3p Contributor: Jace Shoemaker-Galloway
Recent Articles
Schools Go Orange with Carrot Vending Machines
Bugs Bunny would love this idea. Two high schools recently installed vending machines that dispense nothing but baby carrots. Located in Cincinnati and Syracuse, the schools are taking part in a two-month testing project designed to change the way children look at vegetables and junk food. The machines were installed earlier this month.
Bikes Travel Door-to-Door in Community Composting Experiment
A three-month, experiment is currently underway in a neighborhood in St. Paul, Minnesota. Eureka Recycling is testing a door-to-door bike-powered composting service in an effort to collect compostable waste.
As part of the city’s goal of becoming waste-free by 2020, the composting project is collaboration between the Macalester-Groveland Community Council (MGCC) and Eureka Recycling. The project, which began in the spring, involves 1,100 households in the neighborhood. The experimental project is looking into backyard composting, how to reduce food waste, different ways to use finished compost and different ways to make dirt. The project will also test three different transportation methods to collect food scraps in different areas of the community using a recycling truck, a drop-off site and the door-to-door bicycle method. The bikes, provided by The Hub Bike Co-Op, travel the neighborhood with custom-made trailers.
Plug In the Sun With Clarian’s Sunfish Plug-N-Play Solar Power Device
Clarian Technologies has developed a next-generation solar power module that is not only affordable, but is super easy to install. The new Sunfish is a plug-and-play solar-powered device that plugs right into an existing electrical outlet and automatically generates power as long as the sun is shining.
The simple and portable design allows for easy setup and installation, perfect for home owners and small businesses. Because the product has built-in circuit protection, no dedicated circuit and electrical panel are required. No additional wiring or expensive contractors are needed.
HighDro Power Toilet Generates Electricity With a Flush
Instead of flushing money down the drain, imagine being able to harness energy every time you flush the toilet or drain the tub. That is exactly what a grad student in the U.K. has done.
Tom Broadbent, an industrial design graduate student from De Montfort University (DMU), has created the HighDro Power, a device that harnesses energy from waste water as it falls through the pipes and converts it to electricity. As waste water drains from the sink, toilet or bathtub, the water travels through the pipes and hits four turbine blades that power a generator.
Starbucks Offers Free Coffee Grounds for Gardens & Compost Piles
Do you ever wonder what coffee shops do with all those leftover coffee grounds? Instead of tossing out all those grounds, why not put them to good use?
In 1995, Starbucks Coffee Company launched its Grounds for Your Garden campaign, which offers customers a complimentary five pound bag of used coffee grounds for the garden or compost pile just for the asking. Not only does the program reduce landfill waste, coffee grounds are a valuable source of nutrition for the garden.
So just how good are those coffee grounds for your garden? The folks at Sunset requested a lab analysis on Starbucks’ coffee grounds from the Soil and Plant Laboratory, Inc. According to the report, the grounds provide 0.06 percent phosphorous, 0.6 percent potassium and 2.28 percent nitrogen. And if tilled into the soil at a depth of 6 to 8 inches, the grounds will “substantially improve availabilities of phosphorous, potassium, magnesium and copper” improving the soil structure over both the long and short-term.
Coke Vending Machines Help Endangered Birds
A partnership between a non-profit and the world’s largest beverage company is coming to the aid of endangered birds in an unusual way. Coca-Cola Japan, Okinawa Coca-Cola Bottling Co. and the NPO Conservation & Animal Welfare Trust are working together to help the Okinawa Rail, Gallirallus okinawae.
Listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, it is estimated this highly-vocal bird has an estimated population of 717. Loss of habitat, predators including cats and dogs and vehicle collisions all threaten the endangered bird. The Okinawa Rail has been on the decline since 1982.
Wearable Collections Brings Clothing Recycling to NYC
Keeping up with the latest fashion trends can be a daunting and expensive task. If your closets and dresser drawers are filled to the brim with apparel you no longer wear, you’re not alone. According to the Environmental Protection Agency Office of Solid Waste, Americans toss out more than 68 pounds of clothing and textiles per person each year!
While yard sales can be one way to clean out those crowded closets and make a little money at the same time, organizing yard sales can be a time-consuming process. And what happens to all that stuff you can’t sell once the yard sale is over? Some people bag it all up and take it to the nearest Salvation Army or Goodwill. But according to a survey conducted by Goodwill Industries International, over half those surveyed wouldn’t drive more than 10 minutes to donate clothing. For many people, it’s simply easier to just toss it in the trash.
Chipotle Helps Turns Spam into Healthy Lunches for Kids
Spam. Whether it’s the kind we eat or the kind that inundates our in-boxes, spam is something many of us are not particularly fond of.
But one popular restaurant chain is actually embracing spam. Chipotle Mexican Grill has launched an innovative campaign that helps implement healthy school lunch programs for children across the United States, in an effort to get rid of the junk in our in-boxes and the junk food we eat.
The “No Junk” campaign is simple. Just forward your spam emails to nojunk@chipotlejunk.com, and the company will make a monetary donation to The Lunch Box, a nonprofit organization that encourages schools to promote nutritious meals with locally grown food.
Africa’s Largest Wind Farm Opens in Morocco
Earlier this week, Morocco’s King Mohammed VI officially inaugurated a wind farm in the town of Melloussa. With 165 turbines and a production capacity of 140 megawatts, the farm is touted as Africa’s largest wind farm. Besides significantly reducing CO2 emissions, the farm is expected to save over 125,000 metric tons of oil annually.
With an estimated $300 million price tag, funding for the project came from several sources including the European Investment Bank, Official Credit Institute of Spain, the Moroccan National Office of Potable Water and Germany’s Kreditanstalt fur Wienderaufbau. This is not the first wind project for Morocco. The first farm was constructed in 2000 and several others have been added over the years.
Bicycling Banned in Colorado Casino Town
A small casino town in Colorado is cracking the whip when it comes to “pedaling.” Black Hawk, population 100, recently outlawed a popular activity for “health and safety” reasons. And believe it or not, the crackdown isn’t on gambling, drinking or smoking. It’s bicycling… the reason – casinos complain that cyclists get in the way of buses used to bring gamblers in and out of town.
Cyclists may still pass through town, though they are now required to walk their bicycles. The town’s Board of Alderman approved the ordinance banning biking on nearly every street and only paved thoroughfare in town. With casino buses and trucks whizzing by, many of the narrow streets do not have shoulders. According to the City of Black Hawk Ordinances 2009-20 and 2010-3 “bicycles are prohibited within the City on certain streets.” The ordinances are available online. If you plan on bucking Black Hawk’s ban, be prepared to pay a hefty $68 fine as police are already issuing tickets.
BetaCup Challenge Contest Winner Not a Cup
The BetaCup Challenge Contest was created to generate ideas and sustainable solutions to reduce paper cup consumption and waste. According to the website, about 58 billion disposable paper cups are thrown away each year in the United States. About 20 million trees are cut down to make those cups.
The BetaCup Challenge
Anyone 13 or older could participate in the design competition by submitting ideas online. More than 430 entries were submitted between April 1 and June 1, 2010. The entries were then rated by viewers from June 1st to June 15th. On June 17th, the winners of $20,000 in cash prizes were announced on June 17, 2010.
Elements Naturals Compostable Baby Wipes Made from Plants
All else being equal, if you had the choice of using an oil-based product or a compostable, renewable plant based product on your baby’s delicate skin, which would you choose?
Elements Naturals uses plant-derived products in a completely compostable baby wipe. Unlike many other baby wipes, these products are free from synthetic chemicals, foaming agents and harsh preservatives. The wipes, chemical and chlorine-free, are EcoCert and Natural Products Association certified. Soft enough for a baby’s bum, the durable wipes also contain certified-organic aloe vera and purified water.
Emeco’s 111 Navy Chair Constructed out of Plastic Bottles
The next time someone asks you to “pull up a chair,” you may want to take a second look. It could be made out of plastic bottles. In an effort to show the value of recycled plastic, Coca-Cola and Emeco are working together to create some pretty cool furniture – beautiful chairs made out of recycled plastic bottles.
According to the company website, Coke approached furniture maker Emeco with an idea several years ago. The world’s largest beverage company had a new recycling plant in South Carolina and wanted to put the spotlight on the value of recycled plastic. Combining the iconic Coca-cola contour bottle package with the classic Navy Chair design, the super-sleek 111 Navy Chair was created.
First Cat Food with Sustainably Sourced Fish Soon Hits European Shelves
Several cat food brands that use sustainably sourced fish will soon be hitting the shelves in Europe. Touted as an industry first, Mars Petcare Europe recently announced it will be launching its Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified pet food as part of the company’s commitment to use only “sustainably sourced fish by 2020.”
According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), unsustainable fishing is “decimating” the world’s fisheries, destroying marine habitats and incidentally killing billions of fish and marine animals annually. The fish used in the company pet food products will be caught in a sustainable manner, without further threatening dwindling stocks.
Working with the WWF, other fish sustainability commitments include “using 100 percent sustainable wild catch and aquaculture sources, replacing all wild catch whole fish and fillets with sustainable fish by-products and using only sustainable alternatives to marine fish ingredients.” According to a company press release, MSC-certified fish will be used in SHEBA and WHISKAS fish variety cat food brands throughout Europe and will be available by the end of the year. The MSC also makes it easy for human consumers to spot sustainable seafood – just look for the blue MSC label.
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