Every grade school child knows the importance of reuse, reduce, and recycle; what better way to help the planet and learn about biology than with composting right in your own backyard garden? It also saves you money as you won’t have to worry about buying commercial fertilizer. It’s all in your kitchen scraps!

How does composting work?

Compost is really the end product of the breakdown of organic matter. Microorganisms feed off organic matter and what’s left is compost.

When people say they want to compost, there are two options. One can decide for a passive process or an active process.

As the name implies, there is little work to be done in the passive process. One just needs to collect compost material such as grass clippings and kitchen refuse and put them in an closed off pile in the backyard. Make sure that the kitchen scraps are well covered with other organic material to avoid animals looking for a free meal!

While little effort is required in the passive approach to composting, it is indeed slow and you might be waiting well over a year or two for complete decomposition.

Active composting requires more work, but not much with the proper equipment. Active composting is just helping nature along by providing the right conditions for the decomposition process. Decomposition is faster when the organic material is kept in a warm, damp and well oxygenated environment. By having a compost bin, not only does it provide a neater appearance in your backyard but it also offers a controlled environment in which to produce your compost. Add a thermometer to a compost tumbler to turn over the compost and it’s got a great mix for composting.

As you can see, the effort involved in composting is not that much but the benefits of using compost are many. The byproducts of microorganisms breaking down organic material provides great nutrients for plants as well as the compost is nitrogen and potassium rich which helps maintain ideal soil condition. Compost also improves water retention in the soil as well as texture and aeration.

Other benefits of composting include the reduction of wastes into our landfill. As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, it’s important that our children inherit a healthy planet. And what better way to pass on our gift than by involving our children in the process as well. Every school aged child knows about reduce, reuse and recycle. Composting involves all these steps plus the benefit of watching your garden grow! What a practical lesson for any child.

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Wind turbines are those rotating things that produce energy when blown by wind,The wind turns the blades, which roll a shaft joined to a generator that gives electricity. The most familiar types used today are the horizontal axis turbines; they are significantly more efficient and are able to produce fairly large amounts of energy in comparison to other types of renewable power. Horizontal axis turbines need to be pointed directly at the wind.

There are various sizes and power ratings of wind turbines. the best location for wind farms is on ridges, hill-tops , near the beach, and even being set up in areas of unused farmland that are almost without trees, where they can catch the wind . Small wind turbines can also be useful on boats, the movement of the ship will gather enough breeze to let the blades turn even when winds are low, making them an extremely dependable source. By using wind power to generate electricity, you can reduce air and water pollution and ease global warming. Wind energy produces no emanations, needs no fuel and the cost of the electricity produced is fixed over time.

Wind turbines do not make annoyance. The development of wind farm technology over the past was linked to high levels of mechanical noise, but newly developed wind turbines operate quietly. They are now becoming popular for small and large applications.

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Product Description
Designing buildings that maximize wind harvest and drive a set of turbines that provide power for buildings is the architectural concept presented in this scientific analysis. The practicalities presented in this design concept will interest engineers and architects, while the possibilities of wind power being used at a domestic level will delight proponents of renewable energy.
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Wind Energy in the Built Environment

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This means a smaller carbon footprint for your baby. The Earth will benefit from less waste generated by those notoriously huge creators of waste – brand new babies! Consider EC, or Baby Pottying, as a way to begin gradually reducing the amount of diapers your baby wears each day. Aim to use one less diaper daily. Your baby will help…

‘EC’ is a traditional, ancient way of caring for the hygiene needs of your baby.

Good News! Yes, you can ease into these ideas gradually – perhaps the easiest way of doing anything… By easing into EC it will seem as if it is just a natural extension of your parenting abilities – because it IS a natural thing, yet a learned skill as well.

Elimination Communication is a cumbersome word that gives you the best of all worlds: using diapers and helping your baby use the potty at the same time. You will help reduce the amount of washing you need to do when using cloth diapers. (which use at least 40% less natural resources than disposable diapers)

You will need to change literally thousands of diapers until your child weans to underwear. What is one diaper less each day? It’s an easy goal to strive for!

What Does One Less Diaper Each Day Mean?

1. 1 less diaper a day over 2.5 years is over 912 fewer diapers – that’s a lot of experience for your baby too, and a lot of moments connecting with your baby in a positive, fun way…

2. 1 less diaper a day over 3 years is 1095 fewer diapers – that’s over $492 saved if you consider an average disposable diaper costs .45c…

3. Even 1 less pooey diaper each week is 156 diapers you can avoid having to wash – I’m not actually sure how many washing loads that would be… but I’m the thought of that many LESS messy diapers to manage has your attention!

The average family spends $300-$400 on disposable wipes – 7 less diapers each week will mean a reduction in this waste too, as well as plastic diaper disposal bags.

By now you are thinking: “1 Less Diaper – but that’s not intimidating at all! I can do that!”

Yes, you can.

In cooperation with your baby, as a team. Your baby will wear diapers between potty visits as you build your confidence and learn what you need to know to reduce your reliance on full-time diapers.

By picking up some skills in baby pottying, you will be reducing your use of diapers by ‘tweaking’ the skills you already have, by adding in some new skills, to help you have a ‘greener’ baby, save money – and have FUN in the process as you connect with your baby in a slightly different way than is currently common.

Part Time Diaper Free is dedicated to helping you reduce your diaper use as you gently, naturally and gradually practice Elimination Communication with your baby, and discover the joys of doing so.

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The food comprises approximately 20 percent of the jet of residential reject, and currently approximately 41 percent of loss of food of the United States is sent to the embankments. The narrow examination of this scenario proves that it is ambient problems. Initially, the trucks lead in the two directions between the points of collection of waste and the embankments, spreading the exhaust containing of gases with greenhouse effect.

In the second place, once in the embankment, the loss of food continues to create ecological problems. Carbon-being based, it breaks up quickly, producing methane, a gas with effective greenhouse effect up to 21 times more harmful for the atmosphere than carbon dioxide. While the embankments try to capture methane, they face the logistic exits due at the speed with which food breaks up and the fact that methane is produced in the entire site. This means that only part of methane can be recovered. Moreover, on the loss of average food of water for it is 70 percent break up it liquefies and mixes with the flow of fill to produce the lixiviate which can soil subterranean water.

On the other hand, pulverizing falls of food in one to have modern such as the series of evolution InSinkErator — what can rectify almost any loss of food – is more ambient one responsible alternative. The loss sent by laying out it with the municipal factory of water treatment waste is extracted like dirty oil with other and of solids digested by micro-organisms. The biosolids while resulting can be employed like conditioner of manure or ground. (Currently almost 60 percent of the dirty oil produced by treatment plants of waste water of the United States is transformed into manure.)

Disposers themselves affect the environment modest. The water consumption at the same time as the use to layout is roughly a gallon of water by anybody per day – more or less like a simple glare of toilet. On average based the use of household, one to lay out ‘electricity consumption annual of S is approximately 51 years.

While composting can be an excellent manner of getting rid of the falls of food, it is not always practical – in cold climates, the tight urban environments or for inhabitants and him of high apartment is not recommended for the meat or the dairy products. In these situations and more, using disposers of loss of food is an alternative in the environment responsible this for the complements perforating.

The next obvious target is loss of food. New York carries out the nation in food of wasting. Up to 40 percent of the city of ‘refuse of S day laborers are of old bone and sandwiches of Bologna. A reason is the great number of the restaurants here – almost 18.000. But even the percentage of the residential loss which is old falls of food are higher here than the national average (almost 13 percent compared here with 10 percent nationally). The residents of other cities stick their loss of food in their back-yard, creating composting food-rich person; too much the does of New York of’t has such back-yards. The falls of food which would be rectified in bottom of the sinks of kitchen in Los Angeles or San Francisco finish to the top with the pavement in Brooklyn or Manhattan.

To try to re-use a more organic loss – falls of food and material yard — would equip inside with what is supposedly a new slope in the city ‘the strategy of management of waste of S. the department of New York City of hygiene is programmed this fall to present to the Council of New York City his late complete plan of management of solid waste, describing what should be made during the 20 years come to handle the city ‘refuse of S. There are some indices that the city looks at to decrease its invoice of dumping by re-using more loss.

This fall the department of hygiene will take again the passive collection of waste from yard to three equipment: Fresh fill of settings with died on the island of Staten, cracks of spring in Brooklyn and Sound view in Bronx. In the case of the loss of food, however, the only current options of re-use for the majority of the residents and companies are the programs of garden of the local community which offer the limited balance perforating.

The barriers to increase such voluntary programs are important. Christine Datz-Romero is a cofounder of the lower center of ecology of east coast, a program of vicinity which re-uses currently more than 60 tons per annum of loss of food. The program sells 10 tons of compost that one year with the local provisioning of garden makes shopping. Hopes of center to increase — it currently explores a plan to provide the collection of pavement for the sector surrounding the whole council of the local community – but Datz-Romero indicates that it gained ‘t easy, is given the need for laisux, placement, and so on. If you begin the process today, you would open the door on your dexterity between three and four years — if you ‘about lucky.

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Food waste disposer not only reduces household waste but also reduce the amount of waste that goes as land-fill. Waste has become a major global issue and legally binding limits have been established for some countries on the amount of food waste that can be used as land-fill. A food waste disposer reduces the volume of waste going as land-fill dramatically, by up to 50%. Life-cycle studies have identified major cost benefits from using the food waste disposer rather than land-fill methods alone.
Ground food waste channeled to a waste water treatment plant can create valuable fertilizer and generate energy by capturing methane gas.

Food waste disposers complement the compost pile. Composting is an environmentally-friendly way to use the space in yards to slowly break-down organic matter such as food waste. Composting with food waste is not an option for many people who have neither the necessary space nor the time to tend to a compost pile. Additionally, protein food waste such as meat, fish, dairy products and many cooked foods should not be put on a compost pile. The decay process is different from that of green waste and can produce harmful pathogens, noxious smells and be an obvious attractant for rodents and insects.

No matter where you keep your kitchen garbage can, getting rid of food waste can be a messy, smelly chore. What‘s more, bagged garbage can attract animals and insects, and create unsanitary conditions around your home.

With a garbage disposer in your kitchen, chicken bones, fruit rinds, coffee grounds and more can go right in the sink — where they’re virtually liquefied to safely flow into your sewage system or septic tank.

There are three styles to choose from:

Continuous-feed

Most disposers are Continuous Feed and they’re manually controlled by a wall or sink-top switch. This helps to keep hands clear of the disposer when it’s turned on. While operating, the mouth of the unit remains open and is protected by a rubber anti-splash baffle. This permits you to continuously feed waste into the grinder.

Batch System

A Batch Feed disposer is a safer model because it only functions when the stopper is placed into the drain. This keeps the mouth of the unit closed off while operating, and in turn, prevents accidents. Because no wall or sink-top switch is needed, installation is easier. However, you can’t continually feed waste into the disposer. Only the batch already under the stopper can be disposed of at a given time. The batch feed models are much safer to use especially around children.

Continuous-feed models for Septic Tanks

The Septic Tank models are a continuous feed system that also has a replaceable bio-charge cartridge. They usually are ¾ horsepower with all stainless steel grinding components. Individuals with septic tanks should not grind cigar and cigarette stubs or lobster, crab and shrimp shells in this type of garbage disposal system. Tobacco will impede the bacterial action in the tank, and seafood shells cannot be decomposed by bacterial action and will sink to the bottom of the tank, adding to the sludge.

Whether you chose a Continuous Feed or a Batch Feed model, you must run cold water continuously when grinding food waste and do not stop the water until everything is ground. Using hot water can contribute to the motor’s burnout.

The higher-end models generally run quieter because they are made with quieter motors and sound dampening insulation. Higher-end garbage disposer models also have stainless steel grinders and stainless steel grind chambers. Some models also have an auto reversing feature to help prevent jamming.

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From New York’s Central Park to the Champs de Mars by Paris’ Eiffel Tower,Yann Arthus-Bertrand, the French photographer  known for the “Earth From The Air” books and “Seen From The Air” on TV, is releasing the green-awareness movie “Home” in over 100 countries simultaneously.

Shot from the air in a chopper, the environmental documentary will be available across the globe June 5, mostly free of charge, in open-air spaces as well as theatres, TV, DVD. It will be available on the Internet at www.youtube.com/homeproject until 14th June 2009

“The idea is to explain what’s happening to the planet by beginning at the beginning, by the miracle of life on earth,” the photographer-director told AFP.

The film has as its message on global warming, “it’s too late to be a pessimist”.”Although there’s a general trend towards an awareness of ecological issues, concrete action is still too little, too slow,” Arthus-Bertand says.

“In 200,000 years on earth,” adds the film, “humanity has upset the balance of the planet. Humanity has barely 10 years to reverse the trend.”

2007 Nobel-prizewinner Al Gore and Lester Brown, the US environmental guru took part in the film’s editing process. And French cinema legend Luc Besson is distributing the film.Ten million euros in finance was  put up by the luxury consortium PPR headed by Francois Henri Pinault.

“The massive and free distribution of the film will enable anyone, anywhere, to see it, whatever their income,” Pinault said.

Speaking to AFP, Arthus-Bertrand said it was time to call a halt to a world where 20 percent of the population consumed 80 percent of the planet’s riches.

“I explain what is happening, I don’t offer solutions,” he said. “But we all have solutions within ourselves.”

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