Give the gift of appreciation

For those loved ones of yours who may be on the fence about caring for the planet, give the gift of Earthly appreciation this holiday season. The BBC has collected amazing scenes from around the globe in a 5-disc set called Planet Earth. From mountain peaks to oceanic depths, the images remind us how incredible, yet fragile, our planet is. Even for someone like myself who cares for the well-being of our home, I was continually awe-struck. The first four DVDs show animals and planets from around the globe. The fifth DVD sheds light on man's impact on the planet and potential consequences. If you decide to obtain this DVD set, I encourage you to check out some environmentally-less-harmful and cost-effective methods. I'll leave you with a quote from Amazon.com UK:

As befits the BBC’s reputation for producing some of the world’s best nature documentaries, the five-disc set Planet Earth is an epic travelogue, focussing on different ecologies and the unique animals that inhabit them. Once again, Sir David Attenborough provides the narration, as the cameras fly across the surface of the earth, zooming in to give us a bug’s eye view one minute, zooming out to give us an eagle’s perspective the next. The BBC’s cameramen filmed more than 200 locations, resulting in some truly spectacular footage, much of which has never before been seen.

Image: http://www.bbcshop.com/invt/bbcdvd1883

Now that you are drinking filtered water...

In light of the drought and in an effort to keep my blogs focused on water, it seems important to consider the container in which you should place your filtered tap water. How about one of those indestructible Nalgene bottles that have become oh-so-popular in recent years? Though officially denied, the material from with many of these must-have bottles are made contain phthalates. It acts as enendocrine blocker which can pose to various health risks. Check out some of the research if you're sufficiently bored.

How can one tell if they're drinking from one of these poisonous bottles? Flip it over and check out the bottom. If you see a #7 and PC, it is time for a different bottle. 'PC' stands for polycarbonate. Though popular, it leaches bisphenol A into the water. Again, potential health risks.

How can one avoid these issues? Look for plastic bottles with recycle codes #2, #4 or #5. These plastics (High density polyethylene, Low density polyethylene, and Polypropylene) are not known to leach harmful chemicals. Nalgene is now offering some HDPE options, but you need to look closely for these letters. Even better, grab yourself a metal water bottle from GreenFeet. Metal won't leach any harmful chemicals into your water. I ordered mine today and am anxiously awaiting its arrival.

Image: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:U%2B2674_DejaVu_Sans.svg

Pray for water conservation

While attending Governor Perdue's rain prayer service, I thought it would be a slightly better idea to pray for water conservation. Not only did I pray for the sinners who are wasting water in drought-ridden areas of the world, I prayed for the sinners who take their water for granted.

It isn't clear (according to the Weather Channel) if the prayers for rain worked. So, here are some water facts for your consumption consideration via CNN:

• Brushing teeth (2 gallons)
• Running the dishwasher (20 gallons)
• Long shower (35 gallons)
• Washing clothes (40 gallons)
• Taking a bath (35 gallons)

This isn't rocket science. Using less water will mean more water for others (which includes you in the future). Since washing clothes tops out the list at 40 gallons, here are my suggestions:

• Wear outer clothes multiple times before washing (outer clothes are articles other than underwear)

• Use bath towels a few times... if you shower properly, towels should remain mostly clean since you are simply drying yourself
• Less washing also means your clothes will last longer...

If you're worried about smelling bad... don't! I'm obsessive about how I smell, and everything is just fine. Just ask my friends.

Image: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Here_comes_rain_again.jpg

A new take on water conservation

Southeastern United States. Drought. 'Nuff said.

We all know that there are many ways to conserve water. One can install a low-flow shower head, one might run the dishwasher only when it's full, and one can always pray for rain. That's right, you can now call upon the lord to give us that life-sustaining fluid. No longer will you need to turn off the water while brushing your teeth. Start flushing the toilet even if nothing came out. What the heck, wash your clean car again and again. The jesus christ will save us from a slow, dry death.

Of course I jest, but in the spirit of practicing what I preach, I will be attending Governor Perdue's prayer service in Atlanta to 'git us some good ol' rain.' If you happen to be in Atlanta on Tuesday, November 13th at 11:45 at the statehouse on Washington Street, say 'hi.'

In the meantime, check out Treehugger's tips on how to green your water.

Image: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:LightningVolt_Deep_Blue_Sea.jpg

Tap versus bottled water

Some facts about bottled and tap water:

• Approximately 1.5 million barrels of oil—enough to run 100,000 cars for a whole year—are used to make plastic water bottles
• Total amount of water used to produce and deliver one bottle of imported water is 6.74kq and the amount of GHGs released amount to 250g
• Some bottled water has more bacteria and less fluoride than tap water
• Americans spent (2001) approximately $6.5 billion on bottled water
• Last year (2006), Americans bought more than 4 billion gallons of water in individual-portion bottles. Most of the containers end up in the trash.

While the debate rages, it seems wise to stick to filtered tap water. At a nominal cost per gallon, you can save vast amounts of money and reduce waste. I find my Pur filter is convenient and makes the water taste great. Britta is also quite popular. Plus, I don't have to lug giant pallets of battled water from the car to my house.

Low-flow shower heads: Hmmm?

Do a quick Google search for "low-flow shower heads" and you'll find a bevy of websites telling you that this is the best way to reduce your water consumption and save vast amounts of water each year. Eartheasy.com claims:

Installing Low-Flow shower heads and faucet aerators is the single most effective water conservation savings you can do for your home.

I decided that I must replace my shower head. Granted, disposing of an still-functioning shower head is wasteful, but perhaps in the long run, it will pay off. I walked to the local Ace Hardware and discovered a wall of shower heads, only one claimed to be "eco-friendly" and "low-flow." While its flow rate (gallons per minute, GPM) was slightly lower than others (2.2 versus 2.5 GPM), the "eco-friendly" version was rated using on a lower pressure. At equivalent water pressures, the "low-flow" version used just as much water as the tsunami version! Nearly every shower head was rated for 2.5 GPM. Unless your shower head is well above 2.5 GPM, I'd suggest keeping it.

Here are a few suggestions before you run out and buy a "low-flow" shower head:

1. Check your current shower head. Mine is rated at 1.75 GPM, and it even massages.
2. Take shorter showers. I tend to day dream in the shower, but reducing the length from 15 to 10 minutes can make a huge difference.
3. Turn off the water while lathering. You can pick up a flow control valve to be installed in-line with the shower head. It makes lathering easier, and a simple push of the button saves you from flidding with the temperature or flow settings.

Image: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Showerhead.JPG