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Rise Above Plastics PSA Derides Plastics in Oceans

by Angela March 9th, 2010 - No Comments »

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Need another reason to bring your bags to the grocery store? Check out the newest PSA from Rise Above Plastics. This organization’s mission is to promote awareness of the pollution that plastic use causes and to discourage individuals from purchasing plastics where other alternatives are available.

If you want to raise awareness and help their cause at the same time, check out their store, where they sell shopping bags, metal water bottles, and clothing.

Also, I have to say that the music they play on their site is incredible! I’ll have to check out more of this Micah Wolf guy.

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Organic Mac & Cheese: Face-Off Against Kraft Dinner

by Angela March 8th, 2010 - 2 Comments »

Once upon a time, food chemists and marketers somewhere in the bowels of Kraft’s evil lair created a divine concoction composed of 1% cheese product, orange food colouring, elbow pasta and instructions that a drunk college student could follow. And it was good. Over a decade past the death of my university years, I still enjoy mac & cheese for lunch. When I saw organic macaroni & cheese on sale at my grocery store, I decided to give it a try. Even though they are tasty, I know deep in my heart that those chemicals that go into Kraft Dinner can’t be all that awesome for you.

I picked up Life Choices Organic Macaroni and Cheese, a name that I sniggered at a little since I wondered what they were trying to say with it. This product will erase all of those bad life choices you made with a good life choice? Well, it convinced me. Any help will do.

Cooking the macaroni, unsurprisingly, was the same as cooking the same thing from Kraft. The only roadblock I ran into was that the mixture did not seem to stir in as easily as its Kraft counterpart, something which was easily remedied with some elbow grease.

The taste? Honestly, it didn’t have the sharp cheddar taste of Kraft Dinner, but I thought it came in at a close enough second to end up on my future grocery list. Maybe not in the place of Kraft Dinner, but as a supplement to it. Actually, mixing two boxes half and half if you are making it for two is not a bad idea.

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Prentice Plans Non-Response to Bloggers Attacking Lack of Action on Environment

by Angela March 7th, 2010 - No Comments »

According to an internal document obtained by Canwest News Service, Canadian Environment Minister has a policy of non-response when it comes to criticism by bloggers and the press of the lack of environment initiatives in the recent federal budget.

The “push-back” press initiative is considered a “tool” by Prentice to spin the lack of environment funding into a positive message. The Conservative government has been criticized both globally and at home for its lack of action on environmental issues, and the lack of money earmarked for climate change and environmental issues in the recent budget is simply another black mark in its regime. The Tory government is known on the whole to be non-responsive to criticism and to reward media outlets that show them in a good light, while penalizing those that show their policies in a more even-handed or negative light.

Prentice practiced similar evasive manouevres in dealing with criticism by bloggers over a proposed “crackdown” on copyright law in Canada, legislation that was not allowed to be pushed through once a public light was shone on it.

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Organic Beers – How Do They Make Them?

by Angela March 6th, 2010 - No Comments »

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Craft brewery owners have been exploring the organic market for about a decade now, and craft beer drinkers generally agree that organic beer tastes better. So what goes into it?

Barley and hops are the two main ingredients in beer, and are usually riddled with pesticides and fungicides. Organic barley and hops are the first priority in any organic beer. Beers that just contain these without processing them organically generally have “made with organic ingredients” or similar on the label. A “certified organic” beer is processed without chemicals. If you are in Canada, and you want to get your organic beer on, here are a few brands to look for.

NatureLand Organic, BC
Crafted by Pacific Western Brewery, this is Canada’s first organic beer.

Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company
, Vankleek Hill, Ontario
Based out of the tiny Eastern Ontario hamlet of Vankleek Hill, this brewery prides itself on using organic malts.

Mill Street Organic Lager
, Toronto, Ontario
What is the best thing about being Canadian brewery of the year? Having on offer Ontario’s first certified organic beer, that’s what. Based in Toronto’s historic Distillery district, Mill Street also offers a coffee porter.

Laurelwood Public House & Brewery, Oregon

Treehugger porter is just one of the organic beers on offer for this brewery in Oregon.

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Derek Hatfield Aims to Sail With Solar and Wind Power

by Angela March 5th, 2010 - No Comments »

Velux 5 Oceans Race

Derek Hatfield hopes to sail a very eco-friendly boat relying solely on wind and solar power for the VELUX 5 Oceans race, The Ultimate Solo Challenge.

The idea for the race is to sail around the world using no fuel. The class of boats are called ECO 60’s which are older boats being reused rather than building new boats. All the power requirements for the race are generated through solar power or wind.

Hatfield was the first Canadian to sail around the world, and he already has 20 to 25 boats tricked out with wind and solar power. Diesel fuel will only be available on board for emergency situations where the battery banks may run out.

In the northern ocean, the solar power is more efficient, while in the southern ocean, the wind power is the main driver. Each supplements the other as well. Derek wants to use no fuel at all, and states that it has been proven in the last few years that fuel is not even necessary. He states that he is taking ten gallons and hopes to come back with it.

Derek talks about these issues and more in his interview with the Discovery Channel’s Daily Planet.

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Eco-Friendly ThinkSound Headphones

by Angela March 4th, 2010 - No Comments »

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First, LOL @ “green friendly” in the video. Second, these sweet headphones are packaged in a recycled fibre pouch and no heinous moulded plastic packaging. They are also good for smaller ears and very comfy. The wood used is sourced from sustainable sources and the company, Thinksound, is working on getting their Forest Service Council certification.

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Eco Architect Goes Ultimate Organic With Treehouse

by Angela March 3rd, 2010 - No Comments »

OK, so this isn’t something all of us can do. However, it is something an architect can do. “Organic” architect Robert Oshatz has built a magical adult-sized tree fort that makes us very eager for spring so we can start climbing those trees. The owner of the unique structure wanted a building that would flow with music as well as bland into the landscape near Portland, Oregon. More gorgeous pics of the eco treehouse over at Web Urbanist.

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France Manufactures World’s Largest Solar Panel Power Plant

by Angela March 2nd, 2010 - No Comments »

EDF, the European photovoltaic giant, has earmarked a former NATO base as the site of the world’s largest photovoltaic plant. They plan to have it operational by 2012. The 1025 acre site is located in Toul-Rosieres, near the eastern city of Metz in France. It will have an output of 143 megawatts, or enough to satisfy the energy needs of a town of 63,000 people.

While the new plant will quadruple France’s PV power output when complete, it will still leave France behind Spain and Germany. France is currently dependent on nuclear energy for most of its power.

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Winter, When Your Thoughts Turn to Organic Wine

by Angela March 1st, 2010 - No Comments »

OK, I’ll admit; my thoughts turn to wine no matter what season it is. Being cold and frosty makes me hearken back to one of the nicest, warmest days in the summer of 2009, when myself and an old friend from school sat outside on a picnic table and enjoyed a few glasses of organic wine at Frogpond Winery.

While I can’t say whether or not it was obviously better than a non-organic wine, the organic Riesling was stupendously nummy. We also had the pleasure of watching a turkey try to climb a fence and escape, which you just don’t get at those other snooty wineries in Niagara. The only things trying to climb over a fence and escape are trapped husbands who would rather be at a sports bar.

If you are in the Niagara-On-The-Lake region at any point, I highly recommend stopping by Frogpond to pick up a bottle or two of their organic wines and to try their range. They are right around the corner from one of the more “popular” tourist wineries, Inniskillin, so it isn’t too far out of your way. Just be careful to spit out the wine if you are driving or get a friend – like me – to drive.

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Quebec Company Turns Leftovers into Fuel

by Angela February 28th, 2010 - No Comments »

Companies that recycle wood or other materials generally only use materials that meet certain criteria; the rest go in the garbage. Quebec company Enerkem takes these trash materials and turns them into ethanol, chemicals, and other materials. They have been successful enough to attract the attention of giant company Waste Management Inc., who have strategically invested in Enerkem in order to take advantage of their technology.

Instead of incinerating trash like most people do, Enerkem’s process requires no combustion or smokestack. Enerkem is based out of Montreal, with facilities operating in Quebec, Edmonton, and a new one planned in the US.

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