greenUPGRADER » News+Opinion

The Floating Plastic Monster

Becky Striepe — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 12:00:04 +0000

We talk a lot about plastic around here, from art made using reclaimed plastic to innovations in bioplastics. Plastic, especially single-use plastic, is an environmental nightmare. Sure, you can recycle most plastics, but each time you do you end up with a lower-quality plastic. Eventually, it's all landfill-bound, where it's basically never going to break down.

But for used plastic that you can't recycle or reuse, the landfill is almost a best-case scenario. If it doesn't make it to the landfill, it washes into waterways and eventually makes its way into the ocean, contributing to one of the plastic gyres that litter the sea.

On a recent trip to the Smithsonian Marine Research Station on Carrie Bow, professional photographer Laurie Penland ran across this floating mass of random plastics in the ocean and took some video from below. Meet the floating plastic monster:

Looking to cut back on the single use plastic in your life? There are lots of ways to cut back on single use plastic:

Choose reusables. Why use plastic cutlery? You can go for a reusable option instead. If you absolutely have to use disposable cutlery, opt for the sort that you can compost in a home composting bin.
Look for minimal packaging. Or even better: look for NO packaging! One of the best ways to cut back on packaging is to buy second hand. Most thrift stores don't want to splurge on plastic clamshells or shrink wrap.
Bring your own bag. Just say no to single use, plastic grocery bags. Keep some reusable bags in the trunk of your car, the commuter pack on your bike, or in your purse. If you forget to bring a bag, opt for paper or just carry your items out by hand.
Bring your own cup. Whether you're going out for coffee or a smoothie, bring a cup of your own, so you don't have to take a plastic cup or a paper cup with a plastic lid.
Shop the farmer's market. Processed foods usually include some sort of plastic packaging, as do a lot of the fruits and veggies at the grocery store. Hit the farmer's market, and bring your own, reusable bags to tote home your goods.

Of course, these are just a few jumping off points. There are lots of ways to avoid single-use plastic. Tell us your favorite in the comments!

Video via Ocean Portal, photo by Laurie Penland

New Anti-Coal Film Takes on Mountaintop Removal Mining

Becky Striepe — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 12:00:38 +0000

The Last Mountain takes a hard look at mountaintop removal mining and how it's destroying Appalachia.

Citizen protests about coal mining practices are nothing new. The photo at the top of this post represents local opposition to coal mining operations in Ohio in the 1970s. While strip mining is a destructive practice, mountaintop removal mining is far worse.

Large coal companies, like the notorious Massey Energy, have been polluting valleys and waterways and endangering workers and citizens for decades all in the name of providing us with cheap electricity. In the new film The Last Mountain, filmmakers expose the true cost of coal and follow an Appalachian anti-coal group in its efforts to stop Big Coal from further destroying their home.

Here's the official trailer:

What You Can Do

Want to do your part to get heard and reduce your dependence on coal? Here are some ways to get active:

Reduce your energy consumption where you can. Whether you take steps to run your A/C less this summer or increase your appliances' energy efficiency, using less power means burning (and therefore mining) less coal.
Sign the NRDC Petition asking President Obama to ban mountaintop removal mining.
Send a letter encouraging the federal Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) to step in and require the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection do an environmental impact study, rather than automatically renewing the mining permits on Coal River Mountain.
Use renewable power where you can. Invest in a solar water heater or solar outdoor lighting for your hard and home.

Have you taken any steps to reduce your dependence on coal? I'd love to hear more tips in the comments!

Image Credit: Photo via The U.S. National Archives

Fracking: The Music Video

Becky Striepe — Wed, 25 May 2011 12:00:41 +0000

It's been a little while since we've talked about fracking in this space, and it's become a big part of the discourse surrounding our energy future and our water supply.

Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, is a method for extracting natural gas. Unlike old school gas drilling, fracking involves injecting a mystery blend of chemicals into the ground that helps increase the amount of gas the company can extract. Why is the blend a mystery? While we do know some of the chemicals used in fracking, natural gas companies are very tight-lipped about what they're using.

What we do know is that this proprietary blend of chemicals includes substances like formaldehyde and benzene (a known carcinogen) and that a recent scientific study linked fracking to flammable drinking water. That's right: tap water that catches on fire.

Fracking is also exempt from regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Clean Air Act, parts of the Clean Water Act, and the National Environmental Policy Act.

A recent music video breaks down the issue very succinctly, and I thought I'd share it here:

Get Heard

Are you opposed to fracking? Sign the Food & Water Watch petition asking Congress to ban fracking. You can also take steps to reduce your natural gas consumption.

h/t: ProPublica

Image Credit: Screenshot from music video.

Understanding The Dangers Of Radiation Exposure (Infographic)

Beth Buczynski — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 19:32:39 +0000

Recent fluctuating reports that dangerous levels of radiation have been detected in Japanese food and water have many people concerned.

The Fukushima explosion is the worst nuclear disaster in Japan since World War II. This situation comes on the heels of—not one, but two—natural disasters, and the in the midst of this crisis, questions undoubtedly arise about the safety of radiation exposure.

Also check out: Japan Earthquake Relief - Five Ways You Can Donate To Help

The following infographic is the aggregation of numerous sources that are authorities on radiation (see references). It details the threat levels of radiation exposure from events like the Fukushima explosion down to a dental x-ray.

(Click image to expand)

Created by Geary Interactive, a digital marketing agency

Japan Earthquake Relief: Five Ways You Can Donate to Help

Becky Striepe — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 12:00:02 +0000

After the devastating Japan earthquake and tsunami, Japan is suffering from fires, rolling blackouts, and the aftermath of a nuclear explosion. The people of Japan need our help and support, and relief agencies are saying that donations are one of the best things that you can do. Here are a few options for making a donation. If you know of other organizations that could use some support, please share them in the comments!

Donate directly to victims. The Red Cross is making it easy to donate directly to victims in Japan. Just call 1-800-Red Cross and make sure your donation is designated "Japanese Earthquake."
Donate by cell phone - You can donate $10 to the American Red Cross by texting REDCROSS to 90999, Convoy of Hope by texting TSUNAMI to 50555, or to GlobalGiving by texting JAPAN to 50555. But be careful: those donations can take up to 90 days to make it out.
Donate to UNICEF to help Japanese children. Children are often the most traumatized when there's a disaster, and U.S. Fund for UNICEF is working to address "the unique needs of children" in the wake of the Japan earthquake and tsunami.
Get crafty. The crafting community is responding in the way it best knows how: by making. Craftzine has a great list of crafty shops and auctions that are donating the proceeds to Japan earthquake relief.
For Japan With Love. You can make a donation through Shelterbox until March 31st to directly help victims in Japan get what they need. Green Upgrader is also participating in For Japan With Love's Bloggers Day of Silence on Friday, March 18th out of respect for the people of Japan.

If you have a friend or a loved one in Japan, Google's person finder can help you track them down. You can also enter information about people, if you have it, to help folks find friends and family affected by the Japan earthquake and tsunami.

Have you guys made a donation or run across organizations that need support in the wake of the Japan earthquake? Please share them in the comments!

Image Credit: Creative Commons photo by drlogan

Urban Cycling Etiquette

Becky Striepe — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 06:57:28 +0000

Cycling is a great way to stay fit, save money, and reduce carbon emissions. Unfortunately, whether you're commuting to work or running errands on the weekend, interacting with cars on the road is often stressful for everyone involved.

Felix Salmon at Reuters recently talked about the biking situation in New York. His description had so much in common with cycling woes here in Atlanta, that it has me wondering if this is an issue in most major cities where cars and bikes are all trying to get from point A to B.

In order for everyone to make their trips safely, I think there are a few key bits of etiquette that would make all of the difference. I'm basing this on cycling laws here in Atlanta. From what I've read, they're quite similar in other cities. If your town is different, I'd love to hear about it in the comments!

Etiquette for Drivers

There's almost a combative vibe between motorists and cyclists, and I don't think it has to be that way. Like Salmon mentions in his piece, cyclists are at least partly to blame, but if drivers were more aware of a few things, it would go a long way.

The biggest issue for me is riding on a road where there is no bike lane. There are lots of roads like that around here, and it's a little terrifying when a big car or truck blows past you at speed without leaving enough breathing room. Cyclists are definitely going to be slower than cars, but it's courteous to slow down a bit and leave them some room when you're passing. If you can change lanes, that's even better.

When there is a bike lane, drivers still need to be aware of cyclists. This is especially important when making a right hand turn. We're so used to looking for other cars when turning, but if there's a bike lane there's also a chance that you're about to turn right into a cyclist. I've heard quite a few horror stories from friends that have come close to getting hit this way.

Cyclists are supposed to ride in the road, and they're supposed to behave like cars. A little respect from motorists would help a lot in making it less scary for folks on bikes and a more harmonious relationship overall. That means not honking or yelling at a cyclist who's following the rules of the road.

Etiquette for Cyclists

If we want bikes treated like cars, though, we need to start behaving like them. That means no more blowing red lights. It means stopping at stop signs and signaling when we turn. How can cyclists expect drivers to take us seriously when we're constantly disobeying traffic laws?

Not only do those practices contribute to motorists' animosity, they can be confusing. When you see people on their bikes behaving more like pedestrians than motorists, who can blame drivers for not understanding what the dynamic is supposed to be?

Education

I think that what we need is more education on cycling rules. So many drivers and cyclists are uninformed of the rules about bikes and cars, and that needs to change. The more folks talking about this issue, the safer the roads will be for drivers and for cyclists.

Could bike shops offer rules of the road the road to their customers?

Could bike rental services include signage that lays out key rules?

Maybe it's something that could be worked into the school curriculum as part of driver's education or health class?

More and more companies are encouraging bike commuting - it might make a big difference if they educated their employees as part of those programs.

What do you guys think? How can we raise awareness about cycling rules and etiquette?

Image Credits:
Bike Commuting. Creative Commons photo by twotone666
Cyclist. Creative Commons photo by giganticrobot

Reusable Bag Campaign Gets It Right, Then Gets It Wrong

Becky Striepe — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 15:27:05 +0000

I spotted this ad for reusable bags at the supermarket, and I think it's brilliant! After a quick chat with the clerk at checkout, though, I left the grocery store with some mixed feelings about it.

How They Got it Wrong

When I spotted the sign at the checkout counter, I immediately asked the clerk if I could take a picture of it. She was happy to let me, saying I should show my friends who don't bring their own bags.

Then, she said it's a good thing I snapped a picture, since they change out the checkout ads all the time. What do they do with the old plastic signs? According to her, they throw them in the garbage.

That seems more than a little bit incongruous to the whole reusable bag campaign. I wondered how many plastic signs they went through every year. There were around 10 checkout lanes at this store, so if they're changing the signs out weekly, that's 520 signs each year in that location. According to their website, there are 1023 stores here in the U.S., which adds up to over half a million of those little, plastic signs headed to the landfill, if they're all engaging in this practice.

How They Got it Right

What really struck me about this ad is that it doesn't appeal to folks' feelings about the environment. If someone is still taking disposable, plastic grocery bags at this point, the environment is probably not high on their list of concerns.

Instead, it highlights direct, immediate benefits for the person buying the bag: their bigger, more convenient bag means fewer grocery bags to carry. In case you can't read the copy on there, it says, "Three times the groceries in a Publix reusable bag means fewer bags for you to tote home." Simple and elegant!

I think that there's a lot to learn from this marketing strategy. Unfortunately, not everyone is convinced that we're in the midst of a crisis, and we may not have time to change everyone's mind. What other eco-friendly life choices could we frame in terms of immediate, personal benefit, rather than talking about frightening but far off consequences?