Turn Off Your Lights at 8pm March 29th

The World Wildlife Fund is hosting its second Earth Hour on March 29th. Last year's event was based in Sydney, Australia. This year they are taking it world-wide.

You can participate by turning off your lights from 8pm to 9pm on March 29th. You can sign up to participate on Earth Hour website, and while you're there you can learn more about the event.

There is some other interesting info on the site, including a carbon footprint calculator for Facebook (for those who have Facebook pages).

As for me, I might just participate with the Mountain time people. I get my daughter ready for bed around 8pm, and I don't see her taking too well to brushing her teeth and reading stories by candlelight.

MSG Loves Seventh Generation!

"In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations."
-From the Great Law Of The Iroquois Confederacy

Wow. That's some pretty heavy stuff when you're perusing all-purpose cleaners at the supermarket. But you know what? It's the little things that count for me, and if a company is gutsy enough to use this law as the basis for itself, sign me up for a lifetime supply!

I've been using Seventh Generation's Natural All Purpose Cleaner for the past few months, and it's one of the BEST small changes I've made in the process to becoming more responsible.

I say responsible, because the whole idea of using products that actually contain natural materials (and not a newfound chemical created in a lab) should be the obvious choice to anyone looking to clean. How did it get to the point in our society that basic compounds are labeled as trivial and useless, while new "cleaning cocktails" are considered trustworthy and useful?

Trust is important especially if you have children or pets, because you never know who can get where no matter how much proofing is done. How much do I trust Seventh Generation? This is what's found under the warning section:

"Keep out of reach of children. In case of eye contact, flush with water for at least 15 minutes. If swallowed, drink a glassful of water."

There it is. Cut and dry.

A glassful of water? What? Nothing like "CALL POISON CONTROL IMMEDIATELY" or "SEEK PROMPT MEDICAL ATTENTION"? That seems like it's too good to be true...but it's not.

However, I would like to mention that a cut and dry explanation can also be harmful. Bleach and ammonia are very poisonous, and I do not endorse any kind of assumption that either is acceptable to use under every cleaning circumstance. But if those are the only two products you know the most about under your sink, should you really have to worry about 6 or 7 other products that contain unknown substances? Shouldn't using green products with natural substances make you feel better about your parent or pet owner responsibilities?

To answer my own question above, I completely trust Seventh Generation over name brand cleaners. I know it has made me feel safer about what I'm putting on my counter and down the drain. The extra few cents we pay for a green product in our home is worth lives we care about, not just for the sake of being a "trendy green".

The Cat Litter Chronicles Part I

I’ve been struggling to find a decent cat litter at an affordable price. We have two cats in our apartment, so odor control is very important.

I’m concerned about the environmental impact of traditional clay litters. They are strip-mined, and there is some concern about the effect clay dust can have on a cat’s lungs (mentioned in this treehugger article).

However, alternative cat litters are more expensive. And since different types of litter have varying weights, it can be difficult to compare price per pound. Pine litter, for example, is very light-weight. There is a greater volume of litter for the weight. To add to the confusion, every type of litter seems to receive mixed reviews in terms of quality and environmental friendliness.

I am currently trying out Feline Pine Scoop clumping litter. On their website they offer a rebate for one free 4 lb box, so it was easy to justify trying it out.

A four pound box of Feline Pine Scoop costs $7.99 at Petco, as compared to Petco's brand of clay litter, which costs $6.99 for a 16 pound refill jug. (You pay more when you first buy the jug, and get a discounted price when you refill it. Even that is a step in the right direction!)

At first glance, that seems like a huge price difference, but I found that the four pounds of Feline Pine last almost as long as the 16 pounds of clay litter. As I mentioned above, the pine litter is much lighter for the same volume. In that light, you are paying $1.00 more for nearly the same supply of litter.

The Feline Pine doesn't scoop as tightly as clay litters, but it does a fairly good job. It does MUCH better with odor control than some of the clay litters I have used. The only time we notice a cat box odor is right after they go, and I don't think there's a litter in the world that could tackle that! There is a little bit of a weird smell when I scoop, but it's a vast improvement over the overwhelming dust or fake floral smell I've encountered before.

My one complaint about Feline Pine is that it is too light. The closest I can come for comparison purposes is pencil shavings from those old crank sharpeners in grade school. The cats carry some of it out of the box with them (one of the cats actually sat in the litter, and it clung to his fur). This also makes it more difficult to scoop; the clean litter doesn't sift through as quickly as clay litter.

Overall, I am pleased with the quality Feline Pine Scoop. I wish that it were a little bit heavier, and a little bit less expensive (we are on a tight budget). I'm going to continue searching out different solutions for the litter box.

Welcome to MSG!

Welcome to Mainstream Green (MSG) Online. As we kick off 2008, our resolution is to provide you with interesting, educational, and thought-provoking articles that espouse our core values: living green, being self-sufficient, and spending money wisely.


We know there are many great blogs on these topics (just check out our links section). But the one thing that sets us apart is balance. First, balance among the three values. Second, balance between those values and your personal fulfillment. We will have plenty of articles illustrating this concept in the coming weeks.


WHO WE ARE:

We believe that living a Mainstream Green life is not an all-or-nothing preposition. It’s about making small changes today, and continuing to make additional small changes in the future. We respect that while living green, being self-sufficient, and spending money frequently overlap, there are times when one must choose one of these values at the expense of the others.


WHO WE ARE NOT:

We are not here to pass judgment on others' decisions, or to belittle anyone for attempting to find the right balance in life. We welcome differing ideas and lively conversation, but ask that all comments be kept constructive, cordial, and non-judgmental.


We thank you for visiting Mainstream Green today, and hope that you come back again soon.