Potential Pet Problems

I may be embarking on a highly controversial topic here, but have you considered the most eco-friendly ways to approach pet ownership? In our consumer culture, we are often suprised to find that certain problems even exist as a result of common behaviors. Take your pet’s poop, for instance; I never thought that having too many pets could contribute to landfill and water contamination issues–until I read this article by Sheryl Eisenberg of the Natural Resources Defense Council. She explores the delicate issue of poop disposal for dogs and cats. The bottom line? Trash disposal is best, but if you leave the waste on the ground, it’s best to keep it to your own yard–and to keep the pet population to a minimum.

Recyling water filters

After much petitioning, a grassroots campaign has succeeded in persuading Brita water filtration company to provide a recycling program for their plastic water filters. Go here to learn more, and go here to refill your own! (Thanks IdealBite!)

Getting Started on Green Resolutions

Today, some web resources to help you get motivated:

• If you don’t use compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) because they’re not warm and homey enough, consider these top picks featured at Low Income Living.
• More Green for Less Green has recently posted tips on how to make your own cheaper, greener versions of everything from produce bags to dish soap, not to mention the great ideas for saving on groceries–and no, you haven’t heard it all before!
• If you resolved to become more aware of and involved in environmental issues, log on to EarthNews, a blog-format news engine supported bySupported by the Environmental Information Coalition and the National Council for Science and the Environment.

Seen and Heard

Seen: A new element of style. Some creative folks in the Netherlands have created a font that uses up to 20% less ink. Get it free for your computer here. (Thanks to DailyCandy for the tip-off).

Heard: Imperiled bird songs. Audubon published a beautiful and frightening article about Canada’s endangered boreal forest and the North American birds that depend on it for survival. Read about it, and hear the birds sing, at the Boreal Songbird Initiative’s important website.

A few green things

What’s on my radar:

• I can’t watch it myself, but if you have CNN and care about the state of the planet, then be sure to tune in for Planet in Peril: Battle Lines at 9 p.m. ET on Thursday, December 11. Lisa Ling, Anderson Cooper, and Dr. Sanjay Gupta host a global investigation into “environmental conflicts between growing populations and natural resources including the threat of global warming to both humans and wildlife.” More info is available here.
• The National Wildlife Federation has a hopeful rundown of what’s in and what’s out following the recent elections.
• Ten great green sites for all tastes from a great blog, GreenHackz.
• It’s advisable to stretch your imagination and optimism from time to time with the latest in green innovation–take this vertical farming of the future, for instance.

Lower bills and energy use

TheNest.com has some novel tips for reducing energy loss in your home, as well as lowering other bills:

10 Ways to Cut Monthly Bills

Green Deeds That Save You Money

In the current economy, it’s harder to be consciously green. Some of us (myself included) might feel guilty when we can’t afford the organic this or the non-polluting that. There are, however, eco-friendly actions that can make a difference while saving us cash, and that’s something to be proud about. Below, five frugal ways to care:

• Stop the bottled water habit. Invest in a Brita-style water filtration system to cut down on needless resource and money waste.
• Buy fewer convenience foods. Look up recipes online for your favorite frozen or canned prepared meals and learn to cook them yourself for a lighter grocery bill and landfill load. Be careful, though; the ingredients you buy for some foods, like pizza, may add up to more than the prepared version’s price, so shop carefully.
• Unplug sleeping appliances. Summer’s fans and the T.V. in the guest bedroom aren’t doing your electric bill any favors, so unplug appliances not in use to save between 6 and 26% on your monthly payments.
• Keep your tires inflated. It might be a small difference, but improving your gas mileage is always good news for you and the planet, and it’s doesn’t cost much if you’re already at the gas station.
• Make it last. In our consumer society, folks are often more inclined to throw something away when the going gets tough than to attempt a repair. Next time your favorite clothes get ripped, stained, or too small, consider learning some basic sewing skills and care techniques to extend their life. Also, it may be cheaper to repair an appliance with a simple problem than to send it packing, but according to Nick Harder of the Orange County Register, “If the cost of repairing the appliance is more than 50 percent of its replacement cost, buy a new appliance.” Consult an expert when diagnosing the problem, but if it’s really time for it to go, don’t throw it away–recycle!

Coalition to Sue the EPA; Great Lakes Now Protected

From the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s website:

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF), the Virginia State Waterman’s Association, the Maryland Watermen’s Association, the Maryland Saltwater Sportfishermen’s Association, former Maryland Governor Harry Hughes, retired Maryland Senator Bernie Fowler, former Virginia legislator and Natural Resources Secretary Tayloe Murphy, and former Washington D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams today notified the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that they intend to go to federal court to force EPA to require pollution reduction in the Chesapeake Bay.

Visit CBF’s website if you want to watch a video statement, sign a petition supporting the action, or learn how to attend a upcoming rally. Do you think the action is justified? How should we go about saving the Bay?

On a happier note, a historic law now protects the Great Lakes from “depletion and diversions,” according to the Great Lakes Natural Resource Center’s press release.

Going the extra mile: two web resources

In contrast to those things that veterans of the environmental movement consider essential actions of the green life, there are new issues arising all the time, and each one tests our determination to be eco-friendly. Today I have two ideas for those wanting a new challenge.

I have to admit, there are few environmental concerns more disturbing to me than increasing levels of pharmaceuticals in our lakes and rivers. I know I defer to them so often that I should have stake in the company, but Ideal Bite has a wonderful article and set of links for those wanting to dispose of their used prescriptions in a responsible way. I’m inspired to ask at my pharmacy if they have a recycling program.

Another issue requiring extra effort, depending on where you shop anyway, is that of virgin hardwoods being used for many tissue paper products on the mass market. I admit to being a Kleenex user; I guess I have to up the ante after reading the Natural Resources Defense Council’s Bird Friendly Shopper’s Guide to common paper goods that are and aren’t friendly to forests. Check for your brands–and their greener alternatives–if you dare!

A Big Step for Boreal Forests

For all of you who signed the Boreal Songbird Initiative petition I posted on the Conservation Page a few months ago, this news should be especially heartening: Ontario’s leader has pledged to preserve 55 million acres of boreal forest (home to prime songbird habitat and climate-regulating trees) in large tracts, a move hailed by conservationists. You can read more about it at the International Boreal Conservation Campaign’s webpage.