Switch to Ecotricity Dale Vince, founder and MD of Ecotricity, Source: Smartplanet - by Anthony Plewes More on the `green' generation of electricity, tonights featured eco-blended word is Ecotricity, which is a UK based power company. Their website is http://www.ecotricity.co.uk/ The company describes Ecotricity as;
ecofriendly electricity: electric energy produced by ecologically friendly means, for example, by solar power or wind power (informal).
[Late 20th century. A blend of ecological and electricity.]Source Encarta.msn.com
Furthermore the company's main direction is to generate more power from clean sources by investing money out of profits into wind farms and other renewable energy projects;
`Ecotricity is an electricity company with a difference - we're dedicated to changing the way electricity is made. We take the money our customers spend on electricity and invest it in clean forms of power like wind energy. What's more, we're the only green electricity company actually building these new renewable energy sources. In 2007 alone we invested £25 million in wind energy' http://www.ecotricity.co.uk/about/
The company is also creating an Ecoforest, by planting a tree for every new customer that signs up with them.
`As part of our environmental commitment, we planted a tree for our first 20,000 customers to create a beautiful new woodland near our wind turbine at Lynch Knoll in Gloucestershire.'
Ecotricity are also promoting the EcoTech Centre which has the only wind turbine in the world that is open to the public to climb! See here for more details: http://www.ecotech.org.uk/Paying the rent! please navigate away from this page by using an advert link. Have you always wanted to learn a new craft or hobby but are always running out of time? The answer is Learn By DVD, see the range of easy to learn topics here:http://www.discstation.com.au/category.pasp?categoryid=80 Ecogen PowerBabcock and Brown Sell 73 percent of its Interest of Ecogen Power to IFM
This headline in the business news recently caught my interest as it represents a large merchant banking company using an eco-blended brand name for one of their investments. Ecogen Power is a company that operates two power stations in Victoria, Australia (Newport and Jeeralang power stations). These two power stations are gas-fired electricity stations, so I'm not really sure how they can be described as 'ecogen'. I have quickly looked through the companys website but I can't identify any green marketing angle they are using with the brand name.
Here's the link to Babcock & Brown Power:
http://www.bbpower.com/bbp-home-page.aspx
and a news article link on this sale of assets:
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24042081-5005200,00.html
Reading through this article I have discovered why Ecogen's power stations are `greener' than other types of power stations, according to the new owner, IFM's head of infrastructure and specialised funds, Kyle Mangini.
"As a gas-fired energy generator, Ecogen is a cleaner source of electricity than the coal-fired generators that dominate Victoria," Ms Mangini said. "In addition, Newport power station's use of salt cooling water from the Yarra River at the mouth of Port Philip Bay helps to ensure electricity supply during water shortages associated with the ongoing drought."
So there you go, gas fired power is cleaner than coal fired power!
Paying the rent! please navigate away from this page by using an advert link.
Have you always wanted to learn a new craft or hobby but are always running out of time? The answer is Learn By DVD, see the range of easy to learn topics here:
http://www.discstation.com.au/category.pasp?categoryid=80 Eco Engagement rings
Green karat claim that they supply ecologically responsible jewellry, and this is a marriage of values. Their jewellry apparently represents `a responsible indulgence'. Green Karat proves the ecological credentials of their jewellry by providing a report called a Green Assay which `provides information regarding the ecological characteristics of the jewelry you are buying.'
Green Karat use a number of eco-blended words in their About us section, such as;
Eco Metal, Eco Alloy, Eco Findings, Eco Gems, Eco Other, Non-Eco, Eco Refinery, Eco Bench
You can read all about the Green Assay report using this link;
Paying the rent! please navigate away from this page by using an advert link.
CDs and DVDs to be made from carbon dioxide
Apparently some scientists are developing a process whereby plastics & polycarbonate are produced from CO2 gas, and this is being promoted as a way to stop global warming. Just imagine all the CO2 emissions from your local power station being captured and turned into sunglasses, Cds & DVDs and plastic drink bottles!I have posted the full article below.Source: http://www.itnews.com.au/CO2-infused plastics may yield green CDs and DVDs By Liz Tay 9 April 2008 04:30AM Tags: green cd dvd global warmingA new technique for the production of plastic may yield CDs and DVDs that thwart global warming. By using waste carbon dioxide [CO2] in the manufacture of polycarbonate plastics, scientists expect to remove the greenhouse gas from the environment while delivering less expensive, safer and greener products compared to current production methods. “Carbon dioxide is so readily available, especially from the smokestack of industries that burn coal and other fossil fuels,” said Thomas Müller, a Professor at the Institute for Technical Chemistry and Macromolecular Chemistry at RWTH Aachen University in Germany. “And it’s a very cheap starting material,” he added. “If we can replace more expensive starting materials with CO2, then you’ll have an economic driving force.” Through a five-year research agreement with German manufacturing company, Bayer Material Science, Müller and his research team will investigate methods of using the chemically inert carbon dioxide molecule for chemical syntheses. CO2 produced by power plants during the combustion of fossil fuels is generally released into the atmosphere, where it contributes to the greenhouse effect. By incorporating CO2 into polymers and other materials produced in large-scale, the chemists expect to reduce the contribution of the greenhouse gas to global warming. Plastics that are manufactured with the proposed technique could be used as material for sunglass and eyeglass lenses, safety goggles, headlamp lenses in vehicles, drinking bottles, CDs and DVDs. Millions of tons of polycarbonates are sold each year, researchers say, and capturing carbon dioxide in this manner could avoid the release of many million of tons of the greenhouse gas into the environment. “Using CO2 to create polycarbonates might not solve the total carbon dioxide problem, but it could be a significant contribution,” Müller said. Speaking at the 235th annual meeting of the American Chemical Society on Tuesday, Müller said that consumers may be drinking from a carbon dioxide product and watching movies on waste-CO2 DVDs sooner than they think. “I would say it’s a matter of a few years [before CO2-derived polymers are available to the public],” he said. Eco-play days - Southern Highlands, NSW The photo is of recycled tyres which forms the foundations of the strawbale meditation hut which has been constructed using sustainable practices.
http://gudhara.org.au/
The Gudhara Holistic Sanctuary is organising Eco-play day courses for children in the school holidays, Sun 20 April 2008. Eco-play includes creative movement, mask-making, face-painting
and the use of natural and recycled materials!
Theres a few really creative (warm&fuzzy) eco-blended words mentioned...here's a selection of eco-words from the Gudhara website; Eco-accomodation, Eco-Spiritual Workshops, Eco-Shamanism (whats that?), Eco-Retreats, Eco-Spiritual Expos About Gudhara;
Gudhara is run by a not-for-profit association called Gudhara Holistic Sanctuary Inc. Gudhara Holistic Sanctuary is a not-for-profit organisation run by a small group of people under the principles of social, economic and environmental sustainability. Our weekend retreats are conducted by experienced facilitators with an emphasis on raising consciousness for personal and global transformation.
Source: http://gudhara.org.au/aboutus.htm
 Eco-razzi - the latest in green gossip
http://www.ecorazzi.com/
I really like this website, it seems to be mix Hollywood and celebrities with green topics in a sort of gossip magazine style. Theres so many eco-blended words mentioned its hard to know where to start...here's a selection of eco-words from ecorazzi;
Eco-packaging, Eco-organisation, Eco-friendly, Eco-entreprenuer, Eco-hotel, Eco-villain, Eco-celebs, Eco-centric
Ecorazzi is virtually a dictionary for words with eco added to them!
About Ecorazzi;
Ecorazzi exists to help celebrities further their good messages – and to offer the general public a way to follow their favorite celebs and perhaps learn something at the same time. We cover environmental, humanitarian, and animal rights issues as they relate to those in the spotlight. In the spirit of fair play, we’re quick to point how who’s slacking and who’s deserving of recognition.
EcoNova - Water recyclingPicture of the EcoNova domestic waste water treatment and recycling system;   This Australian water recycling company, http://www.econova.com.au/index.php, is a member of the Australian Water Association, http://www.awa.asn.au/, and the Australian Green Development Forum, http://www.agdf.org.au/. EcoNova claim to be world leaders in the supply of water recycling technology that produces Class A+ water for reuse in the residential, commercial, marine, sports, tourism, mining and defence industries. One of their main products is the NovaClear domestic waste water treatment system. These domestic water treatment systems will become very popular and will be built into most new homes in Australia as more and more people look to live in eco-friendly houses. `Sewage Treatment, Greywater and Blackwater Recycling - world best technology
Award winning EcoNova is the first Government Licensed Water Provider (Utility) to offer a domestic water recycling system. The NovaClear System uses EcoNova's MembraneSafe technology which has been designed to produce Class A+ Water - the highest quality of recycled water recognised by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency, Qld - see PDF FILE). 'Source: http://www.econova.com.au/detail.php?ID=2There is a lot of technical detail at EcoNova's website, and much of it I failed to grasp on my first look at the water treatment system. I guess their domestic water recycling system is designed to treat water that is used in the home, and then its `recycled' as the waste water is then used for irrigation in the garden. Blatant plug for our ecofriendly Hydropal - a bottled water replacement system!If your new years resolution is to not buy anymore bottled water such as Pump or Franklins spring water, then check out Hydropal, a personal portable water filtration sports bottle. http://www.hydropal.com/ Just for fun, a clickbank report; Manual On How To Build An Attachment For Gas Engines To Use Water For Fuel. Click Here! Eco Anything - eco friendly marketing, a new trend
It seems that a lot of companies are re-launching their product ranges and inventions as eco-friendly, or environmentally friendly. Everyones jumping on the green bandwagon in 2007. A lot of firms have renamed all sorts of products eco-this or eco-that. I'm planning this year to highlight various companies and products that have decided to put an eco in front of their name.Ecosmart is an Australian supplier of solar powered hot water systems, http://www.ecosmart.com.au/
They claim to provide an environmentally friendly hot water solution for the home. Ecosmart have reproduced a graph (see above) showing the tonnes of CO2 emissions produced each year by an average electric water heater system, compared to emissions produced by solar powered water heating systems. Ecosmart also claim that Australia is one of the worst polluting countries in the world!
`Running a solar hot water system is environmentally friendly. The Greenhouse Effect is the most pressing ecological problem facing our planet. It's an issue that's particularly close to home as Australia is the world's worst polluter of greenhouse gas on a per capita basis.'
Source: http://www.ecosmart.com.au/green_energy.html
That does it for me, I'm going to buy an ecosmart solar hot water system as soon as I can!
We can't have Australia continuing to be the worst polluters in the world.
If your new years resolution is to not buy anymore bottled water such as Pump or Franklins spring water, then check out Hydropal, a personal portable water filtration sports bottle. http://www.hydropal.com/
200 Ways You Can Help To Stop Global Warming And Help The Enviroment, At Home, At Work And In Your Daily Life. As A Special Bonus Includes Audio Of The Complete Book So You Can Listen To It Anywhere.Click Here!Recycled Cardboard DVD packagingThe following idea to package new DVD movies in recycled cardboard packaging is a very good initiative to reduce the amount of plastic DVD cases being thrown away and not recycled. I have always found that plastic DVD cases are not that durable, often cracking & breaking after a few uses, so I would choose a cardboard DVD case over a plastic case everytime.
The news article covering this topic:
First Look plans environmental initiatives
By Susanne Ault -- Video Business, 12/14/2007
DEC. 14 GREEN REPORT: First Look Studios is teaming with Shorewood Packaging on an expansive environmental initiative that includes replacing plastic Amaray-style DVD cases with recycled paperboard packaging and planting trees to offset the carbon emissions associated with the manufacture and distribution of DVDs.
Starting with its May releases, First Look will deliver its screeners in Shorewood-manufactured Flip-Paks, featuring paperboard made with 100% recycled materials. The move is a first step toward replacing all retail packaging as well, according to First Look.
The first of these screeners should be sent out in January. First Look will be the debut studio to use Flip-Paks, which carry improvements over Shorewood’s earlier 100% recycled packaging designs. There is no hard disc tray, for instance, which helps simplify the package production process.
Read the full story at VideoBusiness.com/Green Report. Update on Renewable PowerIts been awhile since I posted anything about renewable power sources, so read on for what I thought is interesting in the news regarding efforts to reduce the worlds reliance on fossil fuels, coal, oil, gas & uranium;
25million homes in the next 12 years
Thousands of new offshore wind turbines could power every home in Britain by 2020, the government announced today, as it set out new wind-energy plans.
John Hutton, the business secretary, proposed the creation of up to 33 gigawatts of offshore wind energy at a European energy industry conference in Berlin.
He called for companies to invest in large-scale farm development to generate enough power for up to 25m homes in the next 12 years.
That would require around 7,000 turbines, or one every half-mile, Hutton told the BBC's Politics Show yesterday.
Source: Louise Radnofsky and agencies Guardian Unlimited, Monday December 10 2007
http://www.guardian.co.uk Plethora of plastic water bottle pollution figuresThe insanity of the current global trend of people constantly buying bottled spring water, and then throwing the plastic bottle out after a single use is becoming the attention of increasing media focus, and some people are re-thinking their bottled water buying habits. Lets hope this counter-trend gains some momentum over the coming summer months in Sydney and around Australia.
1,000 years to breakdown, $16 billion p.a. sales,
40 million per day—are not recycled
Water Bottles Everywhere, Calculating the environmental costs of bottled water.
BY JEFF GOLDEN
` Jennifer Aniston Wouldn't Hurt the Planet, Would She?
Yes, those bottles of water are cute and convenient. Yes, you look cool when you down one after yoga class. They even lend an air of sophistication when the waiter opens one at your table and pours it for you. And, yes, Jennifer Aniston is hawking a certain brand these days.
However, bottled water is one of the most frivolous ways we contribute to one of the most significant crisis of our times, global climate shock, as well as a slew of other problems.
The story of bottled water is ghastly from start to finish. It takes 1.5 million barrels of oil each
year to make the bottles for the U.S. market alone. The Container Recycling Institute calculates that's enough oil to provide electricity for more than 250,000 homes for a year, enough to fuel 100,000 cars. '
Source: http://www.upstatehouse.com/article.php?issue=53&dept=81 Hotels joining in green waveHeres today's roundup of statistics and numbers used to estimate the amounts of plastic water bottles that are being littered into the environment around the world;
7,000 plastic bottles of water
`Four Seasons. During its high season, the tony Four Seasons Jackson Hole in Wyoming is replacing 7,000 plastic bottles of water left when beds are turned down in the evening with pitchers of local tap water.'
Source: http://www.philly.com/inquirer/
88 billion plastic bags
`If Wal-Mart sells 2 million reusable bags, made with recycled plastic from soft drink and water bottles, it won’t have to produce 100 million disposable plastic bags, which would require the use of 1.2 million pounds of plastic resin, the retail giant said.
Environmentalists concede and industry warns that U.S. consumers, who used 88 billion plastic bags last year and are on pace to use 91 billion by year’s end, will have trouble kicking their habit.'
Source: http://news.galvestondailynews.com/
www.hydropal.com is an alternative to single-use plastic water bottles More statistics about plastic water bottle litterThere seems to be a growing number of people realising that constantly buying plastic bottled water leads to damaging environmental effects. Just recently in Sydney, Manly Mayor, Peter MacDonald is considering regulations banning bottled water sales in the Manly Council district.
90% percent
` "The fastest growing things in a landfill is the plastic bottles from bottled water," said Tom Wurtz, MUD President. He says that each year, more than 90 percent of water bottles end up as garbage or litter. He says that each year, more than 90 percent of water bottles end up as garbage or litter.'
Source: http://www.kptm.com/
25,000 plastic bottles
`Rather than use expensive brick or wood, a group of young environmental activists in Bolivia filled 25,000 plastic bottles with sand and used the recylclables (sp) to build walls for a home that's much sturdier than the shacks used in the South American country. Once stacked, the bottles were reinforced with steel and cement.'
Source: http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2007/10/can-a-wolf-blow.html
37 billion bottles of water
`Americans drank some 37 billion bottles of water in 2005, despite the inconvenient truth that in most parts of the country, tap water is not only perfectly safe, but also more tightly regulated that its bottled counterpart. At the same time, manufacturing plastic bottles for bottled water creates an astounding amount of pollution -- an annual equivalent of 1.5 billion barrels of oil, according to Food & Water Watch.'
Source: http://www.alternet.org/story/65520/ A list of statistics about plastic water bottlesThe statistics and estimates on plastic water bottle pollution around the world are just mind-numbingly large!
4 billion pounds
`4 billion pounds of plastic bottles are discarded in landfills or left as litter every year and that the creation of the bottles themselves requires 17 million barrels of oil annually'
(in the United States)
Source: www.thinkoutsidethebottle.org & The Daily Iowan
$0.0015 per gallon
`An imported, one-liter plastic water bottle uses 1/4-liter of oil' and `Average tap water costs $0.0015 per gallon while a 16-ounce bottle can cost up to $2'
Source: Pacifica Tribuna Online
www.hydropal.com is an alternative to single-use plastic water bottles
8 billion gallons
“In America last year over 8 billion gallons of bottled water was sold, mainly in non recyclable plastic and that amounted to 22 billion empty plastic bottles to dispose of causing 1.5 million barrels of oil to be used to manufacture them"
Source: http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/2598117/22462264 Bottled water taste testThere seems to be a lot of conversations and debates going on at the moment, publicly in the media, and privately, about the costs and benefits of bottled `spring' water over `pot' water, or plain old tap water. Somebody even told me a joke about bottled water, asking me `What does Evian spell backwards' ? The answer is quite humorous really if you think about the answer for a minute. See below for a simple test I found to compare the tastes of bottled water and water straight from the tap. You can try this one at home!
Source:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk
'If you are addicted to bottled water, I beg you to conduct the following experiment. Take two bottles, one empty and one containing your store-bought water. Fill the empty bottle with tap water, then refrigerate both overnight. Overnight chilling brings them to identical temperatures and allows any odour of chlorine (a harmless and essential anti-microbial) to dissipate.
In the morning, get someone to pour the waters into two glasses without telling you which is which. If your blind tasting reveals no appreciable difference, quit your expensive, environmentally destructive habit on the spot.'
keywords;
conspiracy, water, bottled, evian, environment, spring, naive, tap, natural, Eco-Friendly Idea: Axing Single-Serve Plastic WaterbottlesThe Eco-Runner has waded into the single-serve water bottle debate, and its interesting to note that if you do take a moment to look around, you'll quickly see how much plastic bottle pollution there is in Sydney, or anywhere really. We're drowning in a sea of discarded soda pop & mineral water plastic bottles!
Here's the Eco-Runner's thoughts:
http://eco-runner.blogspot.com/2007/09/eco-friendly-idea-axing-single-serve.html
Single-serve plastic waterbottles. The debate. I've always been a skeptic. Personally, I do not use and/or purchase them...ever. Convienient...maybe. Eco-friendly...not so much. I paid particular attention to how many plastic waterbottles I picked up on my eco-walk this evening. Sick! They are EVERYWHERE!!! So...here's an option:
I recently recieved a comment from an individual with the alias of EcoDisc who plugged their new reuseable water bottle known as the Hydropal. Now, I'm sure this is not the only one of its kind on the market, but the idea is excellent and smart. EcoDisc commented, "it allows people to reduce water bottle pollution, and one of the reasons for this invention is that I was so sick of going for a run, and all I see in my streets and parks is discarded single serve plastic waterbottles." I couldn't agree more, and any possible way to reduce pollution is novel to me! If you are interested, check out their site @ http://www.hydropal.com.au/.
All the best, EcoDisc! And cheers, Eco-Runners! Run 4 more!
Posted by Sam - http://eco-runner.blogspot.com/ When Asked, "Why Do You Run?"Heres a link to a blog I really like:
Source:
http://eco-runner.blogspot.com/2007/08/when-asked-why-do-you-run.html
I run to celebrate the joy of my being... the ecstasy that I am! I run that I may be alone with myself and together with my universe. I run to find the rhythm of the pounding rush of my own heart which sets its beat to the pulsing of time.
I run in time ever present as it passes through my world garbed in the white robes of winter, the patchwork of fall, stripped to the simplicity of summer or garlanded with the new growing things of spring... I run seeking the feeling of harmony that is mine if I will but open to it.
I run to feel the earth chains break and drop along my path. I run until I am numb to the everyday cares and woes and I flow forward; a part of the air which I suck into thirsty lungs the earth which softens the placement of my feet. The sounds of this space through which I pass are music to my soaring spirit. The sights lure me ever onward. The process carries me ever upward - higher and higher.
So I ask you, "How can you not run?"
A little inspiration goes a long way. The environment around us truly makes running what it is - a passion and feeling unlike any other. Take heart, Eco-Runners. You Run 4 More! Cheers!
Posted by Sam - http://eco-runner.blogspot.com/ at 8:52 PM
My comment
Everywhere I run in Sydney, plastic bottle pollution is just horrendous, everywhere I run, all I see is discarded single-time-use plastic water bottles. I no longer buy bottled water as a personal stand against this trashing of our environment, we invented Hydropal instead. My Hydropal allows me to drink filtered tap water wherever I am. You too can get a Hydropal from http://www.hydropal.com/
If you are in Sydney, and want to catch-up with some serious running types, checkout these links; http://www.sydneystriders.org.au/ http://www.coolrunning.com.au/ http://www.sixfoot.com/ Watermill Express Eco-Friendly SolutionI'm posting a press release today from a US water kiosk company. Its got some amazing numbers on single-use water bottle pollution. Also, I have noticed that there are very few of these types of pure water dispensers in Australia. This doesn't make sense to me when you see big water bottle trucks rolling around the streets of Sydney delivering bottled water. Are people too lazy to take their office water cooler bottles down to the water refilling kiosk at their local servo?
Source: http://www.foodingredientsfirst.com/
Sep 13,2007 - Watermill Express self-serve kiosks dispense pure drinking water into customers' own containers, eliminating the need for disposable packaging, the costs and effects of plastic bottle manufacturing, and product distribution.
Watermill Express, the nation's largest drive-up self-serve vendor of pure drinking water, provides a health-conscious and eco-friendly alternative amid the escalating debate between bottled water and tap water.
While bottled water has many benefits, environmentalists have concerns regarding the vast disposal of single-serve plastic bottles. Watermill Express self-serve kiosks dispense pure drinking water into customers' own containers, eliminating the need for disposable packaging, the costs and effects of plastic bottle manufacturing, and product distribution.
Watermill Express estimates that its product and process have prevented the disposal of more than 500 million disposable water bottles since its inception in 1984. "Given the growing sentiment against the use of disposable bottled water nationwide and various city officials, restaurants and stores discouraging consumption and subsequent waste of single-use water bottles, our product provides a timely alternative that allows consumers to re-use their own water bottles," said Lani Dolifka, CO-CEO for Watermill Express.
According to the Container Recycling Institute (CRI), a Washington-based nonprofit, eight out of 10 plastic water bottles used in the United States become garbage and that more than 75 billion beverage cans and bottles have been disposed in 2007.
The Earth Policy Institute reports that 1.5 million oil barrels are utilized to manufacture these containers. This is enough to fuel 100,000 cars for one year. Additional burdening factors to the environment include distribution costs especially for those varieties that originate abroad.
Watermill Express not only has an environmental and price advantage over bottled water but through its exclusive Water Perfection eight stage purification system it never exceeds 50ppm in total dissolved solids, meaning that safety and excellent taste can always be expected.
While bottled water advocates address Americans' concerns about the health of their beverages and the safety of their drinking water and tap water advocates address their concerns about environmentally damaging waste, Watermill Express gives consumers the best of both worlds, including convenience and affordability. EcoDisc CD Recycling program launchedYour unwanted discs can now be recycled instead of thrown away, saving energy and valuable resources. Discstation has created EcoDisc to stop unwanted discs from ending up in our landfills around Australia. CDs and DVDs are extremely durable and non-biodegradeable, and also contain toxic chemicals and metals, so don't throw them away, send them to EcoDisc, PO Box 590 Lindfield NSW 2070.
EcoDisc CD & DVD Recycling is a new service from Discstation which allows you to dispose of CDs in an environmentally responsible way. Suitable for all types of CDs & DVDs and their plastic cases, including music CDs, writeable CDs and CD ROMs, DVDs, and Game discs which can be recycled extracting the polycarbonate and aluminium content for use in the manufacture of new components using hard plastics and metals.
Don't throw unwanted discs away, send them to EcoDisc, PO Box 590 Lindfield NSW 2070.
 ecodisc Bottle Pollution is a massive worldwide issue Dawn (6 am) at the Jumeirah Open Beach finds the area still packed with people and littered with rubbish.
This article and photo is courtesy of the Gulf News in Dubai. http://www.gulfnews.com/
I have highlighted this paragraph from the article for the imagery it evokes for me;
`The fine white sand is polka-dotted with water bottles while empty drinks cartons bob around in the shallow surf, food wrappers of all kinds have been chucked aside and chip packets roll like tumbleweed along the shoreline which is covered in a confetti of cigarette butts.'
How could we let this happen?
By Emmanuelle Landais, Staff Reporter Published: August 20, 2007, 23:37
Dubai: It might be 6am on a Friday morning on the Open Beach in Jumeirah but it looks more like the aftermath of a 48-hour music festival with people camped out on beach towels stirring themselves awake, groups of friends having a morning dip, while others gaze together as dawn breaks.
But how do you enjoy the sunrise when all around you is wasteland? Five tonnes of rubbish is collected on average everyday from Jumeirah's beaches.
The full article is here;
 plastic bottle pollutionEcoDisc CD & DVD Recycling explained: FAQsWe are getting a number of emails requesting information about the details of how our CD Recycling program operates, this section of FAQs is a summary of the more common enquiries we are receiving.
How do you recycle the discs and jewel cases that I send to you?
We accept any scratched, damaged, or unwanted music Cds, movie DVDs, Cdroms, Playstation and Xbox discs for recycling (and their cases). The discs are either re-surfaced and renewed through our own disc scratch removal and scanning processes (and then re-sold), or they are sent (incl cases) to a plastics reprocessing facility here in NSW. Incidently, if you are interested in purchasing a recycled DVD please visit our Ebay store, http://stores.ebay.com.au/EcoDisc-Australia/
Can you tell me more about the CD recycling process?
Any discs we receive (that we are unable to resurface and resell) are bundled together and sent to a specialist plastics recycling company. This is a description of the patented process used;
The compact machinery separates the various plastic components of the optical media using a granulation technique as a first step, then isolates any paper and plastic coverings and metal staples. Friction washing is used to remove the metal layer of the CDs and DVDs, and finally, a patented process recovers primary materials such as polystyrene, polycarbonate and polypropylene.
What are the recycled plastics used for?
The recovered plastics are currently being used in Australia for manufacturing a wide variety of plastic products and are also exported to overseas clients. The small footprint, improved energy efficiency and reduced water consumption, together with the need for fewer workers, minimise operating costs of this technology, making it ideal for CD recycling. The efficiency of the technology produces quality recycled plastics at a cost that competes favourably with virgin raw materials.
ecodisc Bottled water the 'new eco-disaster'This article has plenty of awful statistics on the developing worldwide problem of plastic bottle pollution, these statistics are for Australia, which makes a change from reading about the United States,
http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/bottled-water-the-new-ecodisaster/2006/02/25/1140670303250.html
AUSTRALIANS' love affair with bottled water has left environmentalists worried about the toll on the planet.
With 65 per cent of plastic drink bottles ending up in landfill, they are calling for better recycling services.
The popularity of bottled water is rising at a rate of 10 per cent a year in Australia.
About 550 million litres were consumed in 2004-05, according to the Australian Beverage Council, with most purchases being made in addition to soft drinks, rather than replacing them. Campaign against buying bottled water gathers pace Bottler of an idea ... Crushed drink bottles at a recycling plant in Chullora Photo: Janie Barrett
The following article and the above photo are courtesy of the Sydney Morning Herald. It's very clear that the trend to buy bottled water has serious environmental consequences, but so far there are no alternatives offered for people to change their buying habits. Notice the recent Mount Franklin bottled spring water advertising campaign and the very strong imagery used to promote the range. see here, http://www.mountfranklinwater.com.au/ and, http://www.wellofpositivity.com.au/
Don't buy bottled water, activists urge
Hannah Edwards, July 29, 2007
ENVIRONMENTALISTS have pleaded with authorities to help cut waste caused by Australia's increasing thirst for bottled water. Demand for the product is growing by 10per cent annually, adding to the 118,000 tonnes of plastic drink containers manufactured each year.
Latest research by Clean Up Australia shows that just 35per cent of all plastic bottles are recycled. The rest end up in landfill sites.
Figures compiled by the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) show the manufacture and transportation of bottled water is leaving a massive "carbon footprint".
For every tonne of one-litre bottles of Evian water shipped to Australia each year, for example, at least 84kilograms of harmful emissions are created.
About 150 million litres of bottled water is consumed in Australia each year. Clean Up Australia founder and activist Ian Kiernan said the bottled water industry was a "con". He has called on governments to discourage people buying water in bottles. He said a national deposit or refund scheme, similar to the one operating in South Australia, would encourage recycling.
Mr Kiernan said "world health quality water" is available from the tap for the equivalent of $1.20 a tonne, while standard bottled water costs $3000 a tonne. Mr Kiernan said the bottled water industry is plundering aquifers.
Shadow minister for climate change, environment and heritage Peter Garrett joined the call for action, saying people needed to be responsible when choosing their water source and be aware of the consequences of the choice to drink bottled water.
Environmental campaigns running overseas encourage people to ditch the bottles and switch to tap water. In New York, city officials have paid for advertising championing tap water, while in San Francisco officials are no longer able to use public money to buy water in plastic bottles if tap water is available.
Top restaurants in California and New York have agreed not to sell bottled water, serving customers tap water instead.
ACF research coordinator Elle Morrell said that despite recycling efforts, 65 per cent of plastic drink bottles still ended up in landfills. The recycling process itself can also have an impact on the environment. "Even if bottled water is recycled, it uses a huge amount of water and energy in the process," she said.
Cafes and restaurants should get on board and stop selling bottled water, offering customers a cooler full of tap water instead, Ms Morrell said. A note next to the cooler could reinforce the message that plastic should be shunned. She said a government-run anti-waste campaign was needed. The ACF suggested a premium be put on the price of bottled water as a disincentive.
Delivering the huge variety of bottled water brands is also taking a serious toll on the environment, producing significant carbon emissions as it is imported from countries such as France, Italy and Fiji. Source: The Sun-Herald
Plastic bottles do not cause global warming!This is an interesting development in the plastic bottle trash debate. The bottled water industry is hitting back at its critics with a recent press release. For us at Hydropal this industry `denial' or response is just further confirmation that `one time use' plastic water bottles, discarded in their billions is a very real environmental problem for many countries and cities.
http://www.offlicencenews.co.uk/articles/46952/Plastic-bottles-do-not-cause-global-warming.aspx?categoryid=9059
Published: 11-07-2007
Written by: Emma Eversham
The bottled water industry has hit back at claims that discarded plastic water bottles are contributing to global warming.
A statement was issued by the Bottled Water Information Office to say it is an environmentally friendly industry following the news that the City of New York is running a campaign to encourage people to ditch bottled water and drink tap water instead to protect the environment.
The BWIO said: “The very foundation of the industry is the protection of a precious natural resource and its use in a sustainable manner, and that ethos is applied in every aspect of the work of the industry.
“Bottled water is most commonly packaged in either plastic (PET) or glass, which is totally safe and conforms to strict regulations on health and safety. By far the majority of bottled water (93 per cent) comes in plastic bottles which is totally recyclable. Bottles also carry messages urging the purchaser to recycle after use. The rest (around 7 per cent) comes in glass bottles, which can also be placed for recycling.”
According to environmental groups, four out of five plastic water bottles end up on landfill sites and the production process contributes to global warming, but figures released by RECOUP show that 727 million plastic bottles were recycled in 2004.
The BWIO also says the industry “continues to make inroads into packaging technology” and that some producers were considering the use of biodegradable plastic.
727 million plastic bottles were recycled in 2004! This number is literally a drop in the plastic bottle ocean... Centre to study geothermal energyI'm posting an update tonight on geothermal energy, the South Australian State Government has announced a grant to the University Of Adelaide to study sources of geothermal energy.
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=277471&rss=yes
Centre to study geothermal energy
Monday Jul 9 11:47 AEST
The South Australian government will help fund an international research facility into geothermal energy at the University of Adelaide.
Mineral Resources Minister Paul Holloway said the $250,000 in seed funding would allow the university to host Australia's first research centre into geothermal energy systems.
"The government sees geothermal as an energy source for the future and by helping the university establish their research facility here, will ensure that South Australia is in the vanguard of all facets of developing and demonstrating hot rock systems," Mr Holloway said.
"We have vast hot rock resources and developing them is clearly in the nation's interest."
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