Grocery Bags on Seattle hit list

Plastic foam, grocery bags could end up on Seattle hit list

By LISA STIFFLER
P-I REPORTER

Mike Berg likes his giant Jamba Juice mango smoothie, with an added shot of vitamins A, C and E, to stay nice and frosty.

· Georgetown neighbors talking trash with city
· Haul your non-recyclables on your back for 2 weeks? Ugh

The 49-year-old Seattle resident has seen long-lived plastic foam containers marring the environment, bobbing out to sea where they can break into smaller and smaller bits and get eaten by fish or fowl. That, he doesn't like.

But while drinking from his tall foam cup he wondered what would happen if the containers were banned -- an idea being floated by city leaders.

"What else is going to be a good insulator?" he asked.

		Dan DeLong / P-I
	A garbage truck unloads at the Seattle Public Utilities South Recycling & Disposal Station in February. The city is studying a "zero waste" strategy.

An effort to curb the amount of waste being dumped in landfills and gunking up the environment includes the possibility of banning foam containers used for restaurant to-go food. A ban on the ubiquitous plastic grocery bags is also on the table.

"It's a major sustainability issue," Seattle City Councilman Richard Conlin said. "How do we change our philosophical approach that waste is not something that is thrown out, but something that is integrated, the way nature does it?"

Thursday night Conlin is helping host a city hall meeting to get public input on the proposed bans, which are part of a broader "Zero Waste Strategy."

City leaders are looking at ways to bump recycling and composting rates from the current 44 percent up to 72 percent -- a goal that could be hit by 2025 if sweeping changes were embraced, according to a study released in April.

The effort grew out of a proposal to build a third city dump in Georgetown. Residents and businesses in the south Seattle neighborhood raised a stink over the idea. So the City Council commissioned a five-month study by an independent consultant to review Seattle's refuse.

It didn't specifically say whether a new transfer station would be needed if trash volumes shrank, but it did provide strategies and estimated costs for reducing waste -- including scrapping plastic shopping bags and foam containers.

There are different ideas about how those reductions might look, and the City Council likely won't make a decision on the strategy and transfer station until July. There's the possibility of outright bans of the bags and containers. Or shoppers could pay a premium for using plastic -- or even paper -- bags. Foam makers could be required to take back their products for disposal or recycling.

Other governments already have restrictions on these items.

Portland outlawed foam to-go containers nearly 20 years ago. McDonald's voluntarily began phasing out its use of foam burger boxes in 1991.

In April, San Francisco approved a ban on plastic bags at the checkout stands of large groceries and pharmacies. Before the new rules passed, city leaders gave out 1,000 free canvas shopping bags.

IKEA started charging 5 cents for plastic bags at its furniture and housewares stores earlier this year.

In Seattle, citizen activists recently began pushing for reductions in the use of these omnipresent items.

Ellie Rose is leading the effort to ban foamed polystyrene, launching "Foam-Free Seattle." After years of activism aimed at stopping domestic violence, war and international slavery, she decided that if we didn't save the environment, none of the other issues mattered.

So Rose, a licensed massage practitioner, rallied local environmental groups and campaigned to reduce the use of the foam products, which are made from a petroleum byproduct and last many years in landfills or break up in the environment and can be eaten by wildlife.

Ban supporters plan to show up for the meeting Thursday in force and decked out in fanciful foam hats of Rose's creation.

"It is a plastic that is ubiquitous, and because it easily floats around and moves, it's hard to contain," Rose said. "There are many alternatives to it. There's no reason to use it."

It didn't make sense to Dan Lundquist, a professional gardener, when he saw shoppers loading pristine organic produce into countless plastic bags at his local PCC Natural Market.

"It seems like an outdated way of living," he said. So he helped form a small Seattle group called BYOB (Bring Your Own Bag).

PCC is doing its best to promote bag reuse, spokeswoman Diana Crane said. It sells reusable bags for less than $1 and will donate a nickel a bag to charity when people bring their own.

"It would be great if we never had to give out another bag and people just brought what they had at home," she said. "If the bag works, use it."

Lundquist supports a plastic bag ban, but favors charging shoppers for all new bags so they don't just substitute paper for plastic. His goal is to get people to consider how much they're consuming and throwing away.

"It seems like a little simple issue, but it's something that effects each and every one of us," he said. "It can trigger deep thought processes in other things we do in life."

The changes under consideration by the city could cost businesses. Conventional plastic bags cost about a penny, while compostable plastic bags are 5-9 cents, experts said.

Foam containers are also cheap and effective, keeping coffee hot, soda cold and teriyaki chicken from leaking all over the place.

And the prohibitions don't always work as planned.

In Portland, many restaurants turned to clear, plastic clamshells in lieu of foam, "which offer many of the same problems," said Andy Schneider, commercial compost specialist with Portland's Office of Sustainable Development. The plastic containers are also petrol-based and hard to recycle.

Supporters of a Seattle ban said they'd push for provisions requiring that the foam is replaced with more environmentally friendly alternatives such as paper products or biodegradable plastics made of plants.

Jamba Juice doesn't have a strong opposition to a Seattle foam ban, spokesman Tom Suiter said.

"Should any ban go into effect, we'll fully comply," he said.

In Portland and three California cities that have foam prohibitions, Jamba Juice has turned to paper cups for its frozen drinks.

"That's the option we have," Suiter said.

TRASH TALK

Seattle generated 438,000 tons of trash in 2006. City officials are looking at ways to reduce what's going to landfills. They'll be guided by the Zero Waste Strategy Report and comments from the public. Here are some of the recommended changes. Some could be phased in next year, others by 2020:

• Require disposal of food waste in yard waste containers.
• Require recycling at large event venues and parks.
• Increase the kind of items that are recyclable and collect recycling weekly, garbage biweekly.
• On-demand curbside pick-up of discarded household items to be recycled or taken to the dump.
• Encourage recycling of construction and building materials.
• Add policies and incentives for reducing or eliminating electronic waste, mercury-containing products, paint, carpets, cell phones, batteries, tires, drugs.
• Ban foam restaurant food containers and plastic shopping bags.

LEARN MORE

• Public meeting on the Zero Waste Strategy Report: 5:30-7:30 p.m. Thursday, Council Chambers, second floor of City Hall, 600 Fourth Ave.
• : Read the Zero Waste report.
• Foam ban: foamfreeseattle.org.
• Reducing bag use: Send an e-mail to byob.seattle@gmail.com.

P-I reporter Lisa Stiffler can be reached at 206-448-8042 or lisastiffler@seattlepi.com. Read her blog on the environment at datelineearth.com.

Nike Sets Goals

Nike Sets Goals to Be Climate-Neutral, Reduce Packaging
Source: GreenBiz.com

BEAVERTON, Ore., June 1, 2007 -- By 2011, Nike will have improved labor conditions at all its factories worldwide, be a climate-neutral company, and reduced the waste from its products by 17 percent, according to new goals the company announced today.

Nike released its Corporate Responsibility Report for fiscal 2005 and 2006 yesterday, and a major element of the report focuses on how the company can more deeply integrate CSR goals into its long-term business strategies.

"We see corporate responsibility as a catalyst for growth and innovation" said Nike CEO Mark Parker. "It is an integral part of how we can use the power of our brand, the energy and passion of our people, and the scale of our business to create meaningful change."

On the labor side, Nike plans to eliminate excessive overtime in all its contract factories worldwide by 2011. Citing excessive overtime as one of the biggest labor compliance issues the industry faces, Nike said it has set a high priority on that and other working conditions for its nearly 800,000 contract factory workers.

Nike also released the guidelines and benchmarks the company uses to audit and evaluate factories. The tools are posted on NikeResponsibility.com, and include an extensive list of questions and guidance for maintaining the safety and environmental quality of its contract factories.

The company also announced that it would make all its facilities, retail stores and its business travel climate neutral by 2011. This announcement follows a previous goal to reduce emissions by joining the World Wildlife Fund's Climate Savers program. Nike said it has exceeded its CO2 emissions-reduction targets over the last two years through the program.

The climate commitment extends to the gases involved in its Nike Air products: the company has already ceased using fluorinated gases in all its products.

Waste reduction goals make up a big chunk of yesterday's announcement. Nike said it will redesign all its branded products -- including more than 225 million pairs of shoes sold every year -- to meet its 2011 baseline goal of reducing footwear waste by 17 percent and reducing packaging waste by 30 percent.

Nike also said it would invest $215 million more into community based sports inititives that it says can change young peoples' lives. The money, on top of the $100 million the company has already invested in such initiatives, will cover everything from building and upgrading sports facilities and playgrounds around the world to "spreading the joy of soccer" across the U.S.

In addition to these business targets, Nike announced yesterday that it will continue its commitment to supply chain transparency by updating public disclosure of the more than 700 contract factories worldwide producing Nike product. In 2005, Nike was the first company in its industry to disclose its factory base to encourage industry transparency and collaboration.

Why Recycled Paper Just Isn't Good Enough

Source: Darcy Hitchcock, GreenBiz

Darcy Hitchcock is the co-founder of Axis Performance Advisors, a consulting firm that helps organizations find responsible solutions that the needs of owners, employees, customers, the community and the environment.

Here, she talks with Tom Pollock, the project manager for the Paper Working Group and the EPAT projects at Metafore, a source of tools, information and innovative thinking for businesspeople focused on evaluating, selecting and manufacturing environmentally preferable products.

Darcy Hitchcock: When people buy paper products, everything from copy paper to toilet paper, they're focused on recycled content as a measure of good environmental performance. The more sophisticated buyers have also looked at the bleaching process. Why is this not adequate if a company wants to "do the right thing"?

Tom Pollock: To get a true measure of environmental performance you have to look at the life-cycle of a product. Considering just a few criteria doesn't make it possible to do that. With paper products, this means understanding environmental performance at the forest level, mill level, how it gets to the consumer, etc.

Recycled content is important -- but it is not the whole picture. For example, climate change is a big issue and choosing a recycled product does not address climate change. CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions have to be taken into account. What is happening at the paper mill and what type of energy is used to make a paper product can be as important as what the product consists of in terms of environmental performance.

DH: Do you have examples of when increasing the recycled content would have been the less-sustainable option?

TP: One example would be buying a recycled paper product made at a paper mill overseas. In the U.S., over 30 percent of recovered paper from your blue bins is being bought by manufacturers and shipped overseas to countries like China. These mills may be modern, but if the energy to run these mills comes from burning dirty coal, that has serious implications.

These mills aren't regulated like paper mills in North America. So, there are situations where buying recycled paper could have a bigger environmental impact than buying paper from a local supplier that doesn't offer recycled content. As in any important choice -- you have to consider the trade-offs.

DH: What about shipping weight. If a magazine publisher chose a lighter weight paper instead of more recycled content, they could save a lot of CO2 from shipping the magazines. That would factor too, wouldn't it?

TP: Definitely. Lighter basis weight papers are a very smart way to go because it uses fiber more efficiently, in storage and well as transportation costs.

DH: How does it save storage space? Does it really make a difference in my file cabinet?

TP: I’d say more at the industrial level. When companies buy paper by the ton a lower basis weight means a smaller paper roll, which requires less space on the shop floor, or on the semi truck. That translates into energy savings because the magazines or newspapers are lighter and require fewer resources to transport and store.

But again, looking at one metric like transportation is important but not the whole story. Time Magazine recently published a study where they found that the majority of greenhouse gas emissions came at the paper mill level.

Also, forest management and certification are important issues, but when it comes to carbon emissions it’s not a significant factor.

Source: "Following the Paper Trail: The Impact of Magazine and Dimensional Lumber Production on Greenhouse Gas Emissions: A Case Study". The H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics, and the Environment. Washington D.C., 2006.
continue reading at

http://www.greenbiz.com/news/reviews_third.cfm?NewsID=35144

Staples Adds Computer Take-Back to Recycling Program

FRAMINGHAM, Mass., May 22, 2007 -- Staples, Inc. announced yesterday that it will now accept used computers and other office technology for recycling at any Staples store nationwide, becoming the first national retailer to offer computer recycling in stores every day.

Staples' program allows customers to bring in used computers, monitors, laptops, printers, faxes and all-in-ones to any U.S. Staples store, where the equipment will be recycled in accordance with environmental laws. The company will take back all brands whether or the products were purchased at Staples, and will charge only a $10 fee for large items. Staples said it won't accept televisions or large, floor-model photocopiers at this time.

The company will partner with Amandi Services to handle the recycling, and said it will follow guidelines created by the EPA to ensure safe and effective recycling of e-waste.

"An estimated 133,000 computers are discarded every day in the U.S.," said Mark Buckley, vice president of environmental affairs at Staples. "We know that small businesses and consumers want to recycle their used office technology but are often frustrated by the lack of convenient options available. By making it easy to recycle, Staples helps customers take action in handling e-waste in an environmentally responsible way."

"It's not always easy being green. However, through the leadership of Staples, Americans will see that preventing pollution by recycling unwanted electronics is as easy as it gets," said EPA adminstrator Stephen L. Johnson. "EPA and our Plug-In To eCycling partners are helping make sure yesterday's high-tech gadgets do not go to waste."

Equipment is bagged and sealed when customers drop them off at the Staples customer service desk. The equipment is then picked up and delivered to Amandi Services, who disassembles the equipment into its component parts and uses industry-leading standards for data destruction. Amandi then recycles the raw materials, such as the plastics, metals, printed circuit boards and Cathode Ray Tubes (CRT). The CRTs, which are the most hazardous part of electronics waste, are recycled utilizing Amandi's proprietary technology into a raw material that is used to manufacture new televisions.

Staples is a U.S. EPA Plug-In to eCycling partner and has offered computer recycling in its Seattle area stores for the past two years. In addition to computer and office technology recycling, Staples provides customers with in-store recycling for ink and toner cartridges, cell phones, PDAs and rechargeable batteries. In 2006, the company recycled more than 17 million ink and toner cartridges and 3,500 tons of electronic waste.

Depositive Thinking

On returnable bottles
By Umbra Fisk

30 May 2007

(less)

Share: digg | hugg | stumbleupon | reddit | newsvine | fark | facebook

Bookmark: del.icio.us | google | yahoo

Hi Umbra,

I've been wondering lately what happened to the returnable bottles that were so common up until some point in the '70s. Why did the legislation go away? Does reusing bottles use less energy? It seems like it would, but I haven't found info on advocating for bottle reuse in any of the green action plans floating around.

Anne Speck
Lafayette, Colo.

Dearest Anne,

In days of yore, portable beverages came in glass bottles, and -- reading between the lines of the articles I read on the subject -- smallish beverage manufacturers were dispersed across this fair nation. So bottles filled with regionally made beverages were shipped out and returned, as a matter of course, to a relatively nearby manufacturing plant for reuse.

Earn by drinking.

After the Second World War, the steel and aluminum industries were ready and able to push their own beverage containers ("cans"), which were considered disposable. Cans were much cheaper for beverage makers because they didn't pay to ship them home again (I assume their lighter weight made them cheaper to ship to stores as well), and reuseable glass became a disadvantage in business competition. Then there was beverage industry consolidation and the little guys went out of business, and glass no longer had a deposit on it and also came to be considered disposable.

In the late 1960s, a few people in Vermont and Oregon began agitating for a return to returnable bottles and the bottle deposit system. Vermont's first attempt at a law failed, but Oregon succeeded. Today, 11 states have "bottle bills" mandating a bottle deposit system. Under these laws, "returnable" bottles -- bottles that are able to be returned for a refund -- are either reused or recycled. If you were seeing returnable bottles in the 1970s and now you don't, perhaps you have moved states?

Multiple other states have tried to have bottle bills, or expand current ones, or are now trying to do so. In your lovely Colorado, for instance, legislators have tried to pass a bottle bill more than once. There have been national bottle bill efforts as well. Often these efforts have met resistance from business. Deposit systems are an added hassle for beverage makers, packagers, and retailers. In a typical deposit scheme, the retailer pays the manufacturer -- let's say five cents per bottle. That price is passed on to the consumer, but when the consumer returns the bottle she gets back the five cents, and the same goes for a retailer. Often the retailer receives a handling fee upon return, as well. Glass bottles are often sterilized and refilled if they are in good condition, but everything else, of course, is recycled. If you were a store or a large corporation, would you rather deal with used containers or not?

It's easy to paint a sort of Evil Corporation picture because major beverage companies have spent quite a bit of time directly lobbying against bottle bills and also -- scandale -- starting anti-littering campaigns in order to shift the focus of the discussion from producers to consumers. Keep America Beautiful was started by bottlers and packagers in the 1950s and has focused on what citizens can do to keep America clean ever since -- it's not bottles that cause litter, it's people that cause litter.

Now, however, according to my source inside the world of waste reduction, the big beverage people are slowly joining the movement toward more deposit legislation. I guess they weren't looking so good on the corporate responsibility front and it began to bother them. And altruism, maybe.

Bottle deposit bills are incredibly useful for litter control. Litter was the primary motivation for passing them in the 1970s, and it still is today. It's not such an issue at home, where you likely put your bottles into the recycling. But if you're not at home, getting a good deposit back might be just the added incentive you need to keep that bottle out of the grass/woods/tangleweed/trash. I grew up in a deposit state, so I can speak directly to the motivation that five cents can provide. And yes, refilling containers is better than both recycling them and throwing them away.

Nickelly,
Umbra

Reducing Waste

Companies Working to Pare Down Waste
By RICK CALLAHAN
Associated Press Writer EVANSVILLE, Ind. - With earthshaking thuds, a plastic-stamping machine hammers a sheet of hot plastic into king-size drinking cups destined to quench travelers' thirst for soda at the nation's convenience stores. The blank white cups aren't just flexible and resistant to splitting - they're also made from less plastic than Berry Plastics Corp.'s competitors through a manufacturing process the company guards so closely it forbids photographs of those machines.

As retailers like Wal-Mart push for greener packaging, Berry Plastics is handling a growing number of redesign projects for customers eager to make their products less bulky to help both their bottom lines and the environment.

"It's not a fad anymore - it's really turning into a trend," said Curt Begle, the Evansville company's vice president of container sales.

Last year alone, the company - which counts among its customers Kraft, Nestle, Hershey's and Sherwin-Williams Paints - retooled about 30 customers' cups, tubs and other plastic containers, shaving away more than one million pounds of plastic per year in one instance.

With more companies following suit, Berry Plastics has even hired an engineer devoted to repackaging projects.

"It's continuing to gain momentum," Begle said of efforts to pare packaging.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is helping push the trend along by encouraging its 66,000 suppliers to reduce their packaging starting next year as part of the world's largest retailer's goal of cutting overall packaging 5 percent by 2013.

In March, Wal-Mart unveiled an online database called a "packaging scorecard" to help its suppliers calculate the net environmental effect of factors such as the fuel needed to make and ship packaging materials and whether they use recycled components.

Since then, more than 3,100 vendors have used the online packaging scorecard system, said Wal-Mart spokesman Kevin Thornton.

Participation is voluntary, but Thornton said Wal-Mart will begin using the scorecard's results in February to make decisions on purchasing merchandise. Eventually, the retailer hopes to create "zero waste" by recycling, reusing or otherwise breaking down product waste.

"There's a ripple effect that starts with just reducing the size of the package," Thornton said. It also reduces the need for shipping containers and puts more products on each truckload and shelf, he said.

Ruiz Food Products, the nation's largest producer of frozen Mexican foods, is using the packaging scorecard.

Bryce Ruiz, the Dinuba, Calif.-based company's president and chief operating officer, said the database has revealed ways it can reduce the packaging for its 300 products, which include the popular El Monterey brand burritos and taquitos.

Ruiz declined to give specifics, but said the lessons learned build on efforts by his family's business to satisfy customers with foods - not an oversized package.

"It's common sense. Put less air in the box and the consumer gets a box full of something, versus a box full of air," he said.

It's hard to say how much money any particular company might save in packaging because of the different types of materials used, and companies are reluctant to say for competitive reasons, said Jim Peters, director of education for the Institute of Packaging Professionals.

But the savings can reach into the millions of dollars, said Peters, whose Naperville, Ill.-based group's membership includes some 5,200 packaging experts that work for companies spanning the full spectrum of American industry.

Wal-Mart's initiative offers a real opportunity to expand the push for waste-reduction, thanks to its 60,000-plus suppliers and millions of customers, said Kyle Cahill, manager of corporate partnerships for Environmental Defense, a New York-based advocacy group.

In 1991, the nonprofit helped persuade McDonald's Corp. to give up its plastic foam clamshell packages for recycled paper materials. McDonald's now claims to be the largest user of recycled paper in the fast-food industry.

Cahill said consumers concerned about global warming are becoming more aware of packaging that ends up in landfills - and the manufacturing process that adds to greenhouse gases.

"This goes backward into the supply chain, where the materials are being sourced, made and packaged, and in the opposite direction looking at how the products are being used and certainly how they are being disposed of," Cahill said.

Indianapolis resident Ray Wilson always looks for products with less packaging, but said he still ends up with bulky items in his cart. The 64-year-old engineer recently bought three compact fluorescent light bulbs encased in a large plastic package.

"I'm looking at the packaging around the bulbs and it's probably 14 inches by 18 inches of heavy duty plastic," he said. "It sure would be nice if you didn't have to buy all that because it just goes in the trash."

Companies like Procter & Gamble Co. are paying attention. The world's largest consumer product company recently announced it would begin rolling out in September liquid detergents such as Tide and Cheer in double-strength concentrations. That will give consumers a bottle half the former size but with the same number of loads.

Even changes that aren't noticed by consumers can go a long way toward reducing a company's need for costly resources.

Nestle Waters North America, one of the nation's biggest sellers of bottled water, has saved about 20 million pounds of paper over the past decade by using narrower labels on its bottles, said company spokeswoman Jane Lazgin.

And this spring, the maker of Poland Spring, Arrowhead, Deer Park and other brands began rolling out half-liter plastic bottles weighing 12.5 grams, about 15 percent lighter than those of competitors.

"It makes the bottle feel a little crunchy, but it's the same amount of water," Lazgin said.

Nestle Waters expects the new bottle to reduce its use of plastic resin by 65 million pounds during 2008, the first full year of the bottle's availability.

Anne Johnson, director of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition - an industry working group with about 105 corporate members - said such success stories will help more companies look at how they package goods.

"If you're not optimizing the use of the materials you've purchased and the energy you've purchased, if you're paying for your waste to be hauled off, then you're not running your business very well," Johnson said.

Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Green Everett Lives Sustainably

Green Everett members strive to live sustainably

Leaving less of a footprint on the planet isn't just an ideal for Marilyn Rosenberg, it's her lifestyle.

At home she composts, gardens with native plants and buys everything she can secondhand.

"I don't go to department stores or the mall," she said. "I find great, one-of-a-kind things at thrift shops and yard sales."

She bicycles to her Everett business, Zippy's Java Lounge and practices the same types of waste-reducing, energy saving measures she does at home, including using a worm bin to compost waste. She also supports local business, such as selling a Snohomish woman's woven bags made from recycled straw.

It is no surprise, then, that her coffee shop has become the meeting place for a grassroots group of like-minded people. The loose-knit group is called Green Everett, and its aim is promoting sustainable living.

Sustainable living means different things to different people, Rosenberg said. To her, it means making as small of an impact on the planet as possible.

The group has a Web site and, so far, dozens of people have attended several meetings at the coffee shop. At the last meeting, discussions covered topics such as including educating people about invasive plants and promoting Earth-friendly commuting options.

Its members want to learn more about changes they can make in their own lives, and they also want to inspire change in the community, Rosenberg said. At the last meeting, people talked about establishing a regular presence at City Council meetings, getting involved in neighborhood associations and signing up for work parties at Forest Park to remove invasive plants.

Zippy's also hosts Conversation Cafes at 3 p.m. on the first Sunday of each month. A documentary showing is followed by a discussion. There are plans to start a sustainable book club too.

Other local groups with similar aims are active around the county, including the Sustainable Living Institute in Mukilteo and another group that meets in Snohomish.

"If more people start getting involved and sharing ideas, we might need a bigger meeting space," Rosenberg said.

Reporter Debra Smith: 425-339-3197 or dsmith@heraldnet.com.

Student Organizes Recycling

Student activist spearheads recycling effort

Kathryn Buckstaff
News-Leader


Blue Eye — Jonathan Ratliff was looking for a service project for Blue Eye High's Teenage Republicans club when he watched "An Inconvenient Truth."

Inspired by former Vice President Al Gore's movie about the global warming crisis, the senior who founded the club organized a recycling program for the school of 700 students. It's called TRUTH Recycling, and it stands for "Teenage Republicans United Toward Humanity."

Over the past six months, the program has gained support from several communities and private businesses. And students and school officials say they expect the program will continue even without Ratliff, who graduates this month.

"This is where you really realize one person can make a difference," said Connie McGriff, a teacher and club sponsor. "He has been the total inspiration for it. It shows that one person can drive a lot of other people to get moving."

The project has already reduced the amount of trash at the school, and local residents are beginning to bring their recyclables as well, said superintendent Dan Ray.

"It's a great service to the community," he said.

Blue Eye junior Jennifer Girard said Jonathan is "very commanding. He knows how to tell people to get it done."

She'll help continue the project this fall.

"I don't mind at all doing it," she said. "You know, save the planet and all."

White House bound

This week the energetic, fast-talking senior plans to influence lawmakers in Jefferson City. Ratliff arranged with five state legislators he met at a Stone County Republicans event to spend a day with each of them."

"I want to let them understand that people do care," said Ratliff, 18. "Things have to change. Americans have this love of driving around in fast cars, and we don't want to be inconvenienced regardless of the cost. Do we all want to go around in hazmat suits because everything is so toxic?"

This fall, he'll study political science at the University of Missouri in Columbia.

"I want to become an attorney," he said. "Maybe go into environmental law. Especially the way everything is going, and global warming, environmental law is the coming thing.

"And I'll have to make the money to be able to afford my political campaigns. I hope to be governor and maybe president."

McGriff, for one, thinks Ratliff could go all the way.

"I expect to dance at his Inaugural Ball someday," McGriff said. "The best thing about being a teacher is that we see a lot of great things the kids do every day, and you realize our future is in good hands."

Recruiting support

McGriff, a social studies teacher at Blue Eye High for the past 13 years, said she's been amazed by Ratliff.

"Normally, when I sponsor something, I do the work, and the kids go along with it, but on this, Jonathan did all the legwork," McGriff said.

Learn and Serve America awarded the project a $500 grant. The Washington D.C.-based group encourages students to organize community service projects linked to classroom learning.

Ratliff's group of 10 students also got donations from local residents and from Wal-Mart stores in Branson, Branson West and Berryville, Ark. With the funds, they bought bins for classrooms and hallways to hold paper, aluminum and plastic. Cafeteria staff now separate recyclable products.

Tyson Foods donated a large storage bin. Nestle Purina PetCare in Springfield brought a bin for paper products, which the company turns into pet litter.

A recycler in Berryville picks up the tin, and Pepsi-Cola collects the aluminum. Students haul some items to the Kimberling City recycling center. And Butch and Lisa Bettlach, owners of Harter House in Kimberling City, invited the students to use their paper baler to compact cardboard.

"I'm all for it," said Blue Eye Mayor Jerry Kerns. "It's a good program."

For their efforts, Learn and Serve recently presented the project its "Inspire By Example" award.

Sustainability

When Ratliff began the project, he visited Debbie Redford, the city of Branson environmentalist. She gave him a tour of the city recycling center, which opened 14 years ago.

"What's unusual is to see a high school student taking the initiative, and saying, 'I'm going to make this work,'" Redford said.

Jonathan's parents, Jonathan and Glenda Ratliff, are both Blue Eye High School graduates. The family operates a kennel, Chihuahuas By Ratliff. Jonathan's brother, Jordan, 15, also helps with the recycling.

Jonathan's father said his son has always been a go-getter.

"As a kid, he was always outgoing and well-spoken," his father said. "Of course you're proud when you son is doing something like this."

Thanks to Recycling Kids See Green

Chesterton kids seeing green thanks to recycling

Sunday, May 13, 2007 12:19 AM CDT

BY HEATHER AUGUSTYN
Times Correspondent

CHESTERTON | Students at Chesterton High School know how to do more than reduce, reuse and recycle. They also know how to turn trash into cash.

CHS students increased recycling by 25 percent during the first quarter of their recycling effort. The accomplishment earned them a $500 bonus and the honor of being the No. 1 recycler for public schools in the Chicago area in the Abitibi Paper Retriever program, a fundraising recycling program that is operated by Abitibi-Consolidated Paper Co.

The students' efforts have brought in $1,700 to date, and they have recycled 110.49 tons, or 220,980 pounds, of paper since January 2006.

Susan Talbert, recycling coordinator for CHS, said the students worked hard.

"Recycling at CHS is a whole school project. We have close to 10 percent of our student body participating in the collection process, and that is probably the piece of the puzzle that other groups miss," Talbert said. "There are 160-plus CHS students collecting the papers, cans and bottles for recycling every day. They see firsthand the positive impact they are having and how all of our efforts are moving us toward zero waste."

And with a little peer pressure, they're increasing recycling in the community.

"They, in turn, encourage their friends and family to participate. They also discourage others from placing paper, bottles and cans in the trash rather than the recycle bins," Talbert said.

"Peer pressure doesn't have to always be negative. We are using it to change people's behavior in a positive way, one piece of paper, one can and one water bottle at a time."

The CHS students used the money they earned to buy energy-saving light bulbs to give away for Earth Day and to help other schools buy more collection bins.

The paper collection bins are yellow and green and are located in the high school parking lot and at other Duneland schools and Porter County locations.

The Cost of Plastic Bags

Let’s face it – they’re a scourge.

On average, each person uses 300 bags a year. Collectively, the people of BC use 1.2 billion bags a year, using 18 million litres of the world’s oil supply a year, releasing 50,400 tonnes of CO2. (Data via San Francisco’s Department of the Environment).

The Stern Review estimated the purely economic cost of climate change to be $100 a tonne of CO2, so the cost that future generations will have to pay for our use of the bags will be $5 million a year. We use them for 30 minutes and they sit in a landfill for up to 1,000 years, slowly breaking down into smaller toxic bits.

Even if we recycle them, the recycled plastic is not used to make more bags. Every year, hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, whales and other marine mammals die from eating plastic bags they mistake for food: there are over 46,000 pieces of plastic in each square mile of ocean.
The solution is to ban them, or tax them. Ireland’s “PlasTax” of 23 cents a bag has led to a 95% reduction in their use.

In San Francisco, they have voted to ban their use at supermarket checkouts within 6 months, and in large chain pharmacies within a year; compostable bags made from corn starch and recycled paper bags made will still be allowed.

Leaf Rapids, Manitoba (pop’n 550) started with a fee a year ago, and has now adopted a ban. The French island of Corsica banned the bags in large stores in 1999; Paris has just banned all non-biodegradable bags. By 2010, they will be banned all across France.

Ireland’s Plastax (increasing to 33 cents a bag in June) reduced consumer use from 328 bags a year to 21, raises $28 million a year, and has raised $140 million since 2002, used to provide more recycling facilities, enforce waste management regulations, recycle old fridges and freezers, run waste awareness campaigns, and to launch a very successful Green Schools initiative. It would make sense for BC to do the same.

It would also be a feel-good measure, as people get used to carrying cloth bags.

From EcoNEWS www.earthfuture.com

Chucking your Yorgurt carton in the Recycle Bin?

It all depends on your recycling program.

Figuring out exactly what's recyclable can be harder than navigating the shoe section during clearance season, but our cheat-sheet makes at least one of these tasks a whole lot easier.

The Benefits
Less confusion. Proper disposal ensures that your recyclables end up in the right place.
Save energy. Recycling an aluminum can takes 96% less energy than creating a new one.
Less landfill. According to the EPA, 75% of Americans' trash can be recycled, but only 25% actually is.

Cleaner groundwater. Most landfill liners are just 1/10th of an inch thick, so toxins from garbage often leak into the groundwater.

Personally SpeakingBozeman Biters are lamenting that the city just stopped recycling glass due to the expense of shipping it to a recycling facility. Need to kvetch or create an action plan to green up your town's recycling options? Join the discussion in today's blog.

Wanna Try General
Earth911 - local listings of where you can recycle anything under the sun.

You don't need to remove labels from cans and bottles, but you do need to remove plastic caps (and throw them away).

Your recyclables don't need to be spotless - just not moldy or full of food. Save water - don't rinse 'til clean.

Glass

Unbroken bottles are easier for workers to sort than broken ones.

Metal
Most containers, such as tins and cans, and aluminum foil.

Paper
Newspapers, magazines, photocopies, shoe boxes, envelopes (including ones with glassine windows).

Plastic
Plastics #1-#2 – recyclable in most areas. Usually found in 2-liter and detergent bottles, milk jugs and food containers.
Plastics #3-#7 – more difficult to recycle, they are found in Styrofoam, pipes, shrink wrap, padded envelopes, trash liners and more. Check with your local facility to see if it recycles these plastics.
Yogurt Cups - recyclable in most areas, especially the #2 plastic kind.

Grocery Bags - reuse them first! You usually can't recycle them curbside, but some supermarkets have recycling bins in-store. Try to avoid them altogether by bringing your own

Biter bag to the store.
This tip submitted by Laura Dicterow and Kim Hamer.

Can You Be Single and Green?

by HEIDI SOPINKA

This column launches a weekly examination of current environmental issues that will focus on what matters most to eco-conscious Canadians: how individual actions can contribute to global ecological change.

If you feel as though no one else understands your overly close relationship with the cat, you're not alone.

The kingdom of one is the fastest-growing type of household in Canada, climbing from 2 per cent to more than 14 per cent in the past 50 years, with the figures steadily rising.

The new solo-living cohort are young (25 to 44), far more flush than the thrifty jar-reusing widows that once ruled the one-person roost and, as it turns out, the biggest consumers of energy, land and household goods.

Now that their numbers are shooting up, people who live alone represent what Joanna Williams, a sustainable development professor at University College London, calls "an environmental time bomb."

From washers and dryers to toasters and television sets, singletons burn through just over twice as much energy per capita as those who live in a four-person household.

According to the Recycling Council of Ontario, every Canadian throws away almost half a kilogram of plastic packaging a day - a figure that snowballs in the one-person household once the increased per-capita consumption and the gobbling up of takeout and single-serving foods are factored in.

For the eco-minded and unattached who aren't looking to bed down to do their part for the planet, Penny Gurstein of the school of community and regional planning at the University of British Columbia points to the Canadian Cohousing Network (cohousing.ca), modelled after a 1964 Danish community-based project that had residents build individual homes clustered around a "common house" with shared amenities, thereby reducing the ecological footprint.
Ms. Gurstein also recommends the Vancouver Community Kitchen Project (communitykitchens.ca), which offers "a way for people to get together to cook in large quantities and then parcel it out. You get something like seven meals doing it as a group, or you can eat together."

The communal Kumbaya life is a tough sell for your average single urbanite. Besides, shoehorned into their 600-square-foot lofts and often living close to the office, they in some ways actually have a leg up on the smug marrieds with children living out in the sprawl. As professor William Rees, a population ecologist at UBC and originator of the phrase and methodology behind the "ecological footprint" suggests, having loved and lost might be worse for the planet than never having loved at all.

"Let's say a professional family breaks up with mom and pop going their separate ways but sharing the kids. Now there are two households, but the same number of people. With a doubling of households, the energy needed per capita to manufacture, operate and maintain twice as many appliances and automobiles increases. This means that the per-capita eco-footprint rises even faster."

Short of mating for life or joining a commune, if you happen to be unattached and environmentally conscious, it may be time to test your horse sense and peruse the classifieds: Eco-friendly person seeks like-minded roommate to lessen ecological footprint. Must be cat positive.

Heidi Sopinka, a licensed helicopter pilot, has cooked for firefighters in the Yukon, edited Southeast Asian poetry in Singapore, and written two travel books. A seasoned world traveller, she now agrees to stay put until the afterlife in order to neutralize her carbon footprint.
hsopinka@globeandmail.com

Stop Global Warming What You Can Do

Take Action!

The Stop Global Warming calculator shows you how much carbon dioxide you can prevent from being released into the atmosphere and how much money you can save by making some small changes in your daily life. It’s our hope that the calculator will promote action, awareness and empowerment by showing you that one person can make a difference and help stop global warming.

There are many simple things you can do in your daily life — what you eat, what you drive, how you build your home — that can have an effect on your immediate surrounding, and on places as far away as Antactica. Here is a list of few things that you can do to make a difference.

Use Compact Fluorescent Bulbs
Replace 3 frequently used light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs. Save 300 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $60 per year.

Inflate Your Tires
Keep the tires on your car adequately inflated. Check them monthly. Save 250 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $840 per year.

Change Your Air Filter
Check your car's air filter monthly. Save 800 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $130 per year.

Fill the Dishwasher
Run your dishwasher only with a full load. Save 100 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $40 per year.

Use Recycled Paper
Make sure your printer paper is 100% post consumer recycled paper. Save 5 lbs. of carbon dioxide per ream of paper.

Adjust Your Thermostat
Move your heater thermostat down two degrees in winter and up two degrees in the summer. Save 2000 lbs of carbon dioxide and $98 per year.

Check Your Waterheater
Keep your water heater thermostat no higher than 120°F. Save 550 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $30 per year.

Change the AC Filter
Clean or replace dirty air conditioner filters as recommended. Save 350 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $150 per year.

Take Shorter Showers
Showers account for 2/3 of all water heating costs. Save 350 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $99 per year.

Install a Low-Flow Showerhead
Using less water in the shower means less energy to heat the water. Save 350 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $150.

Buy Products Locally
Buy locally and reduce the amount of energy required to drive your products to your store.

Buy Energy Certificates
Help spur the renewable energy market and cut global warming pollution by buying wind certificates and green tags.

Buy Minimally Packaged Goods
Less packaging could reduce your garbage by about 10%. Save 1,200 pounds of carbon dioxide and $1,000 per year.

Buy a Hybrid Car
The average driver could save 16,000 lbs. of CO2 and $3,750 per year driving a hybrid

Buy a Fuel Efficient Car
Getting a few extra miles per gallon makes a big difference. Save thousands of lbs. of CO2 and a lot of money per year.

Carpool When You Can
Own a big vehicle? Carpooling with friends and co-workers saves fuel. Save 790 lbs. of carbon dioxide and hundreds of dollars per year.

Reduce Garbage
Buy products with less packaging and recycle paper, plastic and glass. Save 1,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year.

Plant a Tree
Trees suck up carbon dioxide and make clean air for us to breathe. Save 2,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year.

Insulate Your Water Heater
Keep your water heater insulated could save 1,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $40 per year.

Replace Old Appliances
Inefficient appliances waste energy. Save hundreds of lbs. of carbon dioxide and hundreds of dollars per year.

Weatherize Your Home
Caulk and weather strip your doorways and windows. Save 1,700 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $274 per year.

Use a Push Mower
Use your muscles instead of fossil fuels and get some exercise. Save 80 lbs of carbon dioxide per year.

Unplug Un-Used Electronics
Even when electronic devices are turned off, they use energy. Save over 1,000 lbs of carbon dioxide and $256 per year.

Put on a Sweater
Instead of turning up the heat in your home, wear more clothes Save 1,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $250 per year.

Insulate Your Home
Make sure your walls and ceilings are insulated. Save 2,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $245 per year.

Air Dry Your Clothes
Line-dry your clothes in the spring and summer instead of using the dryer. Save 700 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $75 per year.

Switch to a Tankless Water Heater
Your water will be heated as you use it rather than keeping a tank of hot water. Save 300 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $390 per year.

Switch to Double Pane Windows
Double pane windows keep more heat inside your home so you use less energy. Save 10,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $436 per year.

Buy Organic Food
The chemicals used in modern agriculture pollute the water supply, and require energy to produce.

Bring Cloth Bags to the Market
Using your own cloth bag instead of plastic or paper bags reduces waste and requires no additional energy.

Learn More About Global Warming
If you're not already convinced that global warming is an issue that you need to care about, click here to learn why.

Buy The Bracelet
Made from 100% scrap leather by Roots — 100% of net proceeds go to the Stop Global Warming Fund.
Headlines

It's Maple Syrup Time, So Why the Whiff of French Fries?
Sam Hooper Samuels (4/30/2007)

PepsiCo takes top spot in global warming battle
Bruce Horovitz (4/30/2007)

Is China outdoing US in curbing carbon?
Mark Clayton (4/27/2007)

Protect God's creation: Vatican issues new green message for world's Catholics
John Vidal and Tom Kington (4/27/2007)

California Hotels Go Green With Low-Flow Toilets, Solar Lights
Ari Levy and Carole Zimmer (4/27/2007)

Poll Finds Majority See Threat in Global Warming
John M. Broder and Marjorie Connelly (4/26/2007)

Canada to ban incandescent light bulbs by 2012
Reuters (4/25/2007)

About SGW
Contact
Copyright © 2005–2007 Stop Global Warming

In the Market for a Greener Printer?

In the Market for a Greener Printer?

Filed under: Energy efficiency, Printers, Office equipment

4:53 pm - April 9, 2007

Looking for a printer? Choose an inkjet, as it consumes 90 percent less energy than a laser printer. When possible, choose multi-function devices that print, fax, copy and scan, as they can use less energy than individual machines would.

If you are replacing a printer, be sure to recycle the old one. A number of companies take back old equipment. See "Bigger Isn't Better: Choosing TVs and Computers" to find out which.

If your old printer can't be returned to the vendor, take advantage of electronic recycling programs in your community. The Take Back program web site offers a searchable database to responsible electronics recyclers in your area.

For more information on the most energy efficient office equipment, see EnergyStar.gov.

© The Green Guide, 2006

Lawn & Garden Pesticides Poison Suburban Streams

Healthier Homes and Gardens
April 2007

Lawn & Garden Pesticides Poison Suburban Streams

Yard and garden insecticides have shown up in suburban streams at levels that can wipe out tiny shrimp-like creatures that live on stream bottoms. The culprits are newly popular pesticide products that contain pyrethroids -- chemicals with "thrin" names like cypermethrin and bifenthrin.

This is an old story with a new twist.

Many pesticides are tested to see if they are toxic to water-dwelling insects and crustaceans that are an integral part of stream and river ecosystems. For example, small aquatic organisms are part of the food chain -- necessary for maintaining healthy populations of many fish.

Just a few years ago, diazinon and chlorpyrifos were popular home and garden insecticides. Urban waterways were contaminated by these two chemicals at levels that regularly exceeded benchmarks for toxic effects on water-dwelling creatures. Tests of streams across the United States showed that, each year, 83% of urban streams reached harmful levels of insecticides compared to 53% of agricultural streams.

After residential uses of diazinon and chlorpyrifos were phased out because of health risks, other pesticides took their place. A California water quality agency wanted to know what chemicals were being used so that they could assess water quality for aquatic wildlife. They gathered data from pesticide use reported by landscape and pest control companies, as well as information about store sales of pesticide products. Pyrethroid-containing products were among the new front-runners for lawns, gardens, and houses.

While diazinon and chlorpyrifos are found in the water itself, the pyrethroids are found in sediment because they easily bind to soil. When researchers tested sediment from creeks in a suburban neighborhood, they found pyrethroids in every single sample!

Although pyrethroids have been around for 20 years, there were no studies about their effect on small water creatures that live in the bottom of streambeds. In their laboratories, researchers exposed the shrimp-like Hyalella azteca to samples of sediment. Almost half of the sediment samples were so toxic that all of the Hyalella died.

Three pyrethroids — bifenthrin, cypermethrin, and cyfluthrin — were especially toxic to Hyalella azteca, which is one "indicator" species for healthy streams. Bifenthrin was detected in one of the suburban streams at levels that were 15 times higher than earlier tests of agricultural streams.

Researchers were able to confirm their findings by looking for wild Hyalella azteca in the same streams. Some small tributaries had stretches that were completely devoid of Hyalella. These sections had the most pesticide-contaminated sediment.

Substituting one pesticide to another can just be a toxic trade-off. Researcher Don Weston said, "Pesticides are often cheap, but most people don't recognize the environmental costs of using them."

Individual choices can make a difference. Weston says that "the answer lies in changing practices and changing the mentality of pesticide application in the urban environment."

"Did our cars and aerosol cans really do this?"

PREV of NEXT

Online only letters to the editor

Global warming

We're actually not getting as hot as we seem to think

The global-warming debate is exaggerated by hyperbolic language, and it is doubtful that human activity is driving the relatively small rise in average climate change.

According to a study by the National Academy of Science, the globe's climate has risen just .4 to .8 degrees Celsius since 1940.

Did our cars and aerosol cans really do this?

Scientists have shown that risings and fallings in global climate is a normal and natural phenomenon, caused by many factors, with carbon dioxide being a fairly minimal factor. Trees like carbon dioxide.

As I listen or read what the media say about global warming, many of these sources speak of major disasters, total calamity, starving nations, flooded countries ... and on and on.

Al Gore told Congress that Florida would be flooded under several feet of water if the polar regions melted. Not really, Al. If such an unlikely phenomenon occurred, the oceans would rise about an inch.

When we actually consider real degrees of climate rise and natural phenomenon, the debate is not worthy of these catastrophic hyperventilations.

— Keith Soban, Lynwood

Count your kids and save some space

OK, somebody has to say it. The feature on an energy-conscious family of four ["Can we change our lives to save the planet?" Times, Page One, April 15] left out the greatest single action they have taken: limiting their family to two children!

Society avoids the subject like a plague — yet any sane person knows it is the bottom line, the only ultimate solution to the impending depletion of Earth's resources, and just plain space.

— Bill Shumway, Seattle

No, you first

The headline reads: "Can we change our lives to save the planet?" What I want to know is can The Seattle Times change its delivery habits to help our planet?

How about if for the month of May, The Seattle Times stops using plastic bags — usually two for each newspaper delivered — and instead places the paper in a dry spot, such as a front porch?

— Laurie Alexander, Redmond

Get up offa that thang

I was inspired by The Times' suggestion to reduce carbon emissions by improving fuel economy by lightening the load in one's automobile ["It's time for a carbon clean sweep," Times, News, April 15]. Emissions also could be reduced by removing the spare tire, too — not the one made of rubber, but the one made of blubber.

By adopting a healthier lifestyle and losing that extra 30, 50 or 75 pounds, you can reduce carbon emissions.

First, stop idling in line at the drive-thru. Park your car and walk inside. Eating less will save the energy used to transport, manufacture and process the excess food. As you shrink, so will your size and you'll be able to fit more clothing in the washing machine and will do fewer loads, thus saving additional energy.

Think about it. I'm sure there are many more ways to reduce carbon emissions by simply dropping a little weight.

— Robin Valaitis Heflin,

Camano Island

Making small changes could have a big impact

It was encouraging to see the public demonstrations of concern about the human contributions to global warming over the weekend. However, I would suggest that two pieces of information might be simple indicators of the degree to which citizens are taking personal steps to reduce their contributions to the production of greenhouse gasses:

1. Does their monthly utility bill show a reduction of electrical and natural-gas consumption?

2. Does Metro ridership numbers show an increase in the number of people who choose to ride the bus at least once a week?

These numbers would show how many of us are actually willing to make some simple (but not always convenient) lifestyle changes that could lead to immediate reductions in the emissions contributing to global warming. It's not enough to "talk the talk." Each of us has to "walk the walk."

— David Echols, Kirkland

Are You Still Pushing Paper

The Benefits
A shorter paper trail. Offices use 1.5 lbs of paper per person per day - if you gotta use it, go for recycled to reduce your impact.
Premium quality. Most recycled paper products look and perform just as well as their non-recycled counterparts.
Client/staff satisfaction. Recycled options only cost a little more - plus, when your clients and staff see the recycled symbol they'll get all warm and fuzzy.
Personally SpeakingJen's passionate about paper recycling to the point that she nearly broke a leg falling down the NYC subway while taking recyclables home from her old workplace, which didn't recycle - but pretended they did.
Wanna TryCups
Ecotainer - biodegradable coffee cups with corn-based (rather than oil-based) lining. Available here (prices vary).
Greenware Cold Drink Cups - also biodegradable and corn-based, but for cold drinks.
Better yet, stock your office kitchen with reusable ceramic mugs.Copy/Printer Paper
PM Company Receipt Rolls - 100% recycled alternative for receipt calculators ($15/12 rolls).
New Leaf Paper - recycled and high-quality, available with matte, gloss or uncoated finishes (prices vary).
OfficeMax and Staples - even the chain stores sell recycled reams ($5-$6/ream).Envelopes
ecoenvelopes - easily reusable business reply envelopes, available in 100% PCW stock.Other
3M Post-It Recycled Paper Notes - everybody needs a sticky little reminder sometimes ($7-$18/12 pads).
File Folders - 100% recycled and letter-sized ($13/100).
Ampad Recycled Hanging File Folders - 100% PCW recycled ($12/25).
Rippedsheets Recycled Labels - recycled paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (prices vary).
Printing For Less - totally affordable light green printer used by The Bite.
Conservatree - an excellent online guide to choosing eco-friendly paper products.

Driven by demand, Flexcar expands its fleet

By Kirsten Orsini-Meinhard

Seattle Times business reporter

Flexcar executives might be the only people in Washington excited about rising gas prices.

Drivers' frustration with gas prices, traffic congestion and parking are driving the car-sharing company to almost double its fleet of local cars, Flexcar executives said Friday at a Seattle news conference.

The company will add 200 more cars in the Seattle area by the end of this year, bringing its total fleet to about 350 after it retires about 50 older vehicles. Flexcar has also expanded to Philadelphia, its 11th market.

Flexcar says it's profitable in some markets but the entire company is not.

It faces strong competition across the U.S., particularly from a small number of companies that compete in the same markets, like Zipcar. That company operates across the U.S. as well as Canada and in London, and says it has been profitable in all of its markets since 2004.

There's also been a surge of nonprofits in the U.S. that offer similar services.

"There's nothing wrong with cars — there just might be a way to have a better relationship with your car," said Jamie Cheney, general manager in Seattle for Flexcar.

People — and businesses — that pay for Flexcar's services reserve a vehicle in advance and then pick it up at one of many locations across the region.

The standard hourly rate is between $7 and $12 for drivers who use Flexcar infrequently and aren't on a monthly plan. Monthly plans range from $75 to $700 and reduce the hourly rate. All plans include the cost of gas and insurance.

The privately held company is owned by Revolution Living, an operating unit of America Online co-founder Steve Case's investment firm, Revolution LLC. Flexcar's executives are in Washington, D.C., and its corporate office is in Seattle.

The company, founded here in 1999, has seen "double-digit" revenue increases in the last year, spokesman John Williams said.

Flexcar wouldn't disclose the cost of its expansion, or any financial information. The Seattle Times reported in 2005 that it had raised $20 million in private investments since its inception.

That figure doesn't include the money that was pumped into the company by Revolution, which has funded Flexcar's recent growth.

The company has 20,000 members in Seattle, including about 2,000 business accounts — one of Flexcar's faster-growing segments.

In the last year and a half the company has almost doubled the number of markets it serves, and executives say they are looking at several additional markets.

Companies like Flexcar can be successful serving a niche market but will likely have a hard time reaching a broad consumer base, said Patricia Mokhtarian, a University of California, Davis, engineering professor and faculty associate at its Institute of Transportation Studies.

Mokhtarian compares car-sharing with telecommuting — some people have the desire to stay at home and work, but often the logistics don't work out.

"It's great for those people when it's appropriate. It just doesn't end up being a preferred alternative that much of the time," she said.

Kirsten Orsini-Meinhard: 206-464-2391 or kmeinhard@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company

Choose Recycled Paper

Filed under: Paper, Recycled paper, Carbon reduction4:34 pm - February 17, 2007

Who would have thought a stack of computer paper could have so much impact on the environment? Simply choosing 100 percent post- consumer recycled paper can save 5 pounds of carbon dioxide per ream.
The paper industry, in fact, emits around 10% of all carbon emissions in the U.S.. I don't like paper clutter and so generally print out only what's absolutely necessary. My husband is a bit more paper-happy, and so between our home offices and the kids' school work, we use probably 20 reams a year. By switching to 100% post consumer recycled paper, we are shedding another 100 pounds of CO2 from our annual carbon output.
The Green Guide provides lists of eco-friendly office paper and kitchen and bathroom paper products. Check them out.

Resources: Bananas – Conventional vs. Fair Trade

On March 19, Chiquita Brands International, Inc. pleaded guilty to the charge of transacting with a terrorist organization, after years of making payments to the Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, which is known by the initials of its Spanish name, AUC. The AUC has been found to be involved in the killing of thousands of rural Colombians for suspected links to Marxist rebels, in addition to torture, kidnappings, rape, beatings, extortion and drug trafficking. Chiquita has agreed to pay a $25 million fine.

Read about Chiquita at Responsible Shopper >>

Meanwhile, we recently spoke with the management team at Oké USA, the first Fair Trade banana company in the US. While most conventional bananas are grown on plantations where workers are paid as little as $2 dollars a day, Oké provides a living wage to farmers who are part-owners of the company. This helps to ensure that unlike on conventional plantations, the children of banana workers are able to go to school, rather than being forced to supplement the family's income by laboring in the field. (Oh, and by the way, Oké doesn't do business with terrorists!)

Learn more in our interview with Oké >>

On Plastic and KIDS

Mrs. Sippy

By Umbra Fisk

02 Apr 2007

Got questions about the environment? Ask Umbra.

Hi Umbra,

What about "sippy" cups for little kids, not to mention bottles? They're all plastic, and we all know that kids are more vulnerable to environmental toxins. What's a mom to do?

Janet Byron
Berkeley, Calif.

Dearest Janet,

A mom is to check the research and purchase only bottles and sippy cups that are not considered health hazards. Umbra is to help the mom do so right now in this very column.

Sip sip ... harrumph.

Photo: iStockphoto

There are alternatives to bad plastics, don't fret. Some of the alternatives are glass, others are less harmful plastics, and aluminum may even be a good choice in some situations.

First, a review: Plastic is a lightweight, reusable material that gained dominance in the kids' consumer-goods market due to its low cost and durability. Today's plastics are manufactured using chemical compounds found in petroleum and natural gas, with other chemicals added to achieve desired properties such as flexibility, color, and solidity. Although plastics are undeniably handy and here to stay as part of modern life, they do have environmental drawbacks. Immediate threats to human health from plastic food containers include phthalate softeners and the resin bisphenol A. Dioxins, which result from the manufacture and disposal of polyvinyl plastic, have been identified as a major long-term threat to the environment and mammal health. Children, as you say, are small and grow rapidly, chewing everything in sight for part of their life, and are hence at a higher risk from plastic food containers than we ginormous adults.

Both phthalates and bisphenol A are considered hormone disruptors. Bisphenol A may be acting as an estrogen substitute within our bodies and those of our children, causing abnormal development of various organs including the brain and reproductive system. Bisphenol A has been in the news recently as regards baby bottles because of a study released by Environment California that found BPA in the five most popular polycarbonate baby bottles. (Reading that report is probably the best way to absorb all the various impacts potentially attributed to bisphenol A in plastics.) Then the National Institutes of Health picked the whole thing up to examine what's happening, and that seems to be ongoing. Phthalates I've discussed before on numerous occasions; they are also chemicals that are added to and leach out of plastics and can then perhaps disrupt our reproductive systems. Bad, the whole thing is bad.

We as consumers can act now, however, and just throw out all our polycarbonate and vinyl bottles (the ones with the numbers three and seven within the recycling symbol) and replace them with better things. What better things? Wouldn't a shopping list be handy? Why look! Here are two: Environment California has a shopping guide with good general tips for how to avoid these plastics. And the second, a "Smart Plastics Guide" from the Minnesota-based Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, lists the actual bottles and sippy cups to avoid and those that are OK to buy. Both documents outline the basic trouble with toxics leaching out of plastics, and would be good reading for parents and others who have more interest. I find them quite motivating, almost terrifying, definitely depressing; we have poisoned our entire world, and I am unable to summon a closing quip.

Sullenly,
Umbra