Monthly Archives: May 2009

Simple message, but a good one.

If this isn’t the most blatant greenwash you’ve ever seen, I don’t know what is.

I was reading a Metro newspaper the other day when a contest advertisement caught my eye advertising a chance to win a “future friendly” basket. Judging by the almost obscene use of the colour green here, you might have thought it had something to do with sustainability, or at least more environmentally-friendly products. You thought wrong. Continue reading →

This is short notice I know, but just a reminder that the EPIC Sustainable Living Expo is happening at the Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre (yup, the one with the green roof) this weekend.

Grant is out of town, but Rhyannon and I will be there. Metro Vancouver Zero Waste Challenge will be speaking on the workshop stage at 12:15 on Sat, and we’ll be adding our two cents on what it’s really like to try to like a zero waste lifestyle.

Yes, I realize that despite its “sustainable living expo” title, this is a consumer fair where vendors basically try to entice you to buy more stuff.  I definitely don’t agree with products that are greenwashing or selling you something that you don’t need, but I do think that there should be more sustainable options available to the consumer, and this is one place where we can find out about those options.

And I also realize that this is a good venue for zero waste education.  I mean the people attending are already open to greener ideas right?  Why not push them one step further?

Besides zero waste, there will also be cooking demos and speakers on a variety of topics from raising backyard hens (that’s legal now) to container gardening, to finding non-toxic beauty products.

EPIC runs friday to sunday and you can get discounted tickets online.  Maybe I’ll see you there.

Whistler, BC (yes, the one with the huge ski hill) has many other things going besides the mountains.  For one, they have this TELUS 72 hour Filmmaker Contest” (yes, everything is sponsored in that town).  Anyway, I just got my hands on this short that was a finalist in this year’s competition.

Before you see it, I must applaud the filmmakers who whipped this whole thing together in only 72 hours – that’s filming, editing, and a heck of a lot of crazy animation.  Secondly, it was meant for the big screen, so some of the text is hard to read – make sure you watch it in fullscreen mode.

I just read on the Rubbish Free Diet about Mrs. Almost Average getting free compost at her local recycling centre, and that triggered my memory.  A little while back when Grant and I visited the Vancouver Landfill, they mentioned something about free compost in the spring.  

Sure enough, their website says this (in tiny little letters):

“Every May, Vancouver residents may pick up one cubic metre to compost for free at the Vancouver Landfill.  For other sources of compost and sources of mulch, call the Regional Compost Hotline at 604.736.2250”

Normally, a cubic metre goes for $10, but we all know I love free stuff, and since I deem this to be  directly related to food growing, I think it’s ok by Clean Bin Rules.  

So, if you’re having the gardening itch, and you live in Metro Vancouver, head on out to the landfill at 5400 72nd Street, Delta.  Now is the time to get those veggies in the ground for a packaging free harvest this summer.  

PS.  Don’t forget to bring your own container and shovel.