Yellow and Blue Make Green?

In May 2010, shortly after the coalition had been formed, David Cameron said that he wanted it to be "the greenest government ever" and Chris Hume (Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change) said "Climate change is in my view, our view, the greatest challenge facing mankind."

When I heard that I was really hopeful. I don't know a lot about  politics (and knew even less 18 months ago) but those statements sounded like the new government were going to really take environmental issues seriously.  A year later, with the struggles of deficit, recession and social unrest the environment had already slipped into the background.

During Mr Cameron's speech at his party conference this year he must have forgotten the page on the environment as the only references to it were a passing comment on "green engineering" and berating Labour for not "going green". 

Then George Osborne made a bold environmental pledge. He said 

"We're not going to save the planet by putting our country out of business. So let's at the very least resolve that we're going to cut our carbon emissions no slower but also no faster than our fellow countries in Europe."

Brilliant, thanks George, that really is the very least you can do. His arguments included the fact that the U.K. contributes 2%, compared to China and the USA's 40% of emissions globally and that carbon investment businesses will go overseas. Now I've done a quick calculation and it looks like the U.K. population is less than 1/20 of the combined populations of China and the U.S.A so by Mr Osborne's figures we should be reducing our emissions more if they are to match population sizes. Another quick calculation shows that the U.K. actually makes up less than 1% of the world population so we should definitely be trying to half our emissions.

So far it's not looking great for the greenest government ever. Then, this morning, I turned on the radio to hear that the Prime Minister, who is passionate about the environment and is trying to make his government the greenest ever, may not be going to the globally important Rio+20 summit next year because it clashes with the Queen's Jubilee celebrations. I checked the dates and I'm sure Mr Cameron could at least make the 6th June, after a 4 day weekend!

Today the Environmental Audit Committee of MPs will make a direct call for David Cameron to confirm his attendance at next year's summit in Brazil. They hope that this will reinforce the UK's commitment to the low carbon economy and also may boost the conferences profile. According to The Guardian,

sources confirmed the Prime Minister will not attend the summit. The UK's delegation will instead be led by Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman with the rest of the ministerial delegation being announced nearer the time.

With proposals to raise the speed limit to 80 mph (which will raise emmisions), Mr Osborne's firm stance for economic growth over all else and a refusal to lead the way in Europe, today's news isn't really shocking, just disappointing. It seems that maybe yellow and blue don't really make green at all.

These boots are made for walking

The U.K. government website says

In the UK, more carbon dioxide (CO2) comes from people’s car travel than from any other kind of UK transport. Reducing your car travel is a key step to reducing climate change effects and local air pollution.

Nearly a quarter of all car trips are under two miles, a distance you can cycle in less than 15 minutes. Cycling and walking distances under two miles could help you get fitter and save you money in fuel. 

 The two mile rule is commonly used to separate journeys which should never use cars and those which it's OK to drive for. According to Google Maps my work place is 2.4 miles away by car and 1.9 miles away if I walk so I'm just under the key limit. It takes me 40-45 minutes to walk to work which I don't mind if it's an eight hour shift but if I'm just going to the gym (which is on the same site) for an hour I spend more time getting there than the activity. Now, I know it's ridiculous to drive to a gym when you can walk it (you're going for the exercise!), but a 45 minute walk on dark rainy streets just doesn't seem as appealing as working out comfortably inside on a treadmill with a TV attached. I am trying thought.

Next week I have three early shifts and I'm going to walk them all, at least I won't have to work as hard at the gym. Walking rather than driving also means I get to know my local area better. I read the street signs (best one I've see yet is Penguin Street) and look at local shops. I notice the weather more, appreciating the sun when it's there and really feeling the change in seasons. I'm not saying it feels better than the 10 minute drive and the extra 30 minutes in bed but I am feeling more connected to the place I live and less in a bubble of one.

Cycling to work would take a lot less time and it's something I mean to do in the future. Over the summer I was given a second hand old bike which needs a lot of TLC before it's ridable but once pay day comes I'll be kitting it out ready for the winter months-anything to give me 5 more minutes sleep when I'm working earlies!

Almost everyone is used to having a car nowadays. Living in the countryside you think of hiking and nice walks but I find it much easier to avoid car journeys now I'm in a city than I did before. A 45 minute walk to the next village seems easier to justify the car for than one across town to the gym. We're lucky that we don't need the car for any essentials very often. My boyfriend can walk to work (and is much better at it than me!) and we have small shops close by that we can walk to for essentials. The veg box gets delivered when we need it and we only have to use the car for long journeys to visit family or for a big monthly supermarket shop for bulk buying essentials like tinned food, pasta and rice. I'm begging to get addicted to the smug feeling when you can see the fuel gauge in the car is still about the quarter tank mark, weeks after first filling up, but as the winter creeps in I'm worried my will power won't last. I'll just have to make sure my boots are ready for lots of walking and see it as an extra gym session.

Which green habits do you find hardest to stick to and what does the change in seasons mean for your weekly routine? I'd love to hear from you so just post a message below!

October in the Office

We're ten days into October already and I've only just got round to looking at How Green Are My Wellies by Anna Shepard for this month. The book is split into twelve chapters giving tips and suggestions for green living month by month. I got this book for Christmas a few years ago and I love it. Each chapter's short enough to read in a spare half an hour and ends with tips and actions you can do to green your own life.
For October Anna looks at green office etiquette and how even if you're greener than green at home it's easy to slip into bad habits without noticing at work. Many work places now have environment champions or committees and small steps can often make the office a much more pleasant place to be.
Her main tips that everyone can do are:

• Install greenery - Putting a plant on your desk absorbs toxins and pollutants (a green air filter) and also absorbs CO2.
• Give your computer a lunch break- Even if you don't turn the whole thing off (turning it off then back on again later gives a nice 3 minute settling in period after lunch doesn't it?) definitely turn the screen off. The screen accounts for about 80% of the computer's energy and it only takes a second to turn on again.
• Lunch al-fresco - Bringing in your own lunch saves money, saves on packaging as you won't be disposing of a plastic box every day and is almost certainly more healthy for you. Eating outside (even sometimes in winter!) is even better for you as it gives fresh air, a walk and a proper break from the office.
• Right sort of cuppa - Using a proper cup from home rather than a plastic beaker makes drinks taste so much better. You could even ask the canteen whether they can provide milk jugs and sugar bowls rather than sachets.
• Ethical snaking - A mid afternoon snack always raises spirits but it feels that much better if you know you're helping the environment too. Did you know there are over 800 Fairtrade certified products available? Does you office stock any of them, and if not could they?
• Put the office to bed - If you, like me, turn lights out as you go round the house at night do you do it at work too? The last person out the door should check computers are turned off and lights are out, and make sure it's never you who is the one who's left things on!
• Promote a green commute - Some people enjoy their quiet alone-time on the way to work but other love company. Organise a lift-share board or cycling/bus group.

I'd add make-your-own recycling boxes to this list. If it's a long way to the recycling facilities use a cardboard box to collect your recycling and then do a trip at the end of the day. Group together with colleagues and take it in turns to make the trip. This will raise awareness of recycling and also create a feelings of community responsibility and achievement.
As well as all this office greening a quick look on Wikipedia showed up a few more things to do this month. October is Fairtrade Month in the USA, on the 21st October it is Apple Day in the UK (so remember to stock up with nice British ones) and on the 29th October it's the RSPB's Feed the Birds Day, so better stock up on bird food too! My sparrows have finally found the second seed feeder so hopefully by the end of the month I'll have lots of full happy birds in my area.

Counting Up The Miles

Well  I failed in my attempts to improve my wine habits this weekend. Although I looked carefully at the bottle I still ended up with a plastic cork and I chose a German wine as there weren't any Fairtrade ones. But I'll keep trying to get better and I'm definitely thinking about it more now.

I've been on a lot of trains this weekend. Preston to York, York to Leeds and Leeds to Preston. I definitely enjoy going by train more than driving. It does take longer but you get to see much more of the countryside, I love riding through the dales in all its different weathers-rain, sun or snow!

Preston to York is about 80 miles by train. According to the East Coast Carbon Calculator I produce 7 kg of Co2 on a train from Preston to York whereas it would be 15kg in a car. York to Leeds by train is about 15 miles and Leeds to Preston is another 65 miles. In total, according to the East Coast website, my journey by train saved 16kg CO2 compared to going by car. This is apparently equivalent to 371 hours of TV or 296 hours of boiling a kettle.

I don't really know how they work that out. The car values will depend on how many people in a car per trip and the train will depend on how full it is. But as a rough estimate knowing that you're using almost half as much energy to travel feels quite good.

A really interesting book about calculating energy use is Sustainable Energy- Without the Hot Air by David MacKay. I'm only halfway through reading it but it's very good so far. It discusses different energy supplies available and whether sustainable energy can meet our demands without changing our lifestyles. Having not got to the end I don't know the answer yet, but the graphs, facts and figures are very clear and it's a well written book with lots to think about. I've got a copy but I've just discovered it is a free book online here which means it's available to read and download. The information in it is also free to use and the author encourages people to  share the information in this book. For more information on the book look here.


More on this when I finish reading it!