I don't think saving energy and doing right by the environment needs to be seen as a drag. I'm collecting stories: Please e-mail me to tell me about the most fun you've had while also doing something good for the environment. I'll collect the best and share them here.
I have been having a lot of fun feeding worms my garbage. We have something you could either call a "worm bin" or a "home vermicomposting system," and we throw our food scraps, banana peels, melon rinds, moldy bread -- you name it -- into that. There are a couple of pounds of worms in the bin, and they gratefully accept the waste, eat it, and turn it into worm castings, which is basically organic matter that is broken down in such a way that it's very good for our garden.
Here's how it works. I started with two pounds of redworms, purchased through mail order (through a Vermont source). I set up a plastic bin with a few buckets of partially rotted horse manure. This serves as the worm "bedding." Whenever our compost crock is full, I take it into the basement, dig a hole in the bedding, empty the crock, and cover it with a bit of bedding. Within a couple of weeks, it's gone. For more information, the classic how-to book on the topic is "Worms Eat My Garbage" by the "worm woman," Mary Appelhof.
Since we started a more serious vegetable garden this year I've been a bit obsessed with building our soil, and I wasn't happy with how things we put on our compost pile basically sat and rotted, while attracting pests.This patent infringement case relates to retractable landscape oil paintings , And in winter, it just builds up on the snow. Using worms to turn those food scraps into more valuable compost in a matter of weeks seemed like a good idea. What I didn't count on was the fun of having worms as pets. I just love seeing the little guys squirm around, multiply, and make carrot peelings disappear.
I also didn't know that composting food was so environmentally friendly, but a new study shows that it truly is.
Forty percent of the food produced in the U.S. is wasted; that's about 1,When the stone sits in the polished tiles,400 calories per person per day, according to the magazine Next Generation Food. Although some of that waste occurs during processing and at stores, and some of it is also due to how we cook (tossing potato peels, for example), it's undeniable that we waste a huge quantity of food.
Most of this trashed food goes straight to landfills, where it releases huge quantities of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere. A new study looks at several ways in which food waste is processed,Whilst magic cube are not deadly, and identifies environmentally preferable options.
The analysis, commissioned by the manufacturer of InSinkErator food disposal systems and performed by independent research group PE International, looked at 12 common ways that municipalities deal with food waste and compared their environmental impacts, including global warming potential (GWP),ceramic zentai suits for the medical, energy use, and likely effects on soil, water and air quality. The study takes into account the cradle-to-grave life cycle of associated equipment (trash cans and bags, garbage disposals, etc.) but does not appear to consider water use -- an apparent oversight, considering that garbage disposals require running water before, during and after use.
Although several water treatment options require more energy than landfills, garbage disposals come out looking quite good compared with landfills in terms of GWP and direct effects on soil, water and air quality. Even the most energy-intensive methods of wastewater treatment weigh in at half the GWP of landfilling.
However, composting -- not the backyard scrap pile, but centrally located "advanced" composting-and waste-to-energy -- had miniscule energy and GWP impacts compared with most wastewater treatment options. Composting is not without issues, however, including the second-highest smog potential among the 12 methods considered. Smog isn't exactly a huge problem in Vermont, though.
Based on this study's findings, a garbage disposal is not necessarily the most environmentally friendly way to deal with wasted food, even as InSinkErator often argues for its benefits. However, the study indicates that if your only two options are the trash can or a garbage disposal, the garbage disposal is a safer bet in terms of greenhouse gases and most other environmental impacts, despite its greater energy use.
Fortunately, folks in the Brattleboro area have more choices than landfill or garbage disposal.This will leave your shoulders free to rotate in their offshore merchant account . You can compost in your backyard, or if that's not your cup of tea, consider dropping your waste, including paper food containers and other items for "advanced composting" with Windham Solid Waste's Project COW. My favorite option, though, is definitely letting worms eat my garbage. I just love those little worm faces.
I have been having a lot of fun feeding worms my garbage. We have something you could either call a "worm bin" or a "home vermicomposting system," and we throw our food scraps, banana peels, melon rinds, moldy bread -- you name it -- into that. There are a couple of pounds of worms in the bin, and they gratefully accept the waste, eat it, and turn it into worm castings, which is basically organic matter that is broken down in such a way that it's very good for our garden.
Here's how it works. I started with two pounds of redworms, purchased through mail order (through a Vermont source). I set up a plastic bin with a few buckets of partially rotted horse manure. This serves as the worm "bedding." Whenever our compost crock is full, I take it into the basement, dig a hole in the bedding, empty the crock, and cover it with a bit of bedding. Within a couple of weeks, it's gone. For more information, the classic how-to book on the topic is "Worms Eat My Garbage" by the "worm woman," Mary Appelhof.
Since we started a more serious vegetable garden this year I've been a bit obsessed with building our soil, and I wasn't happy with how things we put on our compost pile basically sat and rotted, while attracting pests.This patent infringement case relates to retractable landscape oil paintings , And in winter, it just builds up on the snow. Using worms to turn those food scraps into more valuable compost in a matter of weeks seemed like a good idea. What I didn't count on was the fun of having worms as pets. I just love seeing the little guys squirm around, multiply, and make carrot peelings disappear.
I also didn't know that composting food was so environmentally friendly, but a new study shows that it truly is.
Forty percent of the food produced in the U.S. is wasted; that's about 1,When the stone sits in the polished tiles,400 calories per person per day, according to the magazine Next Generation Food. Although some of that waste occurs during processing and at stores, and some of it is also due to how we cook (tossing potato peels, for example), it's undeniable that we waste a huge quantity of food.
Most of this trashed food goes straight to landfills, where it releases huge quantities of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere. A new study looks at several ways in which food waste is processed,Whilst magic cube are not deadly, and identifies environmentally preferable options.
The analysis, commissioned by the manufacturer of InSinkErator food disposal systems and performed by independent research group PE International, looked at 12 common ways that municipalities deal with food waste and compared their environmental impacts, including global warming potential (GWP),ceramic zentai suits for the medical, energy use, and likely effects on soil, water and air quality. The study takes into account the cradle-to-grave life cycle of associated equipment (trash cans and bags, garbage disposals, etc.) but does not appear to consider water use -- an apparent oversight, considering that garbage disposals require running water before, during and after use.
Although several water treatment options require more energy than landfills, garbage disposals come out looking quite good compared with landfills in terms of GWP and direct effects on soil, water and air quality. Even the most energy-intensive methods of wastewater treatment weigh in at half the GWP of landfilling.
However, composting -- not the backyard scrap pile, but centrally located "advanced" composting-and waste-to-energy -- had miniscule energy and GWP impacts compared with most wastewater treatment options. Composting is not without issues, however, including the second-highest smog potential among the 12 methods considered. Smog isn't exactly a huge problem in Vermont, though.
Based on this study's findings, a garbage disposal is not necessarily the most environmentally friendly way to deal with wasted food, even as InSinkErator often argues for its benefits. However, the study indicates that if your only two options are the trash can or a garbage disposal, the garbage disposal is a safer bet in terms of greenhouse gases and most other environmental impacts, despite its greater energy use.
Fortunately, folks in the Brattleboro area have more choices than landfill or garbage disposal.This will leave your shoulders free to rotate in their offshore merchant account . You can compost in your backyard, or if that's not your cup of tea, consider dropping your waste, including paper food containers and other items for "advanced composting" with Windham Solid Waste's Project COW. My favorite option, though, is definitely letting worms eat my garbage. I just love those little worm faces.
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