If you were looking for New Year's resolutions to reduce your ecological footprint and yet live a fairly normal life would you know what to do? I'm not sure - I'm confused.
It's not all about climate change, there's water use, pesticide use, fertiliser use and simply the area of land needed to supply my needs to be taken into account.
I'm looking for some simple rules of thumb (do you know the origin of that term?) that I can use when spending money and making choices.
For travel, it's fairly simple; travel less, use public transport and avoid flying if possible.
For heating, it's fairly simple: insulate the house and turn the thermostat down.
For eating, it's really, really complicated. Is UK food better than imported? And how do you tell the difference anyway? Is organic better than non-organic? Should you eat less meat? And if not should you choose pork over lamb or chicken over beef?
I can't say I've worked it out at all but I have resolved to munch less meat - not no meat, just less meat. In 2009 I had 4 meat-free days a week through the year. I'll be doing the same in 2010 - or at least resolving to do so.
Have you made green New Year's resolutions?
How about starting by signing up to the RSPB's Letter to the Future?
Hi Mark,a really great new year for you,your bloggers,readers and all RSPB staff including volunteers.It doesn't seem to matter wherever we go to RSPB reserves we always get great help if we ask for any,well done to all.We don't find it easy to cut down on emissions as hopefully we have been careful for years.The one we find baffling is putting insulation in cavity walls as the builder who seems to know his stuff advises against it but lots of people seem to have it done.I have to disagree about the meat free bit even though Sweep has really been vegetarian all their life.Feel that the manure that is valuable nutrients,especially for organic where I would think it essential,far outweighs the gases supposedly given off.
Hope you have a great blogging year,think you probably have lots of readers who get quite a lot of pleasure from your blogs and one person who seems a compulsive commenter.
Happy New Year Mark, to you and yours. Liked the origin of Rule of Thumb, how lucky for us women, - NOT. lol
Must say The Eco Footprint confuses me. I've not made resolutions this year cos I can't cope with the guilt five days later when they're out the window, (triple glazed, I hasten to add,lol).
FLIGHTS = We're flying to India, in a few weeks time for two weeks birding, Carbon footprint, supposedly offset by a donation to World land Trust.(Carbonbalanced.org) Does this really offset my flight or is it only easing my conscious. allowing me to carry on doing what I'm doing. We'll also be in Germany, will we fly or sail and drive?? We're also going to Norfolk at end of October for birding so again we'll be driving there from Scotland.
FOOD, we eat meat most days. we do tend to by organic, locally produced. Does this help? doubt it, but its our preference and it doesn't come with lots of plastic packaging.
CAR USE, We have an elderly parent 60 miles away and we travel there by car most weekends. Train station is 2.5miles from home so OH drives there every morning to catch train to go to work. He could cycle, but its just not practical, and local buses don't go to the station from where we live.
It is a nightmare when you stop to think and really confusing. Be nice to think we could stay at home and grow our own, but alas,
Call me cynical, but in my experience however noble the cause, from 'greenness' to loving your kids to taking care of your health, there's always some marketing low-life looking to make a profit out of it - and often as not an opportunistic politician hoping to win a few votes too.
Step 1: Develop a healthy cynicism for anything you see/hear/read in the media. Working in the media myself, I know how little journalists know about science, and how easily bamboozled they are by PRs (who also know little, and care less). If you read it in the papers, it's because someone with an axe to grind put it there. Ask yourself who, and why.
Step 2: Think global, act local. Source food locally and seasonally, find out where it comes from, reconnect with the soil. 'Organic' is just another marketing ploy. I'd recommend getting a copy of John Seymour's book of Self Sufficiency - a classic when I was a youngster, and a revised version recently published www.amazon.co.uk/.../1405345101
Step 3: I'm convinced much more could be done with village-scale power generating schemes etc - and I don't mean buying solar panels from China, I'm talking low-tech water and wind power, etc. Burn wood not coal/oil/gas. Why don't we hear more about this? Because big business wants you to keep buying their products.
Step 4: Eat more game! Wholesome, healthy, ethically sourced, sustainable, a great excuse for a healthy walk in the countryside - and shooters spend £250m p.a. on conservation; more than the RSPB, the Wildlife Trusts and the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust combined. See, I told you to be cynical, I'm blowing my own trumpet with this one - it's just that I happen to believe passionately that it's right.
Oh come on Jamesm rather liked your blog down to step 4,even most of that wasn't bad but surely you don't expect other cynical people(I am one like you)to believe £250m p.a. on conservation.Come on just say £250m p.a. on our fun and wildlife benefits slightly.We can be quite understanding if shooters act responsibly and help conserve raptors,surely both sides can live side by side even though there is bound to be a small affect on your hard work.Suspect the outcome if both sides harden their attitude is both sides losers in long run and admire the fact that you seem to have a very balanced attitude.
Susan - thanks for that interesting post.
Jamesm - thank you too! I don't agree with all your comments but that isn't really the point! I get to have my say here so don't need the last word. And anyway - Sooty is nipping at your heels! I think you may regret what you've said about game - see my blogs tagged Lead for another view on this subject. Although on my three meat-eating days a week I like pigeon, and the odd meal of venison with a good Rioja is very nice too!
Sooty - Happy new Year!
Hi Sooty, thought you might find that figure hard to swallow, but it comes direct from the PACEC report www.shootingfacts.co.uk and I don't believe has been challenged as inaccurate in any way (Mark may tell us otherwise). Whatever, it's a big number. There are some greedy selfish shooters, as in all walks of life, but I'm constantly surprised and encouraged by how many of the shooters I meet are full of enthusiasm for the wildlife on their patch - they'll enthuse about the barn owls or the kingfishers or whatever long before they talk about the size of the bag.