Grist | Topics | 10 Results

RESULTS		Results 1 – 10 of 10
Headline	Author	Published	Section
Splash Animation On kiddie pools	Umbra Fisk	09 Jun 2008	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, Regarding your obsession with vinyl, as pertains to summer parenting: Greenpeace's thorough Vinyl Alternatives list indicates that no good alternatives to vinyl kiddie pools exist. Do you think it is worth it to put a huge effort into manufacturing or finding a vinyl-free backyard wading experience? I can't stop thinking about this, and think it merits faking a question. Yours as always, Umbra Dearest Me, What a great questi ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, green living, health, parenting, toxics (all these topics)

Soiled Again On lead and gardens	Umbra Fisk	05 May 2008	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, In your reply to the question about pollution and rooftop gardening, you talked a fair amount about lead pollution. Since gasoline is no longer leaded, and since it's container gardening that wouldn't have any lead paint in it, and surely nobody has lead water pipes any more, why is lead even a concern? Teresa Brenham, Tex. Dearest Teresa, Our ecological history hangs around our necks like a lead weight. Still heavy after al ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, gardening, green living, health, toxics (all these topics)

Ash Ask On burning paper	Umbra Fisk	19 Mar 2008	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, We heat our house primarily by wood, in an efficient, EPA-rated woodstove. My question is this: We recycle all of our paper, paperboard, cardboard, etc., but would it be better to burn it? As it is, we drive it to the recycle center, they ship it off somewhere, it is then processed, then shipped back out as a product. If we burn it, we get some heat, and ashes to spread on our garden. Which is better for paper -- recycling or burning ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, green living, health, recycling, toxics (all these topics)

My Three Sins On avoiding vinyl	Umbra Fisk	13 Feb 2008	Ask Umbra
Hi Umbra! I've been in denial about vinyl. Blue Vinyl, the movie, got me thinking, but unfortunately I space out and lie to myself. I even have bought those recently popular adult toys that advertise as being vinyl in large unavoidable proclamations on the front of the box and I still managed somehow to think, "It is probably a different process for toys." After reading your article about the LPs, I realized just how bad I have ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, green living, health, shopping, toxics (all these topics)

Do They Suck? On Camelbaks	Umbra Fisk	07 Jan 2008	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, Recently, I've started to try to avoid plastics (especially plastic water bottles). For Christmas, my brother gave me a Camelbak-type water bottle. How safe is this? I assume it's as bad as most plastic water bottles. Timothy Kearney Issaquah, Wash. Dearest Timothy, Gifting quandary alert. But does it suck? Photo: iStockphoto Not all plastic water bottles are equal. In a larger context of avoiding plastic, we may occasionally ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, green living, health, toxics (all these topics)

Chem Again On bleach	Umbra Fisk	10 Dec 2007	Ask Umbra
Greetings, I recently was infected with MRSA. It got better. As part of my treatment I'm supposed to use bleach in my laundry and around the house to help kill the bacteria. While I'm brunette, I feel like the stereotypical blonde about bleach. What are the environmental impacts of this chemical? Thanks, Emily Indiana Editor's Note: Oh, how Umbra would love to answer this question -- but she's been kidnapped! Please donate to Grist by 11:59 p.m. P ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, green living, health, toxics (all these topics)

Message on a Bottle On aluminum bottles	Umbra Fisk	04 Apr 2007	Ask Umbra
Umbra, Are aluminum bottles safer than Nalgene bottles? I'm looking at getting Sigg bottles for my self, wife, and son. Vendor agnostic, are the materials used by aluminum-only vendors safer than those that incorporate Lexan? Chris Webber Seattle, Wash. Dearest Chris, I swear, I pick questions and only then do I notice that yet again I have chosen one from Seattle. It is not a conspiracy. I just wanted a question to go with our r ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, green living, green products, health, toxics (all these topics)

Puff the Toxic Dragon On green reasons to quit smoking	Umbra Fisk	15 May 2003	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I want to quit smoking. As if the risks to my health weren't enough, could you help out by twisting that knife of guilt into my tree-hugging heart and give me some environmental reasons to stop supporting the tobacco industry? Cough, wheeze, Elaine Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada Dearest Elaine, I don't care whether you smoke or not. In fact, I think anti-smoking hype is often thinly disguised clas ...
Topics: advice, agriculture, Ask Umbra, food and agriculture, green living, health, toxics (all these topics)

Menstruation Innovation On that time of the month	Umbra Fisk	12 Mar 2003	Ask Umbra
Hey there, Umbra! I have a kind of gross-yet-pressing question for you: Are sanitary products (pads, etc.) environmentally friendly? I would think no, but what do you say? And what can I do about it? Thanks, Jessica Telford, Tenn. Hey there, dearest Jessica, How is it possible that we live in a country where diapers are table conversation and menstruation is considered gross? But no worries, there are many nice flowe ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, green living, health, toxics, waste (all these topics)

A New Day Lawning On lawn and garden pesticides	Umbra Fisk	30 Jul 2002	Ask Umbra
Dearest Umbra, Goddess of Green Knowledge, A few years ago, a farmer friend of mine argued that more pesticides and chemical fertilizers are applied to suburban lawns and gardens than are used in commercial agriculture. I can see how this might be the case, given the massive size of the lawn and garden chemical industry, but I haven't been able to verify this information. Can you help? Ed Hunt Dearest Ed, Supplicant, The l ...
Topics: advice, agriculture, Ask Umbra, gardening, green living, health, toxics (all these topics)

Stories About: advice AND Ask Umbra AND green living AND health AND toxics