How to know what is really Green

[Dace]

This discussion came up under one of the many laundry soap threads so I thought I would share this with everyone since we are all of a similar mindset.

I have a book by Lori Bongiorno called GreenGreenerGreenest- A Practical Guide to Making Eco-Smart Choices a Part of Your Life

For example- Nail Polish:
Green: Avoid using nail polish with the Toxic Trio ( dibutyl phthalate, formaldehyde and toluene)
If you are pregnant avoid polishing nails, if you must, do it outdoors or where there is good ventilation. Do not polish your kid's nails.

Greener:Limit nail polish use and only in well ventilated spots.

Greenest: Avoid nail polish entirely. Buff nails instead.


This book goes thru every part of your life, from food, beverages, personal care, babies & children, home building & improvement, energy & water conservation, apparel & furnishings, cleaning, pest control, backyard & garden, transportation, and the 3 Rs Reduce Reuse & Recycle.

I suggest it to anyone who would like a little help navigating thru the maze of greeness!

 

[freemotion]

Cool idea for a book......but the nail polish thing is pretty much a no-brainer. Does the book contain lots of stuff that is more of "ah-hah!" moments, stuff you never would've guessed, things you thought were "green" but are not? Or is it more of a beginner's guide?

In other words, is it useful to some of us hard-core types who are more OCD green?

 

[Dace]

Well naturally I picked the simplest thing I could find since I was typing it out!

I think it has very good info and aside from that it does list a lot of resources for companies that offer more info, green services and ways to get more involved (Food Sourcing on the Net, Get Active, State Efforts, Persuading your School to use Safer Products, Health Watch Breast Milk, etc etc etc....)

If you find it at your local book store, take a few minutes to sit down and read thru it a bit and you will be able to quickly see if it has enough info for you

 

[enjoy the ride]

I have frequently had the dilemma of trying to decide whether the "cost" to the environment of doing one thing or another is material. For instance, does the sum total of using a couple of Kleenex tissues versus using and washing a hankerchiel make a difference. Ok- the fiber for Kleenex is usually from trees but if it is made using a waste part of the fiber or if the hot water and soap used to clean the hankie is negates the energy cost of making a tissue? The sleeve soultion is probably the "greenist" but yuk.........
You could go crazy trying to figure out some of this. Does hand washing dishes save or cost? I suppose it depends on how you do it. Energy and water- lots mor or less soap? Waste in making the machine?
The only safe choice is not to have a product at all but if you do, how do you make a choice.

 

[FarmerChick]

You can't go overboard like that ETR. Because the entire weight of the earth and everything being green just can not be your concern. Of course you do what you can and feel comfortable with that.

I kinda had that chat with myself. Hmmm...I buy this....should I? Then I decided, that I do THIS to help the planet I know....like composting. So many other wrap compost material in plastic hefty bags and send to the landfill. I recycle plastics. Others do not, they send to the landfill forever.

So I had to say, what am I content with. I do this to be good, but I will buy and use this product cause I can and I want to and it makes whatever better.

So it is a personal comfort level.



And alot of "green" things are not green at all. Clorox makes Green Machine or Green Works.....ppfft....not green at all yet it is labeled to make you truly believe you are doing a good thing....nope. I will have to find the info where I read all that.

So if you know first hand you are doing a good thing, like composting your scraps, you know they are not going in plastic to the landfill.......then you did a great thing for the environment.

If you just buy a little less, can do without a few things, then yes, you are doing great things for the planet.


Truly can you imagine if EVERYONE---and I mean every single person on this planet recycled everything that could be. It would be unbelieveable.

If every single person on this planet changed every light bulb to CFL---we could CLOSE electrical plants.

So your little bit adds up every time. What you are comfortable with it part of a big picture and it is wonderful you choose to do anything.....so many do not.

oh well...rambling again.




got the fridge unplugged, cleaned out, wiped down, etc. I had ice and water backup from a frozen icemaker line. did it to me before. so going to start it up soon and put all back in.......Ugh......but I am happy with a clean fridge now....so have time to ramble.....

oh I am rambling about rambling..HA HA

 

[Dace]

I agree with FC, you have to make a personal decision. It depends on your goals, being frugal and being green can go hand and in my life they must.

On the tissue subject....I buy them rarely, a couple of times at most in the fall/winter as I know that those colds we are sure to get will leave us with raw noses at some point. Do I stock them year round? No, because mostly we can 'rough it' with TP... which I have to buy anyways. So from my perspective only buying 2 boxes of tissue a year is a compromise, it is frugal and a more eco friendly choice.

As for the washing reusables vs disposables (paper towels for example) I can justify the added laundry because I have a family of 6 and I do at least 2-3 loads of laundry per day anyway. To throw in an extra 2 small rags a day versus throwing away paper towels all day makes sense to me.... maybe not to everyone, but my choice is one that I am comfortable with and can live with. I still buy paper towels but instead of going thru 2 rolls a week I go thru 1 roll every 2 weeks. I feel better about that.

 

[freemotion]

Yup, it is not simple in today's world. Here is what I did in that case.....in my massage therapy office, I switched to cloth towels in the restrooms, with small, individual towels for one-time use to cut down on the spread of germs. I have to wash the sheets for each client, and it takes no more water, energy, soap, etc to throw in a few little towels in the same load. Easy choice. I think it would be the same with hankerchiefs. You would not be doing an additional load of laundry, would you? Probably not. Personally, I prefer not to deal with boogers on that scale, so I allow Kleenex, but I use tp myself for the most part. More portion control. And cheaper.

I bought wax paper sandwich bags to reduce my plastic baggie usage, then found out that they use petroleum-based wax to make it, even the stuff found in stores like Whole Foods and Trader Joe's. They make the box with that "green" look but nowhere does it claim greeness on the label. But the wax paper ones will at least break down faster.....releasing the chemicals into the environment, though....aaarrrgh!

So my next project will be to make a couple of cloth sandwich wraps with beeswax. I got a pound of beeswax with my half-off coupon from Joann's fabrics, and am using it for homemade lipbalm, lotion, and the like. (Again, measure, melt, stir....no real talent needed!) I hope they work out. I don't really like plastic containers, as I rarely use standard sandwich bread, my lunch creations tend to fall apart without the supportive wrapping!

I need to find some beeswax from a beekeeper locally that is less processed, though. On the list!

I write all this so you can see the progression. It is a journey, and each person has to decide which projects fit their life. I don't think too many of us can ever "do it all" in today's world.

But I do enjoy the discussions, because when you can get lots of opinions and ways of doing things, you can more easily come to the conclusion that fits into your own life.

 

[PamsPride]

Don't flame me....but, I am not really into this to be 'green'. I feel like everything that I can do to save a little $ here in there adds up for my family in the long run. I don't really care about washing extra stuff and using the water because where I live water is a very renewable resource. But, I do care about running the washer a million times because it runs up my electric bill. I have now been able to take several items out of my regular shopping trips and that adds up to a nice savings for my family.....then we can go blow it on a weekend at Splash Lagoon or something!!

 

[freemotion]

Yeah, but you are missing something VERY important that will serve you well at times: If you use the excuse of being green, you can be as cheap and skinflint as you want, then when people give you "the look," you can look WAY down your nose at them because YOU are GREEN!!!! .....even if that is not your motivation....your secret is safe with me!

 

[FarmerChick]

I know...it is hard to be everything Pam
but by being frugal, at the same time you are being green accidentially anyway I am sure. So it works for you!