After the SIGG debacle, which turned into the GAIAM debacle, it has turned to the war of bisphenol A-laden receipts.  Yes, according to articles in the last month, receipts are a primary BPA source that all Americans are exposed to (as well as canned foods).

Miss the receipt-full-of-BPA news clips?  Check here.

Really, this is annoying a bit.

Scare tactics abound us in the realm of living “healthy” and “green”.  Media and many other message-pushers rely on fear to get you motivated.  Have you seen the “Eat fruit alone or it gives you cancer” email?  Or “don’t drink cold water or it will give you cancer” email?

Further, we begin to feel like “hey, what around me isn’t toxic?”

It reminds me frequently of a conversation with my best friend Sara (also on Twitter) where we discussed ~ when is enough enough?  What all do we have to do in our daily lives to feel like we can breathe easily and safely?

Is avoiding nail polishes with formaldehyde, tolune, and phthalates enough?  What about your vinyl accessories?  Or the upholstery in your furniture, carpets, and car?  What about the paint on your walls?  Your drink bottle?  Your deodorant?  Your grocery bags?

And now, your receipts?

The loose-powdered BPA from receipts reportedly is much easier ingested and concentrated than that “locked” into polymers of can liners and water bottles.  Meaning, wash your hands super frequently because otherwise you eat it easily as the BPA moves from receipt to hands to food.

What about sticking the receipts in your wallet or purse?  Have you just transferred mega-toxins into (and onto) everything else you touch a hundred times a day and can barely wash out?

I mentioned last week that “no one gives” a hoot “about going green”, which I meant (in earnest) as a jab at deceitful companies such as SIGG and GAIAM.

The deeper issue is, however, it can be hard to give a hoot when it feels like a huge losing battle anyhow.

For instance, besides lousy water bottles and everyday receipts, you can find BPA in:

• ALL of your canned foods.  Yep.
• Soda cans.
• City drinking water.
• Pizza boxes made of recycled cardboard
• Recycled paper
• Wine (fermented in BPA-resin lined vats)
• Beer (likewise)

Find more info on that here.

So, what is a girl to do?

Give up?

Take it all on and battle every frustrating piece of news we get?

Quit our jobs and lobby congress?

All I can offer is the reminder that you are not alone in your frustration and efforts.  Together, we can hold our heads high and make differences where we can, forgive ourselves for the things we let slide, and resist temptation to give into the media pressure to scare you.

Stressing out frequently will kill you and your loved ones far quicker and more miserably than your receipts or your SIGG.

And as you keep living your life consciously and in stride, say no to receipts when you can (as a budding environmentalist, you prefer to save trees anyhow).  Pay attention to what is in your food… and cosmetics… etc.  Vote with your dollar and support companies you can believe in, who strive for progress.

Any suggestions?  I would love to hear from you.

Sustainably yours,  Ashley Sue

Steve Wasik, CEO of Swiss-made SIGG water bottles, finally offers his full apology for not disclosing to the public that the resin epoxy liner of their reusable water bottles contains trace levels of BPA in products manufactured before August 2008 ~ an admission that made many of their best and biggest advocates outraged and heartbroken.

Unfortunately, I am still learning to be a green CEO. When I took this position, I naively assumed that “green” meant being a steward of the environment…  However, being a green company also means being held to the highest degree of corporate transparency.

I appreciate Steve Wasik’s apology.  A sincere apology is always better late than never.

Regardless, as a CEO, Wasik has failed.  (more…)

A quick update on a post I wrote in March 2009 regarding eco-friendly options to toilet paper and diapers:

Oddly, yes, the post mentions that Allie found out that cloth diapers and such have a higher carbon footprint than using disposable products, but that we need to continue looking for better options and not simply feel free to use the toxic disposable options instead.

I just stumbled across the Modern Mama who realized that while alternative options are indeed necessary, the truth of what these nappies are made from (despite marketing hype) and what they costs (including financial, health, and environmental costs) need to be considered.  Modern Mama Rosanne considers just that and shares her very in-depth findings.

I hope to be figuring all this out for myself and my hypothetical children one day soon enough, but until then, hopefully some of you spicy mamas out there will use the recommendation and research!

Sustainably yours, Ashley Sue

Playing on Twitter this morning, I found this great post on the Seventh Generation blog regarding the failure rate of bringing your reusable bags to the store.

I try not to get to judgy-wudgy, but I am who I am, and I judge.  Needless to say, I was a bit dismayed reading how people say remembering to use their bags at the grocer is so hard, so inconvenient, or just simply not on their mind.

Ann of Staten Island, New York, shuns plastic when she picks up her morning papers and coffee but admits to rarely using the shopping bag she carries in her purse. Alan, our mutual friend in L.A., uses his canvas bags as much as he can…that is, when he doesn’t forget to take them out of the car: “Hey, I’m 48 and the mind goes.”

One woman said using reusable totes is fine if you only shop for a tiny family, but a larger family is too difficult:

“The totes they sell at most places are so small it’s annoying, so you have to bring a ton of them. If I’m going to the store for something small I’ll take one. But for a regular grocery shopping expedition? With a family of five, it’s just impossible.”

This disheartens me.  My response to her is she’s simply using the wrong bags.  I agree the major inexpensive grocery chains tend not to provide decent size ~ or more importantly ~ decent quality reusable bags.  They are small and shred easily.  I have a large cloth tote, however, thrift stores always have large canvas totes you can buy for super cheap, make your own, or use the great (and cheap ~ $1) bags from Whole Foods that are made so sturdy!  We have 15 of them and have had to load up many of them when shopping for big family weekends.

Now, I will say I have left them in my trunk before.  That is becoming so infrequent it is almost never the case now.  Once, I did leave a clothing store and realize I never used the nicely folded Envirosax bag I had tucked into my purse.

It really is about getting your mind in the groove so it feels unnatural to take disposable bags.  As for grocer’s, in the rare event I forget my bags or do not bring in enough (my usual problem), I just load the cart back up (or my arms) and carry my goods that way until I get back to my car.  A cashier last week says he has more and more customers who do the same thing.  This act helps ingrain the habit and reminds me how good I feel in making this tiny decision, and knowing that I am not alone makes me even happier.

I apologize sincerely if I sound haughty about the issue.  I certainly am no green Saint, and I suppose my vigilance at the bag issue helps for the fact that I have several glaring gaps in my sustainability routine.  I just do not see age (he was kidding though), family size, or constantly forgetting you have your bags until the cashier’s already loaded it all in plastic as legitimate arguments for shrugging it off.

Judgy wudgy.

Perhaps I was actually most disheartened by the thought that many who purchase reusable bags only do so out of feeling the pressure of the “green guilt”.  If you buy something merely because peer pressure and enviro-guilt, of course you will have a hard time using it.  I can imagine each time you see them or pull the bags out, a little chunk of resentment hardens inside your gut.  Unfortunate.  That made me more sensitive to the rest of the article, I suppose.

On the contrary, as for the new mother who said she not only chooses to take the disposable plastic bags but grabs extras at the store too… well, I have no judgement on her.  I have no idea what having a child in diapers is like and wonder myself how much I will sacrifice for convenience if I am one day blessed with the joys and challenges of a new baby.

What do you think?  Are any of these solid arguments for not using bags?  Should the new mom think longer-term than to justify using plastic bags as well?  Do you have any suggestions for how to remember your bags while you shop?  Am I a green snob for knocking bag owners who rarely use their bags?

Sustainably yours,  Ashley Sue

Another area of debate and balance for new parents, are cloth diapers the only way to feel guilt-free in an eco-conscious world?

According to two great posts by Allie at Allie’s Answers, using cloth diapers and cloth toilet-product (think: wiping your booty with flannel instead of TP and washing it later) actually leaves a LARGER carbon footprint than using disposables.

WHAT?!  We all assume cloth diapers are better for the environment than disposable diapers.  Luckily for us, Allie reminds us of a couple brands that make disposable diapers less toxic — for both our children and our Earth.

Something for you parents to consider… read what Allie found out.

Sustainably yours,  Ashley Sue

After my quick post questioning Costco as being a blessing or a blight to the communities it serves, I intended to write on more general levels for follow-up posts.  Which will happen…

Then, however, Jo commented regarding a Costco proposal for New Brunswick.  The Costco in question could be destroying wetlands in order to bring forth their mega-store.  Many residents are rallying to defeat the giant from entering their community.  On the other side, some citizens support the expansion.  From the previously linked articles to a Facebook group regarding the controversy, comments show support both for and against Costco.  Philip Lee is chronicling the advances and debate within the community (like here, here and here).  The comments section from the Daily Gleaner article chronicles those that simply hate Costco, those that blindly love it, and those that think it will be good for their community, but not at that location.  Anywhich way, this is certainly of major concern for environmentalists.

It is hard to label a company as leading corporate America in sustainability if they build a gasoline bar in a wetlands lot.  On the contrary, perhaps that is a sign of corporate America… not perfect, but progressing.

Turns out, Costco alone seems to deserve a thorough look-over on Green Grounded.

To be fair, I am starting with support of Costco because I feel like positive is the natural start in a compare and contrast.  Maybe that is just me, but I am not apologizing for it.

The Good of Costco (through my perspective):

~ Rwanda’s President recently thanked Starbucks for using Rwandan coffee and boosting the farm community there.  Starbucks became involved with Rwandan coffee farms upon suggestion and coordination from Costco’s CEO Jim Sinegal.

~ Costco is a big fan of solar energy, both using and selling.

~ Costco CEO Jim Sinegal works to put transparency in his company.  Huge.  Pays their employees well with great benefits. Some stakeholders aren’t impressed.  Yet, Costco, unlike one of their major competitors, is known for taking good care of their staff, even encouraging “van pools” to reduce gas use and price-effect for employees.

~ Though most produce and florals are not local, many are still supporting great environmental causes.

~ Costco takes your unwanted electronics, and even pays for some, for recycling.

~ My personal joys:  they have many biodegradable soaps and products from great Triple-Bottom Line companies, they carry a large variety of hormone-and-antibiotic-free meats for Marc, they have organic juices and fairtrade chocolates I can get for gifts or for our home, and, yes, I like things being cheaper there… meaning…

~ Many people in the lower-rung of the middle-class are upon very difficult times.  People are out of jobs, people who have jobs are taking pay and benefit cuts, yet we still have to pay all of our bills and buy groceries and buy gas to get to work.  These are real issues, right now, for a growing sector of our society.

Now with the bad of Costco:

~ Mega-box chains do perpetuate suburban sprawl.  Lots of people still do not mind sprawl, but it is inherently bad for a community.  The chain is always more concerned with making money than protecting that individual community, meaning location choice can be quite damaging.  Such as with the Fredericton, New Brunswick case.

~ For every item Costco sells that is eco-friendly and sustainably-oriented, they also continue to sell “a totally unnecessary product with extraordinarily bad consequences”, such as air-in-a-can convenience office-cleaning product.

~ As with today’s greenwashing trends, Costco, like many other retailers, does carry some products that market themselves as “green” but are highly skeptic, if not disproved, by the environmental community.

~ Costco carries plastic bottled water.  I get it, people like their plastic-bottled water.  Regardless, it bites.

~ Costco carries a large number of “individually packaged” products.  Drinks bottles, cheezy poofella pouches, etc. for easy lunch-box packing or for mass crowds.  These items have their use, but that does not make them environmentally sound.

~ Even buying a major national pharmaceutical product there (like we do ~ as it is much cheaper) hurts a local business owner who you could be buying from.

Costco shopping round up:

Buying from the local coop, or even the local Earthfare / Wholefoods just is not a realistic option for many Americans right now.  I blew through money buying local organic fairtrade in 2008.  Some of those products came from Costco.  Now, Marc and I are really having to decide where and what we can buy.  Basically, we are having to decide on a case-by-case basis, every day, what our priorities are in accordance to what we can afford.  That is unfortunate and true.

I am not advocating throwing one’s hands up at spending more for local / organic / fairtrade, but we each have to find the balance we (individually) can afford with the reality of today.

Today, I heard a coworker saying he does not support Wholefoods because they carry produce from Chile.  While that environmentally is a valid energy concern, I feel we cannot hang Wholefoods’ Chilean produce as hypocritical to the green movement if we consumers are drinking coffee or tea in our daily routine.  Or consuming chocolate.  Those products are grown down the road.

I argue the answer lies in finding the balance.

If you can afford to buy only local / organic / fairtrade, kudos.  Further, advocating conscientious buying habits amidst your peers is always Rockstar.  Questioning corporations and demanding transparency, promoting progressive goals, and striving for triple bottom line standards is necessary.

Whether or not you can afford to buy only local /organic / fairtrade, considering our fellow humans, both those working on farms, and those living two blocks over, is the most important part of community.  My organic coffee helps workers not be exposed to poisons and gives them a decent wage to live on.  The fact that my in-laws (both jobless due to unavoidable circumstances) cannot afford to indulge in such things as $10 lb. coffee is also something I refuse to hold against them.  I do what I can, and they do what they can. 

…and what I “can do” is becoming increasingly less during this time of my life.

I, for one, will continue my Costco love/hate membership for a third year.

I will do my best with what they offer and what I can afford to buy elsewhere.

Sustainably yours,  Ashley Sue

So, channel surfing led me to an outraged Lou Dobbs on CNN talking about how ridiculous it is that the FDA is not erring on the side of human safety and halting including of bisphenol-A (BPA) in consumer goods until more studies are complete.

The studies that are complete show a direct correlation between BPA and estrogen in the human body, creating a toxic reaction.  Exposure, and to what extents we have yet to know, has a direct correlation to cancer, consequently.  And New Dream Blog’s Michele shares the Washinton Post story linking BPA to diabetes, liver disease, and heart problems.

As Lou Dobbs pointed out, studies have led many European countries and Canada to ban BPA in production of goods.

If all it takes is banning it to prevent the further corrosion of American health, why is our governmental protection and health agency fighting it?  Who is really to gain by allowing BPA in plastic bottles and consumer goods?

My grounded recommendation?  We can all afford to ignore the FDA.  This week, make it a priority to buy a Kleen Kanteen stainless steel water bottle or Sigg bottle.  This way, you aren’t using plastic bottles that have sat in warehouses and store shelves for who knows how long.  Plus you get brownie points for reduced impact on the environment!  That alone will be a major step in reducing your interaction with BPA.

And get a metal coffee mug, too, to save yourself from all of those finnicky to-go cups (insult to injury, many places double-cup) of joe and their little sleeves.

Sustainably yours ~ Ashley Sue

I just stumbled (twittered, actually) onto the coolest website called Green Mom Finds.  I had as much fun finding this as when I found Raise A Green Dog!  Just like Raise a Green Dog, Green Mom Finds is a really grounded way to get info on healthy living, fun finds, eco-responsible shopping, and just in general living fun! 

It is not just for families… being human is the only characteristic you need to dig this site.  Actually, even Johann and the other pooches will love the push for pesticide free lawns!

Love it, definitely going on my blogroll… check it out!

Further, Living Green in a Red State is not as in-depth as Green Mom Finds, BUT this one is a one-woman show, chock full of great personal insight as to cleaning products, diapers… or even being “diaper free” (well worth the read for all moms and upcoming moms!).  She’s another on my blogroll who can def tell you about greening the family…

So check out all three (Finds, Dog and State) and get a jump on the Rockstar easy ways to get healthier, for you, your fam and your environment!

I’ve been so in love with all my healthy products ~ my earthy shampoos, moisturizers, cleansers, lotions ~ and though they’ve got some good stuff, they also have some carcinogens.

An independent study just came out, and I’ve been reading the press releases on this all weekend.  Not fun, but a lot of supposedly credible products still aren’t perfect, containing 1,4 Dioxane, a proven carcinogen which is not purposely added to your favorite bath routine but instead is a byproduct of the petrochemical that causes it to get all lathery.

By the way, this includes children’s bubble baths and products too, including from the leading names in baby care products.

This proves that I have yet to find the “perfect” and proven answers in ”green”.  Instead, it’s another shade of (more…)