Carbon Trading....

I traveled to Pensacola this Christmas, over 2,000 mile going and coming, and I rented a car and drove to my son's home in Tennesee (~800 miles round trip). So for one vacation, I traveled almost 3,000 miles.

Expedia.com offered a Terra Card through which I could contribute to alternative energy research. It cost me only $15.00 for the distance I flew. The money supports development of wind power technologies in the midwest and carbon trading. From Wikipedia:

"Carbon Trading is an administrative approach used to control pollution by providing economic incentives for achieving reductions in the emissions of pollutants [1]. In such a plan, a central authority (usually a government agency) sets a limit or cap on the amount of a pollutant that can be emitted. Companies or other groups that emit the pollutant are given credits or allowances which represent the right to emit a specific amount. The total amount of credits cannot exceed the cap, limiting total emissions to that level. Companies that pollute beyond their allowances must buy credits from those who pollute less than their allowances. This transfer is referred to as a trade. In effect, the buyer is being fined for polluting, while the seller is being rewarded for having reduced emissions. The more firms that need to buy credits, the higher the price of credits becomes -- which makes reducing emissions cost-effective in comparison.

The overall goal of an emissions trading plan is to reduce pollution. In some cases, the cap may be lowered over time. In other systems a portion of all traded credits must be retired, causing a net reduction in emissions each time a trade occurs. In many cap and trade systems, organizations which do not pollute may also buy credits. Environmental groups that purchase and retire pollution credits reduce emissions and raise the price of the remaining credits as per the law of demand.

Because emissions trading uses free markets to determine how to deal with the problem of pollution, it is often touted as an example of effective free market environmentalism. While the cap is usually set by a political process, individual companies are free to choose how or if they will reduce their emissions. Moreover, the government does not need to regulate how much each individual company emits, making cap and trade a very cost-effective method of controlling pollution on a large scale."

I am sure there are other sources that should be checked against this rosey-view of carbon trading. If it is so effective we should see major trading going on and incentives driving companies to environmental ecstasy and savings. So....?

In October of 2006 the Arizona Corporate Commission set new energy standards: The Renewable Energy Standard would increase Arizona’s current goal of 1.1% renewable energy by 2007 to a standard of 15% by 2025. The rules state 30% of the standard is to be derived from distributed energy resources – small-scale technologies located close to where energy is used, such as roof-top photovoltaic projects or solar hot water projects. Go to Arizona PIRG for an excellent review of this new set of standards and the PIRG energy policy report for the nation: www.arizonapirg.org

Yet while all this is good and, in the long-term preventive, we must seek ways to reduce our individual contributions to warming right NOW. No one knows the earth system's natural threshold for warming. If we reach it, the system is altered irreversibly and it's a whole new ball game. We don't want to go there.

What can each of us do? Well, in a democracy we expect that people will freely choose to put in place the kinds of changes they can manage. Here are some simple things that will have an immediate impact if done collectively:

1. Drive less. Avoiding just 10 miles of driving every week would eliminate about 500 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions a year!
2. Turn down your heater thermostat to decease coal burning to produce electricity. Coal burning is Arizona's primary means of producting electricity.
3. Install a solar water heater. On average, if you install a solar water heater, your water heating bills should drop 50%–80%. Also, because the sun is free, you're protected from future fuel shortages and price hikes. If you're building a new home or refinancing, the economics are even more attractive. Including the price of a solar water heater in a new 30-year mortgage usually amounts to between $13 and $20 per month. The federal income tax deduction for mortgage interest attributable to the solar system reduces that by about $3–$5 per month.
4. Turn off the computer and radio when not being actively used. Better still, unplug the computer, tv and other electrical devices when not in use.
5. Install compact flourescent bulbs: www.1000bulbs.com.

These simple things can be accomplished by most of us. Start with one. Then add another, etc.

Composted on New Year's Eve. May this year bring an end to war and the beginning of a new consciousness to respect and protect life everywhere on the planet. Peace my friend.

Susan

My main strategy for reducing my footprint has gone to reducing the number of days I travel to work. This seems the most reliable to accomplish two sustainable goals: 1.) reduce my contribution to CO2 in the atmosphere; 2.) improve the quality of my life. The later includes reducing costs for fuel. This will occur after the first of the year when I will reduce mileage by at least 50% for commuting to work.

If you have not checked this resource, I heartily recommend it: http://livinggreen.ifas.ufl.edu/
It is also a good website model for all you creative souls out there!

May the Earth bloom green and vibrant from out ministrations.
Susan

My footprint is shrinking. I replaced more incandescent light bulbs in the house and outside with 14 watt (lumens 60 watt), and 19 watt (lumens 75 watt) flourescent bulbs. Each has a life of 10,000 hours. I will be saving $40 per bulb over its life. Doing the math I have saved $620 in electric bills over probably the next three years as they last that long or more depending on how much I use the lamps they are in. Together with riding the bus one day a week, carpooling on day and staying home to work another, I have reduced my foot print to 12 hectares (1200 acres). It was 19 three weeks ago. According the the Global Food Print Network, www.footprintnetwork.org, the average for Americans is 24 hectares or 2400 acres of resources to support an individual's life style.

**There is a small amount of mercury in the Compact Flourescent (CF) bulbs so they need to be recycled properly. Don't break the bulb; return it to the store you bought them from or to the recycling center in your town. But, flourescents add less mercury to the environment overall. Note that coal power plants are the single largest source of mercury emissions into the environment . According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), (when coal power is used) the mercury released from powering an incandescent bulb for five years exceeds the sum of the mercury released by powering a comparably luminous CFL for the same period and the mercury contained in the lamp.

According to the Environmental Defense Fund, if every household in the U.S. replaced three 60 watt incandescent bulbs with three14 watt compact flourescent bulbs we could keep a comparable amount of hydrocarbons out of the air as if we removed 3.5 million cars from the highways of America!

In September 2006, Wal-Mart started a campaign to endorse CFLs. They aim to sell one CFL to every one of their 100 million customers within the next year and thus change the energy consumption of the United States and to improve their reputation. In Ottawa, Canada there is an effort to get every household to change at least one lightbulb. Project Porchlight has volunteers going door-to-door providing one CF bulb to every household for free.

Now the bad news: I did not ride the bus last week. I coped out due to scheduling problems I told myself, but it was really Priscilla. She did not want to bother with it preferring to ride in her own car. So the behavior still persists to have it my way and cop out on my duty to everyone else to try to reduce my impact more.

Stay tuned for the report on how well that Better Me can bring Priscilla around. I consider this a struggle for our lives, not a petty matter.

For everykind of compact flourescent bulb you will need go to http://www.1000bulbs.com/index.php Go to "Screw-In Flourescents"

Diary of the Sustainability-Challenged: Entry One - Riding the Bus

Last week I rode the bus to work for the first time. You might not think that’s a big deal but trust me. After the Global Footprint Network released its new report about how humans are overdrawing Earth’s resources, I decided to do more to reduce my own personal impact.

So, I decided to try riding Sun Trans to work one day a week.

I filled my back pack with jacket, book, bus fare, transit map and cell phone. To be honest, I was scared…scared of looking foolish, ending up in the far reaches of Pima County …being mugged. You would have thought I was riding in a third world country.

It had been only two months since I left a love-hate relationship with a composted toilet on a writer’s residency. Like I said, this story is no Walden. I learned I have an alter ego. I named her Priscilla.

Her response to living a more ecologically responsible life is a defiant “Not me, Girl Friend!” I am ashamed of her. She’s a manifestation of life-long exposure to American advertising about the Good Life.

As I prepared to ride one morning, she made fun of me: “Right. You’re going to impact global warming. Give me a break!” she hissed. I ignored her.

Diary Entry
Okay, just got off the bus. One of the neat things is the first guy I met at the bus stop actually worked at the Food Bank! His name is Bob and he was so sweet. He explained the nuances of riding the bus around town.

Where I pick up the No. 11 bus on Alvernon, I can get coffee and a newspaper. But you can buy one on the bus, I learned. The bus was clean and took only fifteen minutes to get to Ajo Way.

Across the street from where it dropped me off is the Ajo Cafe, one of my favorite places to eat breakfast. If I leave earlier, I can eat breakfast before work. How civilized is that?

Later at home: From the Food Bank, walking to the bus stop, riding to Alvernon, walking home and conversing with a neighbor, I am home in less than an hour.

The bus ride was pleasant. I noticed the driver knew many of the regulars. As they chatted I enjoyed listening and even joined in on one of the conversations.

This was an amazing awakening for me: that this has been near my home for so long and I never tried it. If I examine truthfully why I never tried it before, I’ll admit there is a stigma about riding the bus that kept the Priscilla part of me from choosing the bus as an option. Based on my first experience, I want to ride the bus MORE! Pricilla is busy planning her public transportation wardrobe and, for now, the two of us are at peace.

How to ride the bus: http://www.suntran.com/
Measure your resource footprint: http://www.footprintnetwork.org/

Human Tracks

This week the WWF Network and Global Footprint Network released a new report on the human ecological footprint. It shows that by 2050 humanity will demand twice as much as our planet can provide.

The sixth in a series of Living Planet Reports by the WWF, this report shows an annual increase of 4% demand for resources by the human species and states that by 2006 we will overshoot what the Earth can supply by 30%.

From 1970 to 2003 vertebrate species populations have declined by about one-third.

We have reached a point in our relationship with the Earth that our demands exceed the Earth's capacity to renew itself. That means that we have violated a sacred aspect of our planet - its renewing processes that keep the potential for life a reality.

What are the renewing processes? They are fundamental processes such as the water cycle, turn-over of matter, temperature regulation, and ecosystem dynamics like population control and biodiversity richness.

The Global Footprint Network is an international NGO working to make ecological limits central to decision making. See: www.footprintnetwork.org. Especially look at the Advisory Board and Staff. You will find leaders the world over are part of the network.

Then take your own footprint. I was shocked to learn that my footprint, even after adjusting to the least impact I can make, is 19 hectares! One hectare is 100 acres.) The Earth can provide 4 hectares per person at our current population.

Stay tuned to Composted Blog as I start riding the bus to work, and find out what a renter can do to influence a landlord to incorporate energy saving appliances and solar technology.

Take your footprint and share the site with family and friends.

Sobered.

Susan

My writing residency completed, I visited Bosque del Apache on the return trip home. I drove to the wetlands after a hearty breakfast, arriving on the Bosque by 5:30 a.m.

A glorious sunrise, announced by the trumpet of an elk and quavering voices of waterfowl waking on the glassy surface of the water, played in nature's symphony. I rolled down the window of my car to listen.

To think that there are still places on Earth where mornings dawn in this manner. My car's entrance probably ruined some duck's morning; I tried to be as unobstrusive as possible, grateful to join the community of life there even if I was uninvited.

Bosque del Apache is home to thousands of Canadian geese and sandhill cranes that overwinter on the fields and wetlands in south central New Mexico. In October, right now probably, the Rio Grande waters begin filling otherwise grasscovered mesas, a watershed now managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to mimic historical flows along the Rio Grande. There were already small flocks of geese swooping over the permanent lagoon. That is where I headed about 6:30 when the sun was overhead.

Here is my biodiversity list for that glorious morning, the only human being on the lagoon for hours: Golden Eagle; King Fisher; Pheasant; Western Grebe; American Coot; Purple Martin; Barn Swift; Woodpecker; White Crowned Sparrow; Great White Pelican;Turkey Vulture; Canadian geese; elk; cottonwood, willow, scrub oak; millet, smartweed, chufa (nut sedge), three-square bulrush grasses. Canadian geese like to nibble on the the bulrush and sandhilll cranes fatten up on chufa nuts.

I made reservations to return the weekend of November 16 when the Sandhill Crane Festival takes place. All humanity shows up, but at least we are outnumbered by literally hundreds of thousands of the North American birds! And, they attract predators like the coyote that hunts in packs on delicious fowl - all a wiley coyote can manage. Normally gaunt and scavenger of trashy morsels, the coyote on the Bosque are plumb with thick tawny fur. Life is full here in the late fall when the winged ones come to visit.

Frank Waters and his lovely wife Barbara are often on my mind these days. The Frank Waters Foundation is an island in the turbulent sea of modernity. I will always remember my time in the little studio on El Salto Road by the aspen grove, the surrounding countryside, a veritable cornucopia of fruit, berries and wildflowers blazing their last opulence before the mountain cold robs the vine.

Bears came down the mountain to visit Barbara's apricot and apple trees...and trash can. I never saw one personally, but their tracks were around. On my way home on highway 191 traveling south through Arizona's alpine forests, a large brown bear met me, zigzagging up the medium in what looked like a grand frolick, his thick fur rippling down his large back in the morning sun. We passed each other with a brief glance.

Apparently all is well in some part's of God's country.

Writing at the Frank Waters' Foundation

The compost operation I have just about nailed. The other very interesting observation I have made about my own personal impact on the land is that when I have to, I can use very little water. It takes a certain willingness to give up routines such as bathing every day. Right now I shower every other day, which works since I am 61, post menopausal (I am sure you want to know this), and therefore have much drier skin.

Right now, I use about 2 gallons of water for coffee and making meals and clean up, and I guess about ten gallons of water with each shower. So my total impact in terms of water use is 54 gallons of water per week. That seems like a lot if you think about 54 gallon jugs stretched across the floor. Hmmm.

The writer's life here is stupendous. Though I am lonely and find I go to town every other day in the afternoon's for mail (the PO forwarded my mail to Taos, not Arroyo Seco, a real pain in the b...), research at the library and exploring new places, I am still putting in about 5-8 hours of writing per day. To date I have completed the first two parts of a four-part book, already well into part three.

I have explored just about every road or lane on El Salto Road, and Sunday I hiked to a waterfall that gushes from clefts in the rock face of the mountain; I met a lot of nice people and dogs on the way and back, checked on the llamas, sheep and horses that graze in various yards and homesteads along the way. Every king of flowering or fruiting schrub or tree is loaded with sweet fruits. The birds literally hang on the chokecherry bushes and gorge themselves.

Another plus is the Taos Farmers' Market on Saturdays. Farmers and family gardeners are bringing the most luscious tomatoes, peppers, greens of all kind and chilis from Hatch,NM - all accompanied by local musicians on guitar and violin.

The Book : The story is evolving in ways I did not imagine as I prepared for the residency. While I started the novel in Tucson, it has wandered to Yuma! Another unforseen element for me personally is my soul-searching about whether the novel will be interesting to my readers (whom I imagine will be people interested in a humorous, regionalized story about how human beings manage to survive world-wide climate change.)

A complete plus on this residency is the existence of a socially-responsible radio station out of Alamosa, Colorado which has afforded me continuous programming on pertinent discussions for this book. Point in mind: this morning's discussion by Senator Pete Domenici of NM about the upcoming and highly provacative detonation of new generation of bunker-busters at the White Sands missile range. This is a state, you will remember, that was the testing grounds for the first atomic bomb. Many residents fear these bombs may have limited nuclear heads. Clearly, there is mistrust among citizens who have often been unwilling recipients of fall-out and other environmental impacts of government activities.

For now, I am trying to stay focused on incorporating into my characters' lives and struggles the emergence of a new way of thinking about business, a bioregional approach to providing water, power and food to residents. Tim Flanary's book, The Weather Makers, had helped considerably, as well as Jarod Diamond's Collapse, E.F. Schumacher's Good Work, and E.O. Wilson's new book, Creation.

I ordered David Korten's The Great Turning, yesterday which I believe states the premise of my book: the old capitalist economy will go as it destroys the capability of human life to endure on Earth and is, and always was, undemocratic in both form and outcomes, replaced by a much wiser form of social democracy based on bioregionalism and richer forms of democratic relationships among entrepreurs, government and citizens.

I am very grateful to all of you who read this blog and offer ideas and feedback. Most are coming to my email, but I would appreciate if you would comment here as well so that others can learn from your ideas.

Till next week,
Susan

Ode to a Microbe

I think that I shall never see a microbe lovely as the one
that with her buds have turned my waste
into the lovliest of paste.


Okay, okay so I'm not the Poetess of Taos!

Well the big day came...and went! As I turned over the drum and ventured to open the drawer below, I actually took a breath to steady myself for what I might find lurking there. To my surprise there was just what looked like a shovel full of rich soil and there was no smell whatsoever!

As I headed for the humanure pile my mind was spinning. I thought this must just be luck, the next time will probably gross me out completely. But I don't think so. I am now the world's expert on aerating the contents of the commode, adding in just enough peat moss to keep it at the right dryness and texture.

In fact, it seems to be no big deal to my internal Priscilla anymore! The worst experience for her has been the orbed spider who is happily engulfing a plethora of insects caught in her web - which hangs within just a few inches of her fingers when she turns on the porch light to trip the light fantastic to the privy. But, even that is becoming routine.

And she has made peace with the one behind the commode. As long as it doesn't move it can live!

I have to say that my experiences in the artist's studio at the Frank Waters Foundation have alerted me to how I have grown soft in my urban lifestyle. It has made me realize I need to spend much more time in nature...that my little back yard is not the Sonoran Desert and the dogs I hear in the early morning are no substitute for the trilling of a cactus wren or howl of the wily coyote.

My daughter, Heather, visited my recently. We drove to Abiquui, Georgia O'Keefe's neck of the woods. On our way we stopped at the Echo Amphitheater shown here. This country is gorgeous.

I can understand why Frank Waters decided to call Taos home, and how Barbara Waters continues to find inspiration here.

Priscilla is wondering now, "What would it be like to have no electricity?" Having conquered the composted toilet, she is ready for the propane stove.


Be well my friends,
Susan

I am here to report that I, Priscilla the Queasy, have survived the composted toilet - so far! The real test comes in just three days. I call it THE TEST and it looms like Mt. Everest in my mind. On that day of reckoning, I will turn over the compost drum backwards, dumping (an exacting term) the, ah hem, into the drawer. I then pull out the drawer, and if I do not faint, I get to walk the contents about 100 feet to a path that goes to the PILE.

So far there have been no offensive fumes, no snakes, only a tiny orb spider that freaked out when I opened the door and dive bombed for the trash can. There is a container with peat moss that you sprinkle over the ah hem. The only draw back, and I might change my mind about it, is getting out of bed in the middle of the night when it is raining, going along with a flashlight to the commode. Still it was not that bad although Priscilla confesses, I whimpered a little about it. What a whimp!

It is all a lovely experience so far and a setting like no other. So here is the first unveiling of the compost toilet at the Waters' place:

View from the "John" to the Aspen Grove, back of the Studio:

Composted Preamble

Last weekend I learned that the cabin where I will be living for the next six weeks has no running water, a composted toilet out of doors and an outdoor shower. In short, I completely panicked, got mad and went into a kind of tailspin which amazed me. I had a "hissy fit" as we used to say in the south! It was embarrassing what a spoiled brat I became instantly with this news.

I am an environmental educator, proponent of sustainable living and the writer's residency at the cabin supports writing a novel describing how Americans learn to live in harmony with nature's ways! I never dreamed I would be among the Super Whiners until I was caught by surprise that I get to live this experience for the next six weeks!

Some, previously unknown part of me, a prima dona busy polishing her nails and sipping her soy latte, came rushing out into the light with "What!" She jumps up and throws open the door indignantly. "No running water! How can I brush my teeth, wash a dish... you don't expect me to camp out the whole time do you? And an outhouse?! Get real!" she screamed. Visions of dirty dishes piled helter skelter in a pan, underwear drapped from every chair, tripping through the cold night to the privy where a coiled rattlesnack awaits...stream like a B-rated comedy through her mind. Priscilla became seriously decomposed!

Here is Priscilla's vision of the composted toilet:



Priscilla is the product of the consumer society, a renegade figure with arms crossed and feet planted with a firm "Not me, no way Jose!"

Was I a complete FAKE? Where did this gut wrenching, fear-filled reaction come from? It was like my Priscilla persona had been insulted or even punished.

Later, as I tried to understand myself and examine my own lifestyle (which I always considered conservative in terms of water and power use) I realized how stuck I am on conveniences that I just take for granted and that Priscilla believes are absolutely necessary to carry-on a "decent life". About 75% of the human race does not live decently according to Priscilla.

Then it occurred to me how funny this was...the universe once again was serving up the only kind of experience I seem to have when the lesson I need to learn is hard: throw me into it! I get to know some of my book's characters by discovering them in me! I get to know them inside out by feeling all the fear, anger, revulsion and irritability many Americans may feel if and when the water stops running, the lights go off and we have to unplug ourselves from an unsustainable lifestyle.

So...Composted, my new blog. Here I will record my experience chopping wood, hauling water and pooping in the moonlight like my ancestors. I have no idea what this will be like. I would have never chosen to have this experience. I could just let Priscilla reign supreme, but I will not. Instead, I am going to take her by the hand and we are going down the privy path to see what's there. This is not Priscilla's vision of how we will be living in the distant future. She is hoping climate change will be a short seasonal variation and technology will learn to make it all go away...honey, pass me the massage cream.

Priscilla is very unhappy right now but resigned to the situation. She is trying to pack and has come up with a series of the most creative excuses about how we can save face: My 89 year old father just had a stroke... it's just not the right setting for me right now...I need to stay in Tucson to do more research, the timing is not right. Very sorry, I have to postpone the experience...forever!

The next segment of the adventure will be on site staring down at the real composted toilet, an experience Priscilla compares to Armageddon. Join us on August 25 for all the gory details.