Clean Your Room, Taken To The EXTREME

[filkertom]

Ahhh, Earth Day. It's truly a sign of the nasty directions our political and philosophical discourse have taken when the History section of the Wikipedia page about this day has the notice, "The neutrality of this article is disputed". Heck, on the day of Earth Hour, we had a spirited debate about it right here.

You wouldn't think there would be any argument about whether or not we should pollute ourselves to death.

Jor-El was a crystal-hugging hippie, too, I guess.

There are lots of things to do to help clean up our environment. I recycle plastic (probably not as much as I should); I use compact fluorescent bulbs and reusable grocery bags; I use lower-phosphate detergents and earth-friendlier cleaning goods, and I don't run the washer or dishwasher with less than a full load; I only have two lights that are on all the time (because I am not taking a chance and stupidly tripping over something in the dark); and I try to buy household materials made of recycled materials. (At this point, "paper" plates and bowls, toilet paper, and aluminum foil.) And, on the weekends, I shut down the coal-powered zombie-creating machine (with built-in puppy press and kitten stomper), although that's an easy call because it's noisy.

What, if anything, do you do regularly to help, even if it's just a little, just one thing? And, in what completely insane way can you "help" the environment through Mad Science?

Comments

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

It's not something I have any real choice in, but I know not having a car is very environment-friendly.

[trav13369.livejournal.com]

you shut down the zombie-maker on weekends? Good man, stout, backbone of Michigan! LOL

[bryanp.livejournal.com]

But zombies are a form of recycling.

[aiela.livejournal.com]

Little things, things I can blend into my daily life - lower phosphate laundry detergent (and occasionally homemade phosphate-free stuff), homemade cleaning products without chemicals. Reusable grocery bags. I recycle paper/cardboard and plastic, and we've recently realized we need to set aside somewhere for used batteries and recycle those.

I specifically looked in the same areas when I was job hunting and househunting at the same time, so now I only drive 7 miles a day to work - a tank of gas will last me 2-3 weeks. CFL lightbulbs in the house, we keep the heat/AC colder/warmer than I'd like but it makes a difference. Don't run the dishwasher until its full, etc etc.

[filkertom.livejournal.com]

Forgot my reusable grocery bags! And waiting for full loads of dishes and laundry. Thanks.

[rdmaughan.livejournal.com]

Remember reduce, reuse, recycle.
We use low energy bulbs, use heating as little as possible, walk rather than take the car if we can and turn off stuff we are not using. I also try to drive in a fuel efficient manner.
If we are getting rid of something which is in usable condition but no longer needed we offer it to friends and then freecycle or a charity shop. Suitable organic material goes for compost and we recylce rather than throwing stuff away whenever possible.
We looked at getting solar water heating but could not justify the start up costs. If we move somewhere with more garden I would consider a ground heat system.

[siliconshaman.livejournal.com]

Lets see, our house is insulated to the max, so we don't need to heat it until the outside temp is almost at freezing, we use cf bulbs throughout, and turn off things rather than put them on standby. We recycle pretty much everything, and source stuff so it comes from sustainable and responsible manufacturers.

I guess the only way to help out more would be through Mad Science. Which, if you think about it, should be obvious. The root cause of all pollution and environmental problems is thus:
There are too many damn people!!

The solution is obvious. Zombie Plague.
Especially if after they've rotted enough they stop shambling, lie down, decompose and fertilize the soil.

[dornbeast.livejournal.com]

No, no, no! Solve multiple problems at once!

World hunger and pollution solved in one job, with Soylent Green!

[shsilver.livejournal.com]

I walk to work every day (ironically, today I'll drive (a Prius) since we're doing an electronics recycling and I have enough that I can't carry it all).

[saganth.livejournal.com]

My gf and I recycle our deposit bottles, and every now and then I bring a gynormous load of paper outside for pickup for recycling. We don't recycle as much as we should or could, but we do at least some. Though why we can't recycle junk mail I cannot fathom - I slip it in there anyway.

As for Mad Science - I say enclose the forests, the farms, the oceans as well as the dumps, the factories and hell the whole damn planet in jello! Preserve it all!

[ladyotterfae.livejournal.com]

You can ask your local recycling place, but it's probably because so much junk mail uses those little plastic windows in the envelopes - if you take the time to rip those out, it should be recyclable.

Also, a distressing number of recycling centers, if they find something they don't take in a bag or load of recycling, will _throw away the entire thing_ rather than sort it out, so go ahead and double-check with them.

[archiver-tim.livejournal.com]

I got my Earth Day 'Give Earth A Chance' button from back to Earth Day 1, so I will wear it today.
Think I'll also the play Tom Lehrer song "Pollution" for myself today.

I'll also wonder aloud today as to why Ann Arbor recycling does take white plastic (as in milk containers), but does not take black plastic (as in frozen food trays).

Okay, some things should be easy. Like passing a law that any wall-transformer must have a 120-volt switch on it. I think that would be used more than those who unplug them or turn off power strips with them on it.

How about mandating a solar (electric) power system for any new house built that is over 3,000 square feet. Enough to provide day-time power for most day-time uses. Make a real price break for those who want real big houses.

Mad-science? How about capturing/attracting lightning strikes to recharge the power company's fast-charge lithium batteries? Can you see a lightning farm at the edge of town? The owner would be able to build a castle.

[catsittingstill.livejournal.com]

Regarding the solar electric power system, I did some back-of-the-envelope calculations last year. I really wanted one, but it turned out it would double the price of the house before installation costs.

Mind you, this was a 2,000 sq ft house, and in Tennessee, where houses are cheap, but still.

[maiac.livejournal.com]

I recycle darned near everything (thank you, City of Royal Oak!).

I keep cloth napkins at work rather than use paper napkins. I also use cloth napkins at home.

I keep "vampire" appliances unplugged except for the DVD player (I'm too lazy to reset the clock every time I plug it in) and microwave (I think I killed my old microwave by constantly unplugging it and plugging it back in).

I have all compact flourescent lights in my house; I even have a small light that hooks over my ear, to light my way down the hallway at night so I don't have to turn on the overhead light.

I use cold water for my laundry and keep the water heater at the minimum temperature for washing dishes and taking showers.

I bought two rainbarrels (note to self: which I need to install this weekend), one for the back garden and one for the front. And I never water the lawn.

While shopping, I look for products with recyclable containers and minimal processing. I remember to take my reusable shopping bags with me.

I have a programmable thermostat, and keep it at the minimum tolerable temperature (i.e. not shivering during the winter, not dripping sweat in the summer). I replaced my windows and added insulation to the attic a few years ago, which noticeably reduced both furnace and AC usage.

[bryanp.livejournal.com]

have a programmable thermostat, and keep it at the minimum tolerable temperature (i.e. not shivering during the winter, not dripping sweat in the summer). I replaced my windows and added insulation to the attic a few years ago, which noticeably reduced both furnace and AC usage.

Those are both things I've been meaning to do to my house. In the south they default to those crappy single-pane windows. In the winter I can stand next to the double window in my spare bedroom and feel the heat being sucked out of me.

[bryanp.livejournal.com]

I recycle what I can. Unfortunately we don't have curbside recycling where I live, so I'm limited to what I can sort in my garage and haul to the bins behind the local Kroger.

I've been taking the bus to work for about a year now. Unfortunately due to budget cuts, taking the bus is going to cost me an extra $120 a month starting in July. That's going to be annoying, as at that point it will cost me $10 more per week to take the bus than it would to drive. I'm looking into starting a carpool with some of the people I see on the bus every morning and afternoon.

I still use some plastic grocery bags, but they get re-used when I scoop cat litter.

I've gotten to the point that I can navigate my home in the dark pretty well.

I have way too many "vampire" appliances that are always on and drawing a trickle. I need to set up my entertainment center so I can easily cut power to everything except the Tivo.

However, I draw the line at the low flow shower head. For I sayeth unto you that it is an abomination in my sight. I'd rather take a shorter shower with real water pressure.

[ashnistrike.livejournal.com]

A good low-flow showerhead (the slightly more expensive "massage" kind) will actually improve your water pressure. I admit, un-ecologically, that that's the major reason why I have one.

[technoshaman.livejournal.com]

I actually have issues with some of this. While I totally agree that it's not polite to foul one's own nest, one must also live sanely and economically sustainably as well as ecologically sustainably.

Which is why I'm opting to use a scooter instead of the bus. Cheaper in the long run *and* keeps me from going bats over schedules and such. (And? There's a community surrounding motorcycles that's quite similar to filkers.)

The City of Emeralds has a good recycling program, and I've gone with the CF's and the full dishwasher and such (although the CF's as much because they don't create waste heat, and this little place tends to get too warm as it is).

Zombie creating machine??

[filkertom.livejournal.com]

While I totally agree that it's not polite to foul one's own nest, one must also live sanely and economically sustainably as well as ecologically sustainably.

Indeed. The key is balance. You do what you can, you leave as little mess as possible. A lot of the problem is that doing so "interferes with the free market", i.e., gets in the way of maximum profit. If you have to spend money to leave less of a mess, you're not making as much money, aiee!

Yeah. Zombie creating machine.

[bayushisan.livejournal.com]

Mad scientist wise I'd create a device like Mr. Fusion from Back to the Future and then develop cold fusion generators and a third device that would convert any toxic by product into a super fertalizer that would then be used to help solve the food shortage problems that some countries have/

[filkerdave.livejournal.com]

I'm sad to say that everything I do -- using a daypack for groceries, cycling wherever possible, buying sustainable and recycled (or even thrift-store) is vastly overshadowed by the fact that my job has me flying to Texas and back every single week.

I spent a LOT of time on airplanes.

[alverant.livejournal.com]

I recycle what I can. Wheaton outsourced garbage collection so it costs $$ for each can of garbage I generate. Recycling is free. So I have a vested interest to recycle. Apart from that I use compact floresent bulbs, try to minimize trips. Now that the weather is nicer I can walk to the grocery store. Also I keep the plastic grocery bags and use them for other things; waste basket liners, put kitty poo when I clean the litterbox, even grocery bags when I go shopping.

[annearchy.livejournal.com]

In our house, we use CFL bulbs in most of our light fixtures (some are problematic for various reasons). We have reusable grocery bags and I use them probably 90% of the time. I run around turning lights off. I turn my computer and monitor off every night, and I try (though I sometimes fail) to remember to turn off my printer. We rarely use the hot-water setting on the washing machine. I take the bus to work whenever I don't need to use the car during the day (which would be, e.g., when I have to take DD to a doctor appointment). When we bring our bikes back from the storage locker where they've been all winter, I might attempt taking my bike to work on the bus (love those bike racks on the front of the buses) and then ride home after work. Our state has mandatory recycling of lots of items, and our city gave every house a 65-gallon recycling bin about 2 years ago. We recycle so much stuff (including the cardboard boxes that contain the mailers my husband uses in his business) that we had to trade in our first bin for a 95-gallon one.

As for Mad Science, there are some interesting ideas about geoengineering (http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/columnist/vergano/2009-04-19-geoengineering_N.htm); maybe one or more will pan out.

[alymid.livejournal.com]

We do a lot of the standard things and a few less standard:

I don't use chemical poisons on my lawn or in my garden.
Whenever possible I use natural fertilizers on my garden.
I am removing my lawn piece by piece and replacing it with more bio-diverse flower and vegetable gardens.
I compost my garden waste.
This year I hope to add a worm composter and send less food waste to the dump.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Jor-El was a crystal-hugging hippie, too

Oh Tom. That's brilliantly said. And oh so true.

What I do to help the environment:
(1) use public transport
(2) avoid plastics when other materials are available
(3) reuse, recycle, give away
(4) appreciate everything

[bryanp.livejournal.com]

While we're griping can we tell electronics manufacturers to settle on a single standard for charging portable devices? There's no reason for cell phones, mp3 players, etc.. to have different charging tips and voltages.

I replaced my cell phone yesterday. Now I need to order a new car charger and data cable. If I'd thought about it more I guess I could have made sure the new one used the same chargers as the old one, but I shouldn't have to.

Granted, I'm not throwing the old stuff in the trash. I'll stash one set as an emergency backup phone and give the rest away. Still, it would be nice to not have to order more crap.

[realinterrobang.livejournal.com]

I don't have a car, so I take the bus or occasionally taxis. I compost. I recycle what I can (and bring waste paper home from work where there isn't recycling and put it in the recycle bin at home). I try to reuse or recycle the inevitable plastic bags, and have switched to using reuseable bags for groceries. (Cotton string bags are your friends!) My landlady just put in new windows and insulation within the last 3 years. I don't have air conditioning. (I probably offset this slightly by keeping the house at 21C during the winter, which is the legal minimum for rental properties in Ontario, and about as cool as I can can tolerate, and running a space heater in my office -- the coldest room in the house -- from time to time in the winter.) We have a new refrigerator and a new stove. In the summers, I grow my own herbs and tomatoes (although there's not a lot of sun, so it's not great).

If I were a mad scientist, small towns would be able to implement electrically-powered street and interurban rail systems for $100 000 or less, and the cars would have roofs made of super high-efficiency solar panels. It would cost more to do larger cities, but the principles (high efficiency, super low cost) would remain the same.

[selenesue.livejournal.com]

I swapped my small SUV for a Prius last month, that's a hell of a start. On the down side of that, fuel prices went up 20 cents during the duration of my first tank. o_O

Not liking CFL bulbs much. The light is annoying to my eyes and there's that pesky mercury content. How does one dispose of them safely?

My mad sci this week: I have ordered a Worm Factory compost setup from fabricdragon. Free non-stinky trash disposal + free fertilizer = win. Also, the idea of having hundreds of little slaves working for me has its appeal. Yes I was born to be a Mad Scientist!

[catnip13.livejournal.com]

At least here, there are collection points for spent CFL's, My local health food store has one, as does IKEA.

[kilbia.livejournal.com]

CFLs and recycling are the big ones in my house. I *love* curbside recycling - it's possibly the biggest perk of renting a house instead of an apartment!

I take the train and shuttle to work instead of driving myself, so we're down to using 2 vehicles instead of 3 on most days. And we've got the one housemate now in the habit of driving the F150 instead of the F250, which is more fuel efficient.

I try to combine my shopping for my house with when I take my mother-in-law to get her groceries.

My Mad Science would be to finally figure out how to make a Star Trek Replicator. I could totally save the world with such a thing if I didn't get assassinated first.

[unclelumpy.livejournal.com]

If anyone wishes to know my thoughts on Earth Day, they need merely read my LJ.

[lizreay.livejournal.com]

I buy locally-grown produce as often as I can both to support local farmers and to cut down shipping costs/fuel/etc. My husband and I even joined a community-supported agriculture farm for the summer.

I also have a bag of clean rags in the kitchen that I use instead of paper towels for most small clean-up needs, and re-wash them along with our regular laundry. It's at least halved the number of paper towels I use, and washing them with the rest of the laundry means I'm not using up extra water to deal with them.

[biomekanic.livejournal.com]

I'm on the look out for LED light bulbs - they don't contain mercury as CLF does, and they also last much longer.

I also donate to organizations that teach sustainable harvest techniques to communities that harvest reef organisms for the pet trade.

[jcw-da-dmg.livejournal.com]

the coal-powered zombie-creating machine (with built-in puppy press and kitten stomper)

Oh, Man, I been lookin' fer one o' them! Those new-fangled 'lectric ones just don't work right - can't even work up a decent stomp!

[skully01.livejournal.com]

The geothermal-powered ones work even better, and produce more eco-friendly zombies. :D