BioZet washing powder

A little while ago, I was sent a sample of BioZet washing powder to review (thanks, Karina!). It’s made to suit grey-water systems, since it’s low in sodium and phosphorus. Karina also sent me some info about grey-water, which was handy since I didn’t know much about it before. I gave the BioZet a go this weekend, doing two loads of laundry: one of mine, and one of Dave’s. Well, Dave did his own, but I watched him and questioned him about it afterwards

I tried the Advanced Concentrate type, but there’s also one with added fabric softener, and one for front-loading washing machines as well. We didn’t add any fabric softener, partly because I’ve been cutting back anyway, and partly because fabric softener isn’t good if you want to reuse your rinse water.

Our clothes came out of the wash exactly as clean as you’d expect from a leading brand of washing powder (and I have high expectations!), and we hung them up to dry on the line. I liked the scent, which was soft and mild, and could be smelled on our washed clothes. Dave thought it smelled “nice, not too floral-ish”.

We don’t have a grey-water system hooked up to our washing machine, but we do have a hold button, which stops the machine just before the rinse cycle. This gave us time to grab a bucket and put it under the drainage hose, to catch the rinse water. The water from the wash cycle is usually too alkaline to re-use on your garden, but the rinse water is fine.

A full load of washing gave us five 10L buckets of rinse water: that’s 50L of water per wash, or 100L for both. That’s a lot of water saved from going down the drain! We put it on our garden bed – not on the vegie patch, as you don’t want grey water on plants you’re going to eat, but on the section with our hibiscus bushes and other decorative plants. It was tempting to splash it all over the garden, but deep watering is better than a shallow sprinkle, so we stuck to just one area. We haven’t started up our reticulation for the summer yet, and the shrubs looked grateful for the drink.

I was really surprised by the amount of rinse water that came out. If Dave and I each do a weekly load of laundry, that’s 5,200L of water that could be re-used each year instead of going straight down the drain. Because our house can’t have a proper grey-water system attached, I hadn’t looked at any washing powders that are suited to reusing the rinse water. But now I realise how much water we’re wasting, I fully intend to keep using the BioZet and putting the rinse water on the garden. We might hook up a hose to go out the laundry door though, instead of messing around with buckets!

If you’re looking for a washing powder that’s suitable for grey-water reuse, look for one that’s low in sodium, and low in phosphorus. Sodium dehydrates plants and prevents them from taking up new water, while phosphorus contributes to algal blooms in waterways (like the Swan River algal blooms that have been happening more often in recent years). Other tips from BioZet:

• Avoid using harsh products in your wash, like bleach.
• Don’t reuse rinse water if you’ve had things like nappies, etc in the load.
• Don’t let kids or pets drink it – I can’t imagine it tastes any good, but that’s never stopped kids or pets from finding out for themselves!
• If you’re not sure how your garden will react, test the rinse water out on a small patch before using it all over the place.

Overall, I was really happy with the BioZet. I’d definitely purchase it in the future, and will recommend it to anyone who’s interested in washing powders that are compatible with grey-water systems. You can find out more about it at their website, and there’s also lots more information about safely re-using grey water in your household, in particular the Grey Water fact sheet (pdf). Check it out, and have a think about how much washing water is going down the drain at your place!

National Vegetarian Week

Starting next Monday, 29th September, it’s National Vegetarian Week. This is an event put on by the Australian Vegetarian Society to promote the benefits of plant-based diets and encourage Australians to lower their meat intake. NewsPoll shows that 7 out of 10 Australians already eat vegetarian meals sometimes, so this is a good chance to try a few new recipes and find out how eating less meat can help the environment.

Eating less meat is my 7th way you can eat better for the environment. Livestock farming uses lots of water, about 156GL a year, which isn’t good in our current drought. And cows and sheep produce about 12% of our greenhouse gas emissions, mostly in methane. So anything we can do to cut back on these things is a good idea. Other good reasons to eat less meat are the health benefits, and the fact that animal farming can be pretty cruel. You can read more about this at the AVS website if you’re interested.

And, last but not least, going vego for a week will give you a chance to branch out in the kitchen. If you’re like most Aussies, you’re not getting your 2 fruit and 5 veg every day. Why not take the opportunity to try new recipes, or new ingredients that you wouldn’t normally bother with? National Vegetarian Week includes cooking demonstrations in Vic, NSW, Qld, Tas and WA: you can see the list of events here (pdf).

I’ll be going for vegetarian nachos (using organic blue-corn chips I got from a Mexican friend), and baked potatoes using the ones we’ve just harvested from our vegie patch this week. I’m thinking of trying to cook tofu for the first time too – I’ve eaten it plenty of times before, I’ve just not done it myself. Dave will probably surprise me with something yummy, but he never plans ahead when it’s his turn to cook. I’ll post pictures or recipes if we make anything too delicious to keep to ourselves.

If you’ve got any good vego recipes, please let the rest of us know in the comments!

Quick bit of news

Just thought I’d mention another project I’m working on now: I’m blogging for G Magazine! Each month G Magazine has an eco-challenge for all their readers: things like not using takeaway coffee cups or bottled water. They’ve asked me to write about how I’m going with the challenge a couple of times a week.

I’ll still be posting here twice a week, but if you want to join in the G Challenge, please come on over to the newly re-designed G Magazine website and look me up! There’s other blogs there too, about science, home and garden, travel, etc, all with an environmentally-friendly perspective. Their new site also has news and longer feature articles, and looks pretty spiffy!

Meanwhile, in more national news, PM Rudd has gone on the record saying that reaching 450ppm of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is necessary to stabilise our climate. This brings him in line with many environmental groups (I’d still like to see 350ppm though!). It’s particularly good since Garnaut seems to think that only 550ppm is politically achievable. Rudd knows that 450ppm is necessary, and is on the record about it – that gives us something to hold him to when the details of his ETS come out.

Wake Up, Freak Out – then Get a Grip

I’ve just watched a really good short film (11 minutes) online, that explains the concept of tipping points in relation to climate change. It’s called Wake Up, Freak Out, Then Get a Grip – the site has the film, references to the science that backs it up, and a statement from the film-maker about his goals.

It’s made by Leo Murray, with the support of the Royal College of Art in the UK. It first explains the tipping points in our climate, such as the albedo effect, increasingly acidic oceans, and melting permafrost. Then it shows what the consequences might be if any one of those tipping points pushes our only planet past the point of no return. Finally, just when you’re ready to freak out at this catastrophe, it reminds us that we already know the solutions to this problem: all we need to do is make sure we act before it’s too late.

If you like it, I hope you’ll share it with your family and friends. Or with anyone who is concerned about climate change, but thinks it’s a problem our children will have to deal with in some far-off future. Climate change is an urgent problem, and the sooner we make the necessary changes, the better.

Aim higher, Australia

Ok, so last week Professer Garnaut suggested that since the rest of the world wasn’t going to adopt tough emissions standards, neither should we. I’ve been pretty annoyed by this: I can’t stand apathy or the “can’t win, don’t try” attitude.

So here’s a list of the different campaigns I’ve found about climate change. I haven’t found any that are specifically related to Garnaut’s latest release of figures, probably because they’re too new yet for anyone to have responded. The ones listed here are more generally about getting the government to make large cuts to Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions.

GetUp.org.au has several members who have started climate change campaigns. You can join in any or all of these:

• Donate to get a billboard outside Parliament, asking for 50% cuts by 2020.
• Write a letter to your newspaper – you might want to update the details now that Garnaut has released new info.
• Tell your friends about the Garnaut Report, again updating the details if necessary.
• Buy t-shirts, stickers, or placards you can display to show you want 50% cuts by 2020.

Oxfam Australia is also campaigning for tougher emissions restrictions with several actions. Currently there’s a petition, help with hosting your own event (with a dvd), and advice on how to write letters to politicians on the topic. Oxfam is particularly concerned about climate change because it will affect the poorest people in the world before it hits those of us living more comfortably in Australia. Their requested target is 30% reductions by 2020.

Climate Campaign has got suggestions for letters you can write, asking for tougher action on climate change. They recommend targets of 40% reductions by 2020. They have suggestions for writing letters on the issues of rising sea-levels having an impact on coastal towns, the solar-power rebates, and other related climate-change topics.

The Climate Action Network of Australia has actions for members, although I haven’t joined yet so I can’t tell you what they are. They have a handy state-by-state description of the impact of climate change on Australia which is very informative.

Friends of the Earth has a Climate Justice campaign. They recommend 50% cuts by 2020, and a moratorium on new coal plants.

If you know of any more groups encouraging activism for greater emissions cuts, please leave a comment with details so we can all join in together.