Comments wayneluke has made

Tried this for a few weeks.

We tried this for a few months and it didn't go over well. Now I just unplug certain appliances when they aren't being used. The only thing on a power strip that is turned off now are the cell phone chargers.

Aside from the programming and the satellite receiver requiring 10 minutes to boot up every time it is turned off, is the fact that we experience a lot of power brownouts during peak draw periods. I work at home so am required to use my computers during the day and these brownouts have caused hardware damage. So all 6 of the PCs on the network are on Uninterruptible Power Supplies and line conditioners. They prevent me from losing equipment. Television and DVR are similarly setup. Unfortunately, these have to constant draw power or they do not serve their purpose.

When I did turn off everything and reduce the power draw, I saw absolutely no effect on my electric bill. Not even a dip in the average kilowatt hours used per day. Instead, we started switching from CFLs to LED lights, switched all outdoor lights to solar power, have battery powered Alarm Clocks (with rechargeable batteries), do most kitchen work by hand, and conserve where ever we can and the power usage has dropped 70% in the last year. Part of that is because we moved to a new energy efficient home. But a good portion is due to saving efforts. Now I am trying to figure out if the environmental cost of new energy star appliances (refrigerator, freezer, washer, dryer, microwave) versus long term energy savings and if it is worth it to replace my existing appliances. On Umbra on power strips posted 2 years ago 13 Responses

Turkeys

For the last few years, we have had a friend grow our turkeys for us. Not completely organic but free range and cage free. We didn't get our order in this year so will probably get an organic bird from the local meat processor that handles our pig every year and also handles the local buffalo herd.On Thanksgiving isn't just about the food; it is about relationships posted 2 years, 2 months ago 17 Responses

Freezers.

My freezer uses $20.00 a year in electricity. That is pretty darn efficient in my book. The microwave would use more. I am not pretending it isn't part of the part. There isn't another solution for my needs at this time. I have my meat raised locally. This means I get 300 lbs of pork at once. It isn't going to stay edible sitting in the refrigerator or on the counter. Nor can I shop on a daily basis to keep foods. We do major shopping once a month, fill-ins once a week. Blanch and freeze what we can. I make our bread and snacks. We only use 1 gallon of milk a month (2 half gallon bottles because 1 gallons would spoil and add more waste), etc...

Might as well launch the world's nukes if you're going to preach and absolutist solution to everything. You can advocate getting rid of things but in the real world people need to make compromises. We gave up other things so that we can keep the freezer because it is necessary for our lives right now.On Umbra on the impact of food purchases posted 2 years, 2 months ago 21 Responses

So...

I think the key is how much that mansion uses in absolute terms, not per square foot. If someone has built a 15,000 square foot mansion that use 90% less energy than a typical U.S. home, I'm fine with that. A 90% reduction is a 90% reduction,and that helps develop the technology.  If someone has built a mansion that uses 90% less than a typical 15,000 square foot home, that is not particularly green.

So I saw this on "Living with Ed".

Supposedly Larry Hagman has a 25,000 square foot home and a $13.00 annual electric bill. That is the cost of the meter. He has an 82 KWh solar array that provides electricity for his home and 5 of his neighbors. According to the show, he is looking into adding Wind Power to supplement this. The property is also on its own well, which has a storage tank in the house that doubles as and indoor pool. The house is cooled with passive solar skylights as well.

The motivation for going green? His first year's electric bill was $37,000.On Should USGBC certify a 15,000-sq.-ft. home as green? posted 2 years, 2 months ago 40 Responses

In regards to a carbon tax.

Here is a question in regards to a carbon tax.

With a carbon tax in place, what safeguards would you recommend so that there are no adverse affects on the poor but also make it so the middle class are not double taxed?

A carbon tax would make fuel and electricity more expensive. As it is now, we pay taxes and fees on our monthly utility bills to subsidize service for the people in California that can't afford the full service. If there is an increase in production costs (carbon tax), that will be offset. If the poor cannot pay it, then it will be charged to other customers. Most people can handle a new tax on their own consumption either by reducing consumption or repriortizing but making them justify additional subsidies to the poor will be a hard sell.On Thursday event in D.C. seeks carbon questions posted 2 years, 2 months ago 15 Responses

California Legislature

The state's legislature isn't going to debate much. They adjourned for the year a week ago.

http://www.californiaprogressreport.com/2007/09/californi ...On Schwarzenegger unveils $9 billion water bond package posted 2 years, 2 months ago 2 Responses

Make Your Own.

I'd say make your own frozen dinners if you can. Cooking for one can be time consuming and energy intensive, depending on what you cook. However when you cook larger amounts, you get economies of scale as well. Most prepared foods can be frozen in reusable containers for later use. One way to start this is to make double servings when you do cook. One for now and one for later. Freeze the second serving. Soon, you'll have a whole freezer full of "Finicky Cuisine" meals. Leftovers are great when they come from great food.

I would also suggest eating more raw foods such as salads and fruit with your meals. This will cut down on your energy requirements as well.

As far as Whole Foods, it would be nice if they were everywhere but sadly most people in the country do not have access to one. Tesco's however is building 400 smaller stores (10-15 thousand sq. ft.) in California, Nevada and Oregon this year and they will carry similar meals.On Umbra on the impact of food purchases posted 2 years, 2 months ago 21 Responses

Good Idea John..

I think I'll have that printed up on some bumper stickers and sell them at festivals. I'll make a bundle.On State renewable electricity standards create jobs while cutting pollution posted 2 years, 2 months ago 3 Responses

PETA also value genetically bred farm animals more

The cow as used in the beef industry does not exist in nature. It was bred by farmers over the centuries. What would happen to these animals if people overturned Factory Farming fairly quickly? They don't have the instincts or skills to survive in the wild. They don't have an indigenous habitat. Domesticated cattle may be able to interbreed with American Bison and well as Indian and African Buffalo, but they aren't the same animals anymore. Not after 3,000 years of selection and inbreeding. Pigs might survive as the invasive wild boars in the Americas and Polynesian islands have proven. Ducks and geese among poulty might but I doubt domesticated turkeys and chickens would. I have lived on a farm and these animals are not very bright. They have had the brains bred out of them over the years. Something tells me these animals would be put to death if something as drastic as outlawing factory farming was to happen. Wholesale Euthanasia.

Really, I am not against the message. My meat consumption is drastically reduced from what it was. However I can't seem to find the same products that Matt Prescott finds for vegan eating. Most make me want to gag, quite literally.

My problem is what I see as an ethical issue with the conveyors of the message. How can PETA say they are for the rights of all animals when they regularly euthanize them on an annual basis. That to me is the problem with this whole campaign. I see it as them telling me not to eat the animals so they can euthanize them later. Maybe that is their weekend night out. Maybe when they adopt out 80% of the animals they take in instead of killing them it will sit better.

http://www.petakillsanimals.com/petaKillsAnimals.cfm

My wife works at a facility with 7% of PETA's budget and they are able to provide homes for 1500 dogs and cats every year. Not one is euthanized. They have a full time veternarian on staff as well as numerous vet techs. They also have a full hospital on the facility including intensive care units. Most of the animals are considered feral or dangerous and would be euthanized immediately by the local Animal Control Department. They wouldn't even try to adopt them out. And yet, they have homes here. Not one is euthanized.
On PETA VP argues vegetarianism is the best way to help the planet posted 2 years, 2 months ago 77 Responses

Thinking outloud

One would think that working against climate change and staving off disease in third-world countries could work symbiotically. If the rainforests in Africa and South America were restored and healthy, they would bring more diversity in life and water to the regions. This in turn can help keep down pathogenic creatures like mosquitos and therefore diseases like malaria. By restoring large lakes to their former glory, you would increase the numbers of fish that would not only be a local food source but would again feed on the mosquitos and their larva. Fresh clean water would reduce the occurence of dysentary and other waterborne illness. Sustainable crop land would provide healthier food for the indigenous people so they are less likely to get sick. Restoring natural habitats would increase bird and bat populations and would further reduce the spread of pathogens.

To me it seems that both are interconnected. By destroying our ecosystems, we increase the amount of global warming and disease. By restoring them, we can decrease both.On Debating Bjorn Lomborg on global warming posted 2 years, 2 months ago 13 Responses

Fossil Fuel Industry

Hey, this will all work great.   All we have to do is push that trillion dollar a year fossil fuel industry out of the way.    They'll go quietly.

If you push renewables and offer the coal miners in the country jobs installing those systems without worrying about cave-ins or black lung diseases and comparable (or better income rates), then you can simply go around that industry. Same can be done with oil rig crews and refinery workers over time.

If the government went to the large petroleum companies and said "We have a trillion dollars to invest in your business but you need to do this", then they would look at other means of producing their income besides petroleum. Like someone said above, its the stockholders. In the long run the stockholder doesn't care if the energy comes from fossil fuels or a solar bank as long as the dividend check arrives on time and their investment increases.

The main problem here is that the people in charge are so closed minded about current profits that they are not looking long term. The oil industry is not going to be a trillion dollar a year industry forever so these people should be looking to alternative income sources to replace that if they truly want to keep their stockholders happy. I know that BP gets knocked a lot and they aren't the most environmentally friendly company but they do have their feet wet in Solar and Wind Energy. It shows someone at that company is at least looking towards the future. Other companies should get on board as well.On It's time to stop accepting the claim that we 'can't' switch to renewable energy posted 2 years, 2 months ago 21 Responses

CA Public Transportation

Except for BART and some parts of the MTA, public transportation in California is a joke and a waste of money. Its an hour between buses where I live and you have to go on three different buses and travel 12 miles to visit a store 2 miles away. Of course, there is no air conditioning either so you don't ride when its over 95 degrees outside, which is pretty much between May and October. Maybe if they cancelled the funds and started from scratch it would be a more efficient system in the long term.On How green is California? posted 2 years, 2 months ago 9 Responses

GE

I heard on Thom Hartmann's radio show, and he said that the union at GE was going to publicize this, and point out that if all bulbs were CFL's that GE would shut down unionized factories in the U.S.--

Maybe the union should negotiate making GE's CFL line here in the United States. It is made in China as well.On Are you trying to buy more American-made products? posted 2 years, 3 months ago 11 Responses

Labelling

I do look for the "Made in USA" labeling but on most products its very difficult. As the article above says, it is virtually impossible to not buy foreign goods in general and from China specifically. Until we get full country of origin labeling, it will remain so. Not every product tells you where it was made or assembled so it compounds the issues. Then you have to contend with products like cars and television which may carry the "Made in USA" label but be prodominantly made of imported parts. Very difficult to handle. You can only be as diligent as the labels provided.

By the way, has anyone found in Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs that are actually made in the United States? I haven't seen any myself. They all come from China.On Are you trying to buy more American-made products? posted 2 years, 3 months ago 11 Responses

Water

I don't knock water. Drink a lot of it every day. However it doesn't work right in my cereal, coffee or chai. Though I use half-and-half in my coffee and chai. Not a big fan of soy dairy alternatives as they always cause digestion problems with me.On USDA brings the enforcement hammer down on nation's largest organic dairy producer posted 2 years, 3 months ago 6 Responses

Over the hill

I live over the hill from you. The metropolitan sprawl has hit us as well. The local water districts are wondering if there will be enough water to put through the taps come December.  They only got 60% of the water allocation requested this year. It might drop to 28% next year. Yet, the cities keep issuing permits to build new houses.

On the local energy front, SCE is fighting a war trying to get 3000 MW of wind power transmission lines built. They have 3 of several segments approved but the fourth is getting too close to people's property so they are putting up a fight. Its needed to tie in the Antelope Valley local grid though. As it is, I think we have a Luz facility sitting in the desert about halfway to Las Vegas which doesn't have transmission lines to this day.

Also on SCE's website it says they shut down their coal plant in Nevada.
http://www.sce.com/PowerandEnvironment/PowerGeneration/Mo ...
Of course they are still buying much needed electricity from somewhere and it is probably coal. I wouldn't mind a few more concentrated solar plants.  It is the tranmission lines that will kill deals though. That and the fact that the desert is a fragile environment as well. Most of the Mojave is under one protective order or another.On Solar thermal power deserves more attention, due to its lower cost and relative ease of storage posted 2 years, 3 months ago 35 Responses

Comparing the type of heating.

I have never lived anywhere with biolers nor the extreme need for heating. In Southern California, I have only seen forced air heating with natural gas as the source of the heat.

I would question though that if you are looking for efficiency improvements if there are other options than a standard boiler setup. Force Air may be cost prohibitive due to duct work, air returns and such but if you have HVAC, then it can share the same ducts. Another option would be a heat pump with "geothermal" based heat exchange. Or if possible infloor radiant heat.

Just seems to be more to the overall equation than just where the power is generated and what type of boiler to purchase, at least on the efficiency front.On Umbra on replacing a boiler posted 2 years, 3 months ago 7 Responses

Local Meat

My wife and I have had a friend grow a pig for us for the last five years. They grow it and then it gets shipped to the meat processor/butcher to be processed and smoked if appropriate. We then pick it up when it is ready. For use it is a lot cheaper and the meat tastes better. Added on to this, we know the animal was raised in a humane way with plenty of area to grow in. The reason we started is that they had grown pigs for a while because their children were in 4H. However when the kids left 4H, they still wanted to raise a pig a year for themselves. Pigs are social creatures and a solitary animal doesn't do as well. So they suggested we buy the second pig.

We also get local chicken, turkey and rabbit when available. We had looked into raising a steer but it was more meat than we could handle and wasn't really viable. Instead we have recently switched to locally grown bison as it is healthier than beef and more readily available from a small local farmer.On Umbra on sustainable meat posted 2 years, 3 months ago 32 Responses

Plant trees for their other benefits.

I would be foolish to think that the three trees that I want to plant would make any kind of dent in global warming. However, I will enjoy the apples, plums and pomegranates they will provide.On They're not going to save us posted 2 years, 3 months ago 11 Responses

First Dates

Steak would have been a hard thing to handle during my first date with my wife. It was a Lynnard Skynnard and Styx concert.

I think that a woman who is engaging and fun to be around is more important than what is on her plate that night.On NYT dating advice: Eat more flesh posted 2 years, 3 months ago 24 Responses

Farmer's Markets

Look in your area to see if there are any Farmer's Markets, CSAs or Co-ops. You can do this at localharvest.org.

Talk to these small producers about their farming methods. Go to their farms and check up on things as well. Often times they will be pesticide and herbicide feed but not able to use the organic label due to costs. Their products will often be less expensive than those in local supermarkets or whole foods stores as well. They enable you to get more bang for your buck.

If you're worried about human rights, then look for fairtrade certified items. They are required to be low pesticide or organic items as well as providing a decent wage to the workers. You will find this most often found with things like chocolate, coffee and tea. Other products can be certified fairtrade as well though. It will be more expensive but you're money is feeding families not business profits.On Umbra on prioritizing organic purchases posted 2 years, 3 months ago 10 Responses

Testing Water

The New York city water supply was just tested. There were articles in the newspapers about it because the city was worried it would have to invest hundreds of millions in filtering and pumping stations when it never had to before. The EPA passed the water supply with flying colors. Its one of the things that spurred the current campaign in the city against tap water.

While not necessarily perfect, tap water is one of the most tested and regulated commodities in the United States. If you have problems, contact the EPA and have them test your local water.On Water, that is posted 2 years, 3 months ago 11 Responses

Salt Intake

I believe we get all the chemical salt we need from our regular food. Table salt does enhance the flavor of the food. MSG and a little sugar will have the same effect. All three allow the taste buds to pick up the flavors better. By itself, I don't think that table salt has any dietary benefit. Millions of people can't use table salt for health reasons.

The only reason we think we need salt in our diet is the government has mandated that iodine be added to counteract deficiencies of this chemical in a modern processed food diet. Lack of iodine leads to thyroid problems and other related illnesses. Of course too much Iodine leads to the same problems

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002421.ht ...

I personally have not added table salt to my food for over 15 years now and make sure I eat foods with good levels of iodine.On Umbra on salt posted 2 years, 3 months ago 5 Responses

Less than 18 months.

Really, "King" George's reign is almost over. Studies like this would be of more benefit to those who will be taking up the challenge of correcting the last eight years and moving the United States forward instead of worrying about a lame duck presidency now.On Now that's a 12-step program posted 2 years, 4 months ago 7 Responses

breakwaters

It would seem to me that systems like LIMPET could be installed along the breakwaters of our port cities. These are normally manmade structures with little aesthetic or recreational value. The only drawback, albeit a major one, is they tend to become home to seals and sea lions who like to play in the waves. However with creative thinking, it should be possible to turn these walls of rock and broken concrete into power generators.

It seems a shame that no one in North America is moving along these lines.On Umbra on wave power posted 2 years, 4 months ago 4 Responses

Sounds like a B movie.

I can't help but remembering some 'B' movie a while back where scientists solved our energy problems with a biogenetic organism designed to produce oil. Unfortunately, in the movie, the organism mutated into something that ate petroleum byproducts and subsequently caused society to collapse once accidently introduced into the wild.

What's to make sure that life doesn't imitate art here? The better course I believe would be to reduce consumption but I also understand that the average Joe doesn't care until it severely impacts his lifestyle.On New company says it can make better, cheaper biofuels posted 2 years, 4 months ago 40 Responses

Native Plants

If you plant flora that is native to your area then you can provide food for native birds and insects without resorting to as much birdfeed. Also you can provide ponds in your yard with fish to control mosquitos instead of birdbaths. If you have moving water and shallow creek like areas for the birds to frolic in, you can provide much enjoyment in your home while controlling mosquitos.

You can even have your yard certified as a wildlife habitat. For ideas, finding native plants for your area and certification check out:
http://www.nwf.org/backyard/On Umbra on feeding birds posted 2 years, 4 months ago 19 Responses

It seems a little off but a good start.

I saw this the other day and was surprised that my location got a 57 and not so surprised my ex-wife's got a 6.

Where I live, there is local shopping, even if it is not desireable. For groceries we have Wal-Mart Supercenter, a Food-4-Less (owned by Kroger's), a 99-cent store within a third of a mile. There are two movie theaters within half a mile. We also have a myriad of fast food from chinese buffets to your regular drive-throughs. We also have three stripmalls with smaller shops and some traditional restaruants in the same distance.

However, its 3 miles to the library and further to any park. Across the street it is bare soil that at one time was going to be a shopping district and more houses but those projects went bankrupt during the last real-estate bubble burst. We do have a city baseball stadium about half a mile away for the local minor league baseball team. However even though the city lists it as a park, it isnt.

What is interesting is my parents choose to live in a "recovering neighborhood" in the same city where new people are moving in and pushing crime out. The place is scary and there is always the sound of arguments with police cars constantly patrolling and helicopters overhead. However they got a 70, even though the walk-able stores include a 7-11 and a furniture store. They are closer to the library, performance city and the downtown boulevard (which the city designates as a museum) at only a mile away. Their nearest grocery store is well over two miles from their house though.On Calculate how walkable your home is posted 2 years, 4 months ago 12 Responses

A new combo is needed.

Technology improvements will bring greater efficiency over time but we need to bring efficiency to our habits as well. We have spent the last 60 years in the United States building suburbia and the disposable lifestyle. Those habits need to change if we are going to move forward. This is the only way to provide any sort of stopgap until technology catches up.

I do think though that instead of x-prizes, or maybe alongside them, business should be rewarded for truly innovative products that are energy efficient and go beyond the standards. If the MPG standard is 35 miles/gallon and GM builds a 70 mile/gallon vehicle then they should get tax subsidies/credits. It would be a new way of distributing the subsidies and credits available already. A utility may get them as they hit certain milestones- 50% renewable, 75% renewable, etc...

However more than just technology has to change. There is the technology to live a lot more efficiently than we do but people don't use it. We need to start. If habits change and the technology changes efficiency and power generation, we could be truly carbon neutral in 2100. Probably a pipe dream, I know but really humans are ingenious when we actually try.On For reducing the climate crisis posted 2 years, 4 months ago 39 Responses

Trip Reduction

Not everyone with a large refrigerator and a freezer lives within walking distance of local markets.

My "local" quality food venues are Trader Joe's (10 miles away), some small selections at Albertson's (3 miles away) and a small market (3 miles away). The market is closest but it is two miles away. With 100° temperatures in the summer and an hour or more wait between urine-scented buses, there isn't much choice here. I'd have to take 2 buses to get to the store and 2 more back for a cost of about $3. It is impractical to get to these places more than once a week. Often its twice a month that we do our shopping for a family of 5. I could walk the hour or so each way but wouldn't be able to get anything that needed to be kept refrigerated. I am physically unable to ride a bicycle and while I do walk when I can it is often excruciatingly painful. The nearest store is a Walmart Supercenter, and yes if absolutely necessary then I will walk and shop there but prefer not to.

Not everyone lives in a large city with every amenity around the corner to make a smaller fridge worthwhile. Instead I go for the most efficient models that I can, reduce my usage in other ways like leaving the AC off all day, working from home, changing lightbulbs, driving a small but efficient car as little as possible and so forth. On Umbra on refrigerator downsizing posted 2 years, 4 months ago 34 Responses

hmmmm...

I thought it would be higher. I always added 40% on to my calculations for gasoline as well 80-90% for consumer products and food. All due to the lifecycle of the product from manufacture to distribution to recycling.On Why bicycling is 25 percent better than you thought posted 2 years, 4 months ago 8 Responses

Why buy it then?

Really, if those 5.4 million subscribers really cared about the environment they would complain and make the magazine change its ways. Really, one can speak with their pocketbook by cancelling their subscriptions. I have three decades of the magazine on CD-ROM and don't purchase the magazine. I can read what I want from their website for free and purchase archive versions on CD when it is made available. We can argue which is better, three decades of virgin paper for reference or the CDs but I will take my chances with the CDs.

And I don't have to deal with advertising cards, inserts or petroleum ads.On Shell and Nat Geo team up to create 5.4 million pieces of trash posted 2 years, 4 months ago 9 Responses

Handling CFL Breaks

Here is a page the EPA provides on household mercury cleanup linked to the section for CFL cleanup:
http://www.epa.gov/mercury/spills/index.htm#flourescentOn Umbra on mercury in CFLs posted 2 years, 4 months ago 17 Responses

MTA is a joke.

The MTA is a failure in Southern California. It actually encourages people to drive over public transportation. Some places have to wait an hour or more between buses. Trains are few and far between. As a public transportation system it fails miserably compared to BART or East Coast systems. The entire existing system needs to be rebuilt from the ground up to make public transportaion in the nations second largest city viable and attractive for the 10 million people in the metropolis. Taking the bus or train shouldn't be a hassle and it shouldn't cost more per month than maintaining a personal vehicle.

Particularly the bus systems need better routes, reliability and cost reductions to get people riding them. I remember commuting by bus in the past with 20-30 people on the bus while the freeway was packed. 50,000 people commute to Los Angeles from my area every day. There are about 2,000 seats on the 5 trains that service the area and probably the same on the commuter buses. The majority of the rest are single passenger drivers.On A perspective from Eric Mann posted 2 years, 4 months ago 29 Responses

Why farmers don't grow more.

For the most part, the public could care less how their food is produced. Farmers are the ones trying to maximize their profit and I am finding it hard to believe that they have overlooked organic farming as a way to triple their incomes. And somebody explain to me why organic food is so expensive?

In the United States farmers are often paid not to grow crops. This keeps the rest of the market artificially high. This is one of the reasons why food manufacturers put corn syrup in everything. It is cheaper than sugar because of the sugar subsidies paid to keep prices artificially high in this country. If you go to Mexico, you will find that Coca-Cola uses sugar as a sweetener, not corn syrup. Sugar costs 1/5 there as it does in the United States.

In other areas, farmers get paid more these days to divert their crops to non-food resources such as ethanol creation. They get paid more for growing corn for ethanol than for the table. However if they grow three times as much, the supply will increase and prices will actually go down. This happens for 2 reasons. 1) greater supply will always lower prices and 2) they will lose their subsidies. Equating more supply with more money and profit doesn't always work. The economy works by limiting supply to reasonable amounts through tariffs and subsidies, not by allowing unlimited supply onto the market.On A new study puts the old canard to rest posted 2 years, 4 months ago 50 Responses

bottle bill in California

The bill in California does not focus on returning containers to retailers and distributors but is more focused on recycling those containers. It is a slightly different beast. They didn't want to implement the infrastructure to reuse but to recycle. Personally, I try to recycle everything. My bin is green but I still fill it every week.

Locally, the city of Lancaster just implemented a mandatory business recycling program. They used to charge business a monthly fee to participate in recycling and the participation was low. Imagine that. Now it is free and mandatory so we will see how it goes.

I also have to say thanks for the link on Creamery above. My wife and I have been looking for a dairy with glass bottle recycling and is more local to our location. A local store is listed as selling your products so we will check it out.
On Umbra on returnable bottles posted 2 years, 4 months ago 10 Responses