Posts tagged ‘second-hand’
Eco-friendly Wet Weather Gear
In case you have missed it (and if you don’t live in South East Queensland, then it’s entirely likely you have), Brisbane has been experiencing some seriously wet weather. My shed has flooded for the first time ever. On Tuesday, we had the wettest day in 23 years. It’s been pretty crazy.
And I have a broken umbrella.
Fortunately, Yankee Elv had a spare unbroken umbrella, so I’ve been using that, but it did get me thinking about the broken state of my umbrella. One of the metal spines (arms? prongs? what do you call them?) is snapped in half and the nylon fabric has become detached from another metal bit. It was a pretty cheap umbrella to start with. The plastic handle was really uncomfortable and it was super flimsy. As one blogger, Sharon Russell, said:
“Many people have adopted the belief that buying several cheap umbrellas is less costly than buying one umbrella of good quality that will last a few years. Instead, they simply plan to replace broken umbrellas whenever they need to.”
I must say, I have fallen prey to this attitude. What’s worse, when I stopped to think about, it occurred to me that pretty much every bit of an umbrella is non-biodegradable and non-recyclable. Also, considering the cheapness, I’m pretty sure it’s not made from recycled materials. A bummer all around.
So this led me to thinking… what kind of environmentally sustainable wet weather gear might there be available? The answer: not much.
Treehugger has a nice list of umbrellas, but everything is American (except one, which is British). I found a Dutch raincoat (but seriously, brown and yellow? what possessed them?), however it looks a bit thick for our climate. It mostly rains in summer here. Ecouterre has a list of raincoats but they are all so expensive! There are some good, inexpensive, Australian umbrellas made from recycled umbrellas available at Positive Impact, but they only sell them in sets of 1000 or more for corporate clients. I think that might be a couple too many. Even ebay can’t help me. 
I guess I could go for the Urban Dictionary definition.
Does anyone know where I could get some eco-friendly wet weather gear?
Short of making my own raincoat out of the one Ikea bag I happen to have available and would rather like to keep?
Reduce: Green(washed) Bags
You know how everyone raves about green bags? We have a bunch of them at our place, in our efforts to reduce the number of plastic bags we bring home from the grocery shop. You all heard me rattle on about my unwilling connection to plastic bags, and my alternative green bags a while ago.
Well, it turns out green bags aren’t so green after all.
I had a suspicion this was the case. I knew they were made from plastic, but I already owned the green bags and never really bothered to look into it. Bad hippy, I know. Anyway, now I know the deal:
- Green bags are also made of plastic (which comes from oil and biodegrades extremely slowly)
- Green bags are difficult to recycle
- If green bags are recycled, they make nasty thermoplastic elastomer (used in things like snowmobile tracks, shoe soles and catheters)
- Green bags tend to be manufactured overseas and thus plenty of energy is expended getting them to you
- Green bags break too, eventually (trust me on this!) and are difficult to repair
- The piece of black plastic in the bottom of the bag snaps and is generally a pain in the arse (it’s not recyclable either).
Ok, so the last two I added myself, but they are just as valid.
We buy 5kg bags of basmati rice in a cotton bag (sort of like the little one on the right).
Do I think green bags are a better option than regular plastic bags? Sure thing. It’s still better to reuse plastic a bunch of times than go for single use items. However, if we can make the same product out of natural, biodegradable fibre (like our Guard basmati rice bags), isn’t that an even better choice?
Review: Reverse Garbage
Yankee Elv and I went to Reverse Garbage today to kick-start our Christmas shopping. As always, the place inspired me, so I came home and wrote a review.
Reverse Garbage is awesome
Check it (the review) out!
Reduce: Tissues
I’ve been feeling guilty about not making a bunch of hankies a bit sooner, like I said I was going to. Reusable hankies will help me stop using tissues so much. That being said, I don’t often need to blow my nose, except when I’m sick.
But when I’m sick… oh boy.
I’ve just gotten over a sinus sort of thing. At the height of it, I used about 4 boxes of tissues. As Yankee Elv so eloquently put it as I went to recycle box #1: ‘You killed a tree today!’
Yeah, thanks. Now I feel more guilty.
My only consolation is that I would have had to use some tissues anyway, cos there’s no way I would have made enough hankies to keep up. My biggest regret outside of the environmental factors is that apparently cloth hankies are softer on your nose than paper, and my nose got sooooo chafed.
Another thing I’ve been doing to try to reduce my tissue usage is make these flannelette face wipes. I’ve been slowly hand sewing them out of old, ripped pairs of pyjama pants.
Flannelette facial wipes made out of old pyjama pants
I use tissues to apply my witch hazel toner, so these will dramatically reduce my tissue consumption. I tried one out yesterday and it worked well! I was worried it was going to take a lot more witch hazel to soak through the material than it does to soak through a tissue, but it didn’t actually, so that was unexpectedly good news. (Especially since I’m using bloody expensive organic witch hazel so I could refill my bottle rather than buy a new one. I’m still not sure whether I’m going to do that again.)
I got the idea to make flannelette facial wipes from this post on the Towards Sustainability blog, but I made up my own pattern. All I did to make one was cut two circles out of flannelette, put them together (right sides facing each other, so the un-sewn pad was inside-out) and sew around the edges using a regular hand-stitch. Once I’d sewn all around the edge except for a little gap, I turned it right side out and carefully sewed up the gap. Then I sewed all around the edge in blanket stitch to make it look pretty and to ensure the two pieces were securely attached. Voila! Facial wipes.
Now they facial wipes are done, I’m moving on to the hankies. For once my chunky thighs are paying off – more pj pants material with which to make hankies! Wasn’t that just so totally Pollyanna?
Reduce: Paper
I hate paper.
Ok, I don’t really. Actually, sometimes I love paper – like when I want to read a book (that I already own or have borrowed from the library – I try to avoid buying new ones). But I do like to avoid using paper unless I really have to. I’m especially conscious of it when I’m at work – reading on-screen and using notepads made from old company letterhead.
This article outlines some tips you can follow to help you reduce your reliance on paper. I don’t think digitising your existing paper is necessary for any reason other than personal preference though – you already have the paper anyway.
The other thing I would suggest is to consider other sources of paper that you can also reduce:
- Paper cups and other disposable ‘crockery’
- Tissues and toilet paper
- Paper towels
- Paper and cardboard food packaging (buy in bulk to reduce the amount of packaging).
Of course, that’s just reducing. There’s an awful lot of reusing and recycling that could occur – but reducing should come first.
Reduce: Tool Replacement. Grr.
Ok, I’m a bit ticked off.
We have a push mower – my parents gave it to Yankee Elv and I as a Christmas present in 2007. We were really happy to have it. Our yard is quite small, so it was great to have an eco-friendly (no fuel required!) way of keeping it in shape. It’s very achievable to mow it by hand and it’s a good work-out. I prefer it – I’m always paranoid that pebbles will fly from under a regular mower and hit me in the leg.
Ozito push mower, with blades no-one will sharpen or replace.
Anyway, the blades on the push mower are dull. We have been trying for more than 6 months to find someone to sharpen or replace the blades and no-one will do it. Bunnings used to (that’s where my parents bought it originally), but apparently it’s too cost-prohibitive for them to continue anymore. Everyone else has the same excuse. We’ve called mower places, hardware stores and tool shops. We even reached out on Freecycle and had someone agree to do it for us, but then he backed out. I emailed the mower company and got no reply. I’m very frustrated!
The mower is not usable, and we can’t continue whipper snipping the lawn, small though it may be. The day before yesterday, Yankee Elv went to Bunnings – one of those shops that won’t sharpen my current mower’s blades! – and bought a new mower. The fact that she needed to do that really pisses me off!! We got an electric mower, so at least we can use green power rather than gasoline… but that’s really not the point. The push mower we have is just fine.
It annoys me that people feel it’s not worth keeping up a perfectly good product because of their impact on their bank account. What about the impact on the environment? It’s not like the damned mower is recyclable even.
Grr.
Reuse: Denim Insulation
Ever thought of using denim jeans for building insulation? These folks have.
Typically, insulation is made from fibreglass. Fibreglass is exactly what is sounds like – tiny glass fibres. In an earlier post I discussed (at a high level) manfacture of glass. It’s not fabulous for the environment (although better than plastic in my opinion). I would definitely say blue jeans are better. They’re better for people and the environment. I like that the jeans are either old ones that would otherwise be discarded, or denim off-cuts from denim manufacturers. Considering cotton (which denim is made of) is such a water-intensive crop, however, is the best choice for the environment though?
If it was up to me, I’d go strawbale. The straw is just leftovers from grain crops, cheap, easy to construct and very effective.
An exterior truth window on a strawbale house, showing the straw inside. Photo from Paso Straw Bale Construction Blog.
Besides, strawbale* is pretty. I like it.
I wonder if the federal government would provide a rebate on building a strawbale house, under their insualtion scheme? Somehow, I doubt it. Hmm.
*Photo from Paso Straw Bale Construction Blog.
Spotlight: Digital Dumping Grounds
I knew developing countries were, to a degree, the rubbish dumps for electronic waste (e-waste) shipped in from developed nations, but I didn’t know how bad it was. I watched this episode of Frontline World this morning that really made it hit home for me. Here’s the promo:
You can access the full 20 minute segment about Ghana here. Sorry Deafies, there are no captions (which annoys the shit out of me – c’mon PBS!), but underneath the video there is a transcript of the segment (if it’s not exact, it’s pretty close). You can also see some photos with captions here on Jane Hahn‘s site.
It’s not just Ghana either – Vietnam, Pakistan, Malaysia, China and lots of other third-world nations are being taken advantage of. In fact, the segment discussed how the average computer-owner (and dumper) is also being taken advantage of, by companies who say they’re dumping responsibly, but who ship out unusable computers for reuse. Clearly, since they’re unusuable, they’re only going to become scrap, but labelling them ‘for reuse’ enables their export courtesy of a legal loophole.
I have a bunch of e-waste here at my place that I was looking to dispose of responsibly, but now I’m unsure how I can do that if I can’t even trust the recycling companies. Plus, I want to make sure no-one has access to my data (that image of the FBI guy smashing the hard drive with the hammer also make an impression on me). Is it really best for the environment for me to be smashing stuff up, regardless of how cathartic that may be? However, is it best for me to not smash it? Ghana is one of the world’s leading areas of cyber crime, after all – there’s has to be link between that and the dumping of e-waste, it’s too convenient a co-incidence.
The one ‘positive’ thing to come out of the whole thing isn’t even very good. I wrote a while ago about the impact of metal mining on the environment (here and here). Trawling through the e-waste for scraps of copper and other precious metals does at least eliminate the need for so much mining… but at what cost? The toxic fumes produced by the burning needed to scavenge this metal is detrimental to both the environment and the unsuspecting people who participate, not to mention every man and his dog who lives nearby.
Aside from making pretty earrings, and giving away old items on Freecycle, what can we do with this stuff? Does anyone know of a recycler who actually recycles stuff responsibly without exporting it?
Op-Shop Art and Puppetry
We (the whole human Elvish family plus the Dyke Mike) went to see a marionette show tonight at the Judith Wright Centre for Contemporary Arts. It’s called The Grimstones (watch a trailer here) and was presented in English and Auslan. Yankee Elv is Deaf, so this was particularly cool as she could understand everything that was going on- mostly at least, as Auslan is different to ASL after all – which is not often the case with live theatre. I was extremely impressed, it was so well done. I really liked the way the humans (puppeteers) and marionettes interacted with each other, but not in a creepy ventriloquist way. The movements of the marionettes were life-like, and the sets were incredibly intricate. It made me imagine what watching silent films must have been like, but with voiced/signed narration between scenes, rather than text appearing on screen.
Marionettes from The Grimstones
Another thing that really impressed me was that most of the sets were made using reused materials. For example, an old candlestick was revamped (cushion added, painted etc) to make one character’s sewing stool. A bottle in the apothecary was made from an old bottle top. I liked the sustainable nature of it all.
It wasn’t commercial, the way so many types of mass-produced forms of entertainment (like movies) are, which also appealed to me. Afterwards there were drinks (including a really nice Cabernet Merlot from Kissing Bridge) and fancy nibblies, such as cute, tasty cupcakes. We wandered around backstage, looking at posters outlining the production of the sets and marionettes, and at the book the artist published. We also had time to chat with the artist, Asphyxia and co-star/partner, Paula (they met as circus performers in Melbourne years ago), while Dyke Mike was cornered by a lady talking very determinedly about perfume, and Mr Teeny-bop vacillated between the snack table and the posters. We rounded off the evening with a rather expensive tapas dinner (a send off for DM, who is leaving the country on Thursday), some fruity sangria and a silly train ride home.
When I got home, I briefly looked up Asphyxia’s blog, only to find out that she’s a big environmentalist. No wonder the show was sustainably produced! We’re everywhere, I tell you.
All in all, a good night was had by all.
Reuse: Books
I like to read. I don’t get much time to do it these days what with work bending me over, but I miss it, and I read when I can. I usually have a couple of books on the go – one non-fiction, at least one fiction, and an old favourite that I can read in bed and put down easily (if my book is too interesting, I’ll get insomnia). I also usually have a fanfic on the go and read blogs like a crazy lady. Yeah, I like to read, ok?
Read green!
Keeping up with the reading habit sustainably isn’t that much of a challenge either. Yes, books are made of paper – which means deforestation. But I’ve been getting around buying new books for years (mostly cos I couldn’t afford them, but lately the environment has been factoring into my avoidance of new books too). Here’s how.
Go to the library. There’s more books than you could ever want or fit in your house, and you can ‘try before you buy’, so to speak. If you hate it, that’s ok – it’s going back in two weeks anyway. If you live in a city, like me, you’re extra lucky, because often the council will run all the libraries in all the suburbs under one umbrella. If your local library doesn’t have the book you want, you can order it in from another library – usually free or for a nominal fee. Look out for the late fees though!
Go to the second-hand bookshop. This is especially useful when buying text books that you’re not planning on reading again after semester is over. You pay for what you get – the better the condition of the book, the more expensive. They’re usually cheaper than new, and just think – you’ve not chopped down another tree just to read! Book fairs are also good – think Lifeline Bookfest. Tonnes of cheap, pre-used books!
Swap and share books. We always have books at our place that don’t belong to us, and some of our books are always out with our friends and family. Again, this originally was a financial consideration for me – if my best mate already had the book, why would I go out and buy it when I could read her copy? It ends up being as good for the environment as it is for my pocket.
Get free books from Freecycle. There are always people giving books away. Sometimes friends, family and other folks are giving books away too. Pick them up where you can.
Buy second-hand books online – you can get local books from ebay, and Amazon if you’re in one of the local countries (which is not Australia). You can also buy books from eco-friendly book vendors, like Better World Books.
Read ebooks. I haven’t done much of this, but I do have Adobe Digital Editions on my work computer to read the ‘inspirational’ ebook the company gave us as a Christmas present. (They only started with the environmentally friendly book giving last year – before that it was mass hardcover book buying. I bet the authors who wrote the books chosen as the present book each year had a massive boost in sales and probably hate us all now). If you really want that paper look (rather than the backlit monitor look), try a Kindle. Apparently they’re good. Personally I’d go a Netbook, but I’m not bothered by the backlight.
Read online. It doesn’t have to be stuff written by well-known authors, there’s plenty of good amateur fiction and non-fiction out there. You’re reading some now – a blog. There are millions of them. Fanfic is a another big winner, in just about any fandom you choose, and often branching off into original stories. Besides, reading online opens up the doors to what you can find to read. It might be hard to find a good lesbian crime novel in your local second-hand bookshop (who am I kidding, lesbian crime novels are a dime a dozen – maybe it’d be hard to find a good lesbian historical fic that isn’t Mills & Boon-esque), but online, it’s not that hard, and you can narrow it down even further based on the kinds of characters you’d like to read about. Heck, you can even write it. Don’t forget other kinds of reading too – news sites and websites with articles discussing niche areas you’re interested in, which often become less niche the more popular online reading becomes. (Think Afterellen.com, folks!)
So seriously… reading. It’s a pretty awesome thing. Your kids see you doing it and they’re more likely to do it. It keeps your brain active. It’s escapist, and sometimes, trust me, you need to get your brain out of your head and into a story. Don’t stop reading, don’t reduce it. Don’t think that reading sustainably is going to curtail your habit. If anything, it will broaden your literacy horizons. So remember, next time you’re looking for a book – read green!
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