Sustainability

SUSTAINABLE LIVING

wellsld1003 — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 01:03:29 +0000

After completing some carbon footprint questionnaires, researching in various websites, articles and books on the issue, I have managed to make an overall account of my lifestyle, and what is the environmental and carbon footprint outcome from it.

I have organized this information in different key aspects or areas of the lifestyle today – following a similar structure to the one given in standard carbon footprint quizzes or climate chance readings.

On the hall, my greatest effort for sustainable living is in terms of energy savings. The least sustainable impact is in terms of travelling, not cycling nor using public transport (because I have to take my child to school). As some of the the negative impacts are often due to limited options or shortcoming of design, in the breakdown account of my lifestyle I have given some examples of how design can help to achieve a sustainable environment.

My carbon footprint is 6.4 and the planets are – 2.1.

ZERO CARBON

wellsld1003 — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:41:31 +0000

ENERGY SAVING

POSITIVE ACTIVITY: I always switch off electrical appliances which are not in use such as TVs and computers, which most people leave running all the time. Turn off lights in hallways or rooms not occupied. Heat only rooms that are in use. Turn off the heating when going out. Have energy saving bulbs. Turn off freezer if empty. When boiling water in the kettle, filling it up with the water needed (for a cup of hot drink), so the running time is less.

I always wash a full washing machine. I have noticed that some people in the UK would wash a few (3 or 4) T-shirts in a full washing cycle. I collect the washing from a whole week, so the washing machine is always full. I do not have a tumble drier. Most people in the UK have one (because of the humid climate, and clothes take much longer to dry compared to Southern countries).

Although I have a dishwasher (it was fitted into the kitchen from previous owners), I never use it. Most people in the UK use their dishwasher even for few dishes. The running time of a dishwasher cycle is one hour!

NEGATIVE ACTIVITY: The house I live in has low insulation in terms of double glazing. Some houses in the UK are in a conservation area, making the replacement of timber and non standard shaped windows very expensive. Although, the overall cost of double glazing windows and fitting work in the UK is exorbitant compared to other countries. I myself cannot afford double glazing windows, although I have them fitted in my flat in Bulgaria.

IMPROVEMENTS: I have sealed doors and windows with draft excluder, installed thick curtains, sealed up gaps in wooden floors, as well as chimneys on unused fireplaces, all this to reduces draft; and teach my little boy to close the doors.

HOW DESIGN CAN HELP: Reducing energy use is essential to less carbon footprint, but we still need significant consumption to survive. Therefore, the initial energy source should be designed in an environmentally friendly way. Options today are not such so: OIL – CO2 emission, global warming, acid rain (heavy metals And radioactive material), causes air pollution as well and spills from oil tankers can be devastating for marine and bird life; GAS – still cause pollution when burned; NUCLEAR ENERGY – no safe storage for nuclear waste (radiation alters ecosystems as rain accumulates up food chains and further to humans, sometimes with catastrophic consequences). Therefore, the design of new energy sources is developing. RENEWABLE ENERGY: WIND – the FASTEST-GROWING renewable energy, flexible but not constant or predictable, challenging to store. SOLAR – every day 8.000 times MORE ENERGY then we currently use reaches us from the sun. Draw backs – the initial cost is high and the converting the semiconductor poly-silicon into useable form produces highly toxic waste. BIOMASS – can by ideal if the source is from waste material (straw, pulp and paper waste), but if planted – they will compete for land space with food crops and the energy spent for planting would burn CO2.

A link about “Carbon trade game” - an efficient way to control carbon emission by industrys - http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://msnbcmedia4.msn.com/j/ap/2ddbf8e9-4555-40a6-9163-4d008eeb144c.hmedium.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28068692/&usg=__mA5bL_jIBnWRv_BF4_bW-3jjpXQ=&h=273&w=410&sz=22&hl=en&start=195&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=ed

http://www.morelandsolarcity.org.au/index.php?nodeId=42#2

ZERO WASTE

wellsld1003 — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:41:16 +0000

POSITIVE ACTIVITY: I recycle most of my waste, although the rubbish collection system in the UK is not that efficient. When I lived in Richmond in a flat, I had to live with my rubbish piled in the kitchen for a week, as there were no dustbins and the rubbish was collected only once a week. What is worse, when you leave the rubbish bags in the street in the evening, foxes would rip the bags and spread the garbage on the pavement, then it would rain on top of it and the outcome is disgusting. Where I live now in Twickenham we have dustbins and there is a recycling site across the street.

I give unwanted goods and clothes to charity shops, or if some things are damaged I take them to the recycling centre at Townmead Rd in Kew, but never throw them in the dustbin.

NEGATIVE ACTIVITY: I do not buy products with less packaging.

IMPROVEMENTS: I started to reuse plastic bags and bought a big carrier bag for shopping. As for waste, the images of tonnes of plastic bottles being dumped in the oceans, as we saw in one of the sustainability lectures, made a big impression on me. I stopped buying small bottles. At home I have a few small bottles, which I re-fill from the tap or from a 4 litre bottle, the biggest available. In that way I avoid the buying of 8 x 500ml bottles.

I started separating organic waste for a compost bin.

SUSTAINABLE WATER

wellsld1003 — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:40:50 +0000

POSITIVE ACTIVITY: I have shower, but not a bath. Firstly, it saves water, secondly it’s more hygienic. Using a bath takes much more water, not just filling it up, but because you have to clean it and bleach it after every use. This cleaning takes nearly the same amount of water as the actual bath itself. The bleach makes it even worse, in terms of contamination. I’m personally shocked by the amount of bleach some UK households use. This goes mainly into cleaning baths and basins. I have a dual flush toilet which is another way of saving water, and I teach my son to turn off the taps when cleaning his teeth. I have water saving washing machine.

NEGATIVE ACTIVITY: I use a hose pipe to water the garden in the Summer, though rarely.

IMPROVEMENTS: I can see having a water butt for the coming Summer.

HOW DESIGN CAN HELP: For instance, Los Angeles is a city built near one of the most inhospitable deserts, and has major problems with its water supply . The main source of fresh water – Colorado River, is nearly exhausted. By the time the river gets to the Pacific Ocean nearyl all the water has been extracted. No other city on the planet has looked further afield for its water supply. There are even same ambitious proposals for a pipeline from Alaska or towing icebergs from Antarctica. However, LA is a city looking to new efficient ways of water management. A huge waste water recycling plant has been built, environmental groups like the Tree People are redesigning drainage systems to collect run-off rainwater from buildings and re-directing them into underground aquifers.

Near to home ,recycling water from baths, showers and basins in a mechanical way through filters and pumped back in to the house, or naturally with reed beds (cheaply , little maintenance). There are other technologies to purify used water, such as Desalination, where salt is taken of salt water through thermal distillation (supplying approximately 15 % of Israel’s households); “Lifestraw” - a pump that makes polluted water drinkable; “Aqueduct bicycle”- filtering 20 gallons of water while pedaling it, and more.

An image of playpump:

http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?

http://www.hinduonnet.http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_GqUuXeHog7E/SSh2d8UWPzI/AAAAAAAAAjo/Xn87Vkjl1DQ/s320/murraydarling2.jpg&imgrefurl=http://water-is-life.blogspot.com/2008/11/half-world-faces-clean-water-shortage.html&usg=__Nqqz2fnSJsRAATUFcCmH7XOtiSI=&h=213&w=320&sz=18&hl=en&start=162&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=xCxJgyqNJ8aB5M:&tbnh=79&tbnw=118&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcolorado%2Briver%2Bshortige%26ndsp%3D20%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26start%3D160%26um%3D1

http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl2412/stories/20070629000105900.htm

SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT

wellsld1003 — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:40:32 +0000

POSITIVE ACTIVITY: I do not have a car, use public transport, which is more environmentally friendly, less stressful then driving, and comes at a less cost. The disadvantages are – UK has relatively expensive public transport, and public transport such as busses can be not that punctual. I walk my child to school. I love cycling.

NEGATIVE ACTIVITY: I do not use the bike for transportation, only for leisure, as there are no cycling lanes to most of the places I go to. I travel by plane a few times a year. We have one car in the family as it is a necessity sometimes.

HOW DESIGN CAN HELP: Often air travel is over distance that can be comfortably covered by train or car. Advanced communication technology makes business travel by air not necessary today. Modern aircrafts are 50% more fuel-efficient then those 30 years ago, and manufacturers are working on reducing CO2 emission. In 2005 the Air Traffic Services in Australia introduced the Flex Tracks system, where not following the traditional set flight paths (and save monitoring of the air traffic control), the pilot can adjust their course to the strongest wind, and reduce the flight time.

ELECTRIC VEHICLES - If the electricity comes from renewable sources they will produce no carbon. Electrical motors have around 90% fewer parts then conventional, and are less likely to break down. The disadvantage is the challenge of storing power – the capacity covers around 150km, and a full charge takes up to 5 hours

HYDROGEN as fuel emits no greenhouse gases, just water, but expensive, with a huge energy input to produce, heavy and with poor performance in cold weather. Another option is biofuel.

SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS

wellsld1003 — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:40:12 +0000

POSITIVE ACTIVITY: I buy furniture and electrical goods very rarely. When I do, I make sure that they are the best quality so they can last as long as possible. I don’t support the idea of buying cheap goods which break quickly and fill up the recycling centres with mountains of garbage. Furthermore, I’m not a big fan of all the latest technology – mobile phones, electronic games and flat screen TVs. All those get updated every half year and most people are obsessed with having the latest gadgets on the market. As a result, they keep buying new goods, even when their old ones are still in a perfect condition for use. I have TV which is 20 years old and an old mobile phone, but I will replace them when they break.

NEGATIVE ACTIVITY: I don’t know a lot about the origin of the products I purchase, for example, if its paper or wood is it from a sustainably managed forest.

NATURAL HABITATS AND WILDLIFE

wellsld1003 — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:39:55 +0000

I have a lovely garden which I look after, and I plant same plants with my boy, so he will develop the sense of respect and love for nature. We feed the ducks when going out. I try to attract native species such frogs. I have a small pond in the garden, and I try to attract squirrels by having a nut basket.

HOW DESIGN CAN HELP: There are many examples of conservation areas and wildlife parks in the UK, for example Richmond Park, where there is a large diversity of fauna, including deer, ducks, swans and rabbits. Crane Park is another current project where the river environment and wetland habitat is being preserved.

HEALTH AND HAPPINESS

wellsld1003 — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:38:04 +0000

For good health, time spent out – doing sport or leisure, is essential. I feel lucky to live in a very green area, South West London. I cycle in the area, go for long walks by the river, or just to the playground with my boy. I maintain relatively healthy diet with eating fresh fruit and veg and and very law intake of meat.

HOW DESIGN CAN HELP: Richmond Borough is an example of having a lot of green space in a city and large varieties of sports facilities for children and adults. There are a lot of deprived areas in London and throughout the UK, where landscape architects and local councils should work towards achieving improved communal spaces.

EQUITY, FAIR TRADE AND LOCAL ECONOMY

wellsld1003 — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:37:11 +0000

POSITIVE ACTIVITY: I’ve been trying for Christmas to purchase UNICEF cards, as the money goes to charity. When visiting museums or zoos, or other establishments with charitable status, I always use the gift aid scheme, so they can claim the tax back. I try to use local services and products when possible: going to the local bakery, vegetable shop and fishmongers, as well as farmers markets.

NEGATIVE ACTIVITY: I didn’t pay a lot of attention to fair trade branded products.

IMPROVEMENT: I started buying fair trade products, and noticed there are quite a lot on the market.

HOW DESIGN CAN HELP: The ”Fairtrade” label guarantees the producers a decent fixed price, but is at the same time a distraction from the more important issue of changing the international trade rules. The producers from the developing world pay four times higher duties then those in richer countries. This is estimated at 100 billion dollars annually- twice what developing countries receive as aid.

http://www.econsciousmarket.com/eco-times/tag/china/

CULTURE AND HERITAGE

wellsld1003 — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:23:19 +0000

I associate culture with style of living, and unfortunately, in Western Europe people spend less time socializing and spending time with friends and family. As transport facilities and motorway links are so sophisticated today we opt for further distances to commute and to do our shopping, which is very time consuming. In a 7.5 hours working day, most people spend about 2 hours commuting – 25% of the working time. If you add travelling for shopping, picking up kids from school and other activities, the time wasted on travelling could exceed 40% of one’s time. Furthermore, with the advance of technology, (computers, mobile phones) people exceed their working hours, often working from home and working on the go while doing other things. We overload ourselves and have less time for leisure and socializing.

http://www.tfhrc.gov/about/09050/index.htm (today engineers work towards improving design and technology for highways and gain less congestion, but by extending them they extend the commuting distances and traffic itself)

POSITIVE ACTIVITY: I try to find time for reading, I love music, but cannot go to many concerts or exhibitions, as babysitters are expensive. I listen to a lot of music most of the time.

NEGATIVE ACTIVITY I lack time for leisure and socialising with friends.

HOW DESIGN CAN HELP: In terms of style of living, town planners should consider how to best organise the necessary amenities in towns to reduce the time needed for travelling, especially for shopping – the big stores have taken over the market, and the small local shops are disappearing, and we have no choice but to travel in order to shop. It is worrying that we are adopting the American model.

As for culture, big cities like London have a diversity of different ethnic culture and we are lucky to experience a lot of street culture. Local authorities should ensure that street culture is promoted and encouraged. Most cities in the World have certain areas and locations that are hot spots for street culture. Local councils in London should not exclude these activities and should organise events with community involvement.