Go Greener, Australia

Last week I wrote about making your bills paperless, but the biggest source of mailbox waste is probably junk mail. I used to fish mine out of the letterbox every day, and drop it in the recycling bin before going inside. My recycling bin was full of catalogs and flyers, which seemed a bit stupid since I’d never asked for them in the first place.

According to the Australian Conservation Foundation, “Australians receive on average 7 billion unaddressed flyers, leaflets and catalogues in their letterboxes every year. If your household said no to junk mail that could save almost 1000 pieces of unwanted junk each year!” Here’s a few ideas to reduce the junk mail you get:

Put a ‘No Junk Mail’ sticker on your letterbox

I got one for free from the Australian Conservation Foundation as part of their Act Now On Climate Change kit, but it doesn’t seem to be one of the current goodies in the bag. However, you can get them in all styles from hardware stores. You’ll probably find that a few persistent junk mailers will continue to leave stuff in your mail box, but I’ve found that a quick email to the business explaining what the sticker means should make them stop.

Use the ADMA’s Do Not Mail service

The ADMA has a free Do Not Mail service, which will remove you from the mailing list of many direct marketers. If you don’t get a reduction after 30 days you can lodge a complaint.

Of course, there are still some bits of junk that will get through, usually from companies you’ve done business with. Before you recycle it…

Reuse it

• as a bin liner if you’ve given up plastic bags
• in your compost; shred it and chuck it in, but don’t add too much
• as art for your home
• as a huge art installation, if you’re up for it

Naturally, the one company I wish would ignore the No Junk Mail sticker always obeys it, so I never get Ikea catalogues anymore! However, they’ve got theirs online, and I can pick one up from their shop, so that should sort me out. Most shops and businesses have email lists now so you’ll still be able to keep up to date on their latest products and specials if you’re a frequent customer, only now without the wasteful paper.

Environment Minister Peter Garrett announced last week that the federal government wants to phase out plastic bags by the end of this year, either through a ban or a levy (putting a price on them). I’m not sure if this just includes supermarket bags, or ones from all shops.

Aussies used 3.92 billion plastic bags in 2005, down from 6 billion in 2002 - this drop has been caused by the promotion of re-useable bags as an alternative. Most of them end up in landfill, but at least 50 million still end up as litter each year.

What’s wrong with plastic bags?

• They’re stupidly ugly
• they take at least 20 years to break down in landfill
• the littered plastic bags can kill sea mammals who accidentally eat them
• we’re given them for free, but the cost is just added into the overheads of shops then passed on to us via increased prices
• 8.7 plastic checkout bags contain enough embodied petroleum energy to drive a car 1 kilometre - is this the best use of a limited resource?
• and apparently there’s a giant floating mass of them in the Pacific Ocean, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, swirled together by the currents (I’ll give a block of organic, fair-trade chocolate as a prize to anyone who can find me a picture of it!).

And yet we’re using them for just a few minutes before throwing them out! Estimates are that only 19% of plastic bags actually get re-used before being thrown out, and only 3% get recycled through supermarket collection.

Some people object to government regulation being used to solve a consumer problem. But if we wait for retailers to decide for themselves to phase them out, I think we’ll be waiting a very long time! We already know they’re wasteful and cause problems - why don’t we just get on with fixing the problem? Surveys show that 87% of Aussies are concerned about the problem of plastic bags, so this seems like an easy win to me.

Other people wonder what they’ll do for bin liners once the plastic shopping bags are gone - won’t we just end up buying plastic bin liners? I can’t speak for everyone, but we buy bin liners and the number we use is far outweighed by the number of shopping bags we’re given when we forget to bring our green reusable bags to the shops. There are biodegradable bin liners available too - they’re not perfect, but they’re better than plastic. And if you compost and recycle properly, there’s a lot less waste to dispose of anyway. Another suggestion I’ve heard is to line your bin with newspaper, but we use the internet instead of buying newspapers as we think they’re a waste of both paper and money

Personally, I think phasing them out is a good idea. I don’t mind a ban, but putting a price on them would also work by making people think about whether they really need one or not.

If such different places as Ireland (90% reduction in 5 months using a 15c tax), San Francisco (banned after a voluntary scheme for retailers failed), and Taiwan (3c charge per bag, and a fine for places giving them away for free) can all cope without plastic bags, surely we can figure it out without too much fuss. 13 Australian towns have already phased out plastic bags so it’s easy to imagine the rest of us doing it too.

Planet Ark is actively campaigning against plastic bags, and has a bunch of handy resources you can use, including Frequently Asked Questions about plastic bags and Find out where to recycle your plastic bags.

We started our compost bin a little less than a year ago, to reduce the waste we were adding to landfill - now we’re getting fresh vegies from our garden!

This is what it looked like to start with. We mostly put in kitchen scraps, garden clippings, and newspapers.

When it was finished cooking, it looked like this:

We added the compost to the soil before planting a few tomato and basil plants, plus some beetroot.

In a few months, it looked like this. The plant starting to crawl across the garden is a pumpkin vine, which seems to have sprung from a stray seed in the compost.

Right now, it looks like this. I’m afraid the vine is going to smother our house if we let it continue. I’d be surprised if we get a good pumpkin from it, as it’s putting all it’s energy into leaves instead of fruit. The beetroot didn’t really work out - they were tiny. I blame the rogue pumpkin for stealing it’s nutrients!

However, the tomatoes are doing fine.

So far, we’ve grown about 3 kilos of tomatoes. I don’t know how long the plants will keep producing - the hot weather has only just begun in Perth. The basil is doing well so far. Next time we’re going to plant some onions and carrots.

It’s almost magical - we took rubbish and leftovers that would usually have gone into a giant stinking landfill, and turned them into fresh food instead. We’re not experts: we just stuck some scraps in a bin and waited, then put the compost in the ground, stuck in some plants, and watered them while we waited some more.

Anyone can give this a go - it’s not hard, and it’s very satisfying to eat a meal from vegies and herbs you grew yourself! If you want to try it, first check out my original post about Beginner’s Composting and then look into some books on growing your own fruit and vegetables. We’ve found the Yates Garden Guide useful, and the website for ABC’s Gardening Australia tv show is full of interesting stuff to try.

I’ve made a good start on my green resolutions for 2008: friends gave me a reuseable bag from Envirosax (thanks, Greg and Chris!) and I’ve already started using it.

The Envirosax bag can be rolled up into a small bundle, which makes it perfect for carrying in my handbag. It only took me a few minutes to figure out how to roll it up after unfolding it, and smarter people will figure it out on their first try

I put it in my handbag right away, and it got it’s first use on the weekend. The salesgirl at the bookshop was just about to put my books in a plastic bag when I remembered and blurted out “Ooh, hang on a sec, I’ve got a reusable bag here”. She had no problem waiting for me, but in future I’ll remember to take it out while I’m standing in line.

It’s a sturdy bag, and the handles are longer than they look in the pictures. At first I wasn’t keen on the long handles, because it meant the bag was nearly skimming the ground when I carried it home (I’m pretty short). But then I realised that the handles were long enough that I could hang the bag on my shoulder, which is much more convenient for me. When I got it home and put my books away, instead of adding it to the stash of plastic bags we try to find uses for, I just rolled it up and put it back in my handbag for the next time it’s needed.

My Envirosax bag is made of polyester, which unfortunately is an oil by-product. However, I think it’s much better to have just the one plastic bag rather than the dozens (hundreds, over the years) I was picking up while doing errands after work. They’re also available in bamboo/linen, linen, and hemp alternatives, if that’s more your style.

I make New Year’s Resolutions each year, and I even keep them more often than I forget them This year I’m making green resolutions for the first time. I thought about practical changes I could make that would have an impact on the environment, be measurable (so I can tell if I’ve succeeded or not), and achievable given my time and budget. So here they are:

Switch to reusable bags

I already own green canvas bags for grocery shopping, but frequently forget to use them. And I often end up with plastic bags from the bookshop, or newsagent, or wherever. I do try to refuse them, but sometimes you forget, or end up buying something that just can’t be carried easily.

The plan: come up with a way to remember my canvas bags for the grocery shops; and buy a reusable bag that can be kept inside my handbag for the rest of the time. I’ll know I’ve succeeded if we run out of the stash of plastic bags we use to line our bins with.

Reduce our household water use by 25%

I don’t think we’re particularly wasteful with our water-habits, especially since I cut back on my shower-time! But our house is over 15 years old and has no water-saving features at all.

The plan: install water-saving devices on all our taps; install a dual-flush, water-efficient toilet; and see what else can be done. I’ll know if I’ve succeeded by measuring this year’s water bill against last year’s.

Keep writing to politicians and businesses about green issues.

Last year I wrote over a dozen letters and emails to politicians about environmental issues, and to 3 companies about their recycling of old products or the type of products they currently stock. I’d like to equal this, at least.

How about you? Any green resolutions or goals for the future?

Cards and gift-wrappings are an area where you can make a huge difference to your eco-friendly Christmas. The usual way is to buy rolls of Christmas paper, maybe ribbons and tags as well, to wrap all your gifts in, while sending out dozens of cards to all your friends, family and co-workers. By following the reduce-reuse-recycle mantra, you can really make this part of Christmas a lot greener.

Reduce

Does everyone you know need a card? I don’t send cards to people I’ll be seeing frequently over the period - I’m going to be celebrating with them anyway, they don’t need a card when I can give them a big hug instead. I make an effort to send cards to friends and family living in other cities, but I also try to email or call them too, so we can have a longer exchange than there’s room for in a card.

Do your gifts really need to be wrapped? Some do, obviously, if they’re going to be sitting under a tree before being received, or you’re planning a surprise. But some gifts aren’t improved by wrapping. If it’s a very large gift, try hiding it somewhere and making a short treasure hunt for it instead of swathing it in rolls and rolls of paper. If you’re giving someone a plant, it probably looks best just as nature made it.

Reuse

Ok, so that you don’t think I’m turning into Scrooge here, there’s still a lot of cards and wrapping that you can’t reduce away. So what can you do?

My family is very good at re-using gift bags instead of wrapping paper. We tend to use them for the adults’ gifts, as the kids are more likely to peek to see what they’re getting! We started using them for birthdays, and saved them so that they now appear at Christmas as well. They come in all sizes and shapes, in lots of pretty patterns.

I’ve received gifts wrapped in newspaper, tied with red ribbon and looking great; I’ve also received gifts wrapped in the drawings my little cousins made at kindegarten - this is a great idea for doting relatives of your kids. I’ve also heard of people using large pages from calendars.

Alternatively, you can wrap a present in something that can be re-used in someone’s home, so that it becomes part of the gift: fabric is great for this, in the form of tea-towels, saris, sarongs, etc. Look at the Furoshiki (Japanese wrapping cloth) website for ways to wrap gifts with fabric.

Recycle

I’m not a fan of reusing cards that people have sent you, but you can buy cards made from recycled paper instead. Fund-raising cards from charities and non-profit organisations are more likely to use recycled paper than the bulk-packs of cards from supermarkets, but you never know so it’s best to check the small print on the back of the card. My favourites so far are the cards from the Red Cross I found a few years ago - made from recycled paper, with a recipe for Anzac biscuits on the back!

Re-using wrapping paper is a bit easier, especially if you’re a careful un-wrapper and the gift-giver isn’t too heavy on the sticky-tape. But careful hunting can sometimes find wrapping paper made from recycled materials - however, it’s harder to come by than recycled cards. If you’ve found some recycled card or paper, you can use them to make your own gift tags and avoid the mass-produced ones.

Other ways

Cards and wrapping are also an area where you can easily support fair-trade and community groups - Oxfam has a wide range (the surfing Santa above is just one example) and eco-friendly shops like Biome will also be able to help you out there.

And finally - tell your family and friends you don’t expect lots of cards or fancy wrappings on the gifts they give to you. Perhaps they’ve been wanting to cut back, but didn’t want to offend you by looking like they don’t care. Or maybe they’ve never thought about it before, but would be a bit relieved to have one item off their to-do list. Try telling the busiest person you know first, and give them some ideas from this article. If they get behind you, you’re more likely to convince other people in your group.

On the weekend we visited my in-laws, who have a fantastic vegie garden, fruit trees, a few sheep and a lot of chickens. At home we put our kitchen waste in the compost bin, but when we stay with the in-laws, most of it goes into the ‘chook bucket’.

I like feeding the chickens - they’re very soothing company, even if they are a little stupid. When they see you coming with the chook bucket they get so excited, it’s pretty funny. They also provide manure for your garden, and eat a lot of pesky insects. But the fantastic part is the fresh eggs…

Our garden is just a bit too small to keep chickens. However, if we had a standard-size block I’d definitely keep a couple. You can go upmarket with the Eglu, but Josh Byrne from Gardening Australia has free plans you can use to make your own chook pen (pdf), big enough for two chickens (or three if they’re a small breed). Gardening Australia also has plenty of information about keeping backyard chickens.

Last week we actually remembered to take our green re-useable shopping bags with us when we did our grocery shop! Dave took a picture to celebrate the occasion.

Normally we’re pretty good at making green changes, but this one has been an uphill battle for us. We’ve tried leaving the bags near the door or keeping them in the boot of the car, but we always seem to remember just after we walk into the shops. Which green action are you trying to get better at?

A few years ago we signed up to get GreenPower for our home. Our electricity provider, Synergy, offers a few different options. We chose NaturalPower, which buys renewable energy instead of coal-fired power.

NaturalPower costs 4.4 cents extra per unit of electricity. We use about 1085 units of electricity every 2 months. This works out to an extra 21 cents a day (just over $75 a year extra cost). For this extra cost, what happens is that Synergy buys 1085 units less of coal-fired power, and 1085 units more of renewable energy - I believe in our area we get it from wind-farms.

The electricity that comes to our house looks pretty much the same as the electricity going to our next-door neighbours! But less pollution was made to provide us with energy, for very little extra cost.

If the cost is an issue for you, there are a few cheaper options offered by Synergy in WA:

• EarthFriendly, which offsets the pollution from coal-fired power
• only buying 50% of your energy on the NaturalPower or EarthFriendly schemes
• EasyGreen, which lets you pay in installments

Alternatively, you could write and ask why people who do the right thing by choosing less-polluting electricity have to pay more than those using coal-fired power! SmartAndGreen are running an email campaign at the moment - more details and contact addresses can be found at the O2WA blog.

If you’re not in WA, check the GreenPower.com.au website to see what’s available in your state.

Linda Cockburn’s Living the Good Life is the diary of a family who decided they wouldn’t spend any money for 6 months. The idea was to be domestically sustainable by generating their own power, growing their own food, harvesting their own rainwater, and not spending money on consumer goods. You can see photos of the house and garden, a list of their restrictions, tables so you can record your own power and water usage, etc at their website.

They weren’t puritans - they made sensible decisions to break their challenge in order to take their son to hospital, to take a break in the middle, and deal with unforeseen events. They bartered their excess fruit, vegies, eggs and home-made cheese for things harder to make themselves, like flour and sugar. But they keep a spirit of adventure, and by the end of the 6 months are healthier and happier.

It’s hard for me not to compare this book to Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, which deals with a similar challenge. Kingsolver is a professional writer, and it shows in her lyrical descriptions. Cockburn isn’t quite in the same category, but she has the same infectious enthusiasm and can-do attitude, and the book is an enjoyable read because of it.

Cockburn’s book gives details of their food crops, their chooks and goat, the decisions they make, the funny things her husband and kid say. There are segments explaining Australian facts about water use, plastics, farming and so on. At the end of each chapter, her husband Trevor writes up his impressions of the month.

At the halfway point, Trevor has a rant about how Linda is making the challenge sound easier than he thinks it is. It’s a very honest look at how frustrating it can be to restrict yourself, especially when the people you’re friends with and work with just don’t get it. Trevor chooses to challenge himself because it’s the right thing to do, not because it’s the easy thing to do.

I really enjoyed the honesty with which Linda and Trevor put forward the details of their lives. It was great to read an environment book written for an Aussie audience: the statistics were useful and relevant, it’s easy to understand the weather and culture they deal with, and they’ve got that dry-as-dust Aussie sense of humour which can find a joke in the worst situation.

At the end of the book is an assessment of how their health, finances and environmental footprint have been improved, and how the challenge has changed their perceptions of life.

Recommended?
I’d recommend Living the Good Life to anyone who’s day-dreamed about chucking their job and becoming self-sufficient, anyone who’s a keen gardener, and anyone who enjoyed Kingsolver’s book.

I’m aware that my life could be more sustainable than it is, and books like this give me good ideas about how I can move forward. We started a vegie patch because of Barbara Kingsolver - this book has made me think about getting a rainwater tank. I’m not going to stop spending money for 6 months, but I’ve definitely been planning ways to reduce my consumption, and Linda Cockburn has put plenty of ideas forward for how to do that.