With the recent surge in anti-plastic bag sentiments, a lot of folks are jumping on the reusable bags bandwagon. I think it’s great that people are starting to give a thought to the bags that they use to carry their purchases home. But not all bags are created equal, and I wish more people would […]
My SoyaPower soy milk maker arrived today, and I made my first batch of homemade soy milk tonight. (The dried soy beans have to soak for 8-10 hours, so I put them in water this morning and made the soy milk when I came home.) This is a magical piece of kitchen equipment. You put […]
What really does happen to our recycling after it’s picked up from the curb? Much of it is shipped overseas when it could be better used to provide jobs and source materials here at home. Using Oakland, Northern California, and the Pacific Rim as a case study, this short film is worth the eye-opening 17 […]
So, we’re supposed to eat locally, right? To save transportation fuel, to support our local farmers, and to limit our pesticide exposure. And I’m very lucky to have a weekly farmer’s market just down the street within walking distance. The irony is that at our small Temescal Farmer’s Market, at least half of the vendors […]
Why avoid plastic? Â I originally wrote this post in July 2007, just one month into my plastic-free experiment. Â It’s now May 2015, and in the past 8Â years, I have learned a lot more about plastic — where it comes from and what problems are associated with it. Â Here, then, is an updated summary of why […]
Do you all know about your local Freecycleâ„¢ group? Freecycleâ„¢ is a great way to save plastic, and other items, from the landfill. If you have an item that you no longer need, list it on Freecycleâ„¢. There is probably someone else out there who could use it. Need an item and don’t want to […]
06/10/2013 Update: Â Several organizations have waged a campaign to get companies to eliminate polyethylene micro-beads from their facial scrubs. Â Please read my updated post to take action and learn about what other kinds of products contain microplastics. Here is the text of my original article from July of 2007, which was updated in December 2011: […]
For weeks, I’ve been choosing frozen entrees in pressboard trays over those in plastic trays, thinking that the only plastic waste was the film overwrap. Now, I find out that the cardboard tray itself is coated with a layer of PET plastic. I found this out through a very nice e-mail exchange and telephone interview with […]
Send a short note to Wildwood! Read on to find out more! Well, it’s looking like the only way to buy ready-to-drink refrigerated soy milk without plastic is to spring for the 1-quart carton of Wildwood soy milk. It’s more expensive that way. But the half gallon contains the same plastic spout and cap as […]
For weeks I’ve been staying up all night researching plastic, what it does in the environment, alternative products, alternative packaging, etc. etc. etc. I wonder how much having my computer on all night contributes to global warming? Of course, if it weren’t for this project, I’d probably be sitting in front of it watching recorded […]