Most Viewed Blog Posts
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Is it more environmentally fri Is it more environmentally friendly to hand-wash dishes or to use a dishwasher?
- From: RobLyons
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Description:
There's been a stigma attached to having a dishwasher for as long as I can remember. In fact it used to be a status symbol, and bordered on snobbery by having one. The underlying issue might well have been a slight hint of jealousy as I have yet to find anyone who loves doing the washing up at the end of a meal, or a long day's work.
Here's one argument for having one:
Dishwashers are the way to go if you comply with two simple criteria. “Run a dishwasher only when it’s full, and don’t rinse your dishes before putting them in the dishwasher.” So says John Morril of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, who also advises not using the dry cycle. The water used in most dishwashers is hot enough, he says, to evaporate quickly if the door is left open after the wash and rinse cycles are complete.
Dishwashers More Efficient Than Hand Washing
Scientists at the University of Bonn [pdf] in Germany who studied the issue found that the dishwasher uses only half the energy, one-sixth of the water, and less soap than hand-washing an identical set of dirty dishes. Even the most sparing and careful washers could not beat the modern dishwasher. The study also found that dishwashers excelled in cleanliness over hand washing.Most dishwashers manufactured since 1994 use seven to 10 gallons of water per cycle, while older machines use eight to 15 gallons. Newer designs have also improved dishwasher efficiency immensely. Hot water can now be heated in the dishwasher itself, not in the household hot water heater, where heat gets lost in transit. Dishwashers also heat only as much water as needed. A standard 24-inch-wide household dishwasher is designed to hold eight place settings, but some newer models will wash the same amount of dishes inside an 18-inch frame, using less water in the process. If you have an older, less-efficient machine, the Council recommends hand washing for the smaller jobs and saving the dishwasher for the dinner party’s aftermath.
Energy-efficient Dishwashers Save Money
New dishwashers that meet strict energy and water-saving efficiency standards can qualify for an Energy Star label from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Besides being more efficient and getting the dishes cleaner, qualifying newer models will save the average household about $25 per year in energy costs.Like John Morril, the EPA recommends always running your dishwasher with a full load and avoiding the inefficient heat-dry, rinse-hold and pre-rinse features found on many recent models. Most of the appliance’s energy used goes to heat the water, and most models use just as much water for smaller loads as for larger ones. And propping the door open after the final rinse is quite adequate for drying the dishes when the washing is done.
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 1620
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We've added Chat ! We've added Chat !
- From: BobCarbon
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Description:
Hi all, we've added a new feature to our ECOmmunity.
You can now chat online to people who are currently logged in and online in here.
Find "CHAT" on the top menu bar and check the instructions.
Yet another feature to help you keep in touch with your carbon friendly buddies.
Have fun!
Bob Carbon.
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 478
- Not yet rated
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3,700 Miles to Buy an Apple! 3,700 Miles to Buy an Apple!
- From: ClaireRussell
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Description:
Being eco-friendly, eating primarily organic food and living generally a healthy lifestyle doesn’t unfortunately stop you from picking up flu viruses. And the virus I have been battling this week is the worst I have ever experienced. So much so that hubby had to take me to the walk in centre at our local hospital last night because as I developed the added bonus of an ear infection. The duty doctor kindly prescribed penicillin and jokingly warned that it will get much worse before it gets better and to expect my eardrum to burst at some point; which it did spectacularly at 3am this morning.
I have never experienced pain like this in my life –I would have to say that even child birth was less painful. And at least, with childbirth, there is joy at the end.
Anyway ... despite all of this I am still a big advocate for buying and eating locally produced and organic produce. It typically doesn’t cost more and it tastes better.
One of the huge advantages of organic foods is that they haven't been doused in pesticides. Organic farms ban artificial pesticides.
In the UK, 31,000 tonnes of pesticides are blasted on to farmland every year, and 25% of food carries residues of these chemicals, created to kill pests and weeds. Non-organic fruit and veg is covered in the stuff and it won't all wash off. Pesticide residues turn up, not just on fruit and vegetables, but in bread, baby food and other products. Governments claim that there's no risk to health from these pesticide traces, but wouldn't you rather feed yourself and your children on food that's pesticide free?
And if you care more about the environment that your own and your families health, and I care about both by the way, organic foods also do the environment a good turn when you choose them. Intensive farming methods erode soil, destroy ancient hedgerows, and decimate wild life. Organic farming looks after the environment.
Intensive farming is extremely cruel to farm animals – think of battery chickens, pigs kept in farrowing pens, cows milked to exhaustion. Another of the indisputable advantages of organic foods is that organic farming methods put humane treatment top of the agenda.
Take Apples for example. 76% of apples consumed in the UK come from overseas. Imported apples from the US (the US produce and export over 135,000 tons of non-organic apples per year) travel 3,700 miles to the UK. It seems a long way to travel when you can buy cheaper and tastier locally produced organic apples right here in the UK.
And finally; buying organic produce is not a major lifestyle change which is what all of us at http://www.click4carbon.com advocate. It is little things like this that make a big difference in life and collectively it will improve the environment we live in.
I will report more on sourcing organic produce in future blogs.
And now, I’m back to the sofa with my hot water bottle…..and hubby is off to take the recycling. Hopefully he’ll also ‘Russell’ up a nice healthy dinner for us tonight…..
Love Claire xxx
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 473
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Robot Fish to detect Pollution Robot Fish to detect Pollution
- From: JohnRussell
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Description:
UK scientists have designed a new way to detect water pollution - by building large robotic fish to swim in the sea and track down pollutants.
The carp-shaped fish, which are around 1.5 metres (5ft) long, are equipped with chemical sensors which can detect the source of pollution such as leaks from vessels.
The fish do not require remote control, but have their own navigational abilities allowing them to swim independently and return to their hub to be recharged when their eight-hour battery runs low.
The fish are being developed so they can search underwater for chemicals dissolved in the water as well as pollutants such as oil on the surface.
Five of the fish-shaped robots are to be released into the port of Gijon in northern Spain as part of a three-year research project funded by the European Commission and co-ordinated by engineering and risk management consultancy BMT Group Ltd.
The fish, which will cost around £20,000 each to make and will swim at a maximum speed of around one metre per second, are being built by Professor Huosheng Hu and his robotics team at the University of Essex.
It is hoped that if the project is successful, the fish could be used in rivers, lakes and seas across the world to detect pollutants.
Prof Hu, who hopes to release the robots by the end of next year, said: "We are designing these fish very carefully to ensure that they will be able to detect changes in environmental conditions in the port and pick up on early signs of pollution spreading, for example by locating a small leak in a vessel.
"The hope is that this will prevent potentially hazardous discharges at sea, as the leak would undoubtedly get worse over time if not located."
Rory Doyle, senior research scientist at BMT Group, said: "In using robotic fish we are building on a design created by hundreds of millions of years worth of evolution which is incredibly efficient. This efficiency is something we need to ensure that our pollution detection sensors can navigate in the underwater environment for hours on end."
- Blog post
- 1 year ago
- Views: 422
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ITS SURPRISINIG ITS SURPRISINIG
- From: beeginger
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Description:
its really surprising what you notice in the newspapers once you really start to read it instead of skimming it.
in saturdays paper there were 3 articles that in some way were about helping the enviroment.
firstly an article very closely linked to one that Adey posted about eco-farms.
200 km SE ,of us here in Edmonton a town is planning a "biomass technology cluster" with a straw-using plant.
once the facility is fully operational it will produce ethanol, a steam heated greenhouse using captured carbon dioxide, sell excess electrical power and produce a sugar substitute for diabetes
the other use will be the production of lignin that is used in bioplatics.
All of this from straw.
Did you now that we now have the capability to store waste CO2 underground in liquid form ?
The premise is so simple, we capture our emissions, pump it underground, removing it from our atmosphere indefinately.
This storage will give us a long term stop gap to buy time for us and our planet.
Here in Canada is an excellent place to pioneer this technology. Under our Leduc Reef formation alone there is room for 1 gigatonne of CO2. If we inject 100 years worth of Albertas carbon production it will use less than 10 percent.
Well it sounds good to me and luckily our goverment feels the same way and will be giving the go ahead to a project very shortly.
Go Canada
The 3rd and final newspaper report was about a local builder who is offering the option of installing in your new homes, a Natural Gas refuelling station.
Apparently here in Alberta there are about 5,000 natural gas powered vehicles.
The unit is attached to your homes natural gas system, so you refuel at home and it is added to your utility bill. It does take along time (8-10 hours) to fully refuel a vehicle so this system is perfect, fill whilst you sleep.
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 416
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Bamboo Bicycles. Bamboo Bicycles.
- From: adeymoore
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Description:
On the outskirts of Lusaka, Zambia, next year's crop of bicycles is being watered by Benjamin Banda.
"We planted this bamboo last year," he says, "and now the stems are taller than me. When it's ready we'll cut it, cure it and then turn it into frames."
Mr Banda, is the caretaker for Zambikes, a company set up by two Californians and two Zambians which aimed to build bikes tough enough to handle the local terrain.
Co-founder Vaughn Spethmann, 24, recalls how it all started with a game of football.
Bamboo is the fastest growing woody plant in the world
"We were here on a university field trip and we organized a match against some locals. Afterwards we asked them what they did, and they said: 'Nothing'. They didn't have jobs.
"So we decided to come up with a business which would be a source of employment and provide a useful product."
That product was the rugged, bright yellow Zambike, assembled at the firm's smart red-brick workshop set in sun-browned farmland.
Other projects followed as the mechanics' skills improved: a sturdy cargo bike, a bike trailer and a bike-drawn "zambulance", now in use at 10 clinics around Lusaka.
Good vibrations
Meanwhile Santa Cruz-based bike designer Craig Calfee was experimenting with bamboo as a material for bike frames.
His prototypes proved that the strength and lightness of the plant made it a great substitute for metal.
As a bonus it had excellent vibration-dampening properties, making it comfortable for riding over long distances.
It was eye-catching too - Mr Calfee's stand was besieged when he unveiled his first bamboo frame at a bike show.
Mr Calfee hatched a plan to manufacture the frames in developing countries, distribute them in the US and share the profits.
He had already set up a workshop in Accra, Ghana, and started looking for more bike producers, nicknamed "bambooseros".
The industry telegraph started humming and soon he was talking to Zambikes.
"We were so excited," says Mr Spethmann. "The thought of Zambian-made products being sold in the USA. That just doesn't happen."
There are many reasons why it's so unusual: capital is difficult to raise in Zambia; tools and raw materials - if available - are expensive; skilled labour is in short supply; and bureaucracy isn't.
In this context having a low-cost raw material on the doorstep is a godsend.
"And of course there's very little impact on the environment," says Dustin McBride, the other American on the Zambikes management team.
Growth market
Inside the workshop, bike mechanic Elastus Lemba is setting up treated bamboo pieces on a jig made from plumber's pipes and bicycle parts.
It looks low-tech, but that's intentional.
Mr Calfee wanted a production process that did not require sophisticated machinery.
With wood glue holding the frame in place, Mr Lemba binds the joints using sisal - tough cord made from plant fibre soaked in epoxy.
Hand-making the frames in this way takes at least a week.
After a final sanding and coat of varnish, each batch of bamboosero bikes will be shipped to the USA, tested, fitted with wheels, pedals, handlebars and brakes, and put on sale.
So will the bike be a success?
Mr Calfee thinks so, based on all the enquiries and advance orders he has received.
"Hundreds of people have asked when they can buy one. From a bike messenger who wants an affordable fixie to a wealthy collector who wants one from each bamboosero location."
He is convinced the price tag - $475 (£290) for road or mountain bike frames, and more than $900 (£550) for a finished bike - won't put people off.
"The only criticism I've had is that they might be too cheap.
"After all, buyers are helping to get self-sustaining businesses off the ground in developing economies, and they're getting a unique bike into the bargain."
The mood is optimistic at Zambikes too.
Operations co-ordinator Divilance Machilika, watches company cook Fabian Mumba taking a finished bamboo bike for a spin around the yard.
"I can see these selling well in America. They'll like them because they're natural," he says.
Mr Machilika lived in a tent on the site for a year while the workshop was being built.
A quick learner, he soon mastered construction skills and bike mechanics. Now he oversees day-to-day running of the workshop.
Benefit to the community
One of the founders, Mwewa Chikamba, says Mr Machilika is an example of what Zambikes wanted to achieve.
"It was never just about bikes. We wanted to give our workers practical skills and reward their dedication. We want to change lives," he says.
Assistance is also offered in the form of business coaching or discretionary loans - Mr Machilika used one such loan to buy a plot of land.
"I want to build three houses there. I'll use the rent money to start other businesses and employ people myself."
Instead of charging interest, Zambikes asks staff to demonstrate that the investment made in them is benefiting their community.
Perseverance and an innovative approach to product design and working practices have helped Zambikes put down strong roots.
But in a business environment that leaves much to be desired, it is no surprise that they have not yet seen a profit.
If the bamboo bike shoots out of the shops as fast as Mr Calfee predicts, that may be about to change too.
- Blog post
- 1 year ago
- Views: 414
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Compost for a Green Christmas Compost for a Green Christmas
- From: ClaireRussell
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Description:
Well, the Russell family are now the very proud owners of a home composting kit - or rather we will be when it arrives.
Last week I said that I was going to look into whether there is a municipal composting facility in our home town and it would appear that there currently is not (for this post visit my Sky News Blog). So I have done a little research and found that there is presently a heavily subsidised composting set up available via RecycleNow (check with your local council), writes Claire Russell. For a total outlay of only £23 (!!) we have been able to buy (I hope) everything that we need to get started.
I have been reading up as to what we can and cannot compost and how to achieve the best result (you have to get the right mix of 'greens' and 'browns') and am raring to go....as soon as it arrives. The only thing that we haven't worked out is the best place to put the thing - I suppose we'll have to figure that out when it arrives.
Husband has been given instructions that only that which cannot be recycled or composted may go into the dustbin and I am hoping to drastically reduce what we are still throwing away. I'd like to be reviewing this in a couple of weeks time and to be able to report that we are only taking a small bag out to the dustbin each week. I'll keep you posted as to how we get on!!
Have a look at our recycling pages for more information.
We'll be posting new tips and hopefully some new videos soon.
My quest for a simple Christmas is also going well - my suggestions to our family and friends seem to have been well received. I think it is fair to say that most of us are affected one way or the other by the current economic climate - most people I know are feeling the pinch so it's worth remembering that in having a greener Christmas (think less expense, less waste, more fun) you can also have a less costly Christmas.
One idea that I have had is to collect up shoe boxes to decorate with the children. I am thinking of re-using old gift wrap and gift bags and bits of sparkly stuff that we've collected up. Then I will fill them with little gifts for each of the friends and relatives that we usually buy for. I think we will spend less money, put together something much more personal for each person and there'll be much less waste (no wrapping paper for a start!). It might be a little 'Blue Peter' but I think it'll be great fun. I will post some pictures of our creations soon....before we hand them over to Santa of course.
See you soon… Claire xx
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 411
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The Credit Crunch and Us The Credit Crunch and Us
- From: RobLyons
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Description:
A friend of mine was chatting to me (over a pint of beer of course) and voicing his opinion that people's priorities are changing because of the global credit-crunch. He said that people will start to find that the priorities as to how they spend their money will drown out the likes of being ECO-friendly in order to give priority to putting food on the table, worrying about their job security, and keeping a roof over their heads. This was almost an absolute stance on how the world is changing right now.
The problem is..... he's right. Or so it would initially look.
BUT what I pointed out is that here on Click4Carbon we're NOT trying to make people change their lifestyle overnight, or start investing their own monies in being environmentally content. What we're doing here is giving people the same tools they are likely to use regardless of the credit crunch. People still use the internet to search. People still buy stuff online. People still look to have a weekend away somewhere.
Granted, what people are searching for might be changing.... the 42" LCD TV might be on hold until next year, but people buy things every day on the internet. People are always looking for information , and people are always searching for a bargain, even if it is just for a new nail file.
Christmas is going to be hard for a lot of people this year, but do you think they're going to buy nothing? OF course they do.... but its more likely to be a cut down version of what they'd ideally like, or an interim solution of what they need.
So in retort to my friend I ask everyone to keep on using Click4Carbon.com as their primary search engine. Advertisers might not be happy to spend quite as much on their advertising at the moment, but that doesn't mean they're stopping advertising. We can all keep the flag flying for a greener world without being frightend of the cost or changing our lives.
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 403
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Recent news from Click4Carbon Recent news from Click4Carbon
- From: ClaireRussell
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Description:
For those of you following the progress of the site you will know that the last couple of weeks have been somewhat hectic.
We commissioned a survey looking at peoples changing attitudes to the environment in the current economic climate - this was carried out by YouGov and the results make very interesting reading. I plan to write further on this as the survey has highlighted some important issues - so, more to follow on that! We'll publish the press release on the site today so that you can have a read. Any thoughts or questions off the back of the survey and release will be gladly received.
We were lucky enough, following the survey, to be invited to record an interview with Sky News and this was broadcast on the 28th Oct - for those of you that didn't see the piece you can read the article at Sky News or see the video at Sky Video.
Following this I am writing a weekly blog for Sky which you can keep up with at Sky News 'The Daily Planet' Blog.
More to follow from me later.....
Claire x
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 399
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Amazon Rainforest may survive. Amazon Rainforest may survive.
- From: peggleg
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Description:
By Alister Doyle, Environment Correspondent
OSLO (Reuters) - Amazonian forests may be less vulnerable to dying off from global warming than feared because many projections underestimate rainfall, a study showed.
The report, by scientists in Britain, said Brazil and other nations in the region would also have to act to help avert any irreversible drying of the eastern Amazon, the region most at risk from climate change, deforestation and fires.
"The rainfall regime in eastern Amazonia is likely to shift over the 21st century in a direction that favors more seasonal forests rather than savannah," they wrote in this week's U.S. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, released on Monday.
Seasonal forests have wet and dry seasons rather than the current rainforest, which is permanently drenched. That shift could favor new species of trees, other plants and animals.
The findings contrast with past projections that the Amazon forest could die and be replaced by savannah.
A 2007 report by the U.N. Climate Panel, which is a snapshot of global warming science by the world's leading experts, said: "By mid-century, increases in temperature and associated decreases in soil water are projected to lead to gradual replacement of tropical forest by savannah in eastern Amazonia."
The new study said that almost all of 19 global climate models underestimated rainfall in the world's biggest tropical forest after the scientists compared the models with observations of 20th century climate.
Lowland forests in the Amazon have annual average rainfall of 2,400 mm (94 inches), it said. Projected cuts in rainfall meant the region would still be wet enough to sustain a forest.
The experts also examined field studies of how the Amazon might react to drying. It said that seasonal forests would be more resilient to the occasional drought but more vulnerable to fires than the current rainforest.
"The fundamental way to minimize the risk of Amazon dieback is to control greenhouse gas emissions globally, particularly from fossil fuel combustion in the developed world and Asia," said Yadvinder Malhi, the lead author from Oxford University.
But he said that governments led by Brazil also needed to manage the forests better.
Global warming is "accompanied by an unprecedented intensity of direct pressure on the tropical forests through logging, deforestation, fragmentation, and fire use," the scientists wrote.
And fires, including those touched off by lightning, were more likely to cause wide damage to forests already fragmented by roads or by farmers clearing land to plant crops such as soya beans.
- Blog post
- 1 year ago
- Views: 394
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Meals on Wings Meals on Wings
- From: RobLyons
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Description:
Well, the reality is a lot of us still take flights for business or holiday reasons. Its easy to say we shouldn't, but its a reality and this post isn't about the moralities of flying.
However, there are times when you just have to observe, accept, and even laugh.
A letter was recently received by the Virgin Atlantic customer complaints team and is currently being hailed on news blogs as possibly the funniest customer complaint letter ever.The Virgin Atlantic press office have confirmed they received the letter and that Richard Branson himself called the author to thank him for the feedback.
Rumour has it the complainant has been asked by Richard Branson to be on a food tasting panel for the food they serve on Virgin Atlantic Flights.
Here's the letter:
Dear Mr Branson
REF: Mumbai to Heathrow 7th December 2008
I love the Virgin brand, I really do which is why I continue to use it despite a series of unfortunate incidents over the last few years. This latest incident takes the biscuit.
Ironically, by the end of the flight I would have gladly paid over a thousand rupees for a single biscuit following the culinary journey of hell I was subjected to at the hands of your corporation.
Look at this Richard. Just look at it:
I imagine the same questions are racing through your brilliant mind as were racing through mine on that fateful day. What is this? Why have I been given it? What have I done to deserve this? And, which one is the starter, which one is the desert?
You don't get to a position like yours Richard with anything less than a generous sprinkling of observational power so I KNOW you will have spotted the tomato next to the two yellow shafts of sponge on the left. Yes, it's next to the sponge shaft without the green paste. That's got to be the clue hasn't it. No sane person would serve a desert with a tomato would they. Well answer me this Richard, what sort of animal would serve a desert with peas in:
I know it looks like a baaji but it's in custard Richard, custard. It must be the pudding. Well you'll be fascinated to hear that it wasn't custard. It was a sour gel with a clear oil on top. It's only redeeming feature was that it managed to be so alien to my palette that it took away the taste of the curry emanating from our miscellaneous central cuboid of beige matter. Perhaps the meal on the left might be the desert after all.
Anyway, this is all irrelevant at the moment. I was raised strictly but neatly by my parents and if they knew I had started desert before the main course, a sponge shaft would be the least of my worries. So lets peel back the tin-foil on the main dish and see what's on offer.
I'll try and explain how this felt. Imagine being a twelve year old boy Richard. Now imagine it's Christmas morning and you're sat their with your final present to open. It's a big one, and you know what it is. It's that Goodmans stereo you picked out the catalogue and wrote to Santa about.
Only you open the present and it's not in there. It's your hamster Richard. It's your hamster in the box and it's not breathing. That's how I felt when I peeled back the foil and saw this:
Now I know what you're thinking. You're thinking it's more of that Baaji custard. I admit I thought the same too, but no. It's mustard Richard. MUSTARD. More mustard than any man could consume in a month. On the left we have a piece of broccoli and some peppers in a brown glue-like oil and on the right the chef had prepared some mashed potato. The potato masher had obviously broken and so it was decided the next best thing would be to pass the potatoes through the digestive tract of a bird.
Once it was regurgitated it was clearly then blended and mixed with a bit of mustard. Everybody likes a bit of mustard Richard.
By now I was actually starting to feel a little hypoglycaemic. I needed a sugar hit. Luckily there was a small cookie provided. It had caught my eye earlier due to it's baffling presentation:
It appears to be in an evidence bag from the scene of a crime. A CRIME AGAINST BLOODY COOKING. Either that or some sort of back-street underground cookie, purchased off a gun-toting maniac high on his own supply of yeast. You certainly wouldn't want to be caught carrying one of these through customs. Imagine biting into a piece of brass Richard. That would be softer on the teeth than the specimen above.
I was exhausted. All I wanted to do was relax but obviously I had to sit with that mess in front of me for half an hour. I swear the sponge shafts moved at one point.
Once cleared, I decided to relax with a bit of your world-famous onboard entertainment. I switched it on:
I apologise for the quality of the photo, it's just it was incredibly hard to capture Boris Johnson's face through the flickering white lines running up and down the screen. Perhaps it would be better on another channel:
Is that Ray Liotta? A question I found myself asking over and over again throughout the gruelling half-hour I attempted to watch the film like this. After that I switched off. I'd had enough. I was the hungriest I'd been in my adult life and I had a splitting headache from squinting at a crackling screen.
My only option was to simply stare at the seat in front and wait for either food, or sleep. Neither came for an incredibly long time. But when it did it surpassed my wildest expectations:
Yes! It's another crime-scene cookie. Only this time you dunk it in the white stuff.
Richard.... What is that white stuff? It looked like it was going to be yoghurt. It finally dawned on me what it was after staring at it. It was a mixture between the Baaji custard and the Mustard sauce. It reminded me of my first week at university. I had overheard that you could make a drink by mixing vodka and refreshers. I lied to my new friends and told them I'd done it loads of times. When I attempted to make the drink in a big bowl it formed a cheese Richard, a cheese. That cheese looked a lot like your baaji-mustard.
So that was that Richard. I didn't eat a bloody thing. My only question is: How can you live like this? I can't imagine what dinner round your house is like, it must be like something out of a nature documentary.
As I said at the start I love your brand, I really do. It's just a shame such a simple thing could bring it crashing to it's knees and begging for sustenance.
Yours Sincererly...
- Blog post
- 1 year ago
- Views: 392
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The cost of Searching the Web The cost of Searching the Web
- From: RobLyons
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Description:
You might have seen this artice (courtesy of the BBC) recently, but it is a good reminder that there is a worth to using Click4Carbon as your primary search engine, and a little reminder about maybe switching your PC off when you're not using it.
Now we do of course use search systems (google included) to provide you results, but you do know you're helping towards offsetting the cost of searches by using us:
'Carbon cost' of Google revealed
Two search requests on the internet website Google produce "as much carbon dioxide as boiling a kettle", according to a Harvard University academic.
US physicist Alex Wissner-Gross claims that a typical Google search on a desktop computer produces about 7g CO2.
However, these figures were disputed by Google, who say a typical search produced only 0.2g of carbon dioxide.
A recent study by American research firm Gartner suggested that IT now causes two percent of global emissions.
Dr Wissner-Gross's study claims that two Google searches on a desktop computer produces 14g of CO2, which is the roughly the equivalent of boiling an electric kettle.
Carbon emissions
The Harvard academic argues that these carbon emissions stem from the electricity used by the computer terminal and by the power consumed by the large data centres operated by Google around the world.
If you want to supply really great and fast result, then that's going to take extra energy 
Dr Alex Wissner-GrossAlthough the American search engine is renowned for returning fast results, Dr Wissner-Gross says it can only do so because it uses several data banks at the same time.
Speaking to the BBC, he said a combination of clients, networks, servers and people's home computers all added up to a lot of energy usage.
"Google isn't any worse than any other data centre operator. If you want to supply really great and fast result, then that's going to take extra energy to do so," he said.
Dr Wissner-Gross said he was working on a website called co2stats.com which helps companies identify "energy inefficient" aspects of their websites.
In a statement on its official blog, Google said that Dr Wissner-Gross' figures were "many times too high."
The firm said that a typical search returned a result in less than 0.2 seconds and that the search itself only used its servers for a few thousandths of a second. This, said Google, amounted to 0.0003 kWh of energy per search - equivalent to 0.2g of CO2.
"We've made great strides to reduce the energy used by our data centres, but we still want clean and affordable sources of electricity for the power that we do use," said Google in its statement.
"In 2007, we co-founded the Climate Savers Computing Initiative. This non-profit consortium is committed to cutting the energy consumed by computers in half by 2010 and so reducing global CO2 emissions by 54 million tons per year. That's a lot of kettles."
- Blog post
- 1 year ago
- Views: 391
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Chickens Chickens
- From: RobLyons
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Description:
Well, believe it or not, me and my partner have decided to invest in some chickens. What for? Simple...Eggs. What I decided was to start keeping a blog to let you know of the trials and tribulations of doing this from a person who willing to give it a go but has no idea what is in store.
We only have a small garden, and frankly its only just big enough to swing a cat (or our dog) in. We're not going on a self-sufficiency crusade, but if this blog helps sway anyone out there to get the courage to do this, then I've done my job.First things first.... we needed housing for them. We considered trying to build a chicken coop, but as we seem to spend longer and longer working at the computer these days, we thought we'd cheat and buy something in. We're also not the "Smiths vs Jones" type either, but on this occasion we found something that made a pretty cool and trendy statement and even become a feature in the garden.
The product is called an Eglu Cube. Its made of plastic and comes with a chicken run of a couple of metres. And here's a picture of it:
So, where are we now?We ordered the Eglu Cube along with 6 chickens. The company, if you're interested is Omlet, and can be found by Omlet Eglu Cube.
Here's the crunch.... the one we bought just cost us in the region of £600. So this is as much of a lifestyle choice as it is an economic decision. It will take us a while to recoup (pardon the pun) the monies invested by accumulating and even selling the eggs. But before you lose interest due to the pricing rememer this:
- We got 6 chickens
- a raft load of accessories
- A delivery guy who is going to install, the Eglu Cube and show us how to clip the wings so the chickens don't fly over to nextdoor too often.
Our delivery date is 5th May 2009 so we are waiting in anticipation on our new fine feathered friends.
Hopefully in the next few weeks and months I'll have plenty to say on the trials and tribulations of a chicken farmer (Is there a technical term for someone that does that?). So please keep coming back, and give me your thoughts too.
- Blog post
- 1 year ago
- Views: 387
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The Funny Side of Climate Chan The Funny Side of Climate Change!
- From: BobCarbon
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Is it possible to laugh about global climate change?
From the book " 101 Funny Things About Global Warming" by New York cartoonist Sindey Harris.
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 386
- Not yet rated
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Madrid told to clean up! Madrid told to clean up!
- From: JohnRussell
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Spain is getting tough with the litterbugs, and worse, responsible for turning its capital city into a rubbish tip.
New laws have raised the fine for dog owners who let their pets soil Madrid's public places to £1,300, persistent litterers will be hit with £620 fines and anyone caught spraying graffiti will face a £2,700 penalty.
The laws will be backed by a 300-strong squad of "rubbish police" patrolling the streets and imposing the fines.
"The goal is to defend the rights of the majority, who pay a lot of money in order to live in a city that is clean and safe," said Ana Botella, a conservative Madrid town councillor who spearheaded the plan, and who is also the wife of former prime minister Jose Maria Aznar.
Many residents, long since tired of watching their step when they walk and holding their noses during the steamy hot summers, say it is about time.
Parents of young children are perhaps the plan's strongest supporters. Many playgrounds in Madrid's centre are in public squares ringed with pubs that overflow into the streets in the evenings. By morning, all manner of waste can be found amid the swings.
"I think it's a good idea," said young mother Maria Lamamie De Clairac with her daughter at a playground in the Plaza Dos de Mayo in central Madrid. Looking around the plaza, she said that it was not particularly child-friendly.
"It's dirty - dirty and full of drunks," she said, gesturing to a group of men holding cans of beer in the early afternoon.
Carmen Orellana Olivares, a nanny, said she thought it was high time the city dealt with the aroma left over from weekend partying.
"It smells of urine here," she said, playing with a two-year-old boy on a seesaw. "The problem isn't so much the garbage, but the smells from the night before."
- Blog post
- 1 year ago
- Views: 385
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Efficient Computers? Efficient Computers?
- From: RobLyons
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Did you know, the newest computers on the market are also the greenest computers on the market as more manufacturers decided to go with the inescapable trend of being greener.
And frankly they're doing it because it must be good business. Why? because more and more of us ordinary people are demanding it, and putting a green badge on anything is starting to give these companies a marketing edge. Yes - there is more pressure coming from the world powers to push the green agenda, but lets face it....big businesses make changes either because it is a legal requirement....or because they can sell more. My personal opinion is that the latter is becoming more of a financial gain to them and that sort of thing makes a big business react faster.
What they're doing?
- The products are using even less energy. If all the old computers in the United States were replaced with new Energy Star-qualified ones, it would be the equivalent of taking more than 2.7 mil cars off the road over the computers' lifetimes.
- Manufacturers are using recycled plastic in computers and packaging, and making sure components are easily recyclable when they become obsolete. Recycling old machines has also become big business world wide.
- Companies are phasing out more and more chemicals like the human toxins arsenic and mercury, found in typical PC screens. While this might become a long term legal compliance, it already has an effect on the ability to recycle.
What you can be doing?
Next time you're up to buy a new computer, consider the environment. It might be that you compare two desktops and go for the most efficient, or it might be that buying a laptop is a better choice overall. The Laptop also allows you to be more portable in your own life of course. Personally, since moving to a laptop, I'd never go back.
And don't forget.... having a computer and using it are different. How you use that computer (or rather what you do with it when you're not using it) is important. Have a look at our ECOInfo page for a few hints and tips.
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 382
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Administrator : Why I'm here Administrator : Why I'm here
- From: BobCarbon
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In this blog we will keep you updated with any technical changes, or alerts we consider you would be interested in.
If you have any technical issues please feel free to contact me, BobCarbon and I will be happy to assist. - Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 376
- Not yet rated
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Pay as You Throw! Pay as You Throw!
- From: adeymoore
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Controversial pay-as-you-throw schemes could be an acceptable answer to Britain's 15 million tonne mountain of household waste according to a survey for The BBC.
From January English councils will be able to bid for pilot schemes to incentivise people for recycling more and deter them from throwing stuff away.
Previous pay-as-you-throw pilots were abandoned, but the survey showed 79% of women and 70% of men saying they should be rewarded financially if they create less waste and recycle more.
A much narrower majority - 55% of women and 50% of men - said it was only fair they should pay more if they throw away more.
The poll of 1,000 people by NOP offers some encouragement to the British government, which is encouraging councillors to try pay-as-you-throw pilots. Europe is running out of landfill sites and all nations face targets to increase the amount they recycle into new materials.
Just over 70% of both women and men said they would be more careful about creating waste if they had to pay for it to be collected.
But councils may be alarmed by another finding - 46% of men and 41% of women said they did not trust their local authority to administer any new waste charges fairly.
And the narrowness of the margin of people in favour of extra charges may also cause councils to pause.
To recycle or not to recycle?
Ministers are hoping to attract English local authorities to bid for the pay-as-you-throw schemes permitted in the Climate Change Bill, which passes its final hurdle this week.But previous pilot charging schemes have been hugely controversial, with a computerised chip-and-bin system in South Norfolk being abandoned after repeated technical failures and delays to bin rounds.
Eric Pickles, Conservative local government spokesman, has regularly criticised the "hated bin taxes"; and under pressure, the government has previously sent out mixed messages about whether or not variable charging would go ahead.
This is now resolved, but it looks as though most councils in the UK have been warned off variable charging because of the controversy attached.
Paul Bettison, a Conservative councillor responsible for waste on the Local Government Association said: "I wish Eric Pickles would stop calling them bin taxes. It is very galling.
"They are bin charges. They are not taxes at all. You pay for the service you get. The current system of invisible waste charges is much more like a tax.
"I know what it is like to be in opposition, but many of us Conservatives are in power in local authorities, trying to run waste services, and he is not helping us."
Councillor Bettison said the official Conservative policy of promising a return to weekly bin collection would cost up to £2bn a year if it prompted people to turn away from recycling because councils would have to pay more landfill tax.
This figure had not been costed by the party, he said.
A Conservative party spokesman said: "Paul Bettison is arguing that the only way to increase recycling and avoid landfill penalties is by cutting weekly collections. We utterly reject that underlying assumption."
He said the loss of weekly collections had led to £213 million rise in fly-tipping. And he said pay-as-you-go schemes would cost so much more to administer that savings on collection could be wiped out.
Mr Bettison told BBC news he would be been banned by Conservative Central Office from debating the issue with Mr Pickles, but the Tories later said Mr Pickles had been prepared to debate with him, and would be prepared to debate with him in future
We asked Mr Bettison what he would say to Mr Pickles. He said that would be removed by a spam filter.
The Environment Minister Jane Kennedy responded to the BBC survey, saying: "It is encouraging that such a high proportion of people recognise the responsibility we all share to dispose of our waste in a way that reduces our impact on the environment.
"It is for local authorities to decide on the solutions that work best in their areas and we have provided them with all of the measures that they requested in order to do so."
There are no plans for pay-as-you-throw in Scotland and Northern Ireland but variable charging is being considered in Wales.
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 375
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Christmas Trees: Real or Fake! Christmas Trees: Real or Fake!
- From: JohnRussell
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What is more eco friendly - a real Christmas Tree or an Artificial / Fake one?
The National Christmas Tree Association have produced an interesting chart which demonstrates the benefits of real trees.
Read on ... You will be surprised ... As with everything there is always a debate and we would welcome your views in this respect.
Real Trees Artificial Trees PLACE OF ORIGIN - United States & Canada
- 85% from China
METHOD OF PRODUCTION - farming
- factory
- planting takes place Jan-May
- raw materials sent to factory & assembled into final product
- estimated 40-45 million trees planted in 2008 in North America
- product is shipped to U.S. then distributed to stores
- estimated 446 million trees growing on farms in U.S.
- number of factories unknown
- tree farms support complex eco-systems
- factories only consume natural resources
COMPONENTS - plant tissue
- plastics and metals
- 100% biodegradable
- non-biodegradable
PVC FREE? - Yes
- No
LEAD FREE? - Yes
- No (lead is used in the process of making PVC plastic)
CARBON NEUTRAL? - Yes
- No
- trees absorb carbon dioxide
- plastic is a petroleum byproduct
- when decomposing, carbon, nitrogen and other elements are released into soil
CHEMICALS? - No
- Yes
- Scientists have measured cut Christmas trees for chemical residue and not found any significant amounts
- PVC itself is a dangerous chemical
- Many different bugs, fungi and parasites can attack and kill trees, so farmers may use pesticides to keep consumers' trees healthy and alive until harvest
- Manufacture of PVC creates and disperses dioxins, the most toxic man-made chemical known
- Most pesticides are ground applied
- Released into air or water, dioxins enter the food chain, where they accumulate in fatty tissues of animals and humans, a potential risk for causing cancer, damaging immune functions and impairing children's development
- Herbicides are used to suppress, not kill off, weeds to prevent soil erosion
- If someone tells you “there are chemicals on cut Christmas trees” they are wrong
DISPOSAL - Recycled
- Landfill
- Used trees can be recycled in a variety of ways
- Fake trees can’t be recycled and end up in landfills
- Decomposing trees add nutrients back into the earth
- All of the accumulated fake trees are a burden to the environment indefinitely
RENEWABLE RESOURCE? - Yes
- No
- New trees are planted every year
- Petroleum, used to make plastic, is a non-renewable resource, as are metals
ECO-FRIENDLY? - Yes
- No
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 369
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A sustainable life? A sustainable life?
- From: ClaireRussell
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According to www.sustainablelife.info there are a number of common objections when it comes to leading a more sustainable life and these are typically as detailed below:
"DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO"
We all know there are hundreds or thousands of things that can be done by individuals, groups, communities and countries, so the task is for people like ourselves to go out and inform the wider community about what can be done. This information dissemination can take many forms, so the challenge is to work out in each of our own minds the methods that best suit our personal circumstances and abilities and then do them.
"IT'S NOT WORTH MY EFFORT"
There are many success stories which should be widely told so that people can easily accept that it is worth their effort to be more sustainable. Unfortunately, the dominant message is doom and gloom - oil shortages in 20 years time, factories closing, unemployment, wars over oil, etc - but such messages seem exceedingly and unnecessarily pessimistic. So what's required is a commitment to make a constructive effort with the needs that are presented -- tell people what we know - that all non-renewable resources have a finite life and that solutions to our future problems will have to be found. Over to the right you can read what you can do to make a genuine difference.
"IT COSTS TOO MUCH"
The simple response to this attitudinal problem is to point out that most of the required actions are small, personal and cheap. It's our fault if people believe that it costs too much to be sustainable, because it means that we've been concentrating on the larger items - electricity generating options, global warming -- instead of individual responsible acts.
"WHO WILL BE PUT OUT OF WORK"
This, believe it or not, is one of the biggest questions we get, when we engage in a conversation about environmental sustainabilty. We consistently hear that farmers can't make it without chemical fertilizers and pesticides; or they have relatives in logging and mill work; or an acquaintance is a commercial fisherman who is being regulated out of business, and so on. We are committed to lifting up a level of optimism that works, because it is consistent to maintaining health. Every natural step we take, brings a brighter future with greater potential.
For more information and lots of great advice see http://www.sustainablelife.info/suscommdef1.html. And of course visit our Eco Info pages and see our Top Ten Tips for even more!
- Blog post
- 2 years ago
- Views: 367