Comments Saucerman has made

  • Overstated water use

    So they say it takes 116 gallons of water to wash a car - are these the same people that estimate 2-3 gallons to brush your teeth? I wash my MINI Cooper every few weeks with a bucket (and Dr. Bronner's) and spray nozzle hose, and nary a drop reaches the street or the storm drain. I use less than 5 gallons of water. I brush my teeth with 1/2 glass of water, not 2-3 gallons.

    Falcon Water-free Urinals claims that one urinal saves 40,000 gallons of water per year. That's 25,000 flushes at 1.6 gal, or 68 leaks a day, 7 days a week. That is a whole lotta piss!

    It doesn't do the conservation case any good at all to grossly exaggerate these baseline usage numbers. It merely adds fodder for the skeptics. I would ask Umbra and others to be more careful about these things...On Umbra on washing your car posted 3 years, 3 months ago 7 Responses

  • It's new and it's coming...

    Great question, David - and several thoughtful responses. It is new and therefore slow in coming. Many of the quality features listed by 'oilman' - non-repeating design, mature landscaping, 'flat drainage - tend to cost more money and most consumers don't recognize these as worthwhile. They like them when they see them, but they don't want to pay any more for these features. I live in Sacramento, CA where considerable medium and high density infill has been constructed in the past couple of years. Something like 4500 units of high density mixed use urban housing is in the pipeline here and yes, it's priced at a premium. Several hundred units come up for rent and/or sale this spring, it will be interesting to see how sales go.

    I would be curious to see how many people following this post live in what they preach - who here actually lives in a new urban, high density setting? I do not; I live in an older duplex on the edge of downtown, 5-mile bike ride to work, walking distance to most residential services (restaurants, theater, bookstore, etc.) How about you David, or anyone else?

    sustain - it's harder than you think.

    On Why isn't there more new urbanism? posted 3 years, 8 months ago 28 Responses

  • Events set to run their course

    Sobering indeed, and it ends with this retort:

    "For a little counterbalancing optimism, read Mark Bahner's comments under Pielke's post"

    Desperate for optimism I read it. Huh. He posits the notion that we'll all be multimillionares soon, so it won't matter - evidently we can buy our way oout of trouble, just like we've always done. Yeah, that really cheered me up, sure...

    sustain - it's harder than you think.

    On A really depressing paper about climate change. posted 4 years, 4 months ago 5 Responses

  • Widening the chasm?

    While I appreciate your personal need to spew frustration at the "sacredness" of religion, it's just that, Dave - a personal rant. Me, I'm agnostic but I bicycle regularly with a cadre (OK, peloton) of devout Christians. I've asked them about environmental concerns and they've stated frankly, it's just not on their radar screen. I'm really heartened to hear more and more from Christians who DO care. On the one hand there is the old (and somewhat discredited) model of Christians treating the earth like a frat house; on their way to the big Graduation up in the sky. On the other hand, some are coming forward with the remembrance that God originally put man on earth to tend the beasts and garden. Perhaps environmental concern will indeed reach the conciousness of church-goers everywhere.

    sustain - it's harder than you think.

    On Is there tension between them? posted 4 years, 6 months ago 41 Responses

  • deep dark secrets

    Ya know, I've loved cars, trains & motorcycles since I was a kid. I own several (well, not trains) and I really like them, though I drive them less & less. It's a guilty, guilty pleasure.On So tell us ... what's your dirty little environmental secret? posted 4 years, 7 months ago 84 Responses

  • deep dark secrets

    Ya know, I've loved cars, trains & motorcycles since I was a kid. I own several (well, not trains) and I really like them, though I drive them less & less. It's a guilty, guilty pleasure.

    sustain - it's harder than you think.

    On What's your secret eco-sin? posted 4 years, 7 months ago 84 Responses