Archive for the ‘Ecology’ Category

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GMO Alfalfa, Sugar Beets deregulated by USDA; updated

Thursday, February 17th, 2011

by Catherine Haug, February 2, 2011; updated February 17, 2010

Recap of developments: January 28, 2011, the USDA approved and deregulated GMO alfalfa. February 4, 2011 the USDA approved another planting of GMO sugar beets, despite a federal judge’s ruling against the crop in 2010.

Now, according to a Feb 16, 2011 article on Natural News, the Center for Food Safety (CFS) plans to sue the USDA and Monsanto over GMO alfalfa just as it successfully sued over GMO sugar beets last year.

What is GMO/GE? What does this have to do with Organics and Sustainability? Read on for more on all of these topics. (more…)

Posted in Agriculture, Ecology, GMO, Livestock | Comments Closed

Soap vs Detergents

Friday, February 4th, 2011

by Catherine Haug, January 28, 2011

At the suggestion of our audience (at our recent gathering on Making Soaps at Home, with Kathy Mansfield), I promised to write a post on how to tell a soap from a detergent on an ingredient list.

2015 update: I just found a very helpful website, regarding deciphering the ingredient list on personal and body-care products: Terre Essentials: Ingredient Guide (for personal and body-care products).

(more…)

Posted in Ecology, Health, Home & Ranch | Comments Closed

Natural Shampoo & Rinse – Updated

Saturday, January 29th, 2011

by Catherine Haug (originally published on 7/9/2009; updated and republished Jan 29, 2010)

When we find empty shelves at the grocer and chain stores (due to unavailability or high expense of fuel), what will we do?

As ESP pursues healthful and local sources for essentials, we wonder about shampoo and rinse for cleaning hair.  Most shampoos available in the American marketplace are synthetic cleansers, technically termed ‘detergents,’ and cannot be made in your kitchen.

Even Organic brands, such as Avalon, are synthetic, albeit synthesized from natural organic substances (like coconut oil), and cannot be made in your kitchen. (For more on this, refer to the Coming Clean Info Sheet by the Organic Consumers Association).

So what’s an essentials-minded person to do?

The answer is soap and vinegar, both of which can be made in your kitchen!  How cool is that? (more…)

Posted in Ecology, Health | Comments Closed

What’s in Your Bottled Water? a video

Friday, January 21st, 2011

by Catherine Haug

The people from the The Story of Stuff have a newish 8 minute video on The Story of Bottled Water. Click on the ‘more’ link below to see the video.

See also Mercola’s article on The Quickest, Easiest Way to Detox Your Body, which is about obtaining clean, pure water. While it includes a sales pitch for his water filters, it contains good information about water contaminants and how to avoid them, including:

  • What’s contaminating your well water;
  • The problem with urban water treatments;
  • Is sewage spilling into your drinking water?
  • The hazards of chlorinated water: disinfection byproducts (DBPs);
  • Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in your water;
  • Radon in your water.

(more…)

Posted in Ecology, Energy, Home & Ranch | Comments Closed

Gathering Summary: Smart Use of Trees by Sally Janover, October 27, 2010

Monday, January 17th, 2011

Ponderosa Pine & Arrowleaf Balsamroot Understory

by Catherine Haug

Photo of ponderosa and arrowleaf balsamroot understory (from behind Bigfork Post Office) by Brett Thuma

Everywhere she has lived, Sally has planted trees. “They are the royalty of the vegetative world, the big work horses of the environment. One tree does more for the planet than any other single plant.”

Basing her presentation on her background in Permaculture design, Sally talked about the importance of trees in the environment and landscape. She also enlisted input from various members of the Forest Service in the audience.

Presentation Topics

The following topics are covered in more detail in the complete Gathering Summary: Smart Use of Trees, by Sally Janover, 102710 file (updated 1/18/10). (more…)

Posted in Ecology, Gathering Summaries, Home & Ranch, Landscaping | Comments Closed

Fair Trade Foods

Friday, October 15th, 2010

by Catherine Haug

The Organic Consumers Association (OCA) is featuring several articles on the Fair World Project; one in particular caught my eye: How Do You Know It’s Really Fair Trade?

“Fair trade” means that the grower/producer of a food gets fair compensation for his work and the quality of his food. It means that he gets his fair share – that the middlemen don’t take it all, so that the grower doesn’t need to take cheap short-cuts that degrade the quality of his food. This is especially important for growers in developing countries, of foods like chocolate, coffee, bananas and other fruits.

Many of us have learned to look for the “Fair Trade” logo, but as the article points out, there are many different logos and certification programs, and there is no standardization like there is with the Organic seal. Read the original article for an in-depth look at this problem. You can also learn more on the Fair Trade USA website.

Shop Local: Real Fair Trade

When it comes to really and truly “fair trade,” nothing beats going direct to the local farmer or producer in your own community. Inspect for yourself his fields and practices, and the quality of his food. This is important for foods you consume every day, such as milk, meat, eggs, grains and flour, fruits and vegetables. (more…)

Posted in Ecology, Food-Nutrition-Health | Comments Closed

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