Support Green is the New Pink

9.24.2007

Overfishing.... or which salmon should I buy for dinner?

Ever heard the expression “There are plenty of fish in the sea...”? (Most likely said to you by your friends after you just got dumped). Well…while that may be true as far as your love life went, apparently, the phrase “there are plenty of fish in the sea” isn’t really LITERALLY true anymore….

The Problem...
Overfishing—catching fish faster than they can reproduce—is a huge global issue.

As the Marine Bio Organization says:
"Fish currently supply the greatest percentage of the world's protein consumed by humans. This fact may soon change, however, given that most of the world's major fisheries are being fished at levels above their maximum sustainable yield; and many regions are severely overfished. More than 70% of the world's fisheries are overexploited, which threatens the health, economy, and livelihoods of communities all over the world. The global fishing fleet is estimated to be 250% larger than needed to catch what the ocean can sustainably produce."

And according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium:
"Once it seemed the ocean would supply an endless bounty of seafood. Today, we're discovering its limits. Between 1950 and 1994, ocean fishermen increased their catch 400% by doubling the number of boats and using more effective fishing gear. In 1989, the world's catch leveled off at just over 82 million metric tons of fish per year. That's all the ocean can produce. Sending more boats won't help us catch more fish."

The Complications...

Overfishing includes Bycatching...
Besides the fact that humans are consuming lots of fish, overfishing is made even worse by a practice called BYCATCHING--the throwing away of fish that are caught. Yes, they catch and kill fish that never even make it to the table. Worldwide, fisheries throw away 25% of their catch. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, one in four animals caught in fishing gear dies as bycatch—unwanted or unintentional catch.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium:
"Tons of fish are tossed out, dead or dying, because they're not the kind the fishermen wanted to catch. The discarded animals may have no market value, or there may be no room on the boat to bring them to shore. Or the bycatch may be a marketable species, but too small to sell. Sometimes, fish are discarded because the fishermen lack the proper permits to land them. Dolphins, sea turtles, seals and whales all get caught by accident in fishing gear and drown.
Sharks, swordfish and red snapper are just a few of the fishes harmed by accidental kills. Bycatch often takes young fish that could rebuild depleted populations if they were allowed to grow up and breed. "

Overfishing damages the Ecosystem...
Once you take a group of fish out of the water, the whole ecosystem is thrown out of whack—it doesn’t just affect that particular species of fish, but all they interact with, including their predators and their prey. (For example: remove nearly all the trout, the carp take over and make it near impossible for the trout to re-establish a breeding population.)


Overfishing decimates the ocean...
Fish and shellfish need habitat—places to hide, feed and breed. Many kinds of fish and shellfish live and breed along the ocean floor. In order to catch these fish, including scallops, fisheries use types of fishing gear that crush life on the seafloor and damage the places where fish feed and breed. Some scientists believe that fishing with this gear harms the ocean more than any other human activity. Once the living seafloor is damaged, it can take centuries to grow back. Near Australia, bottom trawlers have pulled up and destroyed six-foot-tall gorgonians (coldwater coral) that were at least 700 years old.

Okay, I want to help….But I still love my Sushi…..

We know, we know. Fish is an amazing source of protein and essential acids. You don’t have to give it up—you just have to be smarter about what TYPES of fish you are eating.
Click here for a guide that lists every type of fish either as Best, Good Alternative or Avoid. They even have a pocket size version you can print and keep with you when you grocery shop or go to a restaurant. Now you can eat your sushi with a clear conscience.

Something interesting to notice is that fish from certain regions may be a great environmental choice, while that same fish from another region is one to avoid. When you’re at your market or at a restaurant, it never hurts to ask if it’s Wild Alaskan Salmon (Good) you’re eating or Atlantic Salmon (Avoid).

When buying fish look for the MSC stamp of approval!
The Marine Stewardship Council (http://eng.msc.org/) awards is stamp of approval to environmentally sustainable fisheries around the world. Sustainable fisheries are healthy, well-managed and do not cause harm to the ocean’s ecosystems. For a list of where you can buy fish which came from sustainable fisheries,
click here. You'd be surprised--it's not just random hippie grocery stores. Even Wal-Mart and Costco have sustainable offerings.


So start being a more careful consumer…before the phrase “plenty of fish in the sea” becomes as outdated as any word ending in “-izzle”……


Anything else I can do?

The Monterey Bay Aquarium has an amazing seafood watch program you can join online. By joining, you commit to avoiding overfished species, to spreading the word and to encouraging restaurants to avoid overfished species (there are specifics at the websites including information cards for you to leave at restaurants and markets.

In addition, by joining, you give them leverage power when they deal with large seafood buyers such as supermarkets as they try to get certain overfished species banned. They give the example of dolphin-safe tuna. Back in the day, dolphins were dying as a result of tuna fishing. Once the environment groups put enough pressure on the large buyers of tuna, however, un-dolphin-safe tuna stopped being bought, and eventually, became obsolete. Even if you, as a consumer, WANTED to buy un-dolphin-safe tuna today, you could not—there’s nowhere to buy it (and now it has also been outlawed). The Seafood Watch program is currently negotiating so that similar restrictions could be made on other fish that are in danger of being over-harvested.

For more info, click here.


9.13.2007

Can I recycle this?

As products of coming of age in the '80's we learned the mantra in school: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

While we might have chanted it with our peers in 3rd grade and wore t-shirts promoting the slogan, I'm afraid we have dropped the ball on the cause of the three R's (not to mention D.A.R.E) The first two have been blatantly ignored for want of new iPods, new blackberries, new clothes, new cars, new Nintendo and new/big diamonds, can we save ourselves with the last one? Can we recycle?

YES! Let us make it easy for you...




Step 1...
Procure a complimentary recycling collection can/bin/container from you City's Bureau of Sanitation (in LA call Sanitation Customer Service Call Center (800) 773-2489.)

Step 2...
Set up a separate bin in your house for recycling (label it Recycling with large letters if you live with roommates who are always slow to catch on.) This is the most important step....We guarantee that once you have a bin in your house, you'll be amazed how much you can recycle each week.

Step 3...
Begin recycling with joy. You will often run across this question... "Can I recycle this?"

A few quick answers:
...you can recycle pizza boxes if they are clean and not greasy (highly unlikely)
...you can recycle all jars, take out containers and cartons-just rinse them out first!
...you can recycle your mail, even window envelopes...you can recycle almost all paper products, like the entire contents of your old filing cabinet--files and all!
...you can recycle styrofoam (Jess didn't know that one...)
...you can recycle dry cleaning bags and plastic and WIRE hangers!!

Basically, if it's cleaned and rinsed and not broken you can recycle it!

As for the longer answer...This is the guidelines for what can be put in your curbside recycling bin in Los Angeles County (if you don't live here go to your county's website and search what can i recycle or the bureau of sanitation.)
  • Paper

  • - All Clean Dry Paper
    computer, ledger, wrapping, arts and craft paper, unwanted mail,
    flyers, telephone books, note cards, newspaper, blueprints,
    magazines, file folders, paper bags, Post-it notes, catalogs; and all
    envelopes including those with windows
    - All Cardboard Boxes and Chipboard
    cereal, tissue, dry food, frozen food, shoe, and detergent boxes; paper and toilet rolls; and corrugated boxes broken down and flattened

  • Metals

  • - All Aluminum, Tin, Metal, and Bi-Metal Cans
    rinsed if possible, soda, juice, soup, vegetables, and pet food cans;
    pie tins; clean aluminum foils; empty paint and aerosol cans with
    plastic caps removed, and wire hangers

  • Glass

  • - All Glass Bottles and Jars
    rinsed if possible, soda, wine, beer, spaghetti sauce, pickle jars,
    broken bottles, and etc.

  • Plastics

  • - All Clean Plastics 1 Through 7 (you'll see the number on the bottom usually)
    - Empty Plastic Containers
    rinsed if possible, soda, juice, detergent, bleach, shampoo, lotion, mouthwash, dishwashing liquid bottles, milk jugs, tubs for margarine and yogurt, plastic planters, food and blister packaging, rigid clamshell packaging, etc.
    - All Plastic Bags and All Film Bags
    grocery bags and dry cleaner bags, and all clean film plastic
    - All Clean Polystyrene (Styrofoam®)
    Styrofoam® cups, containers, and packaging such as Styrofoam® egg shell cartons, Styrofoam® block packaging, and Styrofoam® clamshell packaging
    - Miscellaneous Plastics
    Plastic coat hangers, non-electric plastic toys, plastic swimming
    pools, & plastic laundry baskets

DO NOT RECYCLE THESE ITEMS

If these items are placed in the blue container, there's a likelihood of contaminating the other clean materials. Please ensure that the items placed in the blue container are clean and free from contaminants.

  • Contaminated Paper
    all soiled papers or bags with oils and food waste
  • Some Broken Glass (Yes, you can recycle those broken beer bottles from Saturday night)
    window glass, mirror glass, auto glass, light bulbs, fluorescent lights and ceramics
  • Other Plastic
    plastic hygienic items, any electric or battery operated toys
  • Miscellaneous Materials
    coated milk cartons, electrical cords, cloth/fabric, appliances, mini blinds, kitchen utensils, lawn furniture, garden hoses, rubber tires, construction materials, including asphalt or concrete, wood and wood products
  • Hazardous Materials
    syringes, all partially filled aerosol cans and containers for cleaning fluids, automotive fluids, all batteries (including car batteries, household batteries, rechargeable batteries), pesticides, oil based paint, garden chemicals, and pool cleaners
Electronics like cell phones, computers and car batteries can NOT be recycled in the street bins. call your cities hazardous waste hotline or go to www.earth911.com and they will direct you to a same place in your area for such materials (in LA in number is 1-800-98-TOXIC (1-800-988-6942).)

So if '80's-style leggings and skinny jeans are back in style, surely we can bring back our favorite '80's mantra in full effect...Reduce, Reuse, Recycle....or, at least, RECYCLE...

9.07.2007

The 11th Hour



Thursday, September 6, 2007 7:20pm Arclight Cinemas - Theatre 3 1 large popcorn with butter, 1 small sprite and 1 water Jessica and Lydia (AKA Siskel and Ebert) saw The 11th Hour- a documentary produced by Leo DiCaprio about the alarming effects of global warming on the planet and the need for humans to take action now. Movie's logline - Turn mankind's darkest hour into it's finest Scariest fact: "It's 11:59 and 59 seconds. Take action now!" This is what we thought of it:

Lydia: I loved it! Beautiful Planet Earth like images of our majestic planet, sea to shining sea type stuff all set to the haunting swoons of Sigur Ros. Through interviews with scientists, scholars and spiritual leaders, the movie illustrates the interconnectedness between humans and nature and therefore, the negative effect human industrialization has had on the planet in the last 200 years. Our detachment from nature has created a void we have filled with consumer goods. Consumer goods produced in our current disposable, consumption society have ravaged the natural resources of the planet. The earth has incredible self healing capabilities (fish can purify the water, the sun can power our industry, trees can stop flooding), but we have cut down the trees, and pumped chemicals into the ocean that killed the fish. Natural disasters we see around the world today are the canaries in the coal mine of what is to come. But the future is not bleak, we have the technology and capability to create a society that runs on clean, renewable energy but the government has not created taxes or incentives for it to flourish. Once fossil fuels are taxed and clean energy programs are subsidized we will have the beginning of the new era. The movie shows the amazing architecture, design and technology that is to come (all the technology we were promised in the Jetson's is finally possible!)

If you want to scare yourself into action go see the movie. http://11thhouraction.com/

Jessica: Not to be the downer here, but I was not as enthusiastic as Lyd. She failed to mention she has had a crush on Leo since The Titanic and is thus, very biased. My opnion...

CONS: It was less of an entertaining documentary and more of a composite of scientists talking...which was interesting...but more of a lecture, not a full-on movie experience. PRO/CON: That being said, though, another reason it was difficult to watch was that it really hammers home the point that the problems facing us now are very real, big and scary. And that can be hard to hear. Though the scientific community has confirmed again and again that humans are contributing to global warming, I think we all still secretly want to believe the pseudo-science that seems to be everywhere telling us global warming is a "hoax" or not as bad as everyone is predicting. Why wouldn't you want to believe that? It's better than hearing that human kind is going to die out--and it requires less of us, too.

So when you hear the scientists that Leo interviews say, "For all the talk of 'Save the Earth', it's actually not the Earth that needs to be saved. Earth will eventually even itself back out again...it's humans that will need to be saved because we won't be able to live on Earth anymore....", you may want to duck out of the movie theatre and promptly stick your head in some sand. And we all know how well that technique works at solving problems...
PROS: Finally...the most interesting point of the movie, to me, was this...we all have that friend, family member or co-worker who refuse to do anything for the environement. They say, "They've been talking about global warming for years. It's alarmist, it's not as bad as they say, etc., etc., etc.". And THAT is their reason not to recycle or get solar energy at their house or buy CFL's. But the truth is, even if you don't believe in global warming...there are a billion reasons to be supporting the green movement which are all illustrated in the film. Don't we WANT more research on electric and hybrid cars, if not for the global warming factor, for the fact that our air is dirtier than ever and it causes more and more children to have asthma each year? Or for the fact that it would reduce our reliance on foreign oil and bring more jobs to the U.S.? Don't we WANT companies to stop dumping their gross crud into our oceans...again if not for the sake of global warming, then because everyone enjoys a day at a clean beach and because you don't want you kid swimming in oceans with toxicity levels that rival power plants or running in the sand and getting a syringe in the foot? There are a ton more examples in the film of how being green can not only help us reverse the effects of global warming, but how it can help our nation's health, economy and safety. So, at the end of the day, I would still recommend this film....there are worse ways to spend $11....and then after you see it, you can sound even smarter as you talk to your defiantly "non-green" friends and family and explain there are a LOT of reasons to be doing things the green way...whether you "believe in" global warming or not.


...And so went the discussion as Jessica and Lydia had dinner and drinks after the movie...
9:30 - midnight
Magnolia - back patio
1 Goat Cheese Salad, 1 Arugula Salad and lots of wine...