Green Talk™

Demand Stronger Environmental Guidelines for Dioxin

Green Talk — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 11:06:46 PST

The Center for Health, Environment, and Justice sent me the following email asking for all of us to take action to demand stronger environmental guidelines to Dioxin. I mentioned this horrible chemical in my article, “Are Toxic Chemicals Lurking in your Furniture and Building Products? ” One product that contains dioxin is PVC. As noted below, dioxin is a known carcinogen. Read on as to why you need to sign the below petition.

“At the request of Dow Chemical and the American Chemistry Council, the EPA has extended the public comment period on their proposed cleanup guidelines for Dioxin to Friday April 2^nd. Now more than ever, we need your help to counteract lobbying by Dow Chemical and the chemical industry.

There is still time to let your voice be heard! To date over 1,400 people have raised their voice and told EPA they want stronger cleanup guidelines for Dioxin, one of the most hazardous chemicals known to man. Dow Chemical and the American Chemistry Council have pressured EPA to expand the public comment period through April 2^nd. Let’s use this to our advantage and allow EPA to hear from you!

Take action by joining parents and families across America in telling EPA you want stronger cleanup guidelines for Dioxin.

Dioxin poses a serious health risk to both children and adults. In response more than 100 countries have signed a treaty that calls for a global phase out of Dioxin. Dioxin is a powerful cancer causing agent and human carcinogen. Join over 1,400 Americans by telling EPA that more stringent guidelines must be developed for Dioxin cleanup.

Remember, there is still time to take action and let your voice be heard!“

It only take a minute to click and sign your name. Remember, it takes a village.

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Mother Earth News Squash Bug Squishing Technique

Green Talk — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:11:47 PST

Photo by Ivan Armsby (http://www.flickr.com/photos/squeezyboy/ / CC BY 2.0)

How many of you grow squashes? Last year, I grew about six different squashes. Little pumpkins. Acorn Squash. Sweet Potato Squash. And some other funny sounding name squashes. My neighbor grew them too and complained of the dreaded squash bug. She even showed me one while I was visiting her. They are gray and to be kind to bugs, they are not too attractive. Ms America bug, um, not this one.

Fortunately, I did not see any of my own squash bugs, but then again they could have been there under the straw mulch. I just did not notice.

Mother Earth News (who I love) sent me an email on how to deal with those suckers this year. Well all gardeners share. Remember it is us gardeners against them–the bugs who eat our hard work. Sorry, after dealing with gross slugs and dill eating amazingly beautiful caterpillars, I am not that charitable these days.

I warn you this suggestion is not for the faint of heart. It is involved smashing bugs. I am not sure I will be able to follow the suggestion, but here goes:

“Greetings, Anna.

I’m writing today to invite you to try out a technique this summer for squash bug control. If this bug causes problems in your garden, read on.

Some years ago, I wrote a report about research done at Texas A&M that found trap crops of early plantings of squash could attract “up to 90 percent of squash bugs in the area.” The key is to plant a few pots of squash indoors, earlier than your usual timing (the bugs are reportedly most attracted to winter squash varieties), then move the plants into the garden as soon as you can. Overwintering squash bugs will make a beeline for them (who knows how they find these plants—bugs are so amazing). The researchers suggested laying a few boards on the ground around the trap crop, and then turning the boards over and squishing the bugs, which like to hide on the undersides. Delay sowing your main squash crops as long as you can, continuing to squish any bugs that show up at the trap crop.

Now, we’ve come up with what we think might be an improvement on that technique: a “Squash-Bug Squisher“! Instead of just using whatever is handy to squish the bugs on each board, we expect it would be quicker and more effective if you connected two boards together with hinges, so you could pick up the Squisher, flip it over and slam the two boards against each other. The boards will have to be very flat—we’re thinking that fiber cement siding, which is highly resistant to warping and heavier than wood, might work well.

So, what do you say—if squash bugs are a challenge in your garden, why not pop a few squash seeds into some pots this week, and give this technique a try this season? We’ve posted a Squash-Bug Squisher page, http://www.motherearthnews.com/Squash-Bug-Control-Squisher-Trap-Crop.aspx, where you can post your ideas and questions, and eventually, report your results.

Happy Gardening,

Cheryl Long
Editor in Chief

P.S. The Texas researchers also mention that the squash trap crop will attract cucumber beetles, and that you can drown many of your spring cuke beetles by placing pans painted yellow and filled with soapy water beside the squash trap crop. (The beetles are attracted to the yellow color.)

P.P.S. We’re hoping to announce more “citizen science” projects like this, so if you have any suggestions, let us know. And if you are a long-time gardener, we would love to have you sign up for our Garden Advisory Group, at www.surveymonkey.com/s/N3QBZKD.

Did I hear a collective “ewwww” about the thoughts of smashing these bugs? (Okay, I said it.) So, readers, what are your thoughts about Mother Earth News squash bug suggestion? Are you a smasher or a squealer?

By the way, did you see that amazing cuke tip for cuke bugs?

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Is Faxing Bad for the Environment?

Green Talk — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 20:55:18 PST

The other day, I received my second unwanted fax from a broadcast advertiser. In my post, “How to Stop Unwanted Faxes,” I gave you the keys on how to stop these faxes from showing up in your fax tray. But as I thought about it more and more, was faxing just plain bad for the environment?

This thought about the environmental impact of faxing did not just come out of the blue. (Although many of my thoughts do.) The unwanted fax that I received had a unsubscribe address, National Do Not Fax (also know as “Stop Junk Faxes”) which promoted e-faxing in the name of the environment. Of course, it was linked to an e-fax website, MyFax, with starting costs at $10 a month/$110 per year for 100 sending faxes and 200 receiving faxes. (Prices varied based upon the amount of faxes sent and received. )

But I was intrigued with their green argument of why you should use an e-fax site from both a financial and environmental standpoint. They argued e-faxing

Saves money (no toner cartridges, paper, and phone lines and charges)
Portable (can receive and send fax anywhere)
No need to buy additional equipment (or for that matter recycle anything any more)
Upgrade to electronic communication

The more I thought about it, faxing was not very green even if your recipients use recycled paper.

If you are like me, I barely fax any documents. I email everything unless a signature is need or I have to send a hard copy which was not in my computer. For someone like me who faxes very seldom, GotFreeFax service might be your best bet. It starting cost is .$.98 per fax for 10 pages .

But if you do fax, the City of Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability has the following suggestions besides sending and receiving faxes from your computer:

“Program your fax machine not to print confirmation sheets.
Eliminate fax cover sheets by using fax Post-it Notes.”

So, I am curious.

Would an e-fax service be valuable to you given its environmental and budgetary preferences? If so, which service do you use and why?
Do you see faxing as being ungreen?
Do you fax via your computer? If so, which program do you use?
How do you send signed documents? What software do you use?

If you don’t want to leave a comment, please take the poll on the sidebar. I would love to know your thoughts.

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How to Stop Unwanted Fax Advertisements.

Green Talk — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 07:16:14 PST

The other night the phone rang at 3 am in the morning! It scared the H out of me. As I rolled over to pick up the phone, I noticed it was my fax line that was ringing. Who in the heck was faxing me in the middle of the night?

Readers, has this happened to you?

The next day I checked the National Do not Call service to see if I entered my fax number as a “do not call” for marketers. Well, there was the number plain as day in their registry. I figured this fax was a fluke and in the event I received another one, I would file a complaint.

Well, this Sunday I received another one. As I stared at the fax, I noticed the following sentence on the bottom:

“To Unsubscribe Please Register Your Fax Number at www.NationalDoNotFaxList.org.“

Hmm. Was this a hoax? Gingerly and being skeptical, I entered the url name into my search engine. (By the way the web address above is re-directed to www.stopjunkfax.org.) With a gulp, I entered my fax line. Hopefully this will be the end of the marketing faxes and my late night calls.

I prayed that I did not open up a can of worms, …I mean, faxes to be delivered at all hours of the night and day. There is nothing about this site good or bad on the internet, and there does not seem to be any other “do not fax” sites. Readers, a little help please.

How to get off the Unwanted Fax Treadmill.

But I was still mystified as to why I received two emails despite my do not call status. So, I decided to go back to the FCC site and to see if I missed something.

Boy, did I ever. What I did not realize is the do not call registry does not protect me from fax advertisements!

However, the FCC requires broadcast advertisers to provide a fax recipient with a

“telephone number, fax number, and cost-free mechanism (including a toll-free telephone number, local number for local recipients, toll-free fax number, Web site address, or e-mail address) to opt-out of faxes. These numbers and cost-free mechanism must permit consumers to make opt-out requests 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

For specific fax opt-out information and how to file a complaint with the FCC, see here. Want to opt out but there is no address at the bottom of the fax? Check out this article from the Michigan Attorney General’s office. It does a nice job laying out how to fight back from unwanted faxes.

Before you jump to put your fax number on the National Do Not Call’s web page, it is not a national registry so it may not help if a company does not use them for opt-out subscribers. If you receive an unwanted fax, call the number listed on the bottom of the fax or follow the FCC or Michigan Attorney General’s advice.

But if you are a broadcast advertiser and do not want to be screamed out by people like me, you should consider having this organization manage your opt-out subscribers like the ~~stupid~~ advertiser who sent me a fax at 3 in the morning. It seems like a no-brainer since why would a company want to waste time and energy sending faxes to someone who has no interest in their products?

So, broadcaster advertisers, get the hint. Your unwanted faxes are an unnecessary use of our resources and time.

As I thought about it…

Is faxing in general just bad for the environment? For that answer, you have to tune in tomorrow.

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Recycle Your Jeans at the Gap March 5-14, 2010

Green Talk — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 10:46:26 PST

Photo by permission of Ben Donley

One of my most popular post is “Recycle your Blue Jeans.” I guess I have a lot of jean wearing, need to get rid of old jeans readers. Well, for a limited time, Gap is taking back old jeans as part of the CottontoBluetoGreen.org campaign. The time period is short: March 5-March 14, 2010. See here for a store near you.

In fact, when you give Gap your jeans, you can get 30% off a new pair of jeans.

Old Blue Jeans are used to create UltraTouch cotton insulation. (I have this insulation. Love it.) See the video here about how your ratty jeans become insulation.

To date, the Campaign has collected enough jean to make 185,000 square feet of insulation. It takes 500 jeans to make insulation for an average house. 180 Habitat for Humanity have houses have used this insulation. So, get a jump on spring cleaning, and head over to the Gap to give those jeans a second life. If you miss the deadline, check out my post for other jean recycling ideas.

It will give you a warm feeling.

Tip via Mommy Goes Green

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Are Toxic Chemicals Lurking in your Furniture and Building Products?

Green Talk — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 15:49:03 PST

Photo by Phillip Stewart

Did you ever wonder if what we bring into our homes could be increasing our risk of cancer, developmental issues in our children, or asthma? How could a lovely PVC shower curtain or new stain resistant couch cause any problems? Or perhaps that new shade of yellow paint that smelled for a couple of days after you painted the wall?

Unfortunately, I had to learn the hard way, through my children. When you have children that have learning disabilities, ADD, asthma, eczema, and JV Diabetes, you start to examine your own life and ask what have you done wrong. I started to question as they grew older, if any of the products that I used in our home caused any of their problems?

Over a decade ago, I started digging into this chemical nightmare. According to the Center for Health, Justice, and the Environment (CHJE),

“Increasingly, children are being found to be hyperactive, slow to learn, and disruptive in school. The number of children in special education programs classified with learning disabilities increased 191% from 1977 to 1994.ii Asthma is a leading reason for school absenteeism and the number one chronic childhood illness. iii One in a hundred American children has an autism spectrum disorder (ASD).iv 8,000 American children are diagnosed each year with cancer,.v and dust, and in human urine, blood and breast milk.xi”[source]

The outcome? Seven years ago, we started building a house with nontoxic or low toxic materials. The learning curve was huge, but it made me realize how many chemicals make up a home. Not just the building products but also the contents in it. Some good. Some not so good.

According to the fact sheet, “Toxic Chemicals in Building Products,” there are three problematic categories of chemical compounds in building products: volatile organic compounds, semi-volatile organic compounds, and heavy metals. In addition, health and environmental concerns have been raised by the use of PVC. Dioxins are created during the manufacturing process, when accidentally burned, or intentionally during disposal.

Where are these chemicals found and how can we stop the toxic building madness?

Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)

PVC is found in flooring, ceiling tiles coatings, carpet backing, pipes, conduits, siding, window treatments, furniture, wall and corner guards, wiring and cable sheathing, wall covering and upholstery.[Source] For a laundry list of PVC laden products, see here.

PVC contains harmful phthalates and dioxins. ( Phthalates will be discussed below.) Dioxins in PVC build up in our bodies and could remain there for years. In fact, the CHEJ states many chemicals used and released by PVC may be linked to breast cancer, decreased fertility, inability to carry pregnancy to term, decreased sperm levels as well as asthma in our children.

How to rid PVC from your life? See CHEJ’s alternative guide. (In order to download the guide, you must sign up for their e-bulletins. ) Also, for further resources, see HealthyBuilding.net’s alternative PVC guide for the health care industry, which includes many items used in a home setting.

Simply put, don’t buy #3 plastics, shy away from the vinyl window treatments and shower curtains , and use the guides above to find alternatives to vinyl building products and home furnishings. I know that many of these products are easier to care for and have longevity, but is your health worth it?

I will be honest. There is PVC in my house. I was not able to find non-PVC waste lines for my plumbing; however, my water pipes are cooper. Nor, was I able to timely find non-PVC coated electrical wiring in my house. If you are renovating, repairing, or building new, I have given you to the tools to correct my mistakes.

The VOC smell?

You know the new furniture or freshly painted smell? What you are smelling is volatile organic compounds. According to HealthyBuilding.net’s Toxic Chemical report noted above,

“Some VOCs have been associated with short-term acute sick building syndrome symptoms, as well as other longer-term chronic health effects, such as damage to the liver, kidney and nervous systems, and increased cancer risk.”

Examples of problematic VOCs are formaldehyde, benzene, toluene, xylene, acetaldehyde, and isocyanates, which can be found in furniture, paint, stains, and other common building products.

Formaldehyde is a potential caronogenic. It is found in cabinets, flooring, furniture, insulation, curtains, glues, and many other products. However, there are many formaldehyde-free products available today such as formaldehyde free insulations (John Manville, as an example), formaldehyde free plywood (Columbia Forest products), and even formaldehyde free FSC certified bamboo flooring (Smith Fong’s Plyboo) I bet you did not know that your bamboo flooring could have formaldehyde in it. The resin (glue) contains the formaldehyde.

For a list of alternatives, see products that have received GreenSpec, Green Seal, and Greenguard approvals. Note, that some of Greenguards’ approved products contain PVC since the Company only tests indoor air quality. In addition, buy carpets that are CRI green label/green label plus approved for indoor air quality. Note, many of these carpets listed could have a petrochemical based backing. I opted for rugs to be made out of wool with a jute back in lieu of wall to wall carpet. The rationale behind this decision was that if one of my children developed an allergy to wool, I could simply remove the rug.

Could your dust bunnies harbor toxic chemicals?

Semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) are released slowly from materials and are likely to transfer to human or attach to dust. [Source] In the report, Sick of Dust: Chemicals in Common Products A Needless Health Risk in Our Home, it was found from dust samplings that our homes contained PBDEs (flame retardants), phthalates, organotin compounds, alkylphenols, and perfluorinated organics chemicals (PFO/PFOA). For more details, see here.

These chemicals are suspected hormone disruptors, toxic to the immune system and/or potentially carcinogenic. Scary stuff. However, the Environmental Working Group provides the following tips to remove the dust:

Vacuum frequently with a HEPA vacuum cleaner. (See Green Guide’s vacuum cleaner guide.)
Wet mop uncarpeted floors
Buy wood furniture or furniture stuffed with down, cotton, polyester or cotton since it is unlikely that it contains flame retardants. (I just want to add ask the manufacturer of the furniture if the furniture contains flame retardants whether on the fabric or the cushions. Additionally, ask if the fabric has been sprayed to make it stain resistant If so, it has coated with a PFOA chemical.)
Wipe dust with a microfiber or wet cotton rag to hold the dust. (For those wishing to not use microfiber since it is made from petrochemicals, consider using SKOY cloths, made of cellulose and cotton.)
Equip your heating system with a high quality filter and change them frequently. (I have an electrostatic filter.)
Simply take off your shoes when you walk into the house, which reduces your exposure to outside toxic chemicals such as pesticides.
For more EWG tips see here. (In addition, the Green Guide has some additional tips. See here.)

So, you are thinking how am I going to find furniture that does not contain formaldehyde and/or flame retardants. Look for wood furniture made out of FSC-certifed woods, no or low voc stains and finishes. Upholstered furniture without stain resistant fabric, which is made from renewable sources (USDA, SKAL, or perferably GOTS certified fabric), and natural latex cushions. See my category on fabric here for many greenier options. I hesitate to say green since not all of them are 100% green.

A good starting point for furniture is the Sustainable Furniture Council. However, many of the companies listed vary in their green practices, so you will have to do some investigative work.

In addition, FYI, some manufacturers tout their soy based cushions, which are part soy and mostly petroleum base and contain flame retardants (nonhalegeon based flame retardants.) Call me a skeptic, but I don’t have a lot of faith in the chemical industry when it comes to flame retardants. I don’t want to hear in ten years that there is another problem with flame retardants. Remember, the manufacturing and distribution of PCBs flame retardants, the predecessor to PBDEs, has been banned due to health concerns. Two strikes at bat as far as I am concerned.

There are many green furniture companies available that have healthier choices for consumers such Cisco Brothers, Furnature, and Viesso.

Heavy Metals:

Such heavy metals as arsenic, antimony,cadmium, chromium, copper, cobalt, lead, mercury and zinc, have raised concerns for human and aquatic toxicity. During the extraction, production, and disposal of heavy metals, toxic chemicals have been released into the environment, notably our waterways.

Lead and mercury are neurotoxicants; whereas cadmium, hexavalent chromium (used in stainless steel and chrome production), and antimony trioxide (synergist in flame retardants for textiles) are carcinogens. [Source] Note, antimony is a catalyst to making PET (recycled polyester and plastic water bottles.)

Heavy metals are used as stabilizers in the production of PVC. In addition, heavy metals can be found in roofing, solder, radiation shielding, and in dyes for paints and textiles. [Source] See here for a more detailed list of where to find heavy metals in your home.

In: Life Support: The Environment and Human Health, Chapter 4 author Howard Hu, M.D., M.P.H., Sc.D. noted:

“Metals are notable for their wide environmental dispersion from such activity; their tendency to accumulate in select tissues of the human body; and their overall potential to be toxic even at relatively minor levels of exposure. Some metals, such as copper and iron, are essential to life and play irreplaceable roles in, for example, the functioning of critical enzyme systems. Other metals are xenobiotics, i.e., they have no useful role in human physiology (and most other living organisms) and, even worse, as in the case of lead and mercury, may be toxic even at trace levels of exposure. Even those metals that are essential, however, have the potential to turn harmful at very high levels of exposure, a reflection of a very basic tenet of toxicology–“the dose makes the poison.”

Bottom line. Ask when you buy if your products contain heavy metals.

Although this article is brief in the discussion of toxicity of building product, this should give you a start of what to look for when you bring new products into your home. Please feel free to add to this post other chemicals that people should be aware of when they shop for household or building products.

This article is part of the Green Moms Carnival being hosted by Tiffany of Natural Moms Blog regarding cancer being caused by our environment. Check out what all the other green moms have to say about this timely subject especially about your food and personal care products. It will be eye opening I can assure you.

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Do you Know What’s in Your Food Pantry?

Green Talk — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:44:48 PST

How many of you watch the Capital One commercials , especially the maroders or hooligans ones? At the end of the commercial, they ask, “what’s in your wallet?” Well, I am asking you the same thing about your pantry or medicine cabinet. Well, the Capital One gang visited my house this year. They pillaged, destroyed, and wretched my pantry. They threw duplicates of the same products that I had on the shelves. Then they mixed up everything in the pantry, so I can’t find anything. And finally to make matters worse, they even put expired food on the shelves. I heard them laughing as they ran off , and yelled at me, “what’s in your pantry?”

I was screwed.

Yah, I only wish that I could blame them instead of me. It is so much easier to blame than take responsibility for my ridiculous out of control pantry. In, my article, “Confessions of a Green Food Waster,” I stood up and said that this green person (me) was a shameless food waster and would be methane creator had I not owned a composter. But worse then the stale food, was the expired food that I found. Did you know some of your food has expiration dates?

The horrors. The horrors. So what was in my pantry?

Besides, stale food there was many expired cans of food. (Nope. Can’t return those to the supermarket.) And three almost full bulk boxes of Lays potato chips that you buy at the BJs and Costco of the world. Did you know that potato chips have a shelf life? I always thought there was enough preservatives in all snack food so it had indefinite life span. Well there goes the theory that my some day grandchildren could enjoy those boxes of potato chips that their fickle parents (aka my kids) no longer like. Did you know that some snack food has an expiration date? I am I just late coming to the party?

I should have gotten a clue when one of my children was complaining that sometimes the chips tasted like a laundry room. (What does that mean?) In kid speak, I guess that meant that out of the huge package, there may be a bad egg. It happens, I reasoned. To be honest, I learned to tune out a lot of their whining and complaining. Call me a bad mother, but it is constant. I could serve cheese with their whines.

Back to cleaning. As I was cleaning this weekend, I noticed the date on the box but NO Year. Oh, was I in trouble. Oh, come on, I reasoned. Why wouldn’t they put on a year on the box for crying out loud. Moms are busy. We don’t need added choirs? (Am I right, ladies?) Since I was busy getting the cheese, remember?

When I looked online, I read that the potato chips had a shelf live of 6 months. I knew those boxes were over 6 months old. Possibly two years old.

My boxes were dated July 16, December 30, and October 23. Perhaps, 2004? 2005? or pick a year?

First thing Monday, I called the Lays’ consumer line. The woman I spoke to couldn’t have been nicer. She explained that chips had a shelf life of 30-60 days and the date was for the year they were purchased. She could not even find my particular dates that is how old the products were. I was so embarrassed. Why did we have almost three full 50 packs boxes of potato chips? Sh*t just grows in our house. Sometimes, I wonder if I have more kids then I do because I can’t remember their names anyways. I just call them by the oldest name kid. They always correct me.

By the way the nice Lays Potato chips lady sent me coupons to buy fresh chips. She probably hung up the phone and thought what a moron I was. Either that, she felt sorry for me because it must have been those Capital One guys who did this to me. I hear they are creating alot of problems in the neighborhood. Have you heard this too?

So what did I do with the chips? To the composter, Batman.

That night my college boy dumped all the chips in three large bowls heading to the composter, and I recycled the chips bags. (He has to earn his tuition some how.) My school is part of the TerraCycle Lays Potato Bridgade, so all of the bags are going to be made into handbags.

So, do you think I should listen next time when they tell me the chips smelled like the laundry room? Nah. Another day, another complaint.

Readers,

What have you found in your pantry that expired? Was it moldy? You can’t believe “it” lived there? Do you eat expired food?

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The Dirty Secrets of a Green Food Waster

Green Talk — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 12:48:43 PST

A green food waster. What an oxymoron. I am not proud of what I am going to confess. As green as I think I have become, my family and I are food wasters. Our habits are hurting the Earth. How so?

Every couple of months I can’t stand the clutter or dirty drawers in my house. A year ago, I challenged Green Talk readers to clean up the clutter in their own house as I tackled my overcrowded pantry. What I found last year was a ton of empty boxes just left in the pantry. My kids can’t ~~throw out~~ recycle an empty box to save their lives.

Another year went by and lo and behold the pantry reverted back to its sinister overcrowded, messy, can’t find anything self. It is odd that a pantry would take on the same personality of my children. No matter how I try, ~~duplicates~~ triplicates of the same product show up. I swear something biological has been injected into my pantry causing duplicates and triplicates of the product to show up. Cloning at its best. Either that, a zealous husband who thinks we need a particular item or something was on “Great” sale.

To try and save money, how many of you buy in bulk? Especially if you have a large family? With currently three sets of lunches to be made each day, we are definitely part of the bulk buying sect. However, bulk buying has always back fires on us. Why? Here the usual senario.

My kids will adore a particular product. Can’t live without it. Best next thing to slice bread. I call this phase, the new food love/addiction. Evidently, the infatuation wears off, and they drop that favorite food as fast as you can say boo. The food product just sits miserable in the pantry wondering what it did to deserve this treatment. I swear I hear whimpers from all the food that has been loved once and now forgotten.

I keep warning my husband to not to give into my boys’ loves of the week. Buy one package, I tell him. Don’t get buying happy that you found something they like. They will always disappoint you, I further warn. And boom, a few weeks later, they are ready to move on without any remorse. Please, Please tell me they won’t be like this with women.

PS, so there I was this weekend. Snarling under my breath, and throwing away so many stale products. So much that it filled a VERY Large bowl. It was sickening. The waste.

So, what effect is my food wasting habits doing to the Earth besides wasting my hard earn cash?

The EPA states,

“Americans throw away more than 25 percent of the food we prepare, about 96 billion pounds of food waste each year according to the US Department of Agriculture’s Estimating and Addressing America’s Food Losses PDF) (11 pp, 101K, about PDF). Food waste includes uneaten food and food preparation scraps from residences or households, commercial establishments like restaurants, grocery stores, and cafeterias.Waste Not, Want Not: Feeding the Hungry and Reducing Solid Waste Through Food Recovery (PDF)59 pp, 1.5MB, about PDF), a joint publication of EPA and USDA, states the nation spends about one billion dollars a year to dispose of food waste.”

The sad part was that not only was this food waste a waste of money, it could have gone straight to a landfill, which would produce methane gas until it decomposed. Thank goodness for my eager composter which just opens its mouth and say “feed me.”

What about methane gas, you ask. Methane gas is one of the serious culprits causing global warming . How come you don’t know this? Methane does not have a PR agent like carbon dioxide. (You know, the old carbon footprint.) Methane gas just doesn’t get the same billing that its famous cousin, Carbon Dioxide gets.

The EPA futher states:

“The amount of food waste generated in the US is huge. It is the third largest waste stream after paper and yard waste. In 2008, about 12.7 percent of the total municipal solid waste (MSW) generated in America was food scraps. Less than three percent of that 32 million tons was recovered and recycled. The rest - 31 million tons – was thrown away into landfills or incinerators.

The decomposition of food and other organic waste materials under anaerobic (without oxygen) conditions in landfills produces methane, a greenhouse gas (GHG) 21 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Landfills are the largest human-related source of methane in the United States, accounting for 34 percent of all methane emissions.”

Does this excuse me even though I compost? Think of all the packaging that I threw away in addition to all the food waste? If you want to drum me out of the G-club, I understand.

Lesson learned? Only buy what you intend to eat. Ask yourself when you impulsively grab something because it is on sale or you think you might use it, will I use this much or will it sit in my pantry until it expires? I know when I am in a big box store everything looks so alluring. Just remember this mantra,

Saving green that ends up in a landfill or your composter isn’t being green at all.

So Readers,

Does my household sound like yours? Do you have a avid buyer? A fickle eater? A compulsive cleaner?
How have you stopped the food waste madness at your house? What is your secret?
Maybe it is not food but personal care products or anything else? What do you struggle with that you are constantly purging?

Signed,

Tired and maybe not so green.

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