DID YOU KNOW? Printer Usage

Did you know that inkjet printers use less energy per page than laser printers.

Christine Watson

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DID YOU KNOW: By recycling our daily read, NSW saves 3,079,000 gigajoules of energy a year. That’s enough to power 142,510 households.

DID YOU KNOW: By recycling our daily read, NSW saves 3,079,000 gigajoules of energy a year. That’s enough to power 142,510 households.

DID YOU KNOW: Sydneysiders have reduced their water use by more than 13% since 2003

DID YOU KNOW: Sydneysiders have reduced their water use by more than 13% since 2003

Did You Know: Dishwasher Energy Usage?

- A half filled dishwasher uses the same amount of energy as a full load.

Did You Know: Recylcling Facts

- Sydneysiders have reduced their water use by more than 13% since 2003.

- By recycling our daily read, NSW saves 3,079,000 gigajoules of energy a year. That’s enough to power 142,510 households.

The Dirty Lowdown on Disposable Nappies

Consider these facts when buying disposable nappies:
  

-                Nappies are the third most common item, by volume and weight, in American, UK, European, Japanese and Australian landfills.

-                According to Choice consumer magazine, 95% of Australian babies wore disposable nappies in 2007. In China, only 6% do, in India 2%.

-                It takes over 10 full sized trees to produce the number of nappies your baby will use in its first couple of years.

-                Production of a single disposable nappy requires 2/3 of a cup of petroleum. This adds up to over 3 billion gallons (1134 billion litres of oil) per year dedicated to disposable nappy production.

-                According to 2003 figures from the Women’s Environment Network, it takes on average 22,250 MJ of energy, 75,000 ha of land for raw materials and 70 cubic metres of waste water is needed to manufacture enough disposable nappies for just one infant over the course of 2½ years.

-                The estimated cost of disposable nappies per child is $3,500.

Clear the Air eMagazine October 27, 2009

Check out the latest eMagazine from Clear the Air, featuring news on green articles from around the world.

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Clear the Air eMagazine October 20, 2009

Check out the latest eMagazine from Clear the Air, featuring news on green articles from around the world.

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How To Avoid Wasting Food – Before It Goes Off in Your Fridge!

Here’s some tips on how to avoid wasting food:

Vegetables

1.              Make left over mashed potato into patty shapes and cook them in butter for a quick “hash brown”.

2.              Trimmed ends of from onions, carrots, celery, capsicums can be kept in the freezer and when a reasonable amount is stored, place in a pot with water and make a vegetable soup or stock.

3.              If only using part of an onion or capsicum, chop up the remainder and store in the freezer and use next time you need diced onion or capsicum.

4.              Left over roasted vegetables can be turned into a soup buy adding stock and blending. Or alternatively add to a pan of butter and fry and just prior to the browning completed, add an egg – bubble and squeak – yum.

5.              When preparing pumpkin or squash, do not throw the seeds out. Rinse them and roast in the oven.

6.              Celery leaves can be added to soups, stews, casserole and meatloaf – great flavour boost.

7.              If tomatoes are just about to turn bad, dry them in the oven and store them in a little olive oil in the fridge.

8.              Vegetables such as peas, beans, corn, carrots, broccoli, sprouts, cauliflower and spinach can be blanched in hot water and placed in the freezer.

9.              Zucchini about to go off? Make zucchini bread or muffins and store in the freezer.

Fruit

1.     1. Berries, bananas, melons and mangoes make great smoothies in the fruit is about to go off.

2.     2. Fruit kebabs are a great treat for kids – fresh or barbecued.

3.     3. Too many apples – make an apple sauce or apple butter.

4.     4. Most fruit can be made into a fruit crumble. Assemble and bake it or prepare it, freeze it prior to baking.

Breads and Grains

1.              Make croutons for Caesar Salad from left over bread. Store in air tight container.

2.              Bread crumbs are best made with stale bread.

3.              Keep broken past in a container and add to a rice and vegetable bake.

4.              Left over rice can be added to oatmeal for breakfast.

5.              If the kids don’t like to the crusts on their sandwiches, save the crusts and turn into bread crumbs.

Meats

1.     Don’t throw out chicken, beef, lamb or pork bones. Boil them and make stock which can be frozen.

Dairy

1.     1. Lots of little bits of cheese and me added into a macaroni and cheese dish.

2.     2. If eggs have been kept a while, freeze them by beating the eggs and pour into an ice cream tray.

3.     3. Too much milk and unable to drink it – freeze it.

Herbs

1.     1. Chop herbs and place in an ice cube tray with a little water. To be used in cooking, not to be used in a salad.

2.     2. Herbs can be frozen. Some will turn black, however the flavour is the same.

3.     3. Make pesto with left over basil.

4.     4.  Dry herbs by hanging them by their stems in a cool dry location. When dry, remove from stems and store in airtight containers.

Don’t Waste Anything

1.              Left over coffee in the pot? Freeze it in ice cube trays. Cubes can be used for iced coffee or to cool down too-hot coffee. You can do the same with leftover tea.

2.              Left over wine? Use it to de-glaze pans to add flavour to whatever you are cooking.

3.              Left over stock or broth can be placed in ice cube trays and frozen.

4.              Left over tomato paste can be placed in ice cube trays and frozen.

5.              With a little bit of honey in the bottom of the jar add a squeeze of lemon juice and swish it around. Lemon juice will loosen the honey and it will make a great cup of tea.

Not only will these tips help reduce you food waste, there is a big saving in food bills.

Extracts from Planet Green

Water Conversation in Australia

A few facts

- Australia is the driest inhabited continent.

- Australia use more than 23 buckets of water around their homes every day.

- Mulching around plants helps prevent water loss through evaporation.

- Downpipe diverters take water from your house roof for use in gardens.

- Pool covers can reduce water loss saving on the need to top up water levels.

There are in excess of 160 water-saving products and services that carry the Smart WaterMark label.

Look for the Smart Approved WaterMark – it is Australia’s labeling program from products and services that help reduce outdoor water use. Products carrying the logo – from rainwater harvesting, irrigation and greywater systems to garden items, pool covers and waterless car washes, are independently proven to save water, helping you make an informed choice when purchasing products and services.

Who Cares About Our Water?

Findings from the third annual NewsPoll survey, commissioned by the Smart Approved WaterMark found:

1.              the number of capital city residents who believe the water situation is extremely serious has dropped by 17 percentage points – from 44% to 27% in the past two years.

2.              Participants that consider the water situation to be either very or extremely serious also declined from 84% to 69%.

3.              The overall trend highlights the need to remind people that just because it rains people should not stop thinking about saving water.

4.              73% of people in 2008 thought water restrictions are about right, compared with 54% in 2006.

5.              The survey showed that people still consider technology to be the most effective mechanism to reduce water use followed by rebates, education, restrictions and finally, pricing.

6.              All cities have seen an increase in people buying products with associated water rebates.

DID YOU KNOW: Reduce Pizza Box Waste

Australians eat 190,000,000 takeaway pizzas each year, producing a lot of cardboard boxes, headed for the bin. If scraps of cheese and pastry remain in the boxes, don’t throw the box, put it in a compost bin or use it as a cover for a worm farm. Worms will eat and scraps and the box!

Christine Watson

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DID YOU KNOW: The Amount of Carbon Produced by New Clothing

Every dollar spent on new clothing produces approximately six garbage bags full of CO2 emissions.

GREEN FACT: Up to 5,500 ltrs of water is wasted through a leaking tap per year.

Fact: Up to 5,500 ltrs of water is wasted through a leaking tap per year.

Clear the Air eMagazine October 14 2009

Check out the latest eMagazine for Clear the Air.

As well as viewing it page by page, you can also:

Download it as a PDF

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Eco-Friendly and Sustainable Chopsticks

If I told you that over 250 billion chopsticks are thrown away every year, would you be shocked or horrified?

Well, with such waste comes a big opportunity.

Yuento‘s eco-conscious and travel-friendly alternative comes in a portable poly-carbonate case and silicon cap that doubles as a rest between bites.

Called “Eco-Pocke-My-Hashi” the chopsticks are produced from durable and sustainable bamboo in 12 bright colors.

They’re available for just under $12 USD through Idea.

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