How Green Are You?
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How Green Are You?
Let me preface this by saying that the purpose of this isn't "superiority" or any nonsense like that - I don't judge what other people do at all, as I don't do what I do for anybody but for my own peace of mind. I'm simply curious about your lives. It is my notion that as with me, the thrifty/environmentally conscious part of me that drives car free/car light existence bleeds over into other aspects of our lives.
In our backyard are six bicycles, two bicycle trailers (one in pieces needing an overhaul) two raised high-density garden boxes and one more-regularly-used-than-I-like car.
I do all of our errands by bicycle - grocery shopping, laundry, bill paying, etc.
We are starting our gardens this year and will be growing most of our own veggies, we have a compost heap started both to cut down on garbage and to fertilize the garden.
We recycle cans, but not cardboard or plastic - this place is a nightmare for that, and it irks me. It also irks me that I have to drive the car to recycle those cans, as they won't let the bicycle in the recycling center for "safety reasons".
I also make my own laundry detergent.
In our backyard are six bicycles, two bicycle trailers (one in pieces needing an overhaul) two raised high-density garden boxes and one more-regularly-used-than-I-like car.
I do all of our errands by bicycle - grocery shopping, laundry, bill paying, etc.
We are starting our gardens this year and will be growing most of our own veggies, we have a compost heap started both to cut down on garbage and to fertilize the garden.
We recycle cans, but not cardboard or plastic - this place is a nightmare for that, and it irks me. It also irks me that I have to drive the car to recycle those cans, as they won't let the bicycle in the recycling center for "safety reasons".
I also make my own laundry detergent.
#2
Vegan on a bicycle
"In fact a vegan driving a hummer would be contributing less greenhouse gas carbon emissions than a meat eater riding a bicycle." - Capt Paul Watson, A Very Inconvenient Truth
"The livestock sector is a major player [in climate change], responsible for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions measured in CO2 equivalent. This is a higher share than transport." - Livestock's long shadow, 2006 UN report sponsored by WTO, EU, AS-AID, FAO, et al
i think being vegan is the greenest thing someone can do. no one but other vegans ever wants to hear that
it takes me a few months to fill up a garbage bag, or take my recycling bin to the curb, so i guess i'm doing alright about minimizing waste.
and i'm car free, of course
"The livestock sector is a major player [in climate change], responsible for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions measured in CO2 equivalent. This is a higher share than transport." - Livestock's long shadow, 2006 UN report sponsored by WTO, EU, AS-AID, FAO, et al
i think being vegan is the greenest thing someone can do. no one but other vegans ever wants to hear that
it takes me a few months to fill up a garbage bag, or take my recycling bin to the curb, so i guess i'm doing alright about minimizing waste.
and i'm car free, of course
#3
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So you're saying that I should save a cow and eat a vegan?
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I'm not very green. I eat meats.
Although to be fair, if you simply cut beef out of your diet, you're probably almost as green as any vegan... poultry and pork combined account for less greenhouse gasses than cattle alone.
Although to be fair, if you simply cut beef out of your diet, you're probably almost as green as any vegan... poultry and pork combined account for less greenhouse gasses than cattle alone.
Last edited by Mos6502; 04-22-12 at 11:45 AM.
#6
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One of the lowest carbon footprint cities in the US is New York. Its citizens quite often don't consider themselves green or make any attempt at being green. They don't drive cars cause it's too expensive to park and public transit and walkable local shopping is very convenient. They live in very heat-efficient housing with a lower square footage than the North American norm. But most of them don't consider themselves "green".
On the other hand, many people applaud themselves for having energy efficient cars and living in large single family housing with a ton of "green" upgrades. Quite often these lovely houses are situated very far from local shopping and the workplace.
I applaud people who voluntarily ride their bicycle a lot and try to cut back on their meat intake but our society needs to have a pricing/tax structure that builds "greenness" in.
Ps. I'm growing to dislike the word "green" and also the word "sustainable". What exactly do they mean?
On the other hand, many people applaud themselves for having energy efficient cars and living in large single family housing with a ton of "green" upgrades. Quite often these lovely houses are situated very far from local shopping and the workplace.
I applaud people who voluntarily ride their bicycle a lot and try to cut back on their meat intake but our society needs to have a pricing/tax structure that builds "greenness" in.
Ps. I'm growing to dislike the word "green" and also the word "sustainable". What exactly do they mean?
Last edited by gerv; 04-22-12 at 12:12 PM. Reason: grammar only... its citizen vs it's citizen
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Our cars are driven a total of under 4000 miles per year. For me,its not because of an environment conecern, but obstruct being stuck in traffic. I bike to work but if I ever need to go during late evening when there is little traffic then I always use the car as I get there and back a lot quicker.
Also for errands and groceries etc,I always use the car as I can get things done quicker (on weekends). I thought of using the bike, but it makes no sense for me.
Also for errands and groceries etc,I always use the car as I can get things done quicker (on weekends). I thought of using the bike, but it makes no sense for me.
#9
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I sold my last car in 2007.
I don't have children.
I stopped eating meat and dairy products this year.
I don't have air conditioning (it's only needed two to three weeks per year).
I have sealed my doors and door frames in the apartment where I live.
I purchase many organic foods at a premium price.
I don't purchase many processed foods.
I do reuse plastic bags and newspapers.
I do leave the light on in my room when I leave it. The bulb is a CFL.
I do leave the heater on in my bedroom when I leave home. The door is kept closed and the room thermostat keeps it comfortable.
I don't recycle anything. There are no programs by the city. Two private groups organize recycling drives but there is no way for me to transport several months of containers to their drop off site. They don't recycle glass.
Next year if I'm still in this apartment I'll purchase a propane catalytic heater for warmth. That will cut down on my electric heating costs. I might also purchase a propane instant on water heater for my shower. There are portable ice chest like freezers that are far better at energy conservation than conventional freezers. This is because the doors are on top. when they open the cold air doesn't all fall out. Thus they don't need to use so much energy to keep the interior cold. I want one of those too. These items will be bought by me anyway because they will become part of my RV project. I might as well get them early and put them to use saving energy expenses.
I haven't deliberately littered since grade school.
Overall I would say I'm an environmentally conscious person.
I don't have children.
I stopped eating meat and dairy products this year.
I don't have air conditioning (it's only needed two to three weeks per year).
I have sealed my doors and door frames in the apartment where I live.
I purchase many organic foods at a premium price.
I don't purchase many processed foods.
I do reuse plastic bags and newspapers.
I do leave the light on in my room when I leave it. The bulb is a CFL.
I do leave the heater on in my bedroom when I leave home. The door is kept closed and the room thermostat keeps it comfortable.
I don't recycle anything. There are no programs by the city. Two private groups organize recycling drives but there is no way for me to transport several months of containers to their drop off site. They don't recycle glass.
Next year if I'm still in this apartment I'll purchase a propane catalytic heater for warmth. That will cut down on my electric heating costs. I might also purchase a propane instant on water heater for my shower. There are portable ice chest like freezers that are far better at energy conservation than conventional freezers. This is because the doors are on top. when they open the cold air doesn't all fall out. Thus they don't need to use so much energy to keep the interior cold. I want one of those too. These items will be bought by me anyway because they will become part of my RV project. I might as well get them early and put them to use saving energy expenses.
I haven't deliberately littered since grade school.
Overall I would say I'm an environmentally conscious person.
#11
Vegan on a bicycle
so many people don't understand this... with a florescent bulb, it's much more resource efficient, energy efficient and cheaper to just leave it on all the time than turning it on and off. really, anything more than 1-2 power cycles per day with these things is wasteful.
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I birthed my replacement and my husband's replacement and no more. We are vegetarian and car free. Our older home is less than half the size of the average new American house. We choose efficient replacements for home improvements and appliances. When buying clothes, furniture, books, dishes, etc we first look for used items before buying new. We make extensive use of the library and us rental/loan options for infrequently used items. We donate or repurpose out grown or unwanted items. We recycle plastic, cans, glass, and paper which are accepted by our municipality. We have a garden and will be getting rescue chickens in the near future. Our lights are currently CFL and we are moving toward LED. We have a programmable thermostat and lots of warm socks and sweaters. This has been our basic lifestyle for about the past 20 years.
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I have to say, I tend to make choices that save me money, and then in the long run they end up being "green". So despite the fact that our family has a pretty small carbon footprint compared to the average US household, I don't think I really get to pat myself on the back for it. I don't have a car, which we first did initially because it saved us from bankruptcy. We've kept at it because we love the lifestyle, but it has little to do with environmental aspects. I am generally pleased when the choices I make turn out to be environmentally friendly, but it's really just a bonus, not enough motivation in and of itself.
#14
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The cost effectiveness of turning fluorescent lights off to conserve energy is a bit more complicated. For most areas of the United States, a general rule-of-thumb for when to turn off a fluorescent light is if you leave a room for more than 15 minutes, it is probably more cost effective to turn the light off. Or in other words, if you leave the room for only up to 15 minutes, it will generally be more cost effective to leave the light(s) on. In areas where electric rates are high and/or during peak demand periods, this period may be as low as 5 minutes.
Sources say the wait period is even less for CF lights.... 3 minutes.
https://www.treehugger.com/interior-d...ightbulbs.html
#15
Vegan on a bicycle
^^^
the lifetime of any fluorescent bulb can be measured more accurately in "starts" than hours. every time the bulb turns on, a little bit of it is consumed. factor in the manufacturing and disposal "costs", and my vote is to leave them on.
of course, i'm in NZ and i'm on a 100% renewable power line. if anyone can calculate the "costs" of mercury from a CFL (including manufacturing), compared to the mercury released by powering that CFL from a coal powered sources, i'd be interested to see it.
the lifetime of any fluorescent bulb can be measured more accurately in "starts" than hours. every time the bulb turns on, a little bit of it is consumed. factor in the manufacturing and disposal "costs", and my vote is to leave them on.
of course, i'm in NZ and i'm on a 100% renewable power line. if anyone can calculate the "costs" of mercury from a CFL (including manufacturing), compared to the mercury released by powering that CFL from a coal powered sources, i'd be interested to see it.
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I'm horribly ungreen. Not so much in my personal life (car lite, doing my best to own as little as possible, light meat eater) but in my industry of work (Oil Sands construction) and I do fly pretty regularly to travel and visit my woman.
Making small victories every day though. Would love to be able to eat a diet of strictly local foods, but here in Alberta that would mean a diet of potato's and beef LOL
Making small victories every day though. Would love to be able to eat a diet of strictly local foods, but here in Alberta that would mean a diet of potato's and beef LOL
#18
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In every carbon foot print test I take my foot print is well below the average first world fellow citizen. I tend to eat Chicken, fish and pork but every now and then beef will hit my plate. But with the exception of the beef itself my dairy products, chicken and pork come from within 150 miles of where live. The milk and eggs come from within five miles. Peaches, Apricots, Strawberries are within 10 miles of me. However my vegetables more than likely come from thousands of miles from me. My home is paid for and we live in under 1000 square feet. I get hammered in the tests for living in the US because if I tell the site I am from mexico my score drops to just above non industrialized nations averages.
My experience with veganism was simular to Gandhi's. I simply had no long term stamina. A Quote attributed to Gandhi: ""For my companions I have been a blind guide leading the blind," declared Gandhi after the experiment was over. Gandhi still felt, however, that "the hidden possibilities of the innumerable seeds, leaves and fruits" of the earth could be explored and found to provide mankind with adequate nourishment. He never stopped trying to experiment along these lines, but he always had to turn back to goat milk to regain his strength.
In the end he had to acknowledge the necessity for animal food. In 1946 he declared: "The crores of India today get neither milk nor ghee nor butter, nor even buttermilk. No wonder that mortality figures are on the increase and there is a lack of energy in the people. It would appear as if man is really unable to sustain life without either meat or milk and milk products. Anyone who deceives people in this regard or countenances the fraud is an enemy of India."
If you live where synthetic supliments are readily available to fill your medicine chest it could work I guess. But I don't see how artichokes from Spain would be greener than chicken from the next city.
https://www.livestrong.com/article/25...h-vegan-diets/
My experience with veganism was simular to Gandhi's. I simply had no long term stamina. A Quote attributed to Gandhi: ""For my companions I have been a blind guide leading the blind," declared Gandhi after the experiment was over. Gandhi still felt, however, that "the hidden possibilities of the innumerable seeds, leaves and fruits" of the earth could be explored and found to provide mankind with adequate nourishment. He never stopped trying to experiment along these lines, but he always had to turn back to goat milk to regain his strength.
In the end he had to acknowledge the necessity for animal food. In 1946 he declared: "The crores of India today get neither milk nor ghee nor butter, nor even buttermilk. No wonder that mortality figures are on the increase and there is a lack of energy in the people. It would appear as if man is really unable to sustain life without either meat or milk and milk products. Anyone who deceives people in this regard or countenances the fraud is an enemy of India."
If you live where synthetic supliments are readily available to fill your medicine chest it could work I guess. But I don't see how artichokes from Spain would be greener than chicken from the next city.
https://www.livestrong.com/article/25...h-vegan-diets/
#19
Sophomoric Member
Also, I suspect the mercury from coal is dispersed over a wide area, and ultimately enters the food chain of non-vegan animals and humans. The mercury from a CFL would more likely be contained if the old bulb is propery discarded.
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#20
Sophomoric Member
https://www.350.org/
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#21
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I am car-free voluntarily, it has nothing to do with trying to be green. I also eat tons of animal products such as meat and dairy..
#22
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Greener than some, not so green as others. I'm car-lite, but my car is a '94 Nissan Sentra, paid cash for it and it runs fine.
I ride a bike or walk most places. I have a 2-br apartment, not married, no kids, no plans to do either.
I do eat meat, milk and eggs, but I buy them from co-workers who have small farms. I used to hunt, but my .306 is back at my folks' place. I get my fish from my own catch or from my friends' catch, I hate fish that's been frozen so I get what I can eat in a day. If I do ever own a house/property, it will likely be a small homestead out in the country, I can often be found drooling over the homes at Tumbleweed, or earthships. Pretty much the reason I'm really into being "off the grid" is because I grew up at the end of the grid, so our electricity went out all the time, and I hated it.
I don't have many clothes, but that just means I run my washing machine and dryer quite a bit more often. My furniture is mostly hand-me-downs. I'm a technophile, so I have a computer/smartphone/etc, which adds to my carbon footprint.
I ride a bike or walk most places. I have a 2-br apartment, not married, no kids, no plans to do either.
I do eat meat, milk and eggs, but I buy them from co-workers who have small farms. I used to hunt, but my .306 is back at my folks' place. I get my fish from my own catch or from my friends' catch, I hate fish that's been frozen so I get what I can eat in a day. If I do ever own a house/property, it will likely be a small homestead out in the country, I can often be found drooling over the homes at Tumbleweed, or earthships. Pretty much the reason I'm really into being "off the grid" is because I grew up at the end of the grid, so our electricity went out all the time, and I hated it.
I don't have many clothes, but that just means I run my washing machine and dryer quite a bit more often. My furniture is mostly hand-me-downs. I'm a technophile, so I have a computer/smartphone/etc, which adds to my carbon footprint.
#23
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In every carbon foot print test I take my foot print is well below the average first world fellow citizen. I tend to eat Chicken, fish and pork but every now and then beef will hit my plate. But with the exception of the beef itself my dairy products, chicken and pork come from within 150 miles of where live. The milk and eggs come from within five miles. Peaches, Apricots, Strawberries are within 10 miles of me. However my vegetables more than likely come from thousands of miles from me. My home is paid for and we live in under 1000 square feet. I get hammered in the tests for living in the US because if I tell the site I am from mexico my score drops to just above non industrialized nations averages.
My experience with veganism was simular to Gandhi's. I simply had no long term stamina. A Quote attributed to Gandhi: ""For my companions I have been a blind guide leading the blind," declared Gandhi after the experiment was over. Gandhi still felt, however, that "the hidden possibilities of the innumerable seeds, leaves and fruits" of the earth could be explored and found to provide mankind with adequate nourishment. He never stopped trying to experiment along these lines, but he always had to turn back to goat milk to regain his strength.
In the end he had to acknowledge the necessity for animal food. In 1946 he declared: "The crores of India today get neither milk nor ghee nor butter, nor even buttermilk. No wonder that mortality figures are on the increase and there is a lack of energy in the people. It would appear as if man is really unable to sustain life without either meat or milk and milk products. Anyone who deceives people in this regard or countenances the fraud is an enemy of India."
If you live where synthetic supliments are readily available to fill your medicine chest it could work I guess. But I don't see how artichokes from Spain would be greener than chicken from the next city.
https://www.livestrong.com/article/25...h-vegan-diets/
My experience with veganism was simular to Gandhi's. I simply had no long term stamina. A Quote attributed to Gandhi: ""For my companions I have been a blind guide leading the blind," declared Gandhi after the experiment was over. Gandhi still felt, however, that "the hidden possibilities of the innumerable seeds, leaves and fruits" of the earth could be explored and found to provide mankind with adequate nourishment. He never stopped trying to experiment along these lines, but he always had to turn back to goat milk to regain his strength.
In the end he had to acknowledge the necessity for animal food. In 1946 he declared: "The crores of India today get neither milk nor ghee nor butter, nor even buttermilk. No wonder that mortality figures are on the increase and there is a lack of energy in the people. It would appear as if man is really unable to sustain life without either meat or milk and milk products. Anyone who deceives people in this regard or countenances the fraud is an enemy of India."
If you live where synthetic supliments are readily available to fill your medicine chest it could work I guess. But I don't see how artichokes from Spain would be greener than chicken from the next city.
https://www.livestrong.com/article/25...h-vegan-diets/
The single biggest thing any individual can do is to make as many reasonable choices as they can for their specific situation. As a family our carbon foot print is horrendous due to our jobs. My bride is a Senior Flight Attendant with a major US carrier. Anybody want to guess what her carbon foot print is for flying some 500,000 miles a year? My job is not much better, requiring some 50,000 miles of driving. My personal vehicle was driven a grand total of 4,000 miles last year. I put about 2,000 on my bicycles and another 200 or so walking.
Aaron
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ISO: A late 1980's Giant Iguana MTB frameset (or complete bike) 23" Red with yellow graphics.
"Cycling should be a way of life, not a hobby.
RIDE, YOU FOOL, RIDE!"_Nicodemus
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Aluminum: barely a hundred
Which one would you rather have under your butt at 30mph?"_krazygluon
Webshots is bailing out, if you find any of my posts with corrupt picture files and want to see them corrected please let me know. :(
ISO: A late 1980's Giant Iguana MTB frameset (or complete bike) 23" Red with yellow graphics.
"Cycling should be a way of life, not a hobby.
RIDE, YOU FOOL, RIDE!"_Nicodemus
"Steel: nearly a thousand years of metallurgical development
Aluminum: barely a hundred
Which one would you rather have under your butt at 30mph?"_krazygluon
Last edited by wahoonc; 04-23-12 at 05:34 AM.
#24
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I drive my truck around, and ride my bike when it is decent outside. I do not recycle and I use plastic bags when I shop even though we have a 5 cent tax on them.
#25
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I don't own a car
I don't have kids
I recycle
I only eat local poultry & fish for meat
I buy local as much as humanly possible
I volunteer locally
I don't have kids
I recycle
I only eat local poultry & fish for meat
I buy local as much as humanly possible
I volunteer locally