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Polyvinyl Chloride aka PVC
Since the early-mid 20th century, polyvinyl chloride aka vinyl aka PVC, has been in widespread usage, due to its strength, and its resistance to oil, chemicals, sunlight, weathering and fire. PVCs incredible versatility can be found in any number of common products including bottles, packaging, constructions materials, furnishings, toys, piping, bedding, clothing, imitation leather, and wire coatings. Over 33 million tons of PVC is produced each and every year, and the number climbs with each passing year. PVC is third in rank in both global plastic output and consumption. Did you know, around 57% of PVCs mass is chlorine? This means that it requires less petroleum than most other polymers. Unfortunately, oil and chlorine are not green substances, due to the nature of how they are extracted and refined, and because of the by-products they create. PVC is not biodegradable. It is important to note that the breakdown that occurs is simply granulation (the piece become smaller over time). This is hazardous as animals can easily ingest these pieces and end up blocking their digestive tracts with the small plastic pieces. Greenpeace has pushed the cessation of PVC production forward because the manufacturing and incineration processes for PVC create dioxin. Dioxin is known ...- Bookmark :
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Options for Green Flooring
There are a variety of green ways to floor your home, which is not only good for the environment, but is also good for you and your family, roommates, and pets. Some of the options tend to cost more than conventional flooring options, but when it comes down to helping the environment, the benefits outweigh the higher costs. One option is bamboo flooring. Bamboo is grass that grows fast. Bamboo is highly sustainable because it reaches maturity quickly and has the ability to replenish itself. Bamboo is stronger than most hardwood flooring options. In addition to bamboo's strength and durability, it is available in a wide variety of earth tones and caramelized colors. Another added benefit is that bamboo flooring is water resistant which makes it a great choice for bathroom flooring. As far as pricing goes, bamboo is a little less expensive than hardwood flooring. A second option is concrete flooring. Concrete flooring is on the rise in terms of going green with your flooring for a number of reasons. Concrete uses very little energy in production compared to the other flooring types, it requires no trees to be cut down to produce it, it is recyclable, and concrete floors do ...- Bookmark :
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Meat Consumption: Environmental Concern
Very few people are aware of the fact that there is increasing evidence to support the fact that the production and consumption of meat is a major environmental and humanitarian concern. Check out some findings from the Livestock, Environment and Development (LEAD) Initiative, a program supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO): 1. 26% of the ice-free land on this planet is taken up by grazing lands. 2. Pastures take up 70% of previously forested land in the Amazon. 3. In 2050, meat production will double what it was in 1990. 4. Feedcrop production is 33% of all arable land on Earth. 5. Livestock are responsible for over half of the country's sediment and erosion issues in the United States. 6. Livestock account for 9% of all human activity related carbon dioxide emissions. 7. A third of human protein intake comes from livestock. 8. Livestock now occupies 30% of the Earth's land surface, which was once wildlife habitat. 9. Nearly two thirds of human related ammonia emissions can be attributed to livestock. 10. 20% of the Earth's animal biomass has livestock to blame. 11. Methane has 23 times more global warming potential compared to carbon dioxide. Livestock are responsible for 37% of all human activity related methane ...- Bookmark :
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Keeping Your Garden Critter Free
Gardening is a wonderful hobby to pick up, a good source of relaxation and great way to take time for you. Seeing your flowers blossom and the vibrant colors fill your yard can be very rewarding until you find that pests have taken over. Whether they come in the form of insects, birds, or rodents, pests can quickly take the leisurely nature of gardening away and make it more work than you bargained for. Garden netting is a good way to stop pests from attacking your flowers or fruits and vegetables. Garden netting is available on the market in a variety of styles and shapes. The best way to choose which net is best for your garden is by what kind of pest is attacking your garden. You simply place the netting over the plants to protect them. There are specific nets for birds or insects, depending on what you're growing and what kind of pest you're attracting. Rodents are trickier because if they can chew through the netting. If this occurs, it may be wise to contact a pest control company to find out what other options you have. In trying to grow organic food, utilizing chemicals and pesticides to eliminate ...- Bookmark :
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Indoor Gardening
Building a garden in your home is a terrific way to reduce your carbon footprint. Think of all the travel time to the grocery store you can cut back on when you have fresh fruits and vegetables in your house at your disposal. Indoor gardens are a fun and creative way to go green just by their very nature, but check out these additional ways to make your indoor garden even more eco friendly. A downfall of the indoor garden and its eco friendly nature are the widespread use of grow lights which have a tendency to require a lot of power because of their size and nature. High intensity discharge grow lights can utilize more than twelve hundred watts to power a single bulb, a major energy sucker. That’s without even considering all of the supplemental supplies required to grow properly; ballasts, reflectors, and cooling fans, to mention a few. With these considerations in mind, you wind up being more eco friendly driving your car to the grocery store for that extra avocado. The result is a higher power bill and wasted energy. There is a solution for this problem, an alternate form of light for growing. LED grow lights for ...- Bookmark :
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