Bridge for Wildlife to be Built in Ontario

A freeeway in Ontario, Canada, is about to receive a huge makeover this summer, when construction will begin on a “wildlife bridge” across the freeway.  This will allow animals to safely cross the freeway without having to worry about crossing traffic. 

This area in the past has been a problematic area, as there have been numerous collisions in which large animals, such as moose, have been hit by motorists as they attempt to cross the freeway.  This project is supposed to help reduce these collisions.  It will be inviting to the animals, because grades will be gradual, and it will be planted with natural vegetation.

Source: TreeHugger: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/03/wildlife-bridge-being-built-over-ontario-highway.php?campaign=daily_nl

Green Companies

Recently, large companies have been trying to gain a greener image.  I’ve looked into some of these companies.  And although they aren’t all completely green, they are making very important strides to sustainability.

Walmart has a program for recycling cardboard.  They also have a program to provide many meals to millions of homeless people in America.  Finally, they have begun a composting program for food that is still on the shelf but has expired.  These are all promising, sustainable practices.

McDonald’s has also taken a role in its environmental policies.  It has eliminated sourcing of beef from land that used to be Amazon rainforest.  It has also set a goal to source all of its palm oil from the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil by 2015.  Finally, it has changed its packaging so that it now comes from sustainable resources.

Kellogg has also begun sourcing oil from fair-trade palm oil. 

Finally, there is Envirosearch.org, which will donate money to environmental programs for each search.

All of these companies are excellent plans for future sustainability.  It will be exciting to see where environmental policies in companies goes next.

Source: Care 2 Make a Difference: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/environmentally-friendly-search-engine.html

 Care 2 Make a Difference: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/corporations-going-green.html

Styrofoam Recycling in Washington State

Earlier, I wrote a post about recycling Styrofoam, and found out that there is no place in the Tri-Cities to recycle Styrofoam.  Today, I decided to see if there was anywhere in the state to recycle Styrofoam.  After looking at the blog Go Green Richland!, I found that there is in fact a place to recycle Styrofoam in the state of Washington.  Only one, that is.  

Styrofoam, though recyclable, is one of the more difficult plastics to recycle.  However, V&G Styro Recycle in Renton, WA, will take your clean Styrofoam for free.  They then crush the Styrofoam into small pieces, compress it into blocks, and use it in such products as TVs, picture frames, and more. 

V&G Styro Recycle is located at 800 SW 43^rd St. in Renton, WA, between IKEA and Alliance Packaging.  Hopefully sometime soon a center will open in an area closer to us.  However, for now, when planning a trip to Seattle, you may want to bring any Styrofoam you have to this center.

Source: Go Green Richland!: http://gogreenrichland.blogspot.com/2011/01/styrofoam-recycler-in-seattle.html

V&G Styro Recycle: http://www.styrorecycle.com/

Environmentally Friendly Habits to Get Into

Today, I found an article from Scientific American that listed talked about eleven environmentally friendly habits to get into.  Although some of these have been repeated continually, some are new.  Those made me decide to share this with you:

1.      

           Look for recycled toilet paper.  Although the more upscale brands may be softer, they contain virgin fiber and are then bleached with chlorine to give them their white color.  Virgin fiber generally comes from trees on tree farms, grown specifically for that reason.  If is much more sustainable to use recycled toilet paper.

2.       Put a lid on water when boiling.  Then can save a lot money and energy.

3.       Planting a vegetable garden is a way to buy “local” food.  Not only does this cut emissions, but it ensures pesticides haven’t been used on your food.  Also, gardening is a good way to help with habit number four.

4.       Spend more time outside.  This requires you to use less electricity than you would sitting inside at a computer or watching TV.

5.       When remodeling your house, look for used flooring and other supplies.  This keeps these items out of the landfill, which is an excellent way to promote sustainability.  You can also consider selling or donating your floors, doors, windows, and more when remodeling.

6.       Replace electronic kitchen appliances with models that don’t require electricity.  Examples of such electronics are juicers, can openers, and coffee grinders.  This helps to reduce electricity use.

7.       Check out the ingredients for things such as toothpastes, shampoos, and soaps.  See if you can cut out chemicals in these products by looking for more environmentally friendly products.

8.       Completely rinse off your boat when you take it out of the water.  This helps slow the spread of the invasive species zebra mussel.  This mussel will compete with native species for resources, and clog pipes. 

9.       Turn your computer off at night.  By keeping your computer on when not using it, you waste a lot of energy, not to mention you increase your energy bill.  Turning off after use is another easy way to promote sustainability.

10.   Don’t use the “hot” water setting on your washing machine.  Using a lower setting saves a lot of energy.  For example, heating water to 140°F uses almost two times the energy that heating to 104°F does.

11.   Pay bills online.  This saves paper, and ensures that the bill will be paid on time. 

All of these are excellent ways to live a practical, sustainable life.

Source: Scientific American: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=being-green-11-enviro-habits

Farmer’s Markets: A Good Way to Live Sustainably

What’s one of the easiest ways to live a more sustainable life?  Shopping at a Farmer’s Market.  This is an easy way to live your life more sustainably as well as being able to eat better food.

Shopping at a Farmer’s Market is an easy way to reduce your carbon footprint.  Although you may have to drive farther than the grocery store, the food you buy is grown locally, and therefore less carbon emissions are released during the transportation of the product.

Also, because they are grown by local farmers, they are less likely to use environmentally-degrading fertilizers.  This eliminates the possibility of runoff from the fertilizers, and keeps these inorganic chemicals out of the water system.  The more we do this, the more we can protect our environment and keep our waters clean.

Farmer’s Markets also tend to have lower prices than those of grocery stores.  This, in effect, adds to the pros of a Farmer’s Market. 

All in all, Farmer’s Markets are an excellent way to live a more sustainable life, if you are willing to make the drive out to them.