Dumping E-Waste: Where Is Your E-Waste Going?

The technology industry produces a continuous array of innovative electronics every day often without taking responsibility for the bi-products of its waste when a product has run its course. Computers, cell phones, fax machines, printers and other electronic devices are commonly made up of toxic materials that can be released through the air and absorbed through the skin when broken down part by part. North Americans consume massive amounts of electronics per year, many of which we then dump into domestic waste disposal sites and/or unregulated E-waste recycling plants. E-waste recycling if one way of disposing of our electronics, although many of our electronic products are shipped to countries overseas by these "electronic recycling depots" where adults and children break our electronics down in the recycling process releasing toxic chemicals such as asbestos. These chemicals are causing evident diseases such as various cancers and birth defects, and are also polluting the ground water. Some companies are now beginning to produce electronics that can be safely recycled, although many popular name brand electronics continue to be made with toxic materials! What can you do?

Steps That You Can Take To Ensure Your Electronics Are Recycled Safely:

1. Purchase electronics from an environmentally accountable company that produces electronics that are made up of ecologically safe materials that can be recycled easily and without causing harm to others.

Companies That Are Up For The Challenge By Cutting Out Toxins And Producing Environmentally Safe Electronics:

Guide To Greener Electronics

2. Investigate your E-waste disposal site: Ask questions about how these products are recycled and where your used electronics end up in the process.

3. Check with a local environmental group or technology organization for information on a reputable E-waste recycling depot in your area.

Here's one in Vancouver BC Canada:

FreeGeekVancouver

FreeGeekKingston (Ontario, Canada)

U.S.A.:

Basel Action Network (BAN)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

MORE INFO:

IT'S GOOD TO BE GREEN!

Out of many things I'm learning about being "green" (or environmentally conscious) each and every day as I build onto this blog is that both my actions and words matter.

Spreading Information Over The Internet

Whether it's through social forums, blogs, Twitter, comment posting on news sites, etc. these Internet communication avenues are often the best ways to share one's knowledge, as more than half of us in this world tune in online for the information we seek on a daily basis. The Internet is the new way of communicating (particularly on a global level) and for anyone who hasn't had their head in the sand for say the past 10 years knows this!

Community Action

Getting involved with at least one group or organization in your community is the best way to spread the word locally about environmental issues. You will make yourself available to those in your community through education, whether it's in your neighborhood, through your local school systems, or at local fairs and events! It's also a great way for you to learn about what's happening in your community and pinpoint additional opportunities for "green" projects.

Take A Stand At A Global Level

The world is your oyster as you surf the net! Expand your friendships and include those people you know through online social forums and workplace contacts. Spreading your "green" word to those you are unlikely to include in your personal life expands your horizons and builds on the knowledge you and others already have.

Keep Your Options Open!

Always look for alternative ways of sharing your "green" ideas. Artistic endeavors, discussions with your local shop owner, talking to children, or sharing with your elders are all effective ways of communicating your "green" knowledge.

Garden Raid Your Neighbors Backyard!

Connecting apartment dwellers with owners of local land can often be the only way for urban gardeners to grow a prosperous and edible garden. Sharing Backyards, an initiative of the Lifecycles Project Society, has a solution for this with user friendly land share listings on their website and a map to connect you to your closest neighbor with yard space. Sharing Backyards will even set you up with a program in your city!

See Links Below For Details:

SharingBackyards.com

Article On "Virtual Gardening" - Sharing Backyards

LifeCycles Project Society

*Sharing Backyards is seeking support from advertisers for their website!

Eat Where You Live!

Sustainable farming, local food co-ops and farmers markets are the way to go in a time of fossil fuel uncertainty. It's also a great way to support your community, get to know your local farmers, and eat fresh and healthy meals! Here's a few links I picked up in the Victoria BC area as well as a great food co-op located in Brooklyn NY, in case you want to pack it up and move to a brownstone on the east coast!

POCKET MARKETS

LOCAL FARMERS GROCERY MARKET

ORGANIC/LOCAL FOOD DELIVERY

PARK SLOPE FOOD COOP - BROOKLYN, NY

ALSO: Check out local farmers/craft markets on the weekends! Victoria BC has many in and around the city! List Here

T’Sou-ke Nation Reconnecting With The Sun

The T’Sou-ke Nation in Sooke BC finds a better way to energize their community and educate the public...Click Here!

5 Myths About Cleaning Your Home!

1. The faster a product works, the better it is.

Truth: The faster a product works, the more toxic it is!

2. Natural cleaners such as Baking Soda and Vinegar are not as effective.

Truth: Vinegar and Baking Soda are great products and often better cleaning solutions if you use these correctly. SEE BELOW FOR USES

3. You must use a strong disinfectant to kill germs.

Truth:Sunlight dish detergent(mixed with water)is a great surface cleaner that kills bad germs and keeps the good ones there to stay!

4. More laundry detergent means cleaner clothes.

Truth:A 1/4 cup or less of laundry detergent is all you need to keep your clothes clean.

REMEMBER! Fabric softeners are needed when clothing fibers are filled with excess detergent! DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY!

5. You need a wide variety of different cleaning solutions for every household cleaning job.

Truth:
WHAT I WOULD RECOMMEND!

CLEANING SOLUTIONS

Baking Soda
Vinegar
Sunlight Soap/Dish Detergent
Borax
Lemon Juice
Orange/Lemon Oil/Hemp Oil - polishing furniture

BASIC TOOLS

Green Scrub Pads - Heavy Duty and Regular
Micro-Fiber Cloths - Vileda Brand
Old Toothbrushes - great for sink fixtures and drains!
Fleece Baby Blankets - for rags
Bucket/Mop


How To Use Baking Soda

Use as a paste mixed with water for:

Showers
Tile
Toilets
Bathtubs
Sinks
Dishes
Stove tops and grills
Ovens(vinegar, lemon juice, water and baking soda paste) Let sit overnight!
Lightly wipe (non-abrasive cloth) stains off of walls, cupboards and baseboards, as well as floors!
REMEMBER! Always rinse well and avoid using abrasive scrub brushes if possible!

How To Use Vinegar

Vinegar Mixed with 2-3 parts water for:

Windows
Wood surfaces
Dusting furniture
Floors
Bathroom fixtures
Washing walls
Cleaning coffee makers
Stainless steel sinks and appliances

Vinegar Mixed With Baking Soda And Water:

Ovens (plus lemon juice)
Stove tops
Bath tubs
Sinks

Vinegar Mixed with Water, Lemon Juice and/or Natural Oils Such As Lavender:

Dusting
Microwave Ovens


USES FOR BORAX:

Basic Cleaner
Laundry - Water Softener
Natural disinfectant
Bug Repellent!

WASHING YOUR HANDS?

Good old soap such as Olive Oil based soap!

Plastic Bag Overload In India!

New Delhi's poor and impoverished collect an overwhelming amount of plastic bags off the streets of India's capital for fashion?!

See "Bags to Riches" Podcast July 02/08, 2009 at: CBC Radio One - Dispatches

Cycling On A Different Path (No War Here!)

Article On Low Risk Cycling In Denmark...Here

MICHELLE OBAMA HARVESTS WHITE HOUSE GARDEN!

BEST PICS HERE!

Moving Faster Into The Future!

Victoria Regional Rapid Transit

LIVE & LEARN GREEN!

Learn How To Utilize Natural Building Materials, Produce Organic Foods Through Sustainable Means and Help Others Find Their "Green" Thumbs!

GO TO THE ECO-VILLAGE

HOW CAN RENTERS GET IN ON SUSTAINABLE ENERGY?

FOLLOW THE LINKS BELOW:

SUSTAINABLE ENERGY FOR RENTAL HOUSING

GREEN LANDLORDS PROJECT

WHAT ARE YOUR GREEN HABITS?!

Here's a list of "green" habits I do and "non-green" habits I am hoping to break!

GREEN DOs

Recycle all my glass, plastic, and cardboard
Use my bicycle, walk, car pool or take public transportation everywhere I go!
Buy 95% of my clothing, housewares, home decor, fabric, etc. second hand
Wear very few beauty products and purchase the products I do use from eco-friendly/socially conscious companies
Always turn off my lights when not in use!
Use energy efficient light bulbs!
Monitor leaky faucets
Re-use plastic bags and use homemade cloth bags for shopping, etc.
Use re-usable wet/dry bag for the rags I use for work
Refuse to ride with friends who own gas guzzling vehicles!
Live as a minimalist - I use what I need and donate what I don't use!
Use eco-friendly cleaning solutions
Use an apartment sized compost and I have it picked up bi-weekly!

*We actually have 3 companies in Victoria, BC that will pick up your compost for you and bring it to a local composting site

Compost Pick-up 1
Compost Pick-up 2
My Compost Pick-up!


NON-GREEN HABITS TO BREAK!

Take longer showers than I truly need!
Live in a less than eco-friendly apartment building!
Do not have a garden or plants growing in my home!
Buy products that are not manufactured by eco-friendly, socially conscious companies!
Some of my clients choose not to use eco-friendly products - I am trying to convince them otherwise!

What's your GREEN HABIT list look like? Please post it in your comments if you wish!

OFF THE GRID WITH RENEWABLE ENERGY?

Living off the grid with renewable energy. It can work, but for whom and where? What do you think?

more about "untitled", posted with vodpod

Can We Do It In The City?

Water Guzzling Showers?!

more about "Water Guzzling Showers?!", posted with vodpod