How green are you.

Discussion on living for a better and more responsible future
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Orfy
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How green are you.

Post by Orfy »

What do you do in your life that you consider to be an above average contribution to being green?
Is the "Green part of if the major reason or is it because you are Frugal or just enjoy it.
How could you do better.

What do you do that is not green and why?

Me?

Green

Small car (Frugal)
Walk where possible and time allowing. (I enjoy it)
Grow my own (I really enjoy it and it saves me a bit)
Recycle (To be green)
Have chickens (Enjoy, enjoy the eggs and a bit to be green) Definitely not frugal)
I DIY using reclaimed materials. (Fun and Frugal)
Try to not drive excess mile when buying things and going places (Frugal and Green)
Keep wood for burning. (Frugal and green)

Not Green

Commute to work (Better pay, better job) but do it in a small car
Enjoy travel and use planes (I do it frugally and ethically though)
Have dogs (Not considered un-green but it is)
Probably don't switch things off enough.
Use energy to be comfortable.
Busy lifestyle and money restrictions possible stop me doing things to be better.
I don't want to or cant spend a £1000 on a new boiler for example.

Hopefully if we all do a list like this it will be food for thought and help with suggestions for others,
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Sunny B
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Re: How green are you.

Post by Sunny B »

This is interesting. I'm going to get a bit of paper and write on it during the day as things come to me and post later.
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Mallard
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Re: How green are you.

Post by Mallard »

I enjoy frugality with an occasional excess! I live on what the powers that be says is minimum amount.

Green?
No car!
Use public transport (free)
Grow a lot of my own veg.
Not a lot of people know this, but I make things from salvaged materials! 8)
Do the charity shop rounds in three towns.
Haggle over prices, they can only tell you to ........ off!

I could probably get quite boring on this, but I'm hoping to get more frugal/green tips from this thread! )t'
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foghornleghorn2
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Re: How green are you.

Post by foghornleghorn2 »

Orfy, why is having a dog not green ?
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Orfy
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Re: How green are you.

Post by Orfy »

foghornleghorn2 wrote:Orfy, why is having a dog not green ?


If you think about it.

Having a pet dog is a luxury.

You have to feed them and take them to the vets.
The food has to be manufactured and transported.
All those toys have to be manufactured, transported and then binned. A lot of them are no biodegradable plastic.

All those dog poop bins have to be manufactered transported, installed, emptied and the contents disposed of.

I'm sure it's of no consequence whats so ever but I can't realy think of anything that could be considered green about having a dog.

I guess you could lessen the impact of owning a dog if you are the "green" type.
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Sunny B
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Re: How green are you.

Post by Sunny B »

Oh dear. I've been having a think about this all day and have discovered that I am much less green now I have a family, partly from necessity, partly from lifestyle choice. I used to be really fanatical, and didn't get a car until my 30's (when I had children to transport) and didn't start holidaying abroad until I was 40.
So here are my rather shocking (to me) lists:

Green

I grow some of my own food
I compost all that I can
I have hens
I recycle everything I can
I try to make do and mend (a big fan of duct tape and glue guns)
I buy second hand if practical
I minimise car travel where possible (several errands in one journey)
I have a fairly economical car (1.4 litre)

Not green

I have a car
I like to holiday abroad at least once every couple of years (fly)
I have children
I have a dog (I had considered this not green because they are meat eaters and have not had one for 15 years, but finally got another recently)
I have central heating (no chimney in current home)
I eat meat now (used to be veggie)
I do a lot of my food shopping in supermarkets (no decent health food shop, butcher or fishmonger in my town)
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foghornleghorn2
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Re: How green are you.

Post by foghornleghorn2 »

Gosh, you guys like to beat yourselves up about this green issue. yike*

The impact of dogs toys on the planet......hmm....I spose.....but surely it can't be much, can it ?

Being a meat eater, why is that so bad ?

Surely a modern condensing boiler is more efficient than burning wood and coal, fossil fuel and all that. confused>

As for not flying abroad on holiday, the plane will still be going if you are on it or not.
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Orfy
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Re: How green are you.

Post by Orfy »

If that's the case then why make any effort at all.

One person can't make a difference but millions of "one persons" can.

It's about realising what the impact is.
If you choose do do anything is up to you but you should at least think about what you are or are not doing. My biggest concern is about pollution and wasting resources rather than global warming. I don't know if mankind can so anything to change the climate.

Most of my "Green" things are about saving money than saving the world.
I think it is good ethics to reduce person impact on the environment regardless of whether you are trying to "save" the world or not.
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p.penn
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Re: How green are you.

Post by p.penn »

Green:

Eco lightbulbs in my most used lamps (and I hate them)
Composting
Re using as much as possible
Only use kitchen towel for cooking or milk/oil spills
Use washing ball where possible
Own shopping bags mostly
Buy from charity shops

Not Green:
Probably everything else.
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Sara
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Re: How green are you.

Post by Sara »

Hmmm Very interesting. I have never really thought properly about it although i do try to be as planet friendly as possible, Here goes:

Green :
I grow lots of my own veg in the summer
I dont drive anywhere, Marc walks to work, and the car only comes out once a week, I share trips to the shops ect with mum or walk
I have hens
I only have a woodburner for heating
I compost
I recycle as much as is practical
Make do and mend as practical
Go to car boot sales every sunday through the summer, sharing the car journey there with mum

Not so green
I have 3 dogs
I use disposable nappies, wipes ect
The hot water comes from the boiler fuelled by oil
We have a car with a big engine
We drive to england and use the ferries several times a year
I use my tumble dryer often
I have a dishwasher that goes on every night
We drive to Marcs parents in the north of france several times a year

Im sure that there are plenty of others that i cant think of right now.... But it has certainly switched my brain on.
I think my main green thing is walking everywhere. We are in the centre of town, so Marc can walk to the bar, and I can get everywhere i need to go on foot. I often go with mum for anything further afield which means that the car only comes out on a wednesday or a sunday. Sometimes not at all. Often we can go weeks with only using the car on a sunday evening to drive the 3 kilometers to mums for dinner.
An interesting subject....... I think i will make a list on paper of things i can change. )t'
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Sunny B
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Re: How green are you.

Post by Sunny B »

FHLH2 I do have a condensing boiler with the central heating, but at my old house I had woodburners which I used to burn wood that I scrounged from waste and driftwood from the beach, so all free.
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lancashire lass
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Re: How green are you.

Post by lancashire lass »

Orfy wrote:
foghornleghorn2 wrote:Orfy, why is having a dog not green ?


If you think about it.

Having a pet dog is a luxury.

You have to feed them and take them to the vets.
The food has to be manufactured and transported.
All those toys have to be manufactured, transported and then binned. A lot of them are no biodegradable plastic.

All those dog poop bins have to be manufactered transported, installed, emptied and the contents disposed of.

I'm sure it's of no consequence whats so ever but I can't realy think of anything that could be considered green about having a dog.

I guess you could lessen the impact of owning a dog if you are the "green" type.


Substitute "children" for "dog" - and the same could be said. There is already too many people on this planet - cut down the population growth and what could be greener? ((w

I can't see how having a dog is luxury - apart from working dogs such as search & rescue, sniffers, sheepdogs, guard dogs etc, family pets are great companions for those living on their own and the elderly, dog petting is said to help people recover quicker from illnesses, and (with proper guidance) children learn about responsibilities.
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Orfy
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Re: How green are you.

Post by Orfy »

lancashire lass wrote:Substitute "children" for "dog" - and the same could be said. There is already too many people on this planet - cut down the population growth and what could be greener? ((w

I can't see how having a dog is luxury - apart from working dogs such as search & rescue, sniffers, sheepdogs, guard dogs etc, family pets are great companions for those living on their own and the elderly, dog petting is said to help people recover quicker from illnesses, and (with proper guidance) children learn about responsibilities.


Replace "Luxury" for "Not Neccassary". That may be more relevant wording.
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Sunny B
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Re: How green are you.

Post by Sunny B »

Orfy wrote:If that's the case then why make any effort at all.

One person can't make a difference but millions of "one persons" can.



Absolutely. Someone used the excuse to me the other day "I don't pick up my dog poo because no-one else does" - he said that while watching me picking up my dog's doings!! My feeling is if I walk my dog in the same place every day, over a year that's 365 poos that would be left around if I didn't bother.
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Mo
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Re: How green are you.

Post by Mo »

I do agree, really. But it is dispiriting to see one's efforts negated by others.
Especially if you have been frugal and the Government come along and decide there is not enough 'economic activity' and they tweak things to make people spend more.

And, at my age, the thought that if I save money and leave it to our children, their lifestyle is less frugal than ours (though perhaps better than average).
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