I recently filled in an online questionnaire which determined my environmental footprint. Apparently if everyone on earth lived in the same manner as I do we would need 2.3 planets just to sustain us. While colonizing Mars and a couple of the moons of Jupiter certainly has its appeal, I recognize that I really should be modifying my behavior.
Recently Kerry and I have been doing quite a bit of thinking about this issue. We both consider ourselves to be relatively ethical people, but like many others we are heavy on good intentions and short of actual action. Oh sure, we buy free range eggs, our christmas cards come from Oxfam, and we have a healthy hatred for the BNP – but doesn’t everybody?
I’m not proposing we sell up and move to hippy commune in North Wales, but we have identified some things we want to change about our lifestyles. I realize they are just a drop in the ocean, and are certainly not going to get our environmental footprint down to just one planet; but it’s a start at least.
So here’s the list:
- Buy more fresh, in season, locally produced vegetables at small traders.
- Recycle more.
- Walk and catch public transport whenever practical.
- Eat less meat, particularly beef (this one is easy for Kerry as she’s vegetarian).
- Grow some of our own veg, and compost our waste.
Any other ideas?
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on Apr 24th, 2007 at 11:00 am
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on Apr 24th, 2007 at 11:58 am
Ok, will stop ranting now! Keep up the good work.
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on Apr 24th, 2007 at 12:21 pm
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on Apr 24th, 2007 at 1:12 pm
Great link by the way!
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on Apr 24th, 2007 at 3:03 pm
Helen – Our council does collect recycling, just not from us as our lane is too narrow to get the truck down. This means we have to go out of our way to take rubbish to the rycycling point and we don’t do it half as much as we should.
Hygiene Dad – That’s a good idea, especially with the warmer weather coming.
Lee- I did see the composting article on your blog, but as I have my wonderful pallet compost bin I have no need of it :). I have a great link for you about how to make pots for seedlings out of newspaper, but I need to find it.
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on Apr 24th, 2007 at 3:56 pm
I need to eat less meat and walk more. Public transportation is hard for me logistically at the moment – our small town does not have a great infrastructure and it would be impossible to take Connor to preschool, for example, which is the bulk of my driving. This spring we are looking forward to buying all local produce from the Farmer’s Market, but it only runs in the warmer months. We have started to buy more organic food as well. A long-term goal is to add solar to our house for hot water and possibly electricity. Not a cheap venture though.
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on Apr 24th, 2007 at 4:23 pm
I think the questionare puts a bias in depending on which country you are living in, so I imagine you’d be disadvantaged living in the USA.
6.2 planets is quite impressive though. Did you have a central heating system that used baby seals as fuel?
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on Apr 24th, 2007 at 6:50 pm
Many thanks for bringing up NDW! I am delighted to see it being debated here.
The Earth Day programme is a favourite of mine too and I think anything that encourages us to slow down and green up is a good thing.
As a parent of 3 twiggly nugs (who I’m just getting to bed) I feel even more strongly that it’s key we normalise eco. Composting, recycling are part of our everyday life here and I’m trying hard to get them on the right, green track.
Anyway, wittering on!
Just wanted to say a quick ‘Thank You’!
Wishing you all the best,
Tracey Smith
x
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on Apr 24th, 2007 at 8:45 pm
Surely all my lovely trees count for something?
The recycle truck refuses (no pun intended) to come up our lane too. I’ll have to force myself to start recycling more, but storage is an issue especially since frogs have taken up residence in our cellar (stupid karma).
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on Apr 24th, 2007 at 11:44 pm
Yes, but they were organically grown so it’s all good. ;)
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on Apr 25th, 2007 at 1:48 pm
When you find the article pass it through!!!
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on Apr 25th, 2007 at 4:20 pm
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on Apr 25th, 2007 at 4:43 pm
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on Apr 25th, 2007 at 4:52 pm
That never stopped her going out with you Craig.
You can get ones that look like ordinary bulbs on the outside, they have a globe over them so you don’t see the spiral bit. They just aren’t as cheap as the ones from Ikea that’s all.
They are still more cost effective over the long term than ordinary bulbs, plus with your high ceilings I’d be wanting to keep lightbulb changing down to a minimum.
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