Category: Counting On …

Reflections and actions during COP26 and going on

Counting on 2026 …. Day 53

4th June

Another quote from the Hazelnut Community: “Develop practical skills (kitchen, carpentry, machine repair, food processing, sewing, etc.) Teach these skills to children and friends, neighbours.” (1) 

I have recently had a go at mending our shed door – re-securing cross pieces where the factory installed staples had apart, this time using screws. A little auger that had come from a pst generation proved very useful in starting the holes, and an equally vintage screw driver finished the job. 

This makes me wonder a) where one would get such tools today and b) are such vintage tools hidden away in the backs of sheds/ drawers/ attics waiting to the be revitalised?

 a) they are available and are known as gimlets. b) yes and are available via vintage web sites.

(1) https://substack.com/home/post/p-190602804

Counting on 2026 …. Day 51

1st June

One step on from a water butt would be a rainwater harvesting system. This in essence is a large wtwr storage tank that collects and stores all the rainwater from your roof. Unlike a water butt it includes a filtration system to keep the water clean and a pump so that you can use the water for flushing toilets and running the washing machine – as well as watering the garden. 

Given the imbalance between winter and summer rainfall, and the increasingly likelihood of droughts and water shortages, such systems will become increasingly common and practical, and will increase our personal resilience and our community resilience.

For more information – https://www.renewableenergyhub.co.uk/main/rainwater-harvesting-information/rainwater-harvesting-information

Counting on 2026 …. Day 50

29th May

Caring for our water system is about caring for the environment and helping ensure that the system is resilient. Increasingly our weather is going to comprise wet winters with period heavy rainfall, and hot dry summers. 

Collecting rainwater in water butts helps in two ways. The obvious way is by providing a supply of water for the times when there is little rain – this can be used for watering the garden, or in times of real drought, can be used to flush toilet etc. 

The second way is to relieve pressure on the water drainage system by delaying the sudden rush of water into the system. This does presume your butts re empty before the storm comes – so there maybe some necessary preparation work before hand. You can install a water butt which releases one half of its content slowly over time leaving spare capacity for more water – https://uk.getwatersmart.com/product/buttinabox-butt-in-a-box-200l-waterbutt-kit-354

Or you can get  smart water butt! https://aquaiot.co.uk/smart-water-butts-rainwater-defence-against-flooding/)

Further reading – https://climateconnectionsplymouth.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Slow-the-Flow-booklet-FINAL4.pdf

Counting on 2026 …. Day 49

28th May

Caring for water is to be mindful of what goes down the drain. Waste water systems – drains, sewers etc – are not intended as general rubbish bins! 

They are not places for alien chemicals. Using only eco friendly laundry and washing up liquids makes sense. Nor are they places for wet wipes, paper towels or paper serviettes – these are design to be strong and absorbent and doing that means they  likely block the drain!

They are not places for oil and grease – wipe excess oil from pans etc using a paper and put that in your compost heap or food bin. Nor are they the place for paints, white spirit, varnish etc. Your local authority should have disposal facilities for these.

Drains are also not the place for waste food – this should go in your compost heap or food bin (the latter only should be used for items like meat, fish etc).

Counting on 2026 …. Day 48

27th May

As part of being resilient, we aim to keep at least three days’ supply of food and water in the house. 

Green Tau Issue 121

As part of these emergency supplies, I am loath to buy bottles of water which I would then have to replace when they reached their expired date – it would be expensive and would produce unnecessary waste. So instead we keep next to the sink a mixture of 1 litre kilner bottles and 4.5 litre Demi johns. These we use and refill on rotation (the bottles are numbered) to fill the kettle, make drinks, cook with and  wash up etc. The water in the bottles is thus seldom more than 24 hours old – and in this hot weather, we keep a couple of bottles in the fridge too.

Counting on 2026 …. Day 47

26th May

Water is a scarce and valuable resource that we need to protect and use respectfully and frugally.

That is why I shower and wash my hair once a week. The rest of the week I wash in a bowl of water – and then reuse that water for flushing the toilet. I’m sure I’m still clean and fresh smelling!

We only use the toilet flush for ‘number twos’ and use hand wash water (having used a bowl) to flush the toilet. 

For toilet cleaning I use hot water and citric acid followed by a dose of bicarbonate – the following burst of bubbles is very dramatic.  In this way I hope to reduce the adverse chemicals entering the drains as well as using cleaning materials that come in paper packaging.

Counting on 2026 …. Day 46

20th May

Having both a number of sheets and pillowcases that are wearing thin (even after turning the outsides into the middle) I have combined the two to make/ mend some new pillowcases, and used the left overs to make handkerchiefs. Possibly a bit excessive but it does give the cotton an extended life. 

For more on making repairs and mending – https://greentau.org/tag/repairs/

and https://greentau.org/tag/up-cycling/

Counting on 2026 …. Day 44

18th May

Living simply for me is, in part, about being self reliant such as being able to cook from scratch, growing food in fruit and vegetables, sew clothes etc. It is not that I don’t want to be part of the local economy – in fact being part of a community is highly important – and whilst I grow some vegetables I don’t grow enough to be self sufficient. Nor would I even contemplate growing all the cereal and other crops on which my diet depends. Nor would I contemplate rearing sheep for wool or growing flax for linens. Nor would I contemplate living without the valuable services provided by water and electricity suppliers, by the medical world, by the writers and publishers of books, by the manufactures of bikes and those who maintain the roads etc etc.

Yet I still value and make good use of my (sometimes limited) ability to make and mend clothes, knit jumpers, darn socks, grow spinach, make a greetings card, and do simple repairs around the house. 

Again I have been encouraged by words from the Hazelnut Community, that endorse and make theological sense of what I do.

“Creation, in the biblical imagination, is not a finished project. It is an unfolding reality in which human beings are invited to participate through acts of care, cultivation and creativity.

“When we bake bread, repair a broken tool, ferment vegetables, plant seeds or cook a meal for others, we are responding to the gifts of the earth and extending their life into the world.” (1) 

  1. https://substack.com/home/post/p-190602804