may ask? No one had an answer. It was uncertain exactly why the water wasn't flowing or when it would turn back on. I spoke with Ngalim's extended family that was among one of the homes without running water. Several times a day to carry out various tasks like cooking, cleaning, or bathing, someone in the family had to carry a few large containers to the local community well to collect water. This well water, they stated, was good to use for most things, but not for drinking. Normally the state privatized water was what they drank. Now, they had to walk, take a taxi or motor bike to an area in Bamenda that did have flowing water. Thinking about how careful they had to be with the water they collected each day, conserving and reusing it while washing their clothes, boiling it before cooking their food, being careful to not waste any of it because that would mean more trips to lug heavy containers of water to their home. In addition to those daily modifications, wondering how you will get access to clean water to drink. Who will travel to a neighboring quarter to fetch the clean drinking water for you and your family? Will you buy bottled water that is 500x the price of the water that should be flowing out of their tap? When will the water be turned back on?!
Waste Management: What the heck are they supposed to do with all these plastics?
As you walk through the streets of Bamenda you can't help but noticing a few things. One may be the lush foliage atop the sprawling hills that surround the town. Another may be the people who are not shy to smile or say "Good afternoon" when greeted. Something in addition you most definitely will notice is the waste.
I remember the shock and frustration I felt my first day in Cameroon back in 2012 when I was not 1 hour out of the airport and saw a woman just drop her bottle of water in the street and continue walking. The nerve! I quickly mentioned this to my new Cameroonian friends, to which they replied, "She probably doesn't know where else is she supposed to put it." This response is probably what everyone else in Cameroon, more specifically Bamenda, is thinking. I'm walking down the road, I've just finished my snack, there are NO public trash cans, and therefore, I throw it on the ground.
Maybe I'm wrong, but I know my second time around I thought that very thing once I was finished with a bottle of water or a snack. Here is a list of the things I've observed or learned about Bamenda's waste management:
1) In lieu of public trash bins, you'll see a designated pile of trash on the road where individuals or household will dump their waste.
2) The Bamenda City Counsel (BCC) has placed large dumpsters in quarters where people live, but close enough to the road for pick up, where individuals or homes will dump their waste and can be ensured of pick up.
3) The 2 main methods of disposal of waste are burying or burning. I was informed that the BCC picks up the waste from the dumpsters and bury it. However, it was an everyday occurrence that you would see those large dumpster, in addition to the small piles previously mentioned, smoking large black clouds filling the air. I was told the dumpsters being set ablaze were done by community members, without BCC's approval, to reduce the amount of trash in the bin.
It was one of the saddest things to see in Bamenda. So many disposables being improperly disposed of. So many plastics not able to be recycled. To me, this was a clear example of Western throwaway culture making its way to a region whose waste was mostly organic to begin with but now has disposable products paired with an underdeveloped waste management system which, together, results in litter strewn everywhere and piles of burning trash filling the lungs of its inhabitants.
Silver lining?
I was told the Ministry of Environment, Protection of Nature and Sustainable Development has launched a sensitization campaign aimed at informing and educating the population on the negative impacts of plastic bags. The hopes is to make available biodegradable bags for use- but they are not yet widely available and the plastic bags that have already been bought are still circulating.
Here's a very well-written article about the issue of plastic bags in Bamenda-
Energy Conservation of the Individuals of Bamenda:
Here's where I stop "blasting" Bamenda so much and start learning from and applying their practices in my life.
Energy production is responsible for the largest share of greenhouse gas emissions compared to all other sectors- responsible for almost 26% of total emissions. Energy conservation is a measure that should be taken to reduce its effects.
At home in Phoenix, I have a lot of free time to do things, like write this blog, because of the time I save from having to wash my clothes or dishes by hand, call someone out to fix any problem in my home, and have the convenience of buying food already prepared from time to time. Almost everyone I met in Bamenda worked SO hard to feed their families using food from their farm, washed clothes by hand each day, and did what needed to be done in their home themselves. The results of this are a SIGNIFICANT reduction in their individual energy consumption, healthier, STRONGER bodies, skill-building and a very impressive work-ethic.
Oneness of Humanity-Ubuntu
To wrap up this blog post, I wanted to mention the most important thing I learned from the people of Bamenda, which is, the ONENESS OF HUMANKIND.
During my stay both times in Bamenda, I never once felt like I wasn't accepted or loved for who I was or where I came from. I was always warmly accepted into the homes of the people there. In my heart, I really feel like the people in Bamenda are my family. I will no longer to go visit Bamenda to be a "volunteer". I'll go to work alongside my family members and support their initiatives.
In the climate change course materials, it states that the oneness of humanity will help us to "decide to live with a sense of universal responsibility, identifying ourselves with the whole Earth community as well as our local communities." Because of this unity our perspective of climate change will change. When we regard the world s just one country and humankind as one family, with such a consciousness we equally value the lives of people in other countries who may often be poor or of a different race.
"The Earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens" - Baha'u'llah
"Ubuntu, it's from the motherland of Africa, the essence of the word means that I am one with you." - Colby and Awu
I have been unbelievably blessed recently. I have been offered the opportunity to travel, for a second time, to Bamenda, Cameroon with my husband, his (our) friend Brian, and my Father-In-Law Richard. We will be traveling soon to Cameroon to reunite with our friend Ngalim to volunteer with this organization The Greens.
According to Ngalim:
"The Greens is a not-for-profit, non-sectarian and apolitical youth enviro-agricultural and health organization that connects, inspires and collaborates with young change-makers to build thriving, just and sustainable ways of life for all.
The Greens is an association of youth-green fingers (global citizens) of both sexes and diverse cultural and religious backgrounds who strive to uproot environmental and health injustices through action and education; thus drawing inspiration from the color green, our ultimate goal is to Paint the World Green."
Ngalim is an amazingly proactive, passionate, and well-educated environmentalist. I am proud to call him a friend and mentor.
In order to prepare ourselves for our upcoming trip, Colby, Richard, Brian, Ngalim and myself took a Climate Change course offered by the Wilmette Institute to deepen our understanding on the topic. It was an INTENSE 8 week course that, in all honesty, I have yet to finish because of the amount of reading we have to do. However, it was extremely beneficial. The Wilmette Institute is a Baha'i sponsored online learning platform. Because the course was developed through the lens of religion, it covered both the spiritual and scientific aspects of climate change.
As a teacher, I strongly believe positive, sustainable changes happen through education. It then seemed obvious that a presentation should be given on our leanings from the Climate Change course.
We were having a benefit lunch to raise money for our trip to Cameroon and it seemed an appropriate time to present on climate change to our friends and family who were supporting us. The presentation was prepared by my now environmentalist husband, Colby. The presentation, discussions and questions ended up being about an hour long. We even had some climate change-skeptics in the crowd but we practiced toleration of our varying views and felt content knowing that we were able to create a safe space for people to discuss this issue.
I cannot share with you our entire presentation... that would make for an extremely long blog post. However, I will share my top insights given during the presentation:
1) Sustainability – Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
2) Spiritual Principles needed to mitigate climate change: Respect of the Earth’s finite carrying capacity, equity and justice in the distribution of wealth and natural resources, wisdom in looking towards the future, and unity in addressing challenges
3) Harmony of science and religion- both are tools to investigate reality.
Science asks “How does the universe work?”
Religion asks “Why is there a universe and what is its purpose? And what is my purpose?”
4) Climate Change and Global Warming Are Fact, Not Opinion
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which includes some of the world’s top scientists in Climatology, Geology, Physics, Chemistry, Oceanography, Biology, among other scientific disciplines, the global scientific community is “virtually certain” (99-100%) that the climate system is warming and has concluded that it is “extremely likely” (95-100%) that human influence is the dominant cause
5) Some impacts of climate change are:
Melting of Glaciers and Polar Ice Caps
Sea Level Rise
More Extreme Weather Events and Changes in Weather Patterns
Soil Erosion and Desertification
Deforestation and Forest Degradation
•Loss of Biodiversity
Ocean Acidification
Increase in Human Conflicts
6) Individual and societal actions to mitigate climate change must involve rethinking how we use energy (e.g. carbon-free power), transportation (e.g. walk, bike, public transport), and food (e.g. Organic and sustainable agriculture.
A teaching from the one of the leaders of the Baha'i faith, Shoghi Effendi, on individual and societal care of the environment states:
“We cannot segregate the human heart from the environment outside us and say that once one of these is reformed everything will be improved. Man is organic with the world. His inner life molds the environment and is itself also deeply affected by it. The one acts upon the other and every abiding change in the life of man is the result of these mutual reactions.”
Did you know that the average woman has her period once a month for around 40 years and uses somewhere between 11,000-17,000 tampons in a lifetime adding up to a whopping 250 to 300 pounds of garbage and $3,000 spent on pads, plugs, and applicators?
I didn’t…
This week on Green Resolutions I thought about taking an inevitable event that happens in my life whether I like it or not and greening it up a bit. How to turn “My friend in her little red car”, as some call their menstrual cycle, into “my friend driving a hybrid car”?
I’ve spoken with a couple friends about the idea of a menstrual cup. A menstrual cup is a silicone cup that fits into your vagina and can stay there for up to 12 hours and has the potential to last for several years depending on each individual’s usage and care taken to preserve it.
The idea of a “cup” made me squeamish but I felt confident that I could adjust my way of doing things “down there” for the sake of the environment.
I read several reviews of The Diva Cup that ranged from horrifying stories of getting it “stuck”, to the cup leaking, feeling very uncomfortable and causing severe cramping. Despite the negative reviews, there were several positive reviews of The Diva Cup being comfortable, reliable, and easy to use once you get the hang of it. The biggest factor for me was safety and the cup being much more environmentally friendly. So I bought it for $30.
A week after purchasing it, my friend in her little red car came by for her monthly visit (aka, I got my period). It was, like, 1:30 am when I woke up realizing I needed to take care of this situation and, I’m sorry, but at 1:30 in the morning I was not ready to use a silicone cup for the very first time. So I used a tampon and fell asleep.
I woke up and was ready to make the switch.Without going into too many graphic details, I had no problems with the cup.
It was a bit nerve-wrecking to take it out for the first time and getting through the whole“I think the cup is stuck!” bit involved a lot of self-talk, but I got through it with no incidents.
I’m happy to say that I think I’m hooked on The Diva Cup!
Additionally, I researched health impacts of using tampons and pads and didn’t like what I read. Here’s an excerpt from anarticle written by Alanna Ketler via Collective Evolution:
"Almost all sanitary napkins and tampons are made with bleached rayon, cotton and plastics. These products can leave behind fibers in your vagina that can cause bladder or vaginal infections, and the dreaded Toxic Shock Syndrome. Tampons are also known to absorb the natural fluids and bacteria’s that the vagina produces to stay clean and healthy. The number 1 ingredient in generic tampons and sanitary napkins is Rayon. Rayon is a fiber that is made from cellulose fibers, cellulose is a natural fiber, but to produce Rayon chemical procedures are needed that include: carbon disulphide, sulfuric acid, chlorine and caustic soda. Side effects from exposure to too much Rayon can include: nausea, vomiting, chest pain, headaches and many others. Tampons and pads are also bleached using chlorine, which results in the production of dioxin, which is linked to breast cancer, endometriosis, immune system suppression and various other ailments."
I found this nice visual of random facts on the history of the tampon:
Ever since Colby and I joined a Community Supported Agricultural (CSA) program (week 8) and cutting beef out of our diet (week 14), we've been heavily consuming vegetables to make our meals at home.
Week 2 of Green Resolution- No Plastic Grocery Bags, has also stopped me from using those thick plastic trash bags that cover scents oh so well. I now use a Planet Wise reusable trash bag which does not smell pretty after several days of rotting fruit/vegetable scraps.
Because there is such an abundance of fruit/veggie scraps, I asked myself how can I be less wasteful and more resourceful with the waste I'm producing. The answer was as clear as dirt!
The eventual solution I found was to start composting.
How does one compost in a condo with no garden of their own and no yard to call their own? Simple! Call your father-in-law and ask him if you can bring your compost scraps to his Compost Tumblers so he can use it on his garden. Duh!
Me and my compost bin!
Part of my father and Mother-in-Law's garden
Open containers....... dump........close........spin container to mix compost
For those of you whose father-in-laws do not have their own compost bins or gardens… Perhaps considering doing 1 or more of the following suggestions:
1) Start a garden in your home! Use the compost for your soil.
2) If you have no interest in starting a garden, ask a neighbor if they'd like your compost scraps.
3) if you have no interest in starting a garden nor does your neighbor, find a SCHOOL in your neighborhood you can donate it to. Several schools (including mine!) in my school district have gardens and would LOVE your donation.
4) Find a local community garden and offer your compost to them.
5) If 1-4 fail, ask a master gardener in your area their advice. They'll definitely know more info/resources than I! http://extension.arizona.edu/maricopamg
Something else cool I found out: The City of Phoenix has a new landfill diversion program that begun this past July as part of a larger sustainability initiative to divert 40% of yard waste into reusable resources by 2020.
Joe Trujillo, assistant public works director at the Phoenix Public Works Department, said there is great potential for otherwise disposed waste to be put a valuable use.
“There is no such thing as trash,” he said. “There are only resources.”
The “Green Organics Curbside Collection” program will give residents the option of receiving a new tan bin in which they would deposit all grass clippings, shrubs, branches and twigs for an additional $5 per month. The first phase will make the bins available to residents living within certain areas in the central corridor of Phoenix.
The organic material would then be transported to a new facility off 27th Avenue developed by the ASU Global Institute of Sustainability, where it will be converted into usable compost.
BENEFITS OF COMPOSTING:
Compost enriches soil-
Materials in a compost encourage helpful micro-organisms (bacteria and fungi for example) to break down organic matter into a nutrient-filled material known as humus… no not hummus like the kind you eat to make vegetables taste better. Humus contributes to moisture and nutrient retention in soil and ward off plant diseases and pests- decreasing the need for chemical fertilizers.
Compost helps clean contaminated soil-
During the composting process, icky things like Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can be emitted as gases from things like paint, cleaners, or pesticides, or polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are created when products like coal, oil, gas, and garbage are burned, are absorbed and treated or completely eliminated.
Compost helps prevent pollution
Composting organic materials that have been diverted from landfills ultimately avoids the production of methane and leachate (water acquiring properties from the crap it comes in contact with) formulation in the landfills. Compost has the ability to prevent pollutants in stormwater runoff from reaching surface water resources. Compost has also been shown to prevent erosion on banks parallel to creeks, lakes, and rivers,
Using compost helps the economy!
Using compost can reduce the need for water, fertilizers, and pesticides. It serves as a marketable good and is a low-cost alternative to standard landfill cover and artificial soil amendments. Composting also extends municipal landfill life by averting organic materials from landfills and provides a less costly alternative to conventional methods of cleaning contaminated soil.
I think this week's Green Resolution makes me the most happy to apply to my life. I LOVE animals and when I look at how contented they are with their life it makes me question why I choose to eat them. I think overall I wish we didn't kill ANY living thing... however, I know that perhaps animals such as cows, pigs, chickens, goats, etc. are available for humans to consume by some divine plan.
Still, it's scientifically obvious that we, like most things, have abused the privilege of hunting and consuming meat. Not only have we abused the amount of meat we are raising to slaughter, we are taking the ways in which we raise and slaughter to a new and dangerous level.
I've decided that for the remainder of my Green Resolution year (and hopefully beyond) I will not be a consumer of any beef products.
The production of livestock is one of the largest contributors to environmental degradation in the world. From local soil erosion to global climate change, the problems this industry causes run risks both environmentally and to our physical condition.
Livestock are greenhouse gas producing machines, accounting for 37% of the world's human produced methane. Methane is about 20 time more potent as a greenhouse gas than Carbon Dioxide( CO2).
Besides the animals themselves, the previously vegetated land cleared for pastures results in almost 10 percent of the entire share of human produced carbon dioxide as trees and plants when cut down release the CO2 they once held. Manure produced by these animals emits another potent greenhouse gas, nitrous oxide, which is almost 300x as powerful as carbon dioxide. Almost 1/5 of the human effect on climate is because of our addiction to meat — more than the entire transportation industry.
Like I said before, it's not just the environment that is being polluted… but us as and other living critters well.
According to Science News, 80 percent of all US feedlot cattle are injected with hormones
While the average dairy cow produced almost 5,300 pounds of milk a year in 1950, today, the average is more than 20,000 pounds
According to the European Union’s Scientific Committee on Veterinary Measures Relating to Public Health (SCVPH), the use of six natural and artificial growth hormones in beef production pose a potential risk to human health. When hormones are injected into cattle, some naturally occurring hormone levels can increase 7 to 20 times.
The SCVPH also questioned whether hormone residues in the meat of growth enhanced animals can disrupt human hormone balance, causing developmental problems, interfering with the reproductive system, and even leading to the development of breast, prostate and colon cancers.
Children, pregnant women, and developing embryos are thought to be most susceptible to negative health effects from added hormones. For example, hormone residues in beef have been examined as a cause of lower sperm counts in boys. The use of rBGH in dairy cows was linked in one study to increases in human twin and triplet births.
In the United States, cattle ranching and other livestock industries pollute our rivers with lethal levels of nitrogen and wash fertile soil away. It is estimated that 55 percent of erosion and sediment in the U.S. is caused by livestock, resulting in huge fish kills and dead zones in our rivers and oceans.
Producing livestock is also a main driver of water shortage problems. It takes a outrageous amount of water, sometimes up to100,000 liters, to produce just 2.2 pounds of grain-fed beef. Compare that to a cash crop like soybeans, which only requires an average of 2,000 liters per 2.2 pounds of food.
Livestock production is basically an ineffective way to use arable land (land suitable for growing crops). It takes over 50 times as much energy to produce one gram of beef protein rather than one gram of plant protein — energy that comes from grain we have to grow (or import). In fact, the U.S. could feed 800 million more people just with the grain we feed to livestock.
Simply put, the more meat we eat, the more damage we do to the environment.
But of course this journey I'm on is not about researching these issues and feeling hopeless. It's about action! If we all agreed to adjusting our meat-heavy diets, we could reduce erosion and water use while at the same time making a huge difference in making a less severe effect on the climate. Eating a more vegetarian diet will also put less pressure on the biodiversity hot spots like the Amazon Rainforest and help feed the world.
Plus, how much better will we look and feel if we all ate more fruits and vegetables?
Well, for starters, I’m sure as heck not buying a new costume that I will wear for a few hours then never put on again. I’ve made that mistake before. Also, I think I should wear a costume that goes along with my ideals, interests, and sends a message. Obviously that means I should be a recycling bin! (Seriously though, if you ask anyone who knows me, they’ll probably tell you stories of my obsession with recycling.) I should create minimal to no waste for my costume because that would defeat the purpose of the message I’m trying to send using my costume. I should be able to recycle most, if not all, of my costume once I’m done. I should look cute. My costume should be so obvious and well put together that no one should question what I am. These are my standards.
Boom! Done…
Another part of Halloween that cannot be ignored is the very reason why most kids get dressed up in the first place…. To knock on doors and get some ChOcOlAtE!!!! I thought about how much waste is created with all the tiny candies individually wrapped up for that 5 seconds of yummy chocolaty goodness. This was a clear part of Halloween to avoid for someone undergoing an environmental challenge.
I found all these candy wrappers walking from one building to another on my middle school campus. These kids should be dressed as litter bugs next Halloween!!!!!
But there was something deeper than the waste created when consuming chocolate that I was thinking about. Where does this chocolate come from? What kind of life is the farmer who grew the cocoa beans living? How much should I know about this chocolate that I’m shoving into my mouth for 5 seconds that may be effecting the entire life of the individual(s) who produced it?
I researched this topic and found a SUPER cute children’s story that simply and concisely explains this issue. If you’d like to read the whole story you can go to this website:
Please enjoy the abbreviated version of this story below and learn about where those tiny candies you’re hoarding from Halloween came from.
Do YOU like chocolate?
What’s your favorite kind?
The Olmecs and the Mayans, ancient tribes who lived in South Central Mexico and Central America, were the first peoples to have cocoa. They considered it to be a gift from the gods, and thought it was important for health and power. Can you imagine taking chocolate instead of vitamins? It was also used like we use money.
Do you know what chocolate is made of?
Chocolate is made of cocoa and cocoa butter or some other type of oil. It usually has sugar and sometimes milk, too. Cocoa beans grow on cocoa trees, inside pods that are the size and shape of a football!
Cocoa grows in forests that are warm and wet, often rain forests. In its natural environment, cocoa grows in the shade of larger trees, living together with other plants and animals understory layer of the forest. This is where cocoa trees get the moisture and protection from sun and wind they need to survive. They are located in the tropical regions around the equator.
The continents where cocoa grows are Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia. It begins with cocoa farmers. Every time you eat chocolate, hard-working farmers and farm workers that live in these faraway places are sharing something special with you.
When the cocoa pods that have been growing on the trees are ripe, farmers and farm workers harvest them by hand. This means that they cut them down from the trees with long knives. When the cocoa beans are dry enough, farmers sell the beans to their farmer cooperative or traders, who move the beans to ports.
The beans are shipped to factories in different parts of the world. Chocolate companies roast the cocoa beans in their factories and grind them into a thick paste that is used to make chocolate. Chocolate companies sell their chocolate to supermarkets and stores, who sell the chocolate to consumers— YOU!
When you go to buy a chocolate bar, what do you think about?
Have you thought about how the chocolate got here?
Do you think the cocoa farmers get a lot of the money you pay for the chocolate?
Cocoa farmers get only pennies for each chocolate bar you buy. Farmers do not get paid much for their cocoa beans because they do not get to decide what the price should be. Also, the price of cocoa changes all the time. One year, the price may be a good price. The next year, the price may be a bad price. All farmers can do is hope for a good price. The price is not based on how much it costs farmers to grow cocoa and how much money farmers need every year to take care of their families.
Because they don’t get paid very much, many cocoa farmers and their families are poor! Many cocoa farmers cannot even pay for things they need, like food and school uniforms for their children and trips to the doctor. Some farmers have to leave their farms because they can’t earn enough money to live by staying on their farms and growing cocoa.
Even though they grow cocoa, many cocoa farmers and their children have never eaten chocolate!
Sometimes the farm workers are children. They have to work very hard on cocoa farms all day because their parents are can’t afford to send their children to school or hire enough people to work on the farm. There are even some cocoa farm workers who are not paid at all for their work.
A worker who is not paid is called a slave. Slaves on cocoa farms are often children, brought from other countries to work far away from their homes and families.
Another problem that can happen with cocoa farming is that the forest gets cut down to grow more cocoa to sell.
Since cocoa trees do not grow as well outside of the forest, farmers on these large farms use a large amount of chemicals called pesticides to keep away bugs and diseases, and fertilizers that make plants grow faster. These chemicals make the water and air dirty. Many of the people and animals who breathe the dirty air and drink the dirty water get very sick. The soil can get damaged and sometimes it is difficult for plants and trees to grow in this soil in the future.
When the rainforest is cut down and chemicals are used, not as many living creatures can live there afterwards.
Some of these people have set up something called the Fair Trade certification system. It provides a solution for some of the problems with growing cocoa.
Think about the words Fair and Trade.
Chocolate from the Fair Trade certification system is different from other chocolate. The Fair Trade system pays farmers a decent price for their cocoa every year. This way, the price cannot suddenly drop.
With Fair Trade, the farmers earn more money so they can buy food and clothes, go to the doctor and send their children to school. The rules of the Fair Trade system say that farmers cannot use slaves or mistreat their workers. Children cannot be made to work all day. Many Fair Trade farmers work together in groups called cooperatives to help each other.
The Fair Trade system gives them a little extra money, too, to spend on their communities to try to make them better. The extra money is called the Fair Trade premium. Members of cooperatives vote so they can choose for themselves how to use the extra money.
They can choose to build schools or health clinics where they can go to the doctor. They also spend money on learning better ways to grow cocoa, so they can keep the forests healthy and make their beans taste even better when they are made into chocolate.
Fair trade farmers usually grow cocoa on small farms in the shade of the forest. They do not have to use lots of chemicals and can help protect the air, water, soil, forest plants and animals.
Kids eat chocolate. When you buy chocolate, companies that sell chocolate make money. They want you to like their chocolate so you will buy it. That is why they care a lot about what you think. And, if thousands of kids tell chocolate companies and businesses that sell chocolate that they want Fair Trade chocolate,
Gardening is such a beautiful way to connect with nature. There's something so meaningful about plucking your own green pepper off the stalk that gives you such a sense of accomplishment.
This week's Green Resolution is to start a garden. Colby and I live on the second floor in a condo so there's no place I'd be able to dig into to plant. I have several plants on my balcony and am not against the idea of urban gardening. But we use our balcony as a sort of storage for our bikes, compost bin, push cart, and broom so there's not much room left.
Also, the idea of benefiting more than myself and Colby through a garden seems like it would make the work put into it so much more worth it.
I work for a middle school in a special education classroom. I teach students who have been diagnosed with Autism and, knowing just a little more than the basics about the label, I knew that something as hands on and as "real" as growing your own food in a garden would really help my students develop needed life skills, connection to nature, and bring joy to everyone involved.
I've had to prepare for this resolution a few months in advance to gather all the materials. I started out by writing, what I thought to be, a really well-written letter to Home Depot asking for the necessary items we would need to start the garden. I also wrote why were were doing the project and the benefits that gardening would have on my students. That was about a month ago and I haven't heard back yet. I called them, but... I'm impatient and wanted to get started. I bought the seeds and dirt but needed to find out a way to plant them in something while I continue to research how I can get the materials for a raised garden bed at my school.
Let me tell you, if you EVER need ANY AWESOME ideas on ANYTHING, go to Pinterest. I planned my wedding and decorated my entire home using Pinterest. Me and my awesome friend/co-worker Lindsey joke that the curriculum we use is Pinterest. Here's what I found:
Upcycled Shovel
The Greenhouse Space Saver
We're blessed to have the support of many people in this project. Our occupational therapist's husband made us a garden bed and my instructional assistant is making us the above pictures greenhouse space saver. Here are some pictures of the beginning of our garden project:
We started by finding a location safe from foot traffic, gets enough sunlight, and close enough to our classroom.
We collected use milk jugs from staff members. We cut them in half, poked holes in the bottom and placed rocks in them for proper drainage.
We had SO many milk jugs donated, we were able to use some and make shovels out of the handle part of the milk jugs. They worked perfectly!!
Time to plant the seeds! We assisted our students to gently place a few seeds at a time in the dirt. They eventually were able to put the seeds in independently!
So, not only did we use the bottom of a milk carton as planters and the handle of a milk carton as a shovel, we used the top portion of the left over milk cartons as a watering cans!
We planted: Cilantro, carrots, spinach, cabbage, peas and cucumbers.
:
The finished project (for now!):
I'll post more pictures as we get more materials and once our vegetables begin to grow!
Despite the understanding that a cheese quesadilla, fiery taco and beef chalupa, from Taco Bell will cause me to gain weight, kill my liver kidneys, and heart and cause me to have low self-esteem… I CRAVE them! I live about a 1 minute walk from Taco Bell and a 3 minute walk from McDonalds and when I’ve had a long day, I’m hungry and know I don’t want to go home and make something with the food in my refrigerator, I cave.
Enjoy this funny-because-it’s-true bit from Jim Gaffigan on pleasure and shame we get from eating at McDonalds.
A lot of what has been happening in Green Resolutions turns out to be not only helpful for the environment, but will also improve the health of Colby and I (healthier Earth, healthier you! healthier you, healthier Earth! ).
This week’s Resolution is no exception. I plan on cutting out the $170 billion–a-year fast food industry from my diet. Here’s why:
Packaging-
So much packaging and waste comes from the fast-food joints. The bags, wrappers, napkins, boxes, Styrofoam containers, plastic-ware, etc; is the primary source of urban litter in the United States. Fast-food packaging counts for 20% of our litter.
All of this will be instant trash once the meal is over
and will sit in a landfill (unless thrown carelessly on the ground)
Animals-
Fast food places sell an awful lot of meat. Most, if not all, of this meat is produced at factory farms, which contribute more to global warming than all of our cars put together.
supply the fast food industry’s demand for vast volumes of animal products at the lowest possible cost by crowding animals together to conserve space pumping them full of non-therapeutic antibiotics and artificial growth hormones, amputating body parts to avoid unnatural stress-induced injuries, and slaughtering them at breakneck speeds on mechanized disassembly lines
Many of their products are transported long distances, before they reach your tray or bag, further increasing their impact on air quality.
The industry’s enormous purchasing power and demand for vast amounts of cheap animal products are among the principle driving forces behind factory farming, as well as the massive government subsidies for staple animal feed crops like corn and soy that sustain it.
According to a landmark report by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, the livestock sector (and factory farming in particular) is “one of the top two or three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global the world faces today.”
Cow, Chicken, and Pig "Farms"
Land -
Millions of acres of forest are clear-cut every year to manufacture fast food packaging, which comprises approximately one-fifth of all litter in the U.S.
Toxins-
To prevent grease leakage, many fast food companies coat their paper packaging with perfluoroalkyls, which are toxic compounds that harm the environment and human health.
Human Health-
Volumes of peer-reviewed scientific studies conclusively correlate the consumption of “meat” and other animal products with many of the deadliest medical disorders plaguing humankind today, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, and obesity.
The overall U.S. obesity rate has more than doubled since 1980, with more than two-thirds of adults and about one-fifth of all children now being overweight or obese.
Injustice-
As seen in commercials, billboard ads, and various other marketing methods, fast food corporations are now extending their outreach more and more to young people. This creates a “Obesogenic Environment” in which close proximity to fast foods (often at the expense of access to healthier options) increases people’s consumption of these products—along with the girth or their waistlines.
A similar pattern of fast food concentration is also generally found throughout low-income areas and communities of color, where there are on average 30 percent fewer supermarkets than in middle- and high-income regions.
More can be read on the issue of low income communities and fast-food establishments at the websites below:
I learned that whenever you “extinct” one habit there must be another positive habit to replace it. Colby and I recently joined a Community Supported Agriculture Program where we receive a weekly box of local, in season produce to create healthy meals to devour when I’ve had a long day.
Of course there are exceptions to every rule and I have one for this week’s resolution which was made with my love of Dunkin Donuts coffee in mind. As long as I don’t create any waste, I can get a coffee. I bring my reusable coffee mug with me and I’m good to go!
Week 10 of Green Resolutions had me thinking about the amount of water I consumed daily. After some research, I chose the following actions to carry forth for the rest of the year:
1) Place a bucket in my shower to catch the extra water that otherwise would just go down the drain. I then will use that water to water my plants (I have 10 plants total to water) and any extra I will dump on a tree or bush to place back into our ground water.
2) Turn shower on only to: get it wet initially, rinse shampoo, condition, body soap.
3) Use dish washer instead of hand washing dishes. Why? The average dishwasher uses 6 gallons of water per cycle ; the average Energy Star-rated dishwasher uses 4 gallons per cycle while the average faucet flows at 2 gallons per minute. I don't think Colby and I wash our dishes in 3 minutes… which would be the equivalent of 6 gallons which is all my dish washer uses (if not less because I put it on water saving setting).
4) Make and use a toilet dam. What's that? Watch this video!
Why am I doing all of this?
WE are all water creatures. In fact, most of us and our Earth is made of the stuff.
60% of our body is water
70% of our brain is water
80% of our blood is water
71% of our Earth is water
We can live 1 month without food but only 1 week without water. The same water that existed billions of years ago still exists today; so you may be asking yourself: "What's with this water shortage business?"
What does "water shortage" mean?
Most people know that only a very small percent of our Earths water is suitable for human consumption. In fact, only 3% of Earth's water is fresh (no salt) but most of that is ice so in actuality less than 1% of water is drinkable (.007%).
Water scarcity is the lack of sufficient available water resources to meet the demands of water usage within a region.. The water we can drink can be insufficient for various reasons such as:
Population growth
Food production
Climatic change and variability
Land use
Water quality
Water demand
Access to clean, safe water to drink is also a problem for many. The amount of fresh, uncontaminated water is shrinking due to air and land pollution , sewage, oil discharges from industries, waste dumping into water bodies, radioactive waste from mining activities as well as dirty water from sanitation work in hospitals, hotels, oil companies, mining, schools and restaurants all end up polluting our waters.
In developed countries that use fresh water resources for bathroom use, laundry, dishes, drinking etc. are consuming water at an astronomical rate. In fact, the average American uses 80-100 gallons of water per day; whereas people in "underdeveloped" countries often live on as little as 5 gallons a day.
Please enjoy (a.k.a. study and deeply reflect upon) the following picture facts on water that I obtained from an AWESOME website: Water.org
Lack of access to clean water and sanitation kills children at a rate equivalent of a jumbo jet crashing every four hours.
Nearly 1.5 million children under the age of five die every year from diarrhea globally.
Diarrhea is the second leading cause of death among children under five in the world. Around 1.5 million deaths each year - nearly one in five – are caused by diarrhea. It kills more children than malaria, AIDS, and measles combined.
I LOVE drinks. I should preface the rest of this by mentioning I do not drink alcohol, but teas, coffee, juices, flavored water, "vitamin" water, carbonated drinks, protein drinks; you name it I'll try it!
I have a habit of going to Circle K for gas and I'll add a Starbucks coffee in a can, Peace Tea, Snapple, Monster, your occasional pop (soda) to the bill. Or if I go to Spouts I’ll grab a large peach tea in a can to drink right then and there because I’ve convinced myself I need the extra caffeine.
Seems pretty normal, no?
That’s because it totally is normal. But that begs the questions, should this habit of drinking up a liquid trapped inside a container made out of various natural resources and other chemicals that are made to last forever, to only throw it in the nearest receptacle (most likely a trash can) where it will then be transported to a landfill that could be near by or states away to sit there, for thousands upon thousands of years be considered normal? Well, I don’t know about you, but I’m beginning to rethink what our society deems “normal”.
If Jennifer's doing it, I'm totally doing it!
This week’s Green Resolution was to give up anything contained in a plastic bottle or a can. Here’s why:
Facts about plastic bottles (and plastics in general)-
Enough plastic is thrown away each year to circle the earth four times.
Americans throw away 35 billion plastic water bottles every year
Plastic accounts for around 10% of the total waste we generate.
The production of plastic uses around 8% of the world’s oil.
24 million gallons of oil are needed to produce a billion plastic bottles
Plastic in the ocean breaks down into such small segments that pieces of plastic from a one liter bottle could end up on every mile of beach throughout the world.
It takes 500-1,000 years for plastic to degrade.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is located in the North Pacific Gyre off the coast of California and is the largest ocean garbage site in the world. This floating mass of plastic is twice the size of Texas.
plastic pieces in the ocean outnumbering sea life six to one.
Plastic constitutes approximately 90 percent of all trash floating on the ocean’s surface, with 46,000 pieces of plastic per square mile.
One million sea birds and 100,000 marine mammals are killed annually from plastic in our oceans.
44 percent of all seabird species, 22 percent of cetaceans, all sea turtle species and a growing list of fish species have been documented with plastic in or around their bodies.
Virtually every piece of plastic that was ever made still exists in some shape or form (with the exception of the small amount that has been incinerated).
Plastic chemicals can be absorbed by the body—93 percent of Americans age six or older test positive for BPA (a plastic chemical).
Some of these compounds found in plastic have been found to alter hormones or have other potential human health effects.
And if these alarming facts aren’t enough for ya….
90% of the cost of bottled water is due to the bottle itself
80% of plastic bottles are not recycled
38 million plastic bottles go to the dump per year in America from bottled water (not including soda)
Bottling and shipping water is the least energy efficient method ever used to supply water
PHEW!!! That’s it, no more plastics in my life, my husbands life, our children’s life, our grandchildren’s life… not while I’m alive at least!
So it turns out Aluminum is one of the most abundant elements found in rocks, soil , vegetation, and water. Alumimum can be recycled over and over and over, again and again and again and it will not lose it’s quality. In fact, 75% of aluminum that has ever been made is still in productive use today! This is great!
It’s important when you DO use cans to recycle them. Recycling aluminum takes 95% less energy than producing it from raw materials and produces only 5% greenhouse gases to recycle.
The one major detail to learn is that aluminum is a nonrenewable resource… meaning a resource that cannot replace itself as quickly as it is being consumed. Case in point: please recycle your cans.
As for me, I am choosing to not partake in anything from a can both for the sake of reducing the amount of materials I consume, as well as to sacrifice a guilty pleasure that is absolutely not a need in my life.
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