Carbon labels set for food products

GROCERY shoppers confused by product labels showing fat and sugar levels may soon face new labels revealing its greenhouse gas emissions.

Consumers will be able to compare, buy and reject products based on their greenhouse emissions as early as next year following the launch of a carbon footprint labelling scheme today.

Australia will be the third country, after Britain and the US, to get the foot-shaped Carbon Reduction Label, which is being billed as the greenhouse equivalent of a nutrition panel.
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Consumers face wave of greenwash

A SURVEY into green marketing in Australia has found almost all products carrying environmentally friendly claims are guilty of greenwashing.

TerraChoice, an environmental marketing firm, has released its Seven Sins of Greenwashing report, which scrutinises the environmental claims companies put on products to see if they are misleading.

...some marketers are exploiting consumers' demand for third-party certification by creating fake labels or false suggestions of third-party endorsement.
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We as consumers should demand certification for each product sold in Australia and we should be educated about which certification is doing what! Like you have Grean Seal in the US. There are several activ in Australia like GECA for non food products and materials, Green Star for building, FSC for everything made of wood. But I can't find anything for groceries... and the food certification link doesn't mention 'green' at all...

Update: Check this article on Choice Magazine. These are the only logos in the shops you can trust:

Winter sprinklers banned for two months

Perth's water shortage has prompted the State Government to trial a two-month sprinkler ban during winter.

From tomorrow, there will be a total sprinkler ban throughout Perth and southern WA until the end of August.

It will apply to integrated scheme and bore water consumption for household and businesses. Garden-based industries will be exempt.

The Water Minister, Graham Jacobs, says a lack of rain has prompted the trial. "It has been one of the driest spells on record and one of the warmest," he said and anyone breaching the rules will be liable to a $100 on-the-spot fine.

"Perth is one of the driest capital cities in the world and that is expected to get worse with climate change," he said.
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I hope this time local councils give the good example!!!

Update 21 July: Sprinkler bans: 50 million litres saved daily

Cement wisdom not set in stone

A PRIVATELY owned Melbourne company about to bring low-carbon cement into commercial production has taken issue with the government's proposed emissions trading scheme, saying it offers no incentive to the incumbent cement producers to lower emissions and might even allow them to collect windfall profits from gaming the system.

Zeobond, a company established and owned by the family of University of Melbourne professor Jannie van Deventer, has developed a product called E-crete. It claims 80 per cent less emissions are produced than conventional cement.

E-crete is created by using geopolymers and a less emission-intensive chemical reaction than conventional cement, which releases huge amounts of carbon dioxide -- one tonne of carbon for every tonne of cement -- mostly when limestone is broken down using extreme temperatures.
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Libraries offer energy-measuring devices for loan

Energy-conscious Sydneysiders can now turn to the local library to borrow devices to measure electricity use, greenhouse emissions and the costs of running household appliances.
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We bought one a while ago and I must admit it opens your eyes as you discover what the main electricity over consuming apparatus are in your household pretty fast! I can recommend you to measure!

It's about time! Recycling on the go

With nearly half of all beverage containers bought and discarded away from home, the introduction of bottle and can recycling outlets in shopping centres and takeaway outlets is hoped to boost the recovery of recyclable items.

A partnership between Coca-Cola Amatil, Westfield, Assetlink and Visy, the initiative is still in the trial stages - but if rolled out across all Westfield stores nationally could see up to 600 tonnes of bottles and cans processed for reuse each year.

"In Australia we don't have enough recycling bins in public places," said environmental campaigner and G Magazine editorial advisory board member Jon Dee, who launched the initiative earlier this month.
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It should be funded by the companies who sell these bottles and cans!
Every company should be responsible for the waste their products create after use and take action for it!
What is your opinion?

Scientists breeding cows that burp less

CANADIAN scientists are breeding a special type of cow designed to burp less, a breakthrough that could reduce a big source of greenhouse gases responsible for global warming.

Cows are responsible for nearly three-quarters of total methane emissions, according to Environment Canada.

Most of the gas comes from bovine burps, which are 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas.
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Although it's for a good cause... I am always a bit sceptical to 'breed' this kind of things... it doesn't sound natural...
Like I heard a few weeks back that highline chooks are breed especially to identify the male and female by color... scary too!

Update: Apparently this was a mistake, as in another aricle they mention that "Canadian researchers develop low-burp cattle feed" which makes more sense!

VOTE NOW

The following nine finalists have been chosen to be the contenders in the 2009 Banksia People’s Choice Award:

• A Decade of Climate Change - Hobart City Council, TAS

• Biodiversity Assessment Study – Lake Condah Restoration Project -Budj Bim Ranger Program & Arthur Rylah Institute, Lake Condah Sustainable Development Project, VIC

• Clean Energy for Eternity - Clean Energy for Eternity, NSW

• Food Connect - Food Connect, QLD

• Giving Vegemite a Sustainable Future - KRAFT Foods, VIC

• Green to the Grave - Centennial Park Cemetery, SA

• MyPOWER – Youth-Led National Bike Tour for Sustainable Living - MyPOWER, NSW

• Reef Check Australia - Reef Check Australia, QLD

• The Road to Sustainability - Thiess John Holland, VIC

There is unfortunately nobody from WA but to find out more about the finalists and to vote click here.

Preserving old-growth forests is vital to saving the planet

SO WHERE are the world's most carbon-rich forests? Not the tropical rainforests of the Amazon, Borneo or Africa's Congo Basin, according to research by the Australian National University. They are the tall, old-growth mountain ash forests of Victoria's Central Highlands — a 90-minute drive east of Melbourne.

Everyone is concerned with emissions from logging and tree clearing in developing countries, but the Government needs to ensure that the Copenhagen agreement also provides policies that give incentives to protect and restore carbon stocks in developed nations.
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Go for eco-friendly grave, says MP Barbara Stone

AN MP wants Queenslanders to be buried in cardboard coffins in natural bush cemeteries where the decomposing bodies can promote vegetation growth.

"The site will be an old quarry to be filled with suitable soil so that bodies can decompose and provide valuable nutrients that encourage the rejuvenation of native flora," she said.
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I did a lot of research in sustainable burials about four years ago but it was on hold for a while until I found the right material to create fantastic organic shaped coffins which were fully biodegradable and looked great; Zelfo, now called Zeoform, 100% biodegradable plastic made of hemp. Unfortunately that was put on hold as well as the company is focussing on developing the material into granules for the plastic industry to simplify the production method. By the time it's ready the market is full with althernatives like the shrouded burial in South Australia! A pity for my ideas on the shelve but a good thing for the environment!

Caboodle

I know all this jumble is out there for a good cause but I don't like the style they use to make people 'aware' of the good case... Selling all kind of plastic caboodle or even give it away after you've signed up for whatever foundation to do a bike ride or whatsoever you end up with a bag of stuff you don't want... you try to hand it down to your little niece but even she doesn't want it longer than the 5 seconds it's new...

Can't we just be aware of a good cause without all this plastic garbage? Why not just wear a red shirt you already have in your wardrobe or a purple bra? Something you can really use... Why do we have to buy more stuff???
The story of stuff again...

Sneaky 'green' marketing: the world of greenwashing

How do you know product claims of eco-friendliness are true?

Just like the fact that the healthiest slice of cake is the one you leave on the plate, the greenest product is the one you don't actually buy.

Buying stuff is a bit like eating - we do need to consume a certain amount just to live, but it is usually about we want rather than what we need. And let's face it, we don't need a double fudge chocolate sundae with whipped cream anymore than we need a plasma screen TV.

For the most part our purchases are driven by clever marketing. Marketers exploit ethical shopping sentiment when they use 'greenwash'.

The idea has become so all-pervasive in recent years that the word has even entered the Oxford English Dictionary which defines it as "disinformation disseminated by an organisation so as to present an environmentally responsible public image."

Of course, not all environmental claims are spurious.
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Airlines reduce spoon size to save fuel

AIRLINES, desperate to cut costs, have gone to the extraordinary lengths of reducing the size of spoons and jettisoning in-flight magazines to make planes lighter to save fuel.

According to the International Air Transport Association, Northwest Airlines in the US has excluded spoons from its cutlery pack in the in-flight meal does not need one.
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I wonder if they really can save a bit by making the cutlery smaller or take a spoon less while people are getting heavier and suitcases are often weighing more than the 20 kilo... but I assume it's the only thing they can control...

What's your e-waste IQ?

Test out how much you know about e-waste issues and be amazed how much you don't know... at least I was...
Take the test here.

8 Etiquette Tips for Curbside Freecycling

Tips For Leaving Stuff at Curbside
1. Know Your Garbage Pick-Up Days
2. Leave A Note
3. If It's Still There, It's Still Yours
4. Junk is Junk. Don't Pass It On

Tips For Picking Up Curbside Finds
1. Inspect It First
2. Take the Whole Thing
3. If You Don't Want It After All, Don't Return It
4. Return the Favor

Read more about each tip here.

Or put it on SCOODI!

Threat of winter sprinkler ban

Perth households were facing the threat of a ban on using sprinklers for the rest of winter if soaring water consumption was not slashed within two weeks, Water Resources Minister Graham Jacobs warned yesterday.

The State Government threat comes after the public ignored repeated pleas by the Water Corporation to cut consumption during unseasonably dry and warm weather.

Dr Jacobs said the Government would consider a complete winter sprinkler ban from July 1 if people failed to cut use by turning off their reticulation systems, including those which used bore water.
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Aussie cities on world's most-liveable list, Economist Intelligence Unit's 2009 Liveability survey finds

AUSTRALIAN cities occupy five of the top 20 places in a British survey ranking the liveability of 140 of the world's major centres.

Melbourne ranked third in the world, behind Vancouver in Canada and the Austrian city of Vienna in the Economist Intelligence Unit's 2009 Liveability survey.

It assessed 140 cities based on stability, health care, education, infrastructure and culture and environment, giving each one a rating out of 100.

Perth was equal fifth with Calgary in Canada, with Sydney sharing ninth place with Zurich in Switzerland, Adelaide in 11th place and Brisbane 16th on the list.

As well as Vancouver and Calgary, Canadian cities also featured strongly in the top 20, with Toronto (4th) and Montreal (17th).
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5 Ways Your Bedroom is Killing You

Your bedroom is the the place you go to rest, relax, and recharge each night, so you want it to be healthy. Perhaps with the except of your office, the bedroom is probably the place where you spend the most time; a full third of your life is spent between the sheets. Yet, there are a handful of ways that your bedroom might be slowly and silently killing you each night. Avoid these hazards in five spots around your bedroom and rest a little easier each night.
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Check
1. Your Pillows
2. Your Mattress
3. Your dresser, bed, and other furniture
4. Carpets and rugs
5. Paint and other wallcoverings

A call to halt illegal logging imports and choose Good Wood

Green groups, retailers and timber importers across Australia are calling an end to illegally logged imports, and encouraging Australians to buy legally sourced, sustainable wood.

In a joint statement announced yesterday, signatories of Eliminating Illegal Forest Products in Australia, including Bunnings, Ikea, timber importer Simmonds and a host of industry and non-government organisations, declared their strong opposition to the import and use of illegally harvested wood, and encouraged the government to take action.
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Landscape designer and television presenter Jamie Durie announced the Greenpeace Good Wood Guide which was already a year ago launched on this blog... check here.

WA lags in energy race

WA lives in the dark ages when it comes to clean energy. Science reporter Narelle Towie looks at why WA is lagging in renewable energy production.

As the Federal Government throws billions of dollars at reducing carbon pollution, WA is dusting the cobwebs off a coal-powered electricity plant.

Just 3.8 per cent of WA's energy is generated from renewable sources. It is the smallest producer of clean energy in Australia, outside of the Northern Territory. If the NT is excluded, we are the nation's dirtiest state.
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Garbage fees to rocket as Government ups Landfill Levy

WEST Australians will pay $25 more for waste services with a 300 per cent rise in the Government's Landfill Levy being passed on to consumers from July 1.

The Eastern Metropolitan Regional Council, which controls Red Hill Waste Management Facility, included the increase in its 2009-10 waste fees and charges adopted on May 21.

The increase was decided by the State Government in its State Budget on May 14, taking the levy from $7 per tonne to $28 per tonne.

The increase was designed to create a disincentive to dispose of waste to landfill and encourage the reuse or recycling of waste.
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I am ashamed of the reporters of Perth Now and the Sunday Times, with these kind of headlines they make it a big drama to pay only $ 25 more for a better world!!! The fees are lowest in the country!

Update 3 June:
Landfill levy opens can of worms on recycling
One of the major concerns with the DEC now getting the lion’s share of the levy fee without having even to pay lip service to the Waste Authority is the incentive for that agency to encourage landfill rather than recycling.

After all, why would the DEC try to divert material away from landfill and into recyclables when its general budget is so dependent on the levy?

Pollution...

These photos I found on the Dutch 'No Style' news site. How lucky we are that we live in reasonable (at least visible) clean Australia! Although, I regularly peddle on the Swan River and clean up a lot of plastic rubbish on my way... bottles, bags, cups, etc.

Recycling plant blaze a “major blow”

A massive fire has destroyed a recycling plant in Perth’s southern suburbs, putting at risk one of the largest community recycling programs in Australia.

The fire at the recycling facility, one of three components of the Regional Resource Recovery Centre, was reported about 1am and has destroyed the recycling plant.
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Up to 100 sea containers of recycled products may have to be dumped in landfill over the next two weeks after a fire destroyed Western Australia's largest recycling facility, in Canning Vale, early today.
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A BLAZE that engulfed a controversial recycling plant in Canning Vale is the second fire at the site in weeks.
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It's the plant I've just visited with my students Sustainable Design in March.


update 3 June:
Recycling waste sent to landfill following fire

One little house

Last year Simon Lyons made a film as part of his Cert IV in documentary filmmaking, at FTI, in Fremantle. It is a student film, so not BBC standard or quality, but the message is successfully put across. The film is called 'One Little House'. It's about the lack of legislativechanges to stop the proliferation of unsustainable buildings, in Mandurah specifically.