Counting On … – Page 67

Counting on …. Day 1.153

28th June 2023

Take away food packaging constitutes the largest proportion of all plastic waste found in our oceans. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jun/10/takeaway-food-and-drink-litter-dominates-ocean-plastic-study-shows?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Again it seems that one of the pluses of plastic is also it’s negative. Plastic packaging seems to enable a vast variety of foods to be taken away to be consumed including ready meals, but is it rather than the plastic packaging allows such foods to processed off site and shipped or stored for use elsewhere. Again plastic packaging separates the consumer from the producer. Sandwiches, for example, are made in factory units and dispatched in lorries around the country rather than being freshly made at the counter of a sandwich bar.

Counting on … day 1.152

27th June 2023

Plastic packaging is seen as a plus because it enables food to be harvested and shipped over a longer distance/ timespan than might otherwise be possible. This enables perishable crops such as strawberries, lettuces, cucumbers etc to be grown in southern Spain and sold in supermarkets throughout the UK. But this can further distance us as consumers from the people who grow our food. Currently there is two concerns about farming practices in Spain.

One is the diversion of water from the vulnerable wetland area of Donana, a World Heritage site, to irrigate strawberry crops to the detriment of the wildlife that relies on this unique habitat. (https://phys.org/news/2023-06-world-heritage-wetland-site-threatened.html )

The second is the use of migrant labour on farms in the Almeria and Huelva regions of southern Spain. These are often vulnerable people from North Africa who are effectively exploited as forced labour – https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/ethicalcampaigns/agricultural-workers-rights-almeria

Avoiding plastic may have additional benefits for the world.

Counting on … day 1.151

26th June 2023

Ethical Consumer is a useful source of information to enable us as consumers to make ethical choices. Their research covers a range of environmental and social issues, assessing the pros and cons of products and producers. The following extract comes from Ethical Consumer explaining the scoring system by which they rate producers:-

As always, we have also analysed other important aspects of corporate activity

in order to give a holistic picture of each company’s ethical standing. Alongside timber and cotton sourcing we also assessed:

* Climate (how is the company reducing its carbon impact?)

* Animals (does the company use animal products, such as leather in its chairs?)

* Workers (what is the company doing to uphold workers’ rights in its supply chain?)

* Tax (is the company likely to be using tax avoidance strategies?)

* Company Ethos (what type of company is it? Is it a not-for-profit, a charity, a B-Corp, etc?)

* Wider Issues (is the company and its wider group involved in other problematic sectors, such as military/arms or fossil fuel production?)

https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/

Counting on … day 1.150

25th June 2023

Another seasonal activity is picking and drying lavender. Lavender is best picked in the morning before the sun has reached the plant, and when the flowers are not yet at the stage of being fully open. This helps maximise the amount of lavender oil present in the flower. I collect the cut heads (stalks still attached) in paper bags and then put them in the airing cupboard to dry. Later in the year I will use the lavender to refill lavender bags. Sometimes I use small lavender bags which means removing the flowers from the stalks (by rubbing them inside the paper bag:the dry flowers drop to the bottom of the bag). Other times I use larger bags and fill them stalks and all!

Counting on … day 1.149

24th June 2023

Strawberries are giving way to Tay berries and raspberries – and by next week gooseberries too. To extend the enjoyment of eating them into the winter months, I bottle the fruit as well as making jam.

This seems sensible too as I can reuse the jam jar a from previous years rather than putting used jars from the shops into the recycling bin – this must save on energy and glass.

I have written about jam making and preserving previously –

https://greentau.org/tag/jam/

Counting on … day 1.148

23rd June 2023

Change does happen. For many years groups such as Operation Noah and Christian Climate Action have been campaigning to persuade churches – individually, by area (eg dioceses) and nationally – of all denominations to divest from fossil fuels because the use of these fuels directly contributes to the climate crisis. It has been an ongoing process with more and more churches coming on board. One of the more reluctant has been the Church of England nationally. However yesterday, the Church of England’s investment body announced that it would divest from its fossil fuel investments as the major companies in this industry are expanding rather than curtailing their business and not aligned with the Paris 1.5C agreement.

Is this not an answer to prayer?

https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/church-commissioners-england-exclude-oil-and-gas-companies-over

Counting on … day 1.147

22nd June 2023

Yesterday I took part in a prayer vigil outside the Supreme Court. Standing up – or kneeling in prayer – to give support can make a difference.

Inside Kent Council’s decision to grant planning permission for 20 years of oil extraction from the ground beneath Horse Hill was being challenged. In considering the environmental impact of the drilling, Kent Council had on,y consider scope 1 and 2 emissions – ie those directly produced in extracting the oil – and not the scope 3 emissions, being those that would be released when the oil was used. The parallel was drawn between the health impact of making a cigarette and smoking a cigarette.

Why does landmark challenge on Horse Hill oil matter?

Counting on … day 1.146

21st June 2023

Before I buy, I should ask myself:

Do I need it?
If so, could I borrow or hire it?
Has it a good provenance?
Who made it, and were they fairly paid?
What raw materials were used and are they sustainable?
Can it be reused?
Can it be mended?
What will be its afterlife?
Can it be recycled? What residue will it leave?

Counting on … day 1.145

20th June 2023

Last Friday was Refill Day and next month is ‘Plastic-free July’. It feels, quite rightly, that we are being asked to think about how we buy things – do they come with excessive or polluting packaging? Are we over reliant on things (packaging and otherwise) that are made of plastic?

– it’s a product that is made from fossil oil and which is very hard to recycle or safely dispose.

What about buying things that are made of metal such as an aluminium washing up bowl? Or things that are made of wood such as a wooden spatula?

What about buying things made of wool such as a pair of felt slippers? Or things that are made of cardboard such as box?

Counting on … day 1.144

19th June 2023

To share a joy with you! Our semi wild garden has various fruiting plants -some years they do well and some years not, but this year is definitely the year of the strawberry! They are plants are grew on from runners a couple of years ago and this year they are producing lovely big fruit with very little slug damage. It is a joy to pick them and eat them and turn them into jam.