Tag Archives: Waste not want not

CarolCooks2…weekly roundup 31st May-6th June 2020…Climate Change, Recipes, Whimsey, Coconut Ice and …looting and riots…

Welcome to this weeks edition of my weekly roundup of posts…I hope you are all staying safe and well…Let’s take a pew and have a read… I hope you enjoy!

Covid-19 is still here but dominating the news now are the riots and demonstrations… The following is going to be my only utterance on this subject on this blog…To me ALL lives matter …I do agree there are ingrained issues, faults and endemic practises in government departments,  schools, colleges, homes and workplaces which have no place in my world or yours I hope.

Peaceful demonstrations I believe in…However, come on the hordes of people I have seen around the world demonstrating with no thought for social distancing…There will definitely be a second wave of this virus…

Around the world governments are struggling not just with containing this virus..deadly virus I will add and resources are being rerouted now to fund the policing of these events…no doubt health services are also being stretched further…

Shops and business are being looted, police horses injured, flares being thrown, the statue of Winston Churchill vandalised, young squaddies being verbally abused while cleaning up this mess…ABSOLUTELY APPALLING AND IT IS NOT HELPING…the cause of Black lives matter at all…

All the people I know are condemning this on social media…so who are these people??? Who are the organisers?? Who is stirring up these actions??

Is the answer tear gas, pepper sprays, water cannons, rubber bullets…? Just by the sheer numbers, there are too many to arrest…

Should police and the press be withdrawn and anyone who is a peaceful protester advised to stay away…Are no reactionS and publicity what they want? I suspect not but the cost could be too great.

I invite your polite comments…

Recycling and Climate Change…1st June 2020…and Covid-19…

Toilet rolls or bum guns, metro farms and a river who can sue you…Yes, it can!

https://carolcooks2.com/2020/06/01/recycling-and-climate-change1st-june-2020and-covid-19/

Tuesday: National Fruit and Vegetable Month…

smart
smart
smart

National Vinegar month drew to a close and my bonus during this month was the discovery of black vinegar and a sponge cake made by replacing eggs with vinegar was a huge success…This month is National Fruit and Vegetable Month and also Papaya Month which means I can combine the two …I have lots of great recipes for you…I also hope to discover at least one recipe or fruit/vegetable or aromatic which is new to me…

https://carolcooks2.com/2020/06/02/national-fruit-and-vegetable-month/

Wednesday: Smorgasbord Health Column – Food Therapy – Olive Oil…keeps your body moving by Sally Cronin

Just like our cars and bikes which need to be kept well oiled…Sally is on hand with her expert advice on the oils we need to keep our bods in tip-top condition and the benefits…Please pop over and have read and leave a comment on what oil you use…we would love to know there are also some tried and tested recipes for you…Everything you need at your fingertips for a healthy body …Enjoy!

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2020/06/03/food-therapy-olive-oil-keeps-your-body-moving-by-sally-cronin/

Whimsical Wednesday with CarolCooks2…

smart
coconut Ice

I didn’t realise how popular Dalgona Coffee is…How many of you have made it at home…?? my third attempt at making coconut ice was a success(at)last…I also made my second cake with vinegar to replace the eggs… filled it with non-dairy cream and mango preserve …my first vegan cake…go me!

https://carolcooks2.com/2020/06/03/whimsical-wednesday-with-carolcooks2-7/

Thursday: National Cheese Day…4th June 2020

One of my favourite foods in life…so many varieties and ways to cook and eat…A lovely ploughman’s lunch in the sunshine, mozzarella with tomatoes and basil, a hot brie or camembert with crusty bread, rarebit with tomatoes, au gratin of vegetables, A slice with your Christmas cake or just a little bit as you go past the fridge…

https://carolcooks2.com/2020/06/04/national-cheese-day-4th-june-2020/

Friday: Smorgasbord Health Column – Project 101 Resilience – How much do you get for your 1500 calories and Music Therapy – Sally Cronin

project-101-2 Sally Cronin

None of us like counting calories particularly me but as Sally states its good to be aware and maybe like I do take a check now and again…I do it by keeping a food diary just for a couple of weeks and checking that I am keeping within my limits for my weight or as it can be with me I don’t always eat enough…I tend to forget to eat when I am writing…

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2020/06/04/smorgasbord-health-column-project-101-resilience-how-much-do-you-get-for-your-1500-calories-and-music-therapy-sally-cronin/

Saturday Snippets:

This week there was more cooking…why yesterday…? I was a bit ..just down, disappointed with the world…Just dispirited it won’t last as that is not me but I think it showed in this last post the joy and wonder at the world was gone…Temporarily I know but I was sad…

https://carolcooks2.com/2020/06/06/saturday-snippets-2/

God bless you all in these turbulent times…be safe and stay well…

My hopes…for the future…

When this is all over my hope for the future is a cleaner world… I do want to see communities, and caring for your neighbour becoming the new norm…WORKING TOGETHER INSTEAD OF WORKING AGAINST EACH OTHER…Being kind to each other…Loving someone whatever their religion or skin colour…Can we make this happen? We have to but in the right way…Are we willing to make a stand? Personally, I would love to see lessons learnt ..realistically I have my doubts…

Thank you for reading be well and stay safe xxx

About Carol Taylor: Enjoying life in The Land Of Smiles I am having so much fun researching, finding new, authentic recipes both Thai and International to share with you. New recipes gleaned from those who I have met on my travels or are just passing through and stopped for a while. I hope you enjoy them.

I love shopping at the local markets, finding fresh, natural ingredients, new strange fruits and vegetable ones I have never seen or cooked with. I am generally the only European person and attract much attention and I love to try what I am offered and when I smile and say Aroy or Saab as it is here in the north I am met with much smiling.

Some of my recipes may not be in line with traditional ingredients and methods of cooking but are recipes I know and have become to love and maybe if you dare to try you will too. You will always get more than just a recipe from me as I love to research and find out what other properties the ingredients I use contain to improve our health and wellbeing.

Exciting for me hence the title of my blog, Retired No One Told Me! I am having a wonderful ride and don’t want to get off, so if you wish to follow me on my adventures, then welcome! I hope you enjoy the ride also and if it encourages you to take a step into the unknown or untried, you know you want to…….Then, I will be happy!

Thank you once again for reading this post I hope you all stay safe and healthy xx

Plastic…Part 11…Are we really doing enough?

Good morning for sunny Thailand and it is a glorious day …At the moment …I say that as it is the low season which means sunshine and tropical storms and boy when that rain starts the heavens just open…It is also why everything is so gloriously green here…

Curry plant in bloom

My curry tree…

It makes you feel that all is well with the world but don’t be fooled it appears it is NOT!

I have written much about the billions of tons of plastic which affect the health of our seas…and Planet …landfill…Plastic is everywhere …

But how does it get there?

But I  always dispose of my waste properly! I always recycle when possible!”, We all say it! But, if no-one is responsible, how does so much end up in the rivers and the ocean?

But I always put my trash in the bin!

overflowing waste bins

Photo credit: habeebee on VisualHunt / CC BY-NC-ND

How many of us are guilty of adding our waste to that overflowing bin? Then walking away satisfied that we have done OUR bit?…

The problem doesn’t end here either because next, we need to move the garbage to a more permanent location. Before you say recycling, remember that, worldwide, less than 10% of all waste is recycled which means that the majority of your rubbish ends up as landfill or incinerated.

I see rubbish and bins everywhere like that here…So what is generally the first few things that happen before the rubbish is collected…

The wind picks up and blows the plastic bags everywhere...The dogs, cats and even the man who trundles along with his little trolley and goes down the bin…splits plastic bags open to see what is inside… This is life this happens, this is the reality!

street lady going down a waste bin

Photo credit: drpavloff on VisualHunt / CC BY-NC

All true...That is life …We may not want to admit it …But it is what happens…I see this every time I go for a walk but haven’t yet plucked up the courage to ask if I can take a photo…

This part of the story is probably the one we are most aware of. But there is another side of the story that we are less aware of but equally responsible for… I hear you…Loud and clear!

But how can I control illegal dumping of rubbish? Am I responsible for the actions of people who throw away their cigarette butts which are washed down the drain directly into the oceans? These actions do have an impact but it is not the biggest problem. It is also something we have no control over anyway.

In fact, the other side of the story is caused by us…Again! It has been estimated that of all the plastic and rubbish in the oceans, 90% of it comes from just 10 rivers.

Now if you were to look at where those rivers were located you would notice a link… it is those countries which most likely to manufacture many of the cheap, disposable plastic items. Items that are typically found as landfill and littering the oceans, such as plastic bags, toys, toothbrushes, straws and bottles.

They also happen to be the countries most likely to have inadequate waste management facilities. This means rubbish is much more likely to end up being lost to the environment.

We go shopping and often pick up things without a thought…I know I do… I consciously do try really hard but also if it is a product I buy…  I sometimes still buy it and dispose of it correctly of course I do but honestly, I don’t do enough … I really don’t!

I need to be more conscientious… Here’s what I think…

Refuse – Whenever you can, say NO to plastic bags, straws, cups, forks and spoons! And ask yourself, do I really need this?

This one I do…I have bamboo straws and we take our own cups for a refill I also refuse any cutlery or bag as always have a cloth bag with me…This I can honestly say I have perfected.

Reduce – When you cannot refuse, use less of whatever you can!

Truly I need to be better at this one...I need to decide and ask myself do I need to buy something then take the decision to try to find and buy a product marketed as sustainable and manufactured with consideration of the environment…Like these…I love them… banana leaves are used to make little baskets to hold tomatoes or other vegetables the bamboo containers holding tomatoes are emptied into a paper bag at the till and reused…

This is such a simple use of natural packaging and is what I buy when I can but I do need to think before I buy any imported items as that is where my problem lies. I need to think about packaging and the air miles even more …Think before I buy! Buy local …

Reuse – Fill up your water bottle, take cutlery out with you, reuse that plastic bag over and over.

Waterbottle √ Take cutlery with you × reuse that plastic bag √…2 out of 3 most of the time as sometimes I forget the cutlery…My bad…

Repair – If it breaks, don’t automatically throw it away, check if you can fix it!

I do now and that is because Thais are really good at that…Not much gets thrown away they always make do and mend…

Thinking about packaging in the home as I often do…

I have come across these great platinum silicone products which have many uses for the freezer, the oven and taking your food to work or play…It seems there are no known problems at the moment and that although they are not compostable they are fully recyclable where there are facilities.

While not a “100% natural” material like rubber, food-grade silicone is a non-toxic polymer mostly made from silica (sand). It can withstand heating and freezing without leaching or off-gassing, hazardous chemicals – unlike plastics, which contaminate food in these environments.

I like the way that the top seals and they fold flat I am thinking I could use them when I buy meat to save on a plastic bag and for me they would be better in the freezer than glass as I don’t have a very big freezer and glass is rigid and takes up more room.

And if you are short on smiles today then watch this video and I dare you not to smile…

However to keep on believing that throwing our trash in the correct bins and recycling is going to help our planet is wrong. we need to change not only our ways but our thinking…

The Bottom Line…

It is up to us as individuals to take a stand and start changing the way we look at our trash and the things that we buy.

Will you???

Thank you so much for reading this post and if it made you smile please share and or comment on how you deal with plastic xxx

About Carol Taylor:

Enjoying life in The Land Of Smiles I am having so much fun researching, finding new, authentic recipes both Thai and International to share with you. New recipes gleaned from those who I have met on my travels or are just passing through and stopped for a while. I hope you enjoy them.

I love shopping at the local markets, finding fresh, natural ingredients, new strange fruits and vegetable ones I have never seen or cooked with. I am generally the only European person and attract much attention and I love to try what I am offered and when I smile and say Aroy or Saab as it is here in the north I am met with much smiling.

Some of my recipes may not be in line with traditional ingredients and methods of cooking but are recipes I know and have become to love and maybe if you dare to try you will too. You will always get more than just a recipe from me as I love to research and find out what other properties the ingredients I use contain to improve our health and wellbeing.

The environment is also something I am passionate about and there will be more on this on my blog this year

Exciting for me hence the title of my blog, Retired No One Told Me! I am having a wonderful ride and don’t want to get off, so if you wish to follow me on my adventures, then welcome! I hope you enjoy the ride also and if it encourages you to take a step into the unknown or untried, you know you want to…….Then, I will be happy!

Carol is a contributor to the Phuket Island Writers Anthology: https://www.amazon.com/Phuket-Island-Writers-Anthology-Stories-ebook/dp/B00RU5IYNS

Connect to Carol

Blog: https://carolcooks2.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheRealCarolT
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carol.taylor.1422

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/caroltaylor56/pins/

Thank you once again for reading this post I hope you are all having a great week xx

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Waste Not! Want Not! Week 18…Washed up on the beach…Dead!

Before I kick off…I would like to truly thank everyone who sends me good news stories and who share/reblog these posts to spread the word that plastic IS A BIG PROBLEM WORLDWIDE very, very much…

This rant started building inside me when I read a FB post about whales found dead with shit loads of plastic in their stomachs…

Over the past two weeks, two whales have washed up on shores—one in the Philippines, and one in Italy—with stomachs stuffed with disposable plastic trash. On March 16, a young Cuvier’s beaked whale died and was found in Mabini after having consumed about 88 pounds of plastics. Last week, a pregnant sperm whale washed up dead in Sardinia with a little less than 50 pounds of plastic in her stomach. The beaked whale was found in a state of advanced dehydration and starvation, while the sperm whale’s death has not been fully diagnosed.

Of course, I opened it and started to click the links…Way back in 2014...Yep…California’s Governor Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill 270…

Now comes the kicker…the ban was put on hold until a referendum is voted on in 2016.

Officials said that based on a random sample of 800,000 names submitted by the American Progressive Bag Alliance at the end of last year, opponents to the ban had mustered 555,000 names — more than the 505,000 needed to force a vote.

“It’s not surprising that after spending more than $3.2 million, 98 per cent of which is from out-of-state, the plastic bag industry has bought its way onto the California ballot to protect its profits,” said Mark Murray of Californians vs. Big Plastic, an advocacy group that supported the plastic bag ban and includes the Sierra Club, Heal the Bay and the Surfrider Foundation. Full story here

On November 8, 2016, California voters approved Proposition 67, the statewide Single-Use Carryout Bag Ban.

California proposes phaseout of single-use plastics by 2030…Wow, that’s some jump!
16 years from the initial Senate bill 270
What do you guys think when someone utters a statement like this???

However, some contend the state should stay out of the business of restricting plastics, whether straws or packaging. They also claim a small percentage of plastics in the ocean are coming from the United States.

“It won’t change anything, and nobody will see a difference,” said Kerry Jackson, a fellow at the Center for California Reform at the Pacific Research Institute, a conservative think tank based in San Francisco. “This is a freedom issue as well. [Companies] should be able to decide what they’re going to give to customers, and customers should be able to decide what they want to get.”

Freedom issue?…. Companies should be able to decide.?.. What planet apart from planet greed and money are these people on…It certainly isn’t the Blue Planet!

Blue Planet

Why can’t everyone be like the French? Banned from NOW…No arguments, no votes Just BANNED!
All the time that statement and amendments are allowed we will see horrific pictures like the ones Debby posted on whales and other marine life being choked and dehydrated until they abort their young or just die will continue…
Ostrich syndrome no longer works!
I make no apologies for my rant…If you do disagree feel free to comment here…You will get short shrift
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Now for the fluffy bits…The good News Stories…

Readers Corner…

Noelle said…

PLASTICS are polluting our oceans. Two young Americans have founded something called 4Oceans – I’ve done some research and it seems to be on the up and up. For every twenty-dollar bracelet, you buy, made from recycled plastics in Bali, they promise to remove one pound of plastic from the oceans. They are located around the world and it seems like a good place to donate. The bracelets aren’t much, but then most of the money goes to the cleanup and the local Bali economy. Check it out.

Victoria Ziglar sent me the info on Patch Plasters…

Patch’s hypoallergenic adhesive strips, perfect for kids and adults alike, are free of plastic, parabens, latex and silicon. Bamboo is a rapidly renewable resource that grows many times faster than trees, uses much less water, produces up to 35 more oxygen and doesn’t need pesticides or herbicides!

Ideal for me in two ways so thank you, Tori, as I have a plaster allergy…

Also from Tori…Who is a little star…thank you xxx

The UK’s biggest coordinated beach clean-up, organised by Surfers Against Sewage, will see volunteers across the UK removing plastic from natural spaces including mountains, as well as contributing to the UK’s biggest ever Plastic Pollution Audit to help further track and tackle plastic pollution to stop it at the source.

Thank you, ladies …You Rock! 

Finally, if you are still buying takeaway drinks then maybe …No, yes it is time to step up and take your own reusable cup  

Thank you for still being here if you have survived my rant…xxx

Until next time ….with updated news on the plastic front…

Thank you for reading this post which I believe will point the way to a few changes we can make to really make a difference as I know I am not doing enough and should be doing more and that seems to be backed up by much in this post what do you think?… Are you doing enough to Save the Planet ???

About Carol Taylor:

Enjoying life in The Land Of Smiles I am having so much fun researching, finding new, authentic recipes both Thai and International to share with you. New recipes gleaned from those who I have met on my travels or are just passing through and stopped for a while. I hope you enjoy them.

I love shopping at the local markets, finding fresh, natural ingredients, new strange fruits and vegetable ones I have never seen or cooked with. I am generally the only European person and attract much attention and I love to try what I am offered and when I smile and say Aroy or Saab as it is here in the north I am met with much smiling.

Some of my recipes may not be in line with traditional ingredients and methods of cooking but are recipes I know and have become to love and maybe if you dare to try you will too. You will always get more than just a recipe from me as I love to research and find out what other properties the ingredients I use contain to improve our health and wellbeing.

The environment is also something I am passionate about and there will be more on this on my blog this year

Exciting for me hence the title of my blog, Retired No One Told Me! I am having a wonderful ride and don’t want to get off, so if you wish to follow me on my adventures, then welcome! I hope you enjoy the ride also and if it encourages you to take a step into the unknown or untried, you know you want to…….Then, I will be happy!

More and more of my blogging friends have joined me on MeWe…A social media site which is fairly new and which promises much without the restrictions some other social media sites are choosing to impose on many of us…Join me if you will on  mewe.com/i/caroltaylor3 

 

Carol is a contributor to the Phuket Island Writers Anthology: https://www.amazon.com/Phuket-Island-Writers-Anthology-Stories-ebook/dp/B00RU5IYNS

Connect to Carol

Blog: https://carolcooks2.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheRealCarolT
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carol.taylor.1422

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/caroltaylor56/pins/

Thank you once again for reading this post I hope you all have a great week xx

green foot prints eco system

 

WasteNot! Want Not! Week 15

I am really heartened by the initiatives which I am discovering that are happening from all around the world…Your comments are also a revelation when I hear from you guys what is going on in your neck of the woods all good stuff…How you are reducing the carbon footprints and coming up with ideas to cut waste and protect the environment.

BUT…Hand on heart…

A heart map held by a hand

Are we truly doing enough?

This young lady doesn’t think so…Greta Thunberg is 15 years old with a wise head on her young shoulders and tomorrow 15th March 2019 around the world young people will skip school to have their say…If one of those young people is your child then I urge you to support them…

A young girl called Greta who shows quiet determination for what she believes in…

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Last week I touched on how an initiative in Mexico 8,409 km from the UK…  a region of the UK has created the country’s first local circular economy.

The traditional system of getting rid of waste is linear: packaging is made, used and disposed of but the local authority in Cambridgeshire along with a local plastics processor and packaging company have joined together to create a model which is circular.

Thank you, Tori, for spotting this update…

The initiative is being led by Huntingdonshire District Council working with Charpak Ltd, a Huntingdon-based plastic packaging manufacturer, and has seen discarded plastics collected, cleaned, reprocessed and reused, all within the local area.

The council says the new approach, which has been 18 months in the making, has helped to reduce the amount of plastic going to landfill.

A spokesman for the district council said: “Our residents are already great recyclers diverting more than 55 per cent of waste from landfill. We need more plastics recycled and less going to landfill, so the next step is to improve the quality of materials that are collected for recycling.

https://www.huntspost.co.uk/news/huntingdonshire-s-circular-economy-for-plastic-recycling-a-success-1-5923327

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This mismanagement of environment issues continues in Australia and another damming report on Water Wars in the Murray-Darling Basin has been issued …It seems young Greta who I mentioned in this post above is worth listening to…Because those in power are not listening once again I urge all you Australians to become a climate voter

What does this mean for the fish in this river basin?

December and January saw three devastating mass fish kills in the Darling River. Now it seems a fourth is on the cards.

A new paper released today by the Australian National University found that water savings in the Murray-Darling Basin may only be one-tenth of the expected amount.

Simply put, greedy corporations and government mismanagement meant too much water was taken from the Murray-Darling Basin and not enough water was put back to allow the river to cope in a drying climate. And now we’re seeing the devastating consequences.

Even in the drought season rivers like this are not supposed to dry out…

http://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/news-events/all-stories/water-wars-murray-darling-basin

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Monsanto… At long last seem to be fighting a losing battle…slowly but surely people power is winning…There was Costco…

And now?

ONCE AGAIN Monsanto is losing millions of dollars now that farmers in India are switching to indigenous cotton seeds rather than Bt cotton.

The agrichemicals company is known for pushing a form of Bt cotton in India for the last decade. They have been accused of manipulating laws in order to enter the Indian market.

https://www.nationofchange.org/2017/03/09/monsanto-loses-millions-dollars-indian-farmers-switch-indigenous-seed/?fbclid=IwAR3-i9fRJj1scifNSsrObv8XxZVa390dYmj9cBFGQ97LN0mVgx6gYIhZy1M

Some FURTHER good news is that these edible parks are springing up all over and I think it is a great initiative FOR URBAN DWELLERS…

 

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Good News…The Middle East has opened the First Zero Waste Shop….Reducing your environmental impact in the Middle East just got a whole lot easier. A zero-waste lifestyle shop called EcoSouk just opened in the Hamra neighbourhood of Beirut, Lebanon.

How good is that? 

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/03/lebanon-organization-pioneers-eco-movement-with-the-middle-easts-first-zero-waste-shop/

Thank you so much for reading this post …Your ideas on how we can save our carbon footprints and the environment we would love to hear any new initiatives or updates please share…I love to hear from you in comments xxx

About Carol Taylor:

Enjoying life in The Land Of Smiles I am having so much fun researching, finding new, authentic recipes both Thai and International to share with you. New recipes gleaned from those who I have met on my travels or are just passing through and stopped for a while. I hope you enjoy them.

I love shopping at the local markets, finding fresh, natural ingredients, new strange fruits and vegetable ones I have never seen or cooked with. I am generally the only European person and attract much attention and I love to try what I am offered and when I smile and say Aroy or Saab as it is here in the north I am met with much smiling.

Some of my recipes may not be in line with traditional ingredients and methods of cooking but are recipes I know and have become to love and maybe if you dare to try you will too. You will always get more than just a recipe from me as I love to research and find out what other properties the ingredients I use contain to improve our health and wellbeing.

The environment is also something I am passionate about and there will be more on this on my blog this year

Exciting for me hence the title of my blog, Retired No One Told Me! I am having a wonderful ride and don’t want to get off, so if you wish to follow me on my adventures, then welcome! I hope you enjoy the ride also and if it encourages you to take a step into the unknown or untried, you know you want to…….Then, I will be happy!

Carol is a contributor to the Phuket Island Writers Anthology: https://www.amazon.com/Phuket-Island-Writers-Anthology-Stories-ebook/dp/B00RU5IYNS

Connect to Carol

Blog: https://carolcooks2.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheRealCarolT
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carol.taylor.1422

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/caroltaylor56/pins/

Thank you once again for reading this post I hope you are all having a great week xx

Waste Not! Want Not! …Australia plans to dump one million tons of sludge on the Great Barrier Reef!

Good morning from sunny Thailand although we have had the mother of storms this week and huge hailstones it has cooled the air down somewhat…

I am really heartened by the initiatives which I am discovering that are happening from all around the world…Your comments are also a revelation when I hear from you guys what is going on in your neck of the woods all good stuff…How you are reducing the carbon footprints and coming up with ideas to cut waste and protect the environment.

green foot prints eco system

Then just the other day I heard and read something which shocked me to the core...One of the biggest, most beautiful countries in my part of the world with breathtaking natural wonders is allowing an absolutely abhorrent action to take place…

Australia plans to dump one million tonnes of sludge in the Great Barrier Reef.

Great barrier Reef

Image by 127071 on Pixabay

Despite strict laws on dumping waste, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) gave the go-ahead.

A loophole was found – the laws don’t apply to materials generated from port maintenance work.

It comes one week after flood water from Queensland spread into the reef, which scientists say will “smother” the coral.

Dredged from the sea bed near Hay Point Port who are one of the worlds largest coal exporters and a substantial economic source for Australia this industrial residue is going to be dumped on that beautiful reef…

My thoughts on that statement..substantial economic source equals money/backhanders for someone…

The North Queensland Bulk Ports Corporation have said the dump will have a minor environmental impact… Please, it should not be happening and then there would be no impact…Their investigations of course ( it is in their ) own interests ( profit) showed risk to be predominantly low with some temporary short-term impacts.

So let’s be clear the Bulk Ports Corp is paying for reports to justify their own dump and which probably also found the loophole which they now are now exploiting …

My question is WHY? When Australia has pledged A$500 million( 275) million to protect the reef… Are they allowing this dump?…

If this doesn’t smack of cronyism, blatant pocket lining and profiteering then I don’t know what does…

Read the full story here… When you have please if you feel the same as me share the hell out of it…

https://www.iflscience.com/environment/australia-greenlights-dumping-1-million-tons-of-sludge-in-great-barrier-reef-waters/

That beautiful coral home to lots of sea life which has already lost 30% due to bleaching… and now they plan to dump sludge they say well away from that but given the tide and weather conditions, no one can guarantee where the sludge will end up …

Whitsunday islands

Image by werner22brigitte on Pixabay

I myself cannot believe that government/ politicians can sanction this ...It is their country for God’s sake and after pledging all that money to save the Barrier Reef they are allowing this? It is an abhorrent, cruel, wicked way to treat that beautiful place…

Humans are the worst perpetrators of harm to the environment…

The dredging is due to start in March and is set to last 40 days. 

I defy anyone to try to justify such actions or to tell me it has nothing to do with pure unadulterated greed and profiteering.

I have lost heart and don’t feel I want to dim the importance of these actions unless anyone can stop it happening by telling of some of the wonderful efforts to save the environment …They are for another post on another day…

Thank you so much for reading this post …Please share your ideas on how we can save our carbon footprints and the environment and if you live in Oz please try to stop this happening…I love to hear from you in comments xxx

About Carol Taylor:

Enjoying life in The Land Of Smiles I am having so much fun researching, finding new, authentic recipes both Thai and International to share with you. New recipes gleaned from those who I have met on my travels or are just passing through and stopped for a while. I hope you enjoy them.

I love shopping at the local markets, finding fresh, natural ingredients, new strange fruits and vegetable ones I have never seen or cooked with. I am generally the only European person and attract much attention and I love to try what I am offered and when I smile and say Aroy or Saab as it is here in the north I am met with much smiling.

Some of my recipes may not be in line with traditional ingredients and methods of cooking but are recipes I know and have become to love and maybe if you dare to try you will too. You will always get more than just a recipe from me as I love to research and find out what other properties the ingredients I use contain to improve our health and wellbeing.

The environment is also something I am passionate about and there will be more on this on my blog this year

Exciting for me hence the title of my blog, Retired No One Told Me! I am having a wonderful ride and don’t want to get off, so if you wish to follow me on my adventures, then welcome! I hope you enjoy the ride also and if it encourages you to take a step into the unknown or untried, you know you want to…….Then, I will be happy!

Carol is a contributor to the Phuket Island Writers Anthology: https://www.amazon.com/Phuket-Island-Writers-Anthology-Stories-ebook/dp/B00RU5IYNS

Connect to Carol

Blog: https://carolcooks2.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheRealCarolT
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carol.taylor.1422

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/caroltaylor56/pins/

Thank you once again for reading this post I hope you are all having a great week xx

 

 

 

 

Waste Not! Want Not! Week 12…

Good morning from sunny Thailand…Thank you all so much for your comments last week you all rock and it is lovely to know that so many people do care and between us, I am sure we will make a difference…We have to though …Don’t WE??

Asia uses a lot of plastic but I have been very heartened by the signs and efforts of big corporations to address the problem of single-use plastic and waste.

Foot prints-990332_640

7/11 is a franchise here they are everywhere and on every street corner…The amount of plastic bags they dispense must be off the scale…They have just announced 169 million plastic bags unused at 7-Eleven stores in two months…more than 33 million baht value alone but also a huge amount of single-use plastic not making its way into the environment.

CP All Public Company (Central Pattana), the sole operator of 7-Eleven convenience stores in Thailand, announced its intention to reduce and, eventually, to eliminate the use of single-use plastic bags at all their stores throughout the country last year.

169,054,724 plastic bags have been rejected or unused between December 7 to February 7. The savings, some 33,810,945 baht, will now be donated to Siriraj Hospital.

That’s a win-win situation all around, isn’t it? And pleasing to see…

Full story: https://thethaiger.com/hot-news/plastics/169-million-plastic-bags-unused-at-7-eleven-stores-in-two-months

The two brilliant incentives which pleased me the most THIS WEEK were…The school who have replaced their sweet filled vending machine with books…A staff member got the idea from social media and a friend helped find a refurbished machine, which is now stocked up with children’s favourite books.

kids reading books

The books are priced at 50 cents each.

And Lego ...Now, who hasn’t played with LEGO? they are launching new Lego bricks made from sugarcane…

 

Two excellent ideas…

There are some awesome ideas coming out of Florida…This drinks company has created edible plastic 6 pack rings… That feed sea turtles…A great inventive idea but not sure if it will stop people throwing their waste…What do you think?

https://realfarmacy.com/florida-brewery-unveils-6-pack-rings-that-feeds-sea-turtles-instead-of-killing-them/?fbclid=IwAR2mQtLViJb-S7XiJrIjNBu8Xovo8OM1xGsrobkXbzUGv1q5XJE_ns_IBl0

Last week the theme was cigarette butts and https://realfarmacy.com/florida-brewery-unveils-6-pack-rings-that-feeds-sea-turtles-instead-of-killing-them/?fbclid=IwAR2mQtLViJb-S7XiJrIjNBu8Xovo8OM1xGsrobkXbzUGv1q5XJE_ns_IBl0

cigarette butt

Last week the topic was cigarette butts Adele said her auntie used a portable holder that she could put her used butts into so I headed over to my friend Mr Amazon…and lo and behold…https://www.amazon.co.uk/Portable-Ashtrays/b?ie=UTF8&node=2732120031 

No, I am not affiliated to Amazon or anyone just being helpful…They are quite tiny like a key ring so no excuses to flick those butts…

Lastly, I was alerted to this great new incentive by Ellen...

One eco-friendly shop in Bury St. Edmund’s is waging war on consumer habits, shunning unnecessary packaging to help shoppers embrace a greener lifestyle. Judging by the video it has been very well received by the locals.

https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/zero-waste-shop-clear-to-sea-st-johns-street-bury-st-edmunds-suffolk-1-5894690?fbclid=IwAR327wKfINZqsOKF9ApFQaZa8E32RzAQyzdwBc_7QS7FBCgKLDqUvsH256Y

The new Clear to Sea store in St John’s Street, Bury St Edmund’s even offers washable sanitary towels and cardboard deodorants in its bid to bring about positive environmental change.

Customers are also able to buy as much or as little of products as they want, with one customer even buying just two teaspoons of spice on one occasion because that was all she needed.

I think this is a fantastic incentive… I also hope more of these shops spring up nationwide/worldwide…x

green foot prints eco system

Thank you so much for reading this post …Please share your ideas on how we can save our carbon footprints and the environment…I love to hear from you in comments xxx

About Carol Taylor:

Enjoying life in The Land Of Smiles I am having so much fun researching, finding new, authentic recipes both Thai and International to share with you. New recipes gleaned from those who I have met on my travels or are just passing through and stopped for a while. I hope you enjoy them.

I love shopping at the local markets, finding fresh, natural ingredients, new strange fruits and vegetable ones I have never seen or cooked with. I am generally the only European person and attract much attention and I love to try what I am offered and when I smile and say Aroy or Saab as it is here in the north I am met with much smiling.

Some of my recipes may not be in line with traditional ingredients and methods of cooking but are recipes I know and have become to love and maybe if you dare to try you will too. You will always get more than just a recipe from me as I love to research and find out what other properties the ingredients I use contain to improve our health and wellbeing.

The environment is also something I am passionate about and there will be more on this on my blog this year

Exciting for me hence the title of my blog, Retired No One Told Me! I am having a wonderful ride and don’t want to get off, so if you wish to follow me on my adventures, then welcome! I hope you enjoy the ride also and if it encourages you to take a step into the unknown or untried, you know you want to…….Then, I will be happy!

Carol is a contributor to the Phuket Island Writers Anthology: https://www.amazon.com/Phuket-Island-Writers-Anthology-Stories-ebook/dp/B00RU5IYNS

Connect to Carol

Blog: https://carolcooks2.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheRealCarolT
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carol.taylor.1422

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/caroltaylor56/pins/

Thank you once again for reading this post I hope you are all having a great week xx