After our discussion the other day regarding global issues it had me thinking about the small steps we all do on a daily basis with the environment in mind and how we could perhaps have ideas that others aren't already doing.

The things that I do are;

* Disposal of food scraps (other than meat) on our property. We have a reasonably big section so me digging a hole isn't noticed. I don't put this in the compost bin due to rats and often the hungry bin is already full.

*The use of worm farm, hungry bin and compost bins.

*Rarely use the clothes dryer and instead have an indoor clothes rack in a sunny spot.

*Take soft plastic packaging to the nearest collection point - WHEN that is in operation.

*Use bread bags etc.. for dog poop on walks but try and flick poop into the undergrowth (when logical) where it will break down naturally instead of sitting in a plastic bag for years.

*make sure recycling bin plastic and glass is washed so it can be recycled.

*Put paper rubbish - egg cartons, paper bags etc... - into our own compost bins or dig them in with the food scraps.

*Say no to packaging whenever we go shopping anywhere. I just have a soft bag for any clothes shopping etc...


What do you do?

I'm much like you, Helen, but I do have a tip: instead of wrapping and throwing away meat bones when I've boned a chicken, or chops, I put them in a container and freeze them for later use in a soup. The same with any vege off-cuts that are not bruised or discoloured - into a bag in the freezer to join the bones in a soup when there's sufficient to make a soup.

I don't like the end crusts from a loaf of bread, so as soon as I've finished the loaf, I crumb the crusts and dry them for a few minutes in the microwave. I've got it down to a fine art and it takes me 7 minutes from the time I pick up the crusts to the time the crumbs are either left to cool or popped straight into a jar and left with the lid off till they're cold. I haven't bought breadcrumbs for years, and I love my crumbed fish or schnitzel, plus my son gets all my surplus crumbs.

I sort my rubbish. Glass bottles without lids, are rinsed and put in the glass only recycling bin. Anything that is likely to 'smell' in the kitchen rubbish bin (but is not suitable for compost) gets wrapped in something that was going to go into the non-recylable wrapppings bag. All other non-recyclable wrappings , etc go in their separate bag and then into the blue purchased rubbish bag.. Recyclable paper and rinsed tin cans go in the recycling bin (our council doesn't have a separate bin for cans and paper). I have an under-sink small container where any food scraps not suitable for soup go and it gets emptied every couple of days into the compost bin. I have never noticed any rats around, but then I have a cat.

As I live alone and my rubbish is minimal, it takes me forever to fill the recycling bin and the glass bin so the rubbish only gets put out for collection every 4 - 6 weeks.

I suspect it's way too late for our small steps to have any effect, but I still do my best, including:

* I haven't bought new clothes (apart from a few undergarments) in about five years. When I was working full time I used to buy Anne Mardell clothes, I know the sizing and know that the garments are made in NZ to a very high standard. I keep an eye on Trademe and her clothing comes up regularly. I buy skirts and blouses, usually for less than $20 and that is all I buy.

*We don't have a clothes dryer, I line dry or on an indoor rack if necessary

*We buy very few convenience foods therefore very little food packaging and very little that is imported

*We grow most of the vegetables and herbs we eat, our only out of season indulgences are winter tomatoes and local onions when our own run out.

*We fertilise with homemade compost and local horse manure (or, as the Royal Mews calls it, "arisings"

*All of our food scraps are composted or (for large bones) given to the neighbours' dogs

But most importantly, I have only travelled by air once in the past five years and that was only to Australia. It is very hard to face the reality that flying is among the worst things we can do, and I am hugely disappointed that the travelling I had hoped to do in my retirement is now not morally acceptable. But we cant always have what we want.

I can’t add much to the discussion as we do most of that suggested above.

We really plan our car trips.

Our 25 year old grand daughter is so sad about the environment, and insists something should have been done in the 1970's, but was happy I gave her some crochet make up remover wipes, and some for her BFF. She is so passionate about things, but I tried to gently advise her to still find joy every day.

Ali I am interested in your crochet makeup remover wipes. I can see my girls making and gifting these.
One is currently knitting for babies in Middlemore so crochet could be the next venture.

I do fly. I fly to Hokitika to see my parents. I will be flying to Christchurch when Daisy is there next year and I do travel overseas.
Some of this I need to review.

Helen, there are lots of free patterns on the net - different styles too. Just remember that USA crochet stitches are different to English, but easy enough to find conversions.

I bought small glass jars with snap on lids from the B store - but any jars would be nice - maybe those lovely French jam jars with the checked
Iids - and perhaps the girls could make labels.

If you can't find what you need on the net or Pinterest, I will write out my pattern for you- let me know,

Grow our own fruit and veges, although not all. 30 chickens for eggs, manure and mental health, sheep to eat the grass rather than using the tractor, slaughtering the lambs for food, recycle everything I can, re-use as much as I can, own shopping bags, plan my driving as I live 15km from the nearest shop, my husband catches the bus into downtown Auckland for work, we don't fly (to be fair, that is a budgetary restriction rather than a choice), most of our food scraps go to the chickens, but those that don't go in the compost, save and re-use all bread bags and paper shopping bags, we catch our own rainwater for all our water needs and have an old school non-electric septic tank, have a woodburner for heating and we get firewood locally from fallen or cleared trees on personal property, again - not so much positive choices, but functions of where we live... but it all helps have less of an impact. Our house could be much better insulated, but that is an expense we can't do right now. Theoretically we could be entirely self sustaining on our property, but we're not. We still throw out 2 orange bags of rubbish per week

Even making sure you have a cotton dishcloth stops a few synthetic (also known as plastic...) fibres going down the plughole.

I only buy cottons, wools, linens generally and close to 100% as I can get it. Clean with mostly baking soda and vinegar, and only use a supermarket cleaner if there is something that hot water and baking soda wont remove which is hardly ever. Ditched the use of a range of lotions and potions. Focus is more on plastics and what goes down our drains.

Skeptical on the government stance on emissions.....and happy to fly.

I do the things that Helen mentioned.

We do fly.

I do wonder what people do about the following food scraps
- orange peels or lemon halves
- left over bacon fat or other meat fat

At the moment my focus is on reducing packaging and trying to buy more second hand everything.

Orange peels and lemon halves go in our compost bin. I wondered why you asked this as I wasn't aware there was a myth about it, but see [www.gardeningknowhow.com]
Meat fat we put out on the lawn for birds to eat - they either do or it melts into the soil (summer....) - no problem. If it's bits of meat fat cut from the raw or cooked meat, that goes to the eels in our stream - they particularly adore chicken skin.

We do the same as J1 (except we are not lucky enough to have a stream, let alone one with eels...). Small meat scraps go in the compost, we never seem to have large pieces left over. Large bones are buried.

The item on citrus peel and compost was interesting to read. I don’t put citrus peel i to my bin becaise I read somewhere that the peel introduced too much acid into the compost, same as too many rhubarb leaves. Good to know that that is not so.

Interesting - thanks re the citrus.

I do a reasonable job with leftovers but I do end up with the following

- chicken bones raw and cooked
- bacon trimmings
- corn husks
- watermelon and rockmelon skins


The last ones go into compost but don't really break down.

Cheese Lover - it's a pain in the azz, but if you throw the corn husks and melon skins in the food processor for a min, they can break down in the compost no trouble at all.

I put bones in the bin, but I suppose I could bury them, no such thing as a bacon trimming in this house (streaky bacon and everyone devours anything bacon related!), melon rinds go to the chickens, who LOVE them, and then get mown over when it is mowing time and they just go back into the grass. We find that one of the many benefits of living on a rural property, you tend to have enough space to be a bit less caring that there are 12 big chunks of watermelon rind plus an armful of silverbeet stalks (chickens only eat the leaves) on your lawn for a week until mowing day ;-)

I'm currently extremely disappointed to see Farmers department store stocking so much girls' clothing with sequins on it. These gratuitous plastic items just end up in the waterways when the clothing's washed, or all over the land when it's worn or thrown out. Hopefully no-one will buy them but it would nice to see some more responsibility from Farmers who shouldn't be stocking them in the first place.

I was so pleased to see today that the red plastic netting onion bags have been replaced with lovely natural colour wood fibre netting onion bags, compostable in the home compost. Label said "Pams" so thanks Pams!