How to compost almost anything

Composting is the ultimate act of green frugality, turning unwanted organic material into rich humus for use in the garden rather than sealing it in plastic trash bags to spend eternity in a landfill. But for some of us, composting is something even more special -- a hobby, a passion, almost a religion. I've even named my beloved compost pile; "Gomer," as in Gomer Pyle (get it?).

As compost enthusiasts say, "A rind is a terrible thing to waste." But composting fruit and veggie rinds and other trimmings, along with leaves, grass clippings, shredded paper, and cardboard is only the beginning.

Here are some compostable items you might not think about:

Dryer lint
If you must dry your clothes in an electric clothes dryer (it significantly shortens the lifespan of many garments, plus wastes energy and money) instead of using a clothesline, at least compost the lint.

Hair and fur
With my receding hairline, I don't have a lot of my own hair to share with Gomer, but our four cats shed enough to make up for it. Hair adds nitrogen and other beneficial nutrients to compost.

Fireplace ashes
Wood ashes (including ashes from charcoal made from wood) help to retain moisture in the compost pile. Wood ashes also contain potassium, a major plant nutrient that can be beneficial depending on the soil type.

Jell-O (gelatin)
"There's always room for Jell-O." I recently found a bowl of old, rubberized Jell-O in the back of the fridge and decided to give it Gomer as a special treat.

Cotton, wool, and silk clothing/fabric
After a long and productive second-life as dust rags, worn-out clothing made of natural fibers will decompose faster if you shred them before composting.

Full vacuum cleaner bags
Paper vacuum cleaner bags and their contents -- as well as all species of non-synthetic dust bunnies -- are welcome in the compost pile.

Nail clippings
The byproducts of pedicures, manicures, and even pet nails -- are all compostable, provided that they're polish-free.

Rope and string
Rope and twine made out of natural fibers (e.g., cotton, hemp, jute, and manila ropes) will decompose in the compost pile.

Leather goods and clothing
From leftover lederhosen to a leather glove that lost its mate, natural leather products will decompose (albeit slowly) in the compost pile.

Skunky beer, wine, and corks
Gomer likes a brewski once in awhile. Leftover alcohol (if such a thing exists) can be added to the compost pile, as can the corks from the bottles.

Pet food leftovers
Dry dog, cat, and fish food is OK for the compost pile (bury it in the pile to deter rodents and other unwanted pests), and even too-chewed rawhide dog chews can be composted.

Spoiled milk and dairy products
Meat products are generally a compost pile no-no, but spoiled dairy products like moldy cheese, sour milk, and yogurt are okay.

White glue and masking tape
Check for toxic ingredients, but most white glues (like Elmer's brand) and paper masking tape can be composted. (by the way, Post-It-Notes can be, too.)

Teabags and coffee grounds
Of course at our house, we use them at least twice before they're ready for the compost pile. And remember that paper coffee filters can be composted too.

Latex condoms and cotton/cardboard feminine hygiene products
Yes, it's true. Yes, it's gross.

Cotton balls and Q-Tips
Just make sure that your cotton swabs like Q-Tips are 100% cotton and have cardboard or wooden sticks (NOT plastic).

Seaweed/kelp
If you live on an ocean or other waterway and your shoreline is being invaded by washed up seaweed or kelp, add it to the compost pile --- it's often used in organic fertilizers.

Eggshells
Eggshells have many great uses around the house and garden, but composting them is an eggcellent idea, too, since they add calcium to the soil.

Stale bread and other grain products
Of course, I have too many other uses for stale bread to go feeding it to Gomer, but leftover grain-based food products, including pasta, rice, cereal, crackers, pizza crusts, etc., can be composted (again, bury them in the pile to deter unwanted pests).

Organic holiday decorations
If you're not going to eat your Halloween jack-o-lantern like I do, it can be composted, along with wreaths and pine boughs from Christmas, latex balloons from birthday parties, and that long-dead bouquet you paid too much for at Valentine's Day. Next year, try planting a rose bush for her instead, using the compost from your own Gomer.

Jeff Yeager is the author of the book The Ultimate Cheapskate's Road Map to True Riches and the forthcoming The Cheapskate Next Door. His website is www.UltimateCheapskate.com. Follow Jeff Yeager on Twitter and friend Jeff on Facebook. Friend TDG on Facebook and follow TDG on Twitter.

More from The Daily Green

• 10 Ways to Spruce Up Your Outdoors
• How to Start an Organic Garden
• Easy Container Gardening for Any Space
• Everything You Need for Glorious Gardens
• Real People Making a Difference

Reprinted with permission of Hearst Communications, Inc

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La Vida Locavore

I’ve been on the lookout for new environmental blogs.  La Vida Locavore is so good, it got this lazy blogger off his duff to give her a shot out and a link.

Go check the blog out, especially the series on her recent trip to Cuba

Groovy Green readers, any other good blog/website suggestions?

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Gravel batteries offer a solution for renewable energy storage

One of the most frequent objections to renewable energy systems is that their production is too variable. But technologies continue to be developed that will allow storage of power generated from wind, solar, and other intermittent renewable sources. The latest development comes from researchers at Isentropic in Cambridge, England who propose giant batteries filled with gravel and argon gas. These batteries would provide a number advantages over pumped hydro, which is presently used for almost all electricity storage today, as well as over underground compressed air storage.

The gravel battery system would use excess capacity generated by a renewable source to heat and pressurize the argon gas and then pump it through a gravel filled silo to store energy. Then, when demand calls for electricity, the system is simply operated in reverse to generate electricity. According to the company, the system's "round trip efficiency is over 72% - 80%." This is comparable to the efficiency of pumped storage hydro, which has an efficiency of 70% - 85%. But gravel batteries are much more compact, and can be more readily installed in relatively flat areas characteristic of many areas with good windpower potential, such as the American Great Plains. A gravel battery can use far less land (1/300th) than that required for a pumped hydro lake, as well.

Underground compressed air storage is another technology that has been suggested, but that requires the presence of underground caverns, which are not always present where you might want to put a power storage facility. In addition to being able to be located anywhere, gravel batteries could be relatively inexpensive because they do not need costly materials. Costs could be as low as $55/kWh, and $10/kWh at scale for large installations.

via: Worldchanging

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Oyster offshore wave generator is 2.5x better than predecessor

Power generation from waves continues to develop as Aquamarine Power has unveiled its new, second-generation Oyster 2 wave power generator. According to the company, "The new 800kW device will measure 26 metres by 16 metres and will deliver 250 per cent more power than the original Oyster 1 which was successfully deployed at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney last summer." A test installation is planned for 2011 and will use three wave devices connected to a single power generation station to produce 2.4 megawatts of electricity.

Like the Pelamis wave generator (now, sadly, sitting on the shore for lack of maintenance funds), the Oyster rides on the surface to harness wave power. This means that Oyster cannot coexist with surface vessels, unlike other underwater systems. But, instead of housing the generator at sea, where conditions are harsh and maintenance and repair are costly, the Oyster system harnesses wave power to drive hydraulic systems and on-shore turbines to produce electricity.

The new Oyster incorporates many improvements over the original design, including simplified construction requiring less steel to produce and design to enable easier mass production.  Aquamarine Power expects to deploy Oyster in farms of 100MW generating capacity or more. An animated Oyster video shows more about how the system operates.

via: Inhabitat

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Forget wave power, Google and others may use poo power for data centers

Google has been tinkering with the idea of a floating, wave-powered data center for a while, but it looks like a better solution could come from a more basic power source:  manure.  Hewlett Packard has released a research paper that states that tech companies like themselves, Google, and Microsoft could benefit from a partnership with dairy farmers, using the cattle waste for fuel.

The research paper says that the dairy farmers could rent out land and power to the tech companies with a return on investment in waste-to-fuel systems in two years, making it a great arrangement for the farmers too.  Farmers want to build biogas plants where manure is processed and the methane produced is used in place of natural gas or diesel, but the cost of equipment is often too expensive for them to finance on their own.  This is where the tech companies come in.

As companies move their larger and larger data centers into rural areas with plenty of land, teaming up with local farms seems to be a natural fit -- farmers need a way to get rid of the vast amounts of waste and tech companies need an affordable, clean source of energy.

An average cow produces enough manure to power a 100-watt light bulb and 10,000 cows could potentially power a 1-MW data center, a small computing center.  But another possible link between the farms and companies is that the biogas systems require a lot of heat to make fuel and computing equipment in data centers produce a lot of waste heat, so a loop could be created where the biogas plant powers the data center and the waste heat from the data center helps power the biogas plant.

The paper sees California and Texas as being the testing grounds in the U.S. for this partnership, while China and India could also benefit from such an arrangement.

via NY Times

 

 

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Is white vinegar green?

A bottle of white vinegar is probably sitting somewhere in the back of one of your cabinets. Perhaps forgotten, there has never been a better time to put this inexpensive and non-toxic cleaning product to work.

After your half-marathon training runs or Zumba workouts, are you faced with sweaty, smelly exercise clothing that never seems fresh again, even after several washings?  How about the stubborn odor of your teenage son’s t-shirts or socks?

It pays to keep a big bottle of white vinegar in the laundry room.

Vinegar is terrific for restoring the fresh scent to your clean clothes and linens. Simply add ¼ cup of white vinegar with the detergent in the washing machine and offensive odors will be banished.

For cleaning your house, car or boat interior: Fill a spray bottle ¾ with water, add a drop of liquid dishwashing detergent and top it off with white vinegar.  You may also want to add a few drops essential oil for fragrance, peppermint or grapefruit work well here.

This all-purpose cleaner is great for glass and virtually any surface, even hardwood floors.

If a dirty surface needs a little grit to remove the dirt, sprinkle some baking soda on the area before you spray the vinegar solution and rub to release the dirt.

If you have a sluggish drain, pour about a cup of baking soda into the drain, follow this with a “chaser” of about ½ cup of white vinegar.  Cover the drain with a plug or damp dishcloth to form a seal so the “volcano” can do its work inside the pipes.  After about 20 minutes, remove the plug and pour a kettle of boiling water down the drain.

Sherry Brooks is healthy, happy and trim “Frugalista” living the lean and green life in and around Malibu in sunny southern California.

More from ecomii:

• Learn how you may be polluting your home instead of cleaning it
• Learn more about the potential of nutritional supplements
• Find natural remedies for headaches
• Does aromatherapy actually work?
• What is your carbon footprint?

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China’s telecom sector credits telecommuting with huge emissions reductions

China's telecom sector released a report this week claiming that it had slashed emissions by 48.5 million tons of CO2 emissions in 2008 by increasing telecommuting, a greater reliance on electronic data storage and more efficient logistics.  This savings is comparable to the amount of emissions Sweden's entire economy is responsible for each year.

The report came from the WWF and China Mobile who had Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications carry out the study. The report says the emissions savings came from all of the transportation, freight and paper and material production that was avoided by digitizing the sector.

The study also concluded that future increases in telecommuting could save up to 340 million tons of emissions in China by 2020.  Even better potential is seen in virtual meetings over air travel, which could save 623 million tons of emissions by 2030.

The report is slightly controversial because the growing energy demand of data centers is increasing emissions, but the report says that those increases are more than offset by the overall emissions savings.

via Guardian

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Sustainable brick made from sand, bacteria, and pee

It seems like pee, or more specifically urea, is becoming quite the sustainable ingredient.  Beyond being tapped as a good source of hydrogen, it's powering batteries and is now being used to make sustainable bricks.

Architect Ginger Krieg Dosier has designed a way of "growing" bricks by combining sand, bacteria, calcium chloride and urea, all easy-to-come-by materials.  Traditional brick-making is very energy-intensive, producing more pollution than global air travel each year.  It's also consumes a lot of resources:  400 trees are burned to make 25,000 bricks.

These Better Bricks are created through a chain of chemical reactions known as microbial-induced calcite precipitation.  Once all the ingredients are combined, the bacteria serves as a glue that binds the sand together, creating a brick that is as tough as a fired-clay brick or even marble and requires no baking to achieve that strength.

If Better Bricks replaced all traditionally-fired bricks, 800 million tons of CO2 emissions would be eliminated each year.

via Inhabitat

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Super-insulator aerogel could also clean up oil spills

Aerogel, the amazing material that is 37 times better than fiberglass as insulation, could also be the perfect tool for cleaning up oil spills.  The downside is that Aerogel isn't ready for the large-scale production necessary to help with the current oil disaster.

The material is incredibly low density - it's mostly air - so it has the capacity to absorb a lot of oil.  The maker of Aerogel, AeroClay, is beginning testing on an Aerogel sponge that could be made to soak up either water or oil.  By modifying the polymers that keep the material from collapsing, scientists can program the sponge to absorb different liquids or particles.  Aerogel has been used by NASA in the past to capture comet dust.

In the case of an oil spill, the sponge could be used like a dish sponge to clean oil off birds or rocks, or, even better, be deployed to keep oil from ever reaching the shore.

Although we hope that a major oil spill like the one in the Gulf of Mexico never happens again, it's good to know that technology is being developed to make us better prepared if it does.

via Treehugger

 

 

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Bill Gates funds cloud factory

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