Simplify the Holidays

by Michael Smith

The holiday season is upon us and I am suggesting that we all "simplify the holidays."

Let's use this time of both great hope and great challenges to refocus on the season's deeper values of joy, peace, and family by making holiday choices that support and nurture our homes, our communities, our planet – and our family budgets, too.

I am no Christian and no believer in the story that Jesus the Messiah – Yeshuah ha Meshiach – was supposedly born on December 25 some 2,000 or so years ago in the so-called Holy Land in order to die on the cross to save us all, but nevertheless I believe that this season has become a hectic “must-have I want” kind of time and we must get back to the real values; those that really count.

When we watch then children in the stores with their parents it is not a case of “I would like this or that for Christmas”. No it is “I want that and that and that and that, ad infinitum” and the parents go “we'll get Santa to bring you that all” or such statement. Today's children are made into consumption zombies with no real understanding of the values of things. This can be seen in so many aspects, for instance the way they throw away things and such.

Join me in this campaign by making one or more of a special list of commitments to change our approach to the holidays. Some of the commitments could include: using a locally grown or potted Christmas tree, or, better still, don't use a tree at all (poor thing gets cut off and then discarded and even a potted one is not generally going to survive), giving edible gifts or plants, or hand-made gifts, reusing or using alternatives to traditional wrapping paper, and starting eco-friendly traditions such as picking up litter while caroling, if you do do the caroling bit, I mean. Would not be a good idea for me to do; my voice is horrible and I cannot carry a tune.

There are other things that you can do. Bring some cheer into the lives of some people that are worst of than you, such as homeless children, children in orphanages, at home and abroad. There are the schemes of packing a shoe box with a gift for a needy child ; somewhere. But most of all, give your time to someone. Start with your own child or children or some other loved one.

When it comes to giving gifts, make those gifts from the heart, gifts that you have made for the recipient, and not store-boughten goods.

If you have never tried to simplify the holidays then why not make this season the first. The fact that many, and maybe you too, do not have as much to spend and in light of the world economic situation think of laying by some money, this may be the best “excuse”, if one be needed, to start simplifying the holiday season.

Change begins with each and everyone of us and if we slowly but surely make a real effort to no longer give in to the commercialism of this season then maybe, just maybe, we can change the people around us as well, and here especially our families and friends.

If we want more compassionate communities, a more resilient economy, and a more sustainable environment, we ourselves have to take the first steps, even if they may be difficult or feel a little awkward at first.

With enough initiative and encouragement, we can help create a tipping point for how we approach the holidays – to live more consistently with the values that they stand for.

And this does not just have to be for the holiday season now, does it? We can use a similar approach to simplifying our entire life as much as possible.

© M Smith (Veshengro), December 2008
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LEADING SUSTAINABILITY GROUPS HOST ORGANICOLOGY

An In-Depth Examination of a Sustainable Food Future in the Grocery, Farming and Foodservice Sectors

PORTLAND, OR, December 2008: From February 26 to 28, 2009, the organic food and farming sector will gather in Portland to study and discuss a sustainable food future during a three-day conference called, Organicology. Organicology will offer intensive workshops, networking, a trade show and key notes from a diverse array of the world’s foremost food and farming experts. The first-time event is presented by Oregon Tilth, Organic Seed Alliance, the Food Trade Sustainability Leadership Association, and Organically Grown Company and will be held at the Doubletree Lloyd Center.

“As the realm of organics and concept of sustainable food systems rapidly expands with products, distributors, growers, innovators, chefs, educators, and people working behind-the-scenes, there’s clearly a need to orient and educate the ever-growing pool of people joining the industry,” said David Lively, Marketing Director for Organically Grown Company. “Organicology participants will leave charged with enthusiasm, armed with enhanced skills specific to their job, a network of trusted contacts, and a deeper understanding of the trade, beyond their own responsibilities.”

Here's just a sampling of what Organicology has to offer.

World-renowned authors, scholars and activists, including:

Dr. Vandana Shiva, Director of the Research Foundation for Science, Technology, and Natural Resource Policy and author of Earth Democracy: Justice, Sustainability, and Peace. Dr. Shiva pioneered the organic movement in India and established Navdanya, the country’s biggest network of seed keepers and organic producers.

Paul Roberts, author The End of Food and The End of Oil, writes and lectures frequently on the complex interplay of economics, technology, and the natural world.

Claire Hope Cummings, an environmental lawyer, journalist, and the author of Uncertain Peril: Genetic Engineering and the Future of Seeds.

Gil Friend, President and CEO of Natural Logic, Inc., a consulting and software development company. Tomorrow Magazine called Friend “one of the country’s leading environmental management consultants – a real expert who combines theoretical sophistication with hands-on, in-the-trenches know-how.”

Frederick L. Kirschenmann, a Distinguished Fellow for the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University and President of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Pocantico Hills, New York.

Learning Intensives and workshops
Organicology will present an array of in-depth courses on all aspects of sustainable farm production, sustainable business initiatives, organic seed production, labor practices, organic certification, renewable energy, managing the threats of genetically-engineered crops, and the challenges of local food systems. A complete list of intensives and workshops is available at www.organicology.org.

Opportunities to network and have fun
Complementing the curriculum will be a trade show, awards dinner, and nightly entertainment. On Saturday, Organicology will present a day-long Organic Exhibition with a wide array of displays, including seed companies, farm supply companies, farms, organic manufacturers and retail products. The Organic Exhibition is an ideal time for participants to network and share their own stories about how they incorporate sustainability into their livelihoods.

Organicology will host nightly entertainment, including a talent show, a seed swap, a wine and beer social with potato variety tasting, an audience-judged debate, and performances by Portland Taiko and the Pheromones--a band comprised of farmers and plant breeders. Mixing the fun with well-deserved kudos for the sustainability community will be Organicology's Awards Dinner.

Generous support for Organicology comes from industry partners Heath & Lejeune, Organics Unlimited, Earthbound Farms, CF Fresh, Cross Creek Trading, PCC Natural Markets and the Organic Trade Association.

For more information about registration, lodging, how to participate in the trade show, or course offerings, visit www.organicology.org

Recognizing the educational needs of the ever growing organic and sustainable food and farming trade, Organicology was founded by four organizations leading the organic revolution: Oregon Tilth (www.tilth.org) the nation’s premiere certifier for organics, and a nonprofit research and education membership organization dedicated to biologically sound and socially equitable agriculture. Organic Seed Alliance (www.seedalliance.org) supports the ethical development and stewardship of the genetic resources of agricultural seed. The Food Trade Sustainability Leadership Association (www.ftsla.org) works to foster sustainable business practices in the organic food trade through educational programming and annual reporting by member businesses. Employee and grower-owned Organically Grown Company (www.organicgrown.com) is the largest organic fresh produce purveyor in the Pacific Northwest, and dedicated to promoting the health and vitality of the region through organic agriculture and a thriving sustainable food system.

Source: seed-pr.com
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Green Star Awards to Honor Leaders in Environmental Emergencies

The launch of the first Green Star Awards, organised by a triumvirate of leading international environmental and humanitarian agencies, aims to draw attention to the importance of efforts to reduce the impact of large-scale environmental emergencies.

The Green Star Awards will honor individuals, organisations, governments, and corporations who have made special efforts to respond to environmental emergencies with an non-monetary award. Winners can come from each category or multiple winners can come from a single category, depending on the results of the expert panel evaluation.

A collaborative initiative of Green Cross International (GCI), the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the awards will advocate for civil society, governments and corporations around the world to do what they can to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the environmental impacts of man-made and natural disasters.

Generally speaking, an environmental emergency can be defined as a sudden onset disaster or accident resulting from natural, technological or human-induced factors, or a combination of these, that cause or threaten to cause severe environmental damage as well as harm to human health and livelihoods.

Recognizing the need to adopt a worldwide strategy for taking preventive and mitigating measures for environmental emergencies, the international Advisory Group on Environmental Emergencies (AGEE), for which the Joint UNEP/OCHA Environment Unit serves as secretariat, called for the establishment of an awards scheme to highlight the importance of environmental emergencies. In the words of UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner, "Environmental degradation is aggravating human-kind's vulnerability to natural disasters from floods and droughts to storm surges and mudslides. Investing and re-investing in the planet's ecosystem infrastructure, from forests and soils to wetlands and coral reefs, can go a long way to buffering at-risk communities from the worst of the impacts while also being a major adaptation policy against climate change".

The Green Star Awards will underline the connection between the adverse impacts of environmental emergencies and their consequences on affected populations and providers of humanitarian assistance. "We must recognize the inseparable nature of environmental emergencies and humanitarian crises," said GCI Founding President Mikhail Gorbachev. "With the increased frequency and severity of such events due to climate change, it is becoming more and more important to treat environmental emergencies as an indispensable part of a holistic response effort."

Environmental emergencies often occur during natural disasters, technological accidents and complex humanitarian emergencies. However, funding and large-scale preventive measures are still lacking in many countries throughout the world, specifically in the economically less developed countries which make the impact of environmental disasters more significant. "Disasters and conflicts can impact the environment in ways that threaten human life, health, livelihoods and security. Disaster managers and humanitarian workers must therefore identify and address acute environmental risks quickly and consistently as an integral part of effective emergency response", said UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes.

The first Green Star Awards ceremony will take place on Friday 8 May 2009 at the conclusion of the 8th meeting of the international AGEE which will be hosted in Brussels, Belgium, by the European Commission. The deadline for receiving nominations is 30 January 2009. For full details on the nomination process, please visit www.unep.org/greenstar

Source: United Nations
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More and more customers coming back to good old-fashioned cash

by Michael Smith

Cash or credit? For more and more Americans, who have either already overstretched themselves on credit cards, have gotten rid of them, or are just trying to manage their spending better in the tough economy, the answer is increasingly the old-fashioned one, namely cash. No, not Johnny, the other one.

Retailers like Wal-Mart, Target, and other are beginning to notice, so they report, a marked shift away from credit cards in favor of cash and debit cards. A big factor is less credit available as major card issuers cut spending limits and raise fees even for customers who pay their bills on time.

The shift ends Americans' long love affair with credit cards and is one of the changes in consumer behavior that has emerged since the financial meltdown that could depress consumer spending this holiday season and affect shoppers' habits long afterward.

Particularly during holiday seasons past, shoppers could count on a pile of plastic to give them the extra financing needed to splurge on presents before they had to face the bills in January or later.

But even when the economy recovers and credit loosens up, analysts say Americans – shaped by what could be a deep and long-lasting recession – are likely to stick with buying only what they can afford just as their parents or grandparents did after the Great Depression.

This is, definitely, not a bad idea.

Personally, I refuse each and every credit card as I would not have one on any account; no pun intended here. I use a card, yes, but a debit card, which means that I cannot spend more than I have in my bank account. I also would never spend more than a certain limint per month from that anyway.

Why? Because I like to have a safety net and a little financial cushion there for the “just in case”, in the same way as our parents and grandparents did with the money they kept hidden in various places.

Although I have my money in the bank one can but wonder in today's climate as to how safe that actually is and whether a good sturdy safe somewhere at home and keeping the stuff there in coin and paper under lock and key might not be a better choice still.

AS I said, I either pay by cash or, in most cases, for convenience of carry, and security, by debit card with chip & PIN. Monthly payments for utilities are going through the banking system by so-called direct debit. This works out cheaper than actually going to a payment center, like the Post Office, to pay those bills or to use check. In fact here we get charged extra if we pay by any other way than by direct debit.

I buy, as said, everything that way for like to know what I have bought and what I have spent and to know that I am not going to be hit with a big bill with the Gods only know what interest added to it. Use cash or debit card but no credit and loans. Cash still is best but debit card is basically cash in plastic form.

Credit cards, on the other hand, can be compared with a loan agency in your pocket. And, just like a loan agency, they charge you the earth for the money they, basically, lend you.

Cash may be seen as old-fashioned and the biggest problem is that cash is also, at some places, seen as dubious, it still is, in my opinion, and, it would appear, also the opinion of a lot of other people, especially in the US, better than credit card.

In this country, that is to say, Britain, though you may no longer use checks, for instance, in most stores in order to pay for your purchases. Is has to be either debit or credit card with chip & PIN. Or, obviously, cash. They still take that – for the moment. In fact, even though cash's death has been foretold so many times, I do not think cash is dead by a long shot. As fas as I can see it is coming back in fashion in many places, and that with a vengeance. Good for it as well.

© M Smith (Veshengro), December 2008
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From mines to turbines

British coal company eyes wind

by Michael Smith

The sites of disused coal mines in Britain (and obviously elsewhere too, methinks) could be used to house wind farms in a transformation, which would be not only symbolic, but would breathe new life into brownfield land with few other options for commercially viable use.

UK Coal plc has teamed up with wind farm developers Peel Energy to look at the possibility of erecting turbines at 14 separate sites.

If all those wind farms considered were to get through the planning process, which one could but hope, but knowing the NIMBY-ism in this country I doubt, the initiative would see 54 turbines installed to produce 133MW of power.

The chief executive of UK Coal, Jon Lloyd, said: "We believe there is significant opportunity to develop wind farms on parts of our land portfolio.

"By allying with Peel Energy, we are joining forces with one of the UK's most active and knowledgeable wind power companies. This will accelerate our alternative power business whilst maintaining total flexibility on the level of investment we make in it and without distracting us from our core mining and property development operations."

Steven Underwood, director of Peel Energy, said: "This agreement is an important step for Peel Energy, significantly expanding its onshore pipeline and gaining access to some of the UK's best potential wind farm locations. We look forward to working with UK Coal to realise the wind power potential of its extensive land portfolio. "

The biggest problem with any kind of projects like this is the inherent NIMBY-ism in the British, the not-in-my-backyard attitude. Be this a waster incinerating plant that also produces energy at the same time, or wind turbines; it is always the same. Not here. The same when it comes to Gypsy Caravan Sites as well.

With the right attitude this country could have a lot more renewable energy provisions. Alas there are always some people that make lots of noise against such developments.

With regards to the energy from waste plants we have even had the likes of Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace protesting together with the NIMBY campaigners against such facilities, the former, however, with the slogan “we need more recycling” regardless of the fact that there is and will always be some waste that just cannot be recycled but still can produce energy by being burned.

Oh well... such is Britain, however. While this works all well in other countries in Europe here, in the UK, we seem to be forever battling with a variety of obstacles, and not just as far as renewable energy is concerned. A lot of “green” issues that work well in other countries just cannot seem to work in Britain.

Maybe one day...

© M Smith (Veshengro), December 2008
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UK HAS UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO DEVELOP WORLD CLASS MARINE LEGISLATION

Renewable energy interests must be protected offshore

BWEA, UK’s wind, wave and tidal association, today welcomed the inclusion of the Marine and Coastal Access Bill into the Queen's Speech, but cautioned that renewable energy interests must be protected in final legislation.

The Bill promises greater confidence and economic benefits for marine developers through simplification of the legislative framework. It should help balance the interest of all the users of the marine environment, from conservation to renewable energy by promoting sustainable development.

Maria McCaffery MBE, Chief Executive of the BWEA: “The Marine and Coastal Access Bill is a pioneering piece of legislation, but we must ensure that it allows for the expansion of marine renewable energy, including offshore wind, wave and tidal.”

While BWEA recognises the scope and ambition of the Government’s long awaited Marine Bill, it has also raised 4 issues:
the timetable of the Bill must be complementary with the Round 3 offshore wind energy delivery process;
the Marine Management Organisation must be fit for the purpose: well resourced and with sustainable development clearly defined within its remit;
Marine Policy Statements must explicitly include renewable energy targets.

The new network of Marine Conservation Zones should be designated by the new MMO, as is proposed in the legislation being considered in Scotland. The designation process must consider the impact on all future use in terms of renewable energy developments.

“The Marine and Coastal Access Bill has been long time coming. We will be the first country in the world to have such legislation. We must get it right,” added McCaffery. "It would be a pyrrhic victory if short term conservation undermined long term sustainability and our ability to tackle climate change".

Also of interest to the renewables sector was the Education and Skills Bill, particularly the provisions to create a new National Apprenticeships Service and secure a demand-led adult skills system, driven by learners and employers. The industry hopes the Bill will help alleviate skills shortages in the renewable energy sector.

The British Wind Energy Association is the trade and professional body for the UK wind and marine renewables industries. Formed in 1978, and with 453 corporate members, BWEA is the leading renewable energy trade association in the UK. Wind has been the world's fastest growing renewable energy source for the last seven years, and this trend is expected to continue with falling costs of wind energy and the urgent international need to tackle CO2 emissions to prevent climate change.

Source: BWEA
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JANE GOODALL NAMED 2009 YEAR OF THE GORILLA PATRON

Arlington, Virginia - Renowned primatologist Jane Goodall, Ph.D., DBE, will serve as the official patron of the 2009 Year of the Gorilla (YoG), a 12-month campaign aimed at improving conservation of humankind’s closest relatives and their habitats by bettering the livelihoods and incomes of local people. His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco launched the YoG initiative December 1 at the opening of a United Nations wildlife conference in Rome, Italy.

The YoG campaign also seeks to improve the management of national and cross-border primate populations, as well as those living in national parks, by strengthening cooperation between range states and providing improved support for rangers and other key personnel.
YoG is a joint initiative of the United Nations Environment Program’s Convention on Migratory Species (UNEP-CMS); the UNEP-United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Great Ape Survival Partnership (GRASP); and the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA).

Dr. Goodall, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) and a UN Messenger of Peace, was in Asia at the time of the YoG launch. In a statement read in her absence, she emphasized the impact of human poverty on the great apes.

“People living in and around the last forested areas are struggling to survive," said Dr. Goodall. “If we can’t help these people find ways of living that do not involve continual destruction of the forest, we shall fail in our efforts to protect these wonderful great apes—our closest living relatives."

Dr. Goodall also underlined the importance of community-centered conservation efforts like those detailed in the YoG action plan and those currently managed by JGI in Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). JGI’s TACARE program, which is active in 24 Tanzanian villages around Gombe National Park, involves health care projects, forestry protection, training in sustainable farming methods, forest regeneration, water and sanitation projects, women’s initiatives, microcredit programs and education. As a result of the program, local people have partnered with JGI to put aside land for forest restoration and to protect the remaining forest, which is home to many species including endangered chimpanzees.

“These initiatives benefit more than the great apes," said Dr. Goodall. “They help prevent the spread of contagious disease. They reduce poverty and protect forests. And they help slow global climate change. Finally, in areas where there is competition for diminishing natural resources with potential for violence, programs of this kind add to the security of the region."

Founded in 1977, the Jane Goodall Institute continues Dr. Goodall’s pioneering research of chimpanzee behavior — research that transformed scientific perceptions of the relationship between humans and animals. Today, the Institute is a global leader in the effort to protect chimpanzees and their habitats. It also is widely recognized for establishing innovative community-centered conservation and development programs in Africa, and the Roots & Shoots global environmental and humanitarian youth program, which has groups in almost 100 countries. For more information, please visit www.janegoodall.org or www.rootsandshoots.org.

Source: Jane Goodall Institute
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'British Riviera' is the new trend for holidaying in 2009

SAGA nation replaced by younger generation

by Michael Smith

Forget the notion of old aged pensioners dominating UK holiday break hotspots. Over half of young family aged Brits are planning to embrace the best of British in the year ahead by planning to spend their breaks on home turf, sparking a younger vibe across the UK holiday spots.

With recent research showing that the UK’s top holiday destinations will emerge as the winners from the current credit crunch, insurance specialists Towergate Bakers reveals that 51% of 30 something’s will be caravanning in England for their holidays in the year ahead compared to a much smaller 31% of over 55 year olds.

The research has shown that Brits think of drive holidays as fun (14%) and less stressful than flying (10%), moving away from the recent trend to fly off and out of the country.

As part of a new study into UK and drive holidays, Towergate Bakers asked a GB representative sample of more than 2,000 people on the sort of holidays they were planning for the year ahead.

Key Findings:
· As 79% of Brits will opt for a short haul or drive holiday in 2009, the new research suggests a change in trend to the fashion of going abroad for our holidays.
· Dispelling the association of road congestion and stress when it comes to holidaying on the road, 14% of Brits find driving holidays fun and 10% say they are less stressful than flying.
· Holidays on your doorstep – people in East Anglia and the South West are most likely to enjoy UK drive holidays.

Paul Havenhand, Marketing Director at Towergate Bakers Insurance commented:
“At a time when we are set for a revival of traditional UK holiday as Brits save their pennies, our research shows that with young Brits planning to spend their holidays in the UK in the wake of economic turmoil, they will be revamping the image of British holiday destinations.
As the leading caravan insurance provider, we recommend that young Brits heading for British shores next year, check their insurance arrangements before they go on holiday.”

Towergate Bakers is the leading specialist insurance based in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. As the leader in its field Towergate Bakers can provide static caravan insurance and touring caravan insurance, as well as insurance for park homes, leisure homes and motor homes. It currently looks after the caravan insurance needs for more than 50,000 policyholders across the UK.

Vacationing at home, in more the style of days gone by by the British seaside and holidaying in the National Parks, and other beautiful places of the British Isles can but be commended from the point of the reduction of environmental footprint, even though it may be done because of the economy and the credit crunch.

However, we can all live in the hope that those that are taking British holidays, whether in hotels, guest houses, self-catering, caravans, narrow boats on the canals, or however and wherever, are going to get the taste of if and will continue to vacation in this country rather than abroad.

Aside from the fact that it will benefit the environment, it will benefit the local tourism industry and the rural economy, if such holidays are taken in the countryside. So many people have in recent years gone abroad on holidays, to the, what I would call, silly places, and have never ever seen the sights of this, their own country.

There is so much to see in one's own country most of the time and I would encourage people to vacation at home – or resorts and such in their own countries – rather than here or there in the sun (which is not all that good for them anyways). Even staying at home, as in staying put at one's own home and creating a great time for oneself and one's children is a great way of going. Local parks are there available, woods and forests as well, and there there are the sights in the local and not so local areas.

I know that some of such places are not necessarily within the financial reach of some, such as a visit to the Tower of London costing a family of four the best part of £100 before one has gotten even started properly and the same is true for some other such, though interesting places.

Nevertheless, vacationing at home or in one's own country is, as far as the environmental footprint is concerned, one of the best options and also the better options, in general, for one's nerves.

Spending hours in an airport for checking in with all the security stuff and all that certainly is not my idea of starting a holiday. And that is just the start. Followed by some ours of being couped up in an aircraft and then the same rigmarole getting to the other end. Erm, sorry, but I pass on that. In fact, the way I am seeing things it seems that there are many others that are also beginning to pass on that.

© M Smith (Veshengro), December 2008
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EcoCamel aerated showerhead – Product Review

by Micheal Smith

Using the EcoCamel shower head it is said that you can be lowering you “water footprint”. This too is, much like reducing one's entire environmental footprint (note that I refuse to call it “carbon footprint”), very important. Our impact in the water resources, which are probably the most precious thing on this planet, our fresh water, our drinking water, resources, I mean, is extremely high. Way too high in fact. So, I guess every little helps.

The aeration in the showerhead causes the water molecules to react different than those of tap water ordinarily and rather than bouncing of your body while you are showing they envelope the body, using less water to achieve the same thing. The experience of showering using such a head also is a total different one, a much more pleasant one.

Despite the fact that my system at home is non-pressurized one I can get the feel of what this showerhead would do and can do. The system here is gravity fed and hence has less than one bar of pressure. However, the way the structure of the water molecules changes through the injection, for lack of a better word, of air is absolutely amazing and the way the water then envelopes the body rather than the droplets bouncing off.

The aerated showerhead from EcoCamel is the only showerhead in the UK to receive the Waterwise Marque seal of approval, the industry’s highest award for quality and efficiency.

Former Environment Minister says: “I welcome the Waterwise Marque, which will raise the profile of water efficiency, helps the consumer to make informed choices in product selection, and rewards those manufacturers who are taking a lead in water saving. It is good for the environment and good for consumers.”

According to research the aerated showerhead from Eco Camel pays for itself in just 8 weeks and saves you money as soon as you turn it on. It has been independently tested to give flow rate of 7 liters a minute, which is about a gallon and a half per minute.

Due to the water saving action it is definitely a money saver for those of us that have our water metered. There are still households, like mine, for instance, where the water is not metered though, as I do a lot as to saving water, I may be loosing out on this deal. However, the local water authority does not want to put a meter in for free unless one has an outdoor tap or, especially, a swimming pool. But, I digressed.

As far as our water footprint, already mentioned above, is concerned, every little helps and, the EcoCamel showerheads are a useful part in the armory of lowering the water footprint of the nation and nations.

Let us, in closing, have a look at a few water facts:

Turning off the tap when you clean your teeth can save around 8 litres of water a minute. This is a lot of water. A lot more than your body needs for survival for the whole day.

In the UK we use an average of nearly 150 litres of water a day in our homes; our
great grandparents managed with about 18 litres. Amazing how much more water efficient we have become – NOT.

It takes about 450,000 litres of water to produce a small car.

UK water companies collect, treat and pump almost 18 billion litres of water every day, nearly a quarter of which goes down the toilet. Image

A garden hose or sprinkler can use almost as much water in an hour as an average family of four uses in one day, and the rest.

One dripping tap can use at least 5,500 liters, in other words around 1,200 gallons, of water a year. Mending the tap washer could save you about £18 ($30) a year.

Overall, only about 3% of the water entering the average home is actually used as ‘drinking’ water. Some of it is used for cooking and the majority of all water entering the average home is, literally, flushed down the drawin in one way or the other.

Many health experts reckon that we need at least 6-8 glasses of water every day to keep us fit and healthy (and aid our concentration).

A bath can use up to 100 liters, a shower uses about a third of this. But beware – modern power showers can use more water than a bath if you shower for more than 5 minutes.

The average roof collects about 85,000 liters of rain in a year! This could fill 450 water butts with free water.

Many people in the world exist on 10 liters of water or less. Some British toilets can use that in one flush of the toilet.

So, here we have a few fact concerning water. There could be many added to that but that is not, I think, necessary.

The fact is that the EcoCamel showerheads can save you water, lots of it, and also, if you have metered water mains, lots of money.

So, what do I think of this showerhead? Well, I like it and I think that I can well recommend it.

© M Smith (Veshengro), December 2008
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THE ALTERNATIVE ENERGY ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCES THREE POINT PLAN TO STIMULATE AMERICA'S ECONOMY

PALM BEACH, FL, December 2008: The Alternative Energy Association, Inc., a Florida-based non-profit organization has announced its Three Point Plan to stimulate the American economy, reduce our dependence on foreign oil and create millions of new jobs.

The Three Point Plan focuses on three solutions which relate to fuel efficient vehicles, solar power and wind energy. Highlights of the plan include bailout limitations on the Big 3 American automobile manufacturers, solar and wind energy requirements for government buildings, advanced solar financing plans, and government subsidies for wind energy infrastructure.

The Alternative Energy Association is in the process of planning the creation of 50 state chapters, along with multiple college-based chapters. These state and college chapters will be charged with the responsibility of working with their state’s members of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, state legislatures and local governments to create legislation to accomplish these goals, on a grassroots basis.

The Three Point Plan can be found at www.alternativeenergyassn.com

For those desiring to learn more about energy issues and possible solutions to our energy situation, download the AEA's free publication “The Energy Revolution – 277 Things Every American Needs to Know About the New Energy Paradigm” at http://www.alternativeenergyassn.com/freeenergyrevolution.html

Source: Alternative Energy Association
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