natural cleaners

natural cleaners
what can I do?
Avoid products with these words on the container: chlorine, ethylene/ethyl, butyl/alkyl, benzene, phenol and formaldehyde. Buy green products or make your own:
all-purpose cleaner: soap and water; or two tablespoons of baking soda in a litre of water.
stain remover (surfaces): sprinkle with salt and lemon juice, leave for a while (a few hours for really bad stains) and wipe clean.
stubborn stains: as a paste, baking soda and a little water removes stubborn stains from coffe cups, doors, appliances etc.
carpet freshener: sprinkle baking soda before vaccuuming.
eliminating odours: cat litter trays – baking soda; fridge – baking soda/water paste.
removing grease: vinegar (white) with salt.
disinfectant: (kitchen chopping boards, bathrooms and toilets) spray with white vinegar, then spray with hydrogen peroxide solution; wipe clean.
oven cleaner: make a paste with equal parts salt, baking soda and water, paste onto oven walls, leave for a while (overnight is good), then wipe off.
metal polish: vinegar or lemon juice (don’t use baking soda on aluminium as it will attack it).
furniture polish: ½ cup lemon juice with a teaspoon of olive oil, apply with a soft rag.
window cleaner: 1 litre water, ¼ cup vinegar, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, shake, keep in spray bottle and use like ordinary window cleaner.
drain cleaner: ½ cup baking soda, then ½ cup vinegar, leave for 15 minutes, then pour down a kettle of boiling water.
washing dishes: buy green washing-up liquid (see links) – phosphate free.
air freshener: open the window; cut lemons or baking soda in a dish; in the kitchen, simmer cinnamon and cloves.
toilet cleaner: spray with vinegar and water mix around rim, pour cup of vinegar and couple of spoons baking soda into a bowl, leave for 15 mins, brush and flush.
rust remover: scour with cream of tartar.
mould remover: spray with equal parts vinegar and water, leave for 5 minutes and wipe clean.
laundry liquid: green products (see links).
stain remover (clothes): equal parts vinegar and water; for grease, mix borax and water, rub in and wipe off.
laundry bleach: don’t use chlorine-based bleaches; ½ cup washing soda in wash cycle; ½ cup lemon juice in rinse cycle; hang washing out – sunlight is a natural bleach.
dry cleaning: don’t do it – wash woollens with mild soap and cold water.

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Goodbye, Hudson!

I'd meant to post this last month, but I've been a bit busy, what with moving and settling into a new place and all.

I recently moved to Ohio. But on my last full day in Hudson, walking to do an errand in town, this scene greeted me, in the walled creek, running between Main St. and South St., that feeds the Assabet:



Of course, I was shocked and angry. Who could be so base as to dump their old TVs into the river? The river! I was carrying my camera, so I snapped this photo. Then I went into the Ace Hardware, whose property borders the offended section of river; I told them about the dumped TVs. They seemed confused that I would mention it to them. I had presumed that, as a town business, they would feel some notion of pride of place or responsiblity toward cleanup. I guess not. But they suggested letting the city know. Town hall is a block away, so I headed over there and reported the illegal dumping, not expecting any immediate response. They took the information pleasantly and I left.

Later in the day, when I passed the spot again, I was surprised and pleased to see a city flatbed truck parked near the spot bearing the two TV sets. The river was clear. Was it a just a slow day in Hudson? or did civic pride or sense of responsibility of place put this task high enough on the priority list to merit same-day attention? That choice faces each of us in our daily lives, in countless instances: do I pick up that litter? do I drive or walk to the store for that small item? do I offer that neighbor or friend a few CFLs for their home?

You have been a good temporary home for me, Hudson. Farewell!

Ben Gorman

Christmas with No Presents?

by Colin Beavan (Yes Magazine article)

One family’s daring experiment: Christmas without all the stuff.

	Colin Beavan plays with his daughter Isabella at Washington Square Park near their home. As creator of the “No Impact Man” blog, Beavan and his family committed to living in the middle of New York City without making any net impact on the environment. Photo by Paul Dunn for YES! Magazine

If Christmas is about presents, then in 2007, my little family and I had no Christmas. I mean, we had the caroling and the uncle playing the piano and the cousins running around with my three-year-old, Isabella, and the grandfather coaxing her to sit on his lap and the good food.

We had, in other words, an amazingly good time.

What we didn’t have, though, was the average American’s $800 hole in our bank accounts, gouged out by Christmas-present spending. Nor did we have the credit card debt still unpaid by June. Nor the forcing of smiles for gifts we didn’t really want. Nor the buying of extra luggage to bring home those unwanted gifts. Nor the stressful rush of last-minute crowds at the mall.

Without presents, you see, we didn’t have the sensation that I, at least, normally associated with Christmas—the stress. And without stress or presents, it’s not Christmas, right? But of course it was. It was the best of Christmas, the part that, research shows, makes people happiest. It was all the upside without the downside.

Let me back up

For the rest of this article, please visit "Yes Magazine."

State starts a green era

(Boston Globe July 3, 2008)

Law encourages renewable sources; Utilities expected to help cut costs

Law encourages renewable sources; Utilities expected to help cut costs

By Beth Daley Globe Staff / July 3, 2008

Governor Deval Patrick signed a landmark energy bill yesterday that does away with long-standing obstacles to building renewable power projects in Massachusetts and making homes and businesses more energy efficient.

The Green Communities Act was hailed by environmentalists as among the most innovative efforts in the nation to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and to encourage use of clean technologies that don't contribute to global warming.

The law will probably result in utilities' designing customized plans for homeowners and businesses to cut energy costs and providing rebates to pay for measures such as installing insulating windows and more efficient boilers. Homeowners and businesses will be able to rent solar panels from utilities to avoid expensive up-front costs, and the law makes it easier for homeowners who have installed wind turbines or solar panels to sell surplus energy.

Supporters said the new law could save hundreds of millions of dollars through energy efficiency, helping to hold down consumers' electric bills as energy prices are skyrocketing.

"I am here today to sign into law the best clean energy bill in America," a jubilant Patrick said during a signing ceremony at the Museum of Science. "Climate change is the challenge of our times, and we in Massachusetts are rising to that challenge."

Massachusetts has long been a leader in energy legislation, and it is taking part in a regional effort to reduce greenhouse gases from power plants. Patrick has set an aggressive goal to increase solar power in the state by 600 percent in four years.

The law "maintains Massachusetts' status as a state leader," said Patrick Hogan of the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, a Virginia-based environmental policy think tank.

Business leaders praised the legislation, saying it could stabilize electric rates in New England, already among the highest in the nation. Utilities, including NStar and National Grid, said they have long focused on energy efficiency but are eager to ramp up the effort, as well as to provide solar power to customers.

"It pushes us to a new level," said Tom May, NStar's chief executive. "We get to cross the street to our customer side and help them with energy choices . . . such as windmills in a neighborhood or solar panels. It's helping them reduce their carbon footprint."

Among the law's major provisions:

A requirement for utilities to invest in energy efficiency when it is cheaper to do so than it is to buy power. Historically, companies would simply buy more power when demand went up, which over time would lead to construction of very costly and polluting power plants. Now, utilities will have to invest in energy efficiency if to do so is equal to or cheaper than buying power. The law will also use at least 80 percent of the revenue from the regional effort to cap power plant emissions for efficiency programs, such as home energy audits to identify how to save on energy bills. For remainder of article see Boston.com

Rideshare!

With rising gas prices and the threat of permanent climate change, it's time for folks to step up to the plate and take action. And what could be easier than ridesharing or carpooling? With millions of cars on the road each day and so many people driving to the same places, let's get it together!

One great web resource for commuters-- or anyone, really-- to find rideshares is
GoLoco. With this service, you sign up as a member, post ride offerings, and GoLoco calculates costs (based on $0.50/mile), divvied up among the number of people in the car. GoLoco takes 10% of the total ride cost to offer this great service. Members have GoLoco accounts and move funds from passenger to driver accounts on a per-ride basis.

Also look into the more casual craigslist rideshare postings. Pick your nearest craigslist city, and look for the rideshare link. I used that service to find a ride from an airport to my final destination on a visit out of state. Trusting the safety of your ride is an issue, perhaps especially for women traveling alone; but contacting parties by phone in advance can at least offer some level of security. I felt safe enough, anyway.

Let's start getting more out of our gasoline and reduce our carbon load on the environment at the same time.

Rideshare to work or to your weekend destination!

Cheers!

GO LEED! Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design is a "No-Brainer"

As stated in a previous essay (on Paradigms4Progress.com), I do believe our world has gone slightly mad, and that it is an act of courage to read the daily news. Having stated that however, I also believe we live in an incredible time in human history, a time of potential transformation on the scale of the scientific revolution. The factors driving this transformation are many to include climate change, peak oil and water shortages. I have come to believe that underlying these factors is humanity's disconnect to our ultimate relatedness to and reliance on one another and nature.

Consequently, the solutions we generate to respond to the numerous crises that we face together must seek to both heal our battered earth to avoid catastrophes in our times and develop more harmonious ways of living in the world at every level of society to protect quality of life potential for future generations.

While national political leadership and policy are desperately needed there are market solutions emerging that hold great promise. One such solution is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design or LEED.



LEED is a third party, Green Building Council, certification program and a benchmark for the design, construction, and operation of high performance green buildings.

According to the Wikipedia entry on the topic, LEED began in 1994 under the direction a Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) senior scientist Robert K. Watson who, as founding chairman of the LEED Steering Committee until 2006, led a broad-based consensus process which included non-profit organizations, government agencies, architects, engineers, developers, builders, product manufacturers and other industry leaders.

Over the years, LEED grew from one standard for new construction to a comprehensive system of five interrelated performance areas of human and environmental health to include:

1) Sustainable site development

2) Water savings

3) Energy efficiency

4) Material selection and indoor air quality

5) Indoor air quality

These performance areas are uniquely applied to several different types of construction projects to produce tailored rating systems for certain types of projects or sectors. For example, presently there are rating systems for new construction, existing buildings, governmental interiors, core & shell, schools, retail, healthcare, homes, and neighborhood development.

While LEED is gaining traction as the industry green building standard, it is interesting to note that the organization has announced that as of January 2009 it will no longer certify buildings. That responsibility will pass to independent, accredited certifiers overseen by USGBC's sister nonprofit corporation, the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI). GBCI has administered the LEED Accredited Professional (LEED-AP) program since January 2008 (see Environmental News Network for full article).

According to this news article, this move is necessary to meet the growing demand for LEED certification. Growing demand for green buildings is GREAT news as it represents the type of movement we must make to address our environmental and energy challenges while shifting toward sustainability.

If you are involved in the building of a new structure or renovation of an existing one, I invite you to go GREEN by becoming LEED certified. The benefits to do so are extensive to include greater overall resource efficiency and healthier buildings. In addition, initial investments are quickly recovered then yield interest over the life of the building. According to Wikipedia,"studies have suggested that an initial up front investment of 2% will yield over ten times the initial investment over the life cycle of the building!" Wow. It is simply the right thing to do too! Sounds like a "no- brainer" to me!

Essay by Denise Frizzell. For more musings from Denise, visit, www.paradigms4progress.com.

Biomimicry: Design Inspired By Nature

It certainly is an interesting time to be alive. While there is a lot of bad news these days, there is also a lot of very promising news as well. People, individuals and collective bodies, all across the world are responding to the numerous challenges we face as a species-global warming, peak oil, water and food shortages, mass extinction of species, etc. by rethinking every aspect of how we organize ourselves and operate at every level society.

One such promising concept and design practice is biomimicry, called bionics in Europe, is design inspired by nature. According to the Biomimicry Institute website the term, from bios, meaning life, and mimesis, meaning to imitate, represents a new discipline that studies nature's best ideas and then imitates these designs and processes to solve human problems.

Also as outlined on the Institutes's website:

The core idea is that nature, imaginative by necessity, has already solved many of the problems we are grappling with. Animals, plants, and microbes are the consummate engineers. They have found what works, what is appropriate, and most important, what lasts here on Earth. This is the real news of biomimicry: After 3.8 billion years of research and development, failures are fossils and what surrounds use is the secret to survival.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n77BfxnVlyc&hl=en]

Janine Benyus (You Tube video of her giving a lecture on 12 Sustainable Design Ideas), author of Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature writes that a biomimetic revolution has the potential to change the way we grow food, make materials, harness energy, heal ourselves, store information, and conduct business by nature acting as model, measure and mentor. The Biomimicry Institutes's website outlines each of these as follows:

Nature as model. We would manufacture the way animals and plants do, using sun and simple compounds to produce totally biodegradable fibers, ceramics, plastics, and chemicals.

Nature as measure. Beside providing the model, nature would also provide the measure-we look to nature as a standard against to judge the ‘rightness' of our innovations. Are they life promoting? Do they fit in? Will they last?

Nature as mentor. Biomimicry is a new way to viewing and valuing nature. It introduces and era based not on what we can extract from the natural world, but what we can learn from it.

In her book and on the Institutes's website, she outlines several examples of biomimicry pioneers in action. Here is a sample of those pioneers with what their research:

• Wes Jackson (The Land Institute) is studying prairies as a model for an agriculture that features edible, perennial polycultures and that would sustain, rather than strain, the land.
• Thomas and Ana Moore and Devins Gust ( University of Arizona) are studying how a leaf captures energy, in hopes of making a molecular-sized solar cell. Their light-sensitive "pentad" mimics a photosynthetic reaction center, creating a tiny, sun-powered battery.
• J. Herbert Waite ( University of California Santa Barbara) is studying the blue mussel, which attaches itself to rocks via an adhesive that can do what ours can't-cure and stick underwater. Various teams are attempting to mimic this underwater glue.
• Peter Steinberg (Biosignal) has created an anti-bacterial compound that mimics the sea purse. These red algae keeps bacteria from landing on surfaces by jamming their communication signals with an environmentally friendly compound called furanone.
• Bruce Roser (Cambridge Biostability) has developed a heat-stable vaccine storage that eliminates the need for costly refrigeration. The process is based on a natural process that enables the resurrection plant to remain in a desiccated state for years.

I have barely scratched the surface of this promising design model. Thus, I encourage you to read this landmark book and/or check out the Institute's website. Another interesting read on this topic is Cradle to Cradle by William McDonough and Michael Braungart. Biomimicry offers a much needed solution to making design and manufacturing sustainable which is an absolute must for a healthy, just, prosperous, and sustainable future.

"The more our world functions like the natural world, the more likely we are to endure on this home that is ours, but not ours alone."

~ Janine Benyus

Essay by Denise Frizzell. For more musing from Denise, visit, www.paradigms4progress.com.