I’ve been thinking about selling my townhome and buying a house that actually has a yard. A YARD! Can you imagine the possibilities? I can grow my own vegetables! I can have a place to sit outside!
Well, with a yard comes great responsibilities. That is, taking care of the lawn. I grew up in the midwest where our family had a pretty decent size yard (about a half an acre) and I have to admit, I never once touched a lawn mower. I am such a princess.
Anyway, I’m kind of excited about the possibility of having my own lawn to take care of - and have been thinking about push mowers. Paul thinks that this is not a good idea because he believes they would be hard to push, but I hear this is not really true anymore.
Another option would be to get an electric mower - at least this would still cut down on the pollution.
Anyone have any experience with either? Recommendations would be appreciated!
It was only a matter of time before this happened. Planet Green, the first and only (so far) 24-hour channel devoted to eco-friendliness just launched. Planet Green is part of the parent company that own the Discovery Channel, which I admit is one of my favorite channels. I never thought non-fiction television could be so compelling – and I’m not talking about “reality TV” folks.
Planet Green offers both television and online content focused around all things green. This includes not only tips and suggestions to help make your life more green, but also the latest green technology, how others are going green, and how you can detoxify your home and your lifestyle. As Planet Green says, it, along with TreeHugger.com, is helping to energize and move the green conversation into the spotlight.
There is a handy channel finder for you to located the channel it’s on in your area and with your particular subscriber. It’s even offered in HD quality if you want to be really blown away by green! They appear to have some great programming that I can’t wait to start watching.
Here’s a list of some products which contain palm oil. I’m sure there’s a lot more out there, but it’s hard to tell because many manufacturers say their products have “vegetable oil” rather than calling out palm oil explicitly. Anyway, I urge you to take a look at this list - I’ll bet all of you have at least a few of these products in your homes today. Here are just a FEW of the things that I have at home (or consume regularly) that have palm oil: Quaker Chewy Chocolate Chunk Granola Bars, Lindt truffles, Pepperidge Farms Pirouettes, Kellogg’s Eggos Waffles… (OK, I know I just listed off a lot of items containing chocolate - now you know I have a big sugar problem.)
So, what can you do to help? Well, I personally don’t believe the answer is in boycotting these products altogether as this may have a long term negative impact on the people indigenous to those areas where palm oil is produced. Instead, we need to pressure these companies to be more environmentally responsible. New standards and regulations should be put in place to minimize (and hopefully eliminate) environmental destruction.
Feel the need to do more? Write directly to manufacturers - believe it or not, these companies do listen (sometimes). Or, consider getting involved with support organizations such as Greenpeace, which is increasing consumer attention and awareness of the problems of palm oil production.
As I mentioned in my previous post, we have a situation on our hands with respect to the production of palm oil. It’s certainly not helped by the fact that big U.S. based agribusinesses are keeping demand for palm oil high. The big companies are Cargill, Bunge and Archer Daniels Midland (ADM). Never heard of them? Yeah, me neither. So here’s some more info on these companies, which I got from the Rainforest Action Network site (a very good site, I might add).
U.S. agribusiness giants ADM, Bunge and Cargill are the ABCs of rainforest destruction: They dominate the world markets for palm oil and soy crops that are grown on cleared rainforest lands.
ADM is deeply involved in the production and sale of palm oil. It is also one of the greatest recipients of government subsidies, which means taxpayers are footing the bill for ADM’s rainforest destruction. An ADM affiliate, Wilmar, is the largest palm oil producer in the world, and its practices are among the most destructive.
Bunge, though not a household name in the U.S., is the largest agribusiness and food company operating in Brazil. While Bunge is primarily involved in soy operations that are devastating communities and ecosystems throughout South America, it is also among the largest importers of palm oil into the United States.
Cargill is the most powerful agribusiness and commodity trading group in the world. It owns a dozen plantations in Indonesia and Malaysia, where it grows oil palm on freshly cleared rainforest land. It is also a major global trader of palm oil.
Next up - some products which contain palm oil…and how you can help.
About five weeks ago, I wrote that I would go the entire summer without using my air conditioner. Sadly, it’s not even summer, and I already broke down.
Yesterday afternoon and evening, I had guests staying over and used my air conditioner. I admit it felt really good to have the cool air against my hot, sweaty skin. I had four people staying over, including a baby who had a fever. I guess that gives me a little bit of an excuse since the baby was running a fever and everyone wanted to use the air conditioner. Does it make it right someone else asked to turn it on? Not really. Does it make me feel a little better telling everyone? Maybe just a tad.
I will say it reached 97 degrees yesterday (which is boiling hot by San Francisco Bay Area standards), and it was well over 100 degrees in my house. While I’m at it, I might as well admit that I’ll probably have it on again tonight since they will be staying over one more night. I hope I don’t break down too many more times. These posts aren’t really that fun to write. Will you forgive me?
I’ve been thinking about selling my townhome and buying a house that actually has a yard. A YARD! Can you imagine the possibilities? I can grow my own vegetables! I can have a place to sit outside!
