Lazy Man and Health » Environment http://www.lazymanandhealth.com Get Healthy with Me, One Post at a Time Mon, 19 Dec 2011 18:57:32 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 What is Your City Doing for the Environment? http://www.lazymanandhealth.com/what-is-your-city-doing-for-the-environment/ http://www.lazymanandhealth.com/what-is-your-city-doing-for-the-environment/#comments Tue, 20 Nov 2007 17:44:09 +0000 Lazy Man http://www.lazymanandhealth.com/environment/what-is-your-city-doing-for-the-environment/ simpsongrease.jpgI try not to write about the environment too much in this space. However, since it does impact everyone’s health, I feel that from time to time, it’s worth highlighting. There is little doubt that if we continue to pollute the air we breath and the water we drink, we will be steadily poisoning ourselves over time.

Today, the major metropolitan city near I live, San Francisco, launched a couple of new initiatives to fight environmental problems. The city has become the first to ban plastic bags from all stores. These plastic bags have been a problem for years. They take a long time to break down naturally and very few people recycle them. For this reason, I’ve been asking for paper bags whenever I can and use them to recycle with the weekly cardboard recycling. Once I become less Lazy, I’ll buy some re-usable cloth bags and bring them with me for future purchases.

The other news in San Francisco is that the town is starting to use the restaurants’ used grease to power public transportation. San Francisco has had a problem of business disposing of grease illegally causing it to pollute the bay. This not only eliminates that problem, but it saves gasoline used to run the Muni buses. You can read more about the program at SF GreaseCycle.

It’s unfortunate timing that these came after the much talked about recent oil spill in the San Francisco Bay. At least it is trying to move in the right direction.

[Update:  I ended up buying reusable bags at the Lucky grocery store today.  They were 4 for a 75 cents and each time I use a bag, they'll give me a 5 cent rebate.  I won't get rich this way, but it's a nice bonus that will help both my wallet and the environment.]

(Picture credit: Gracie Films) via CNET.com.

]]> http://www.lazymanandhealth.com/what-is-your-city-doing-for-the-environment/feed/ 2 Importing Food to Kill Mother Earth http://www.lazymanandhealth.com/importing-food-to-kill-mother-earth/ http://www.lazymanandhealth.com/importing-food-to-kill-mother-earth/#comments Fri, 20 Jul 2007 16:15:13 +0000 Lazy Man http://www.lazymanandhealth.com/environment/importing-food-to-kill-mother-earth/ Put down that Fiji water bottle… put your hands in the air… and slowly walk away from refrigerator. You are under arrest for two crimes. The first charge is being guilty of believing bottled water is better for your health than tap water – in most cases it’s not. The second charge is a bigger one – assault on Mother Earth.

The water that you are drinking may have been transported thousands of miles using gallons and gallons of oil. The emissions from that transport pollutes not only the air, but the very water you are drinking. Fiji water isn’t alone in this crime. Any food or drink that you consume that isn’t produced locally adds to the environmental problem. People who have decided to make this change in their diet often say they are on a Low Carbon Diet.

I first heard about this Low Carbon Diet on the local news. Bon Appetit Management Company put a press release on their implementation of a Low Carbon Diet. In it they cite, “The average American creates 2.8 tons of CO2 emissions each year by eating—even more than the 2.2 tons each person generates by driving (Echel and Martin, 2006).” That amazed me at first, but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense.

I am going to start to think Low Carbon. I think my future grandchildren will appreciate it. What about you?

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