On the weekend I attended the second half of a course I have been doing in Permaculture. Now I am back in the office listening to people on the radio talking about climate change and what we should be doing about it.
My own personal opinion is if we wait for governments to be pro-active we will be waiting forever. Everyone can do something about it right now. Starting with your weekly shopping. There are many reasons why we purchase the brands and products we do. Firstly there is price, this has a great influence on why I purchase stuff often. Then there is quality, we tend to purchase known brands such because we have always used them and even because that is what our parents used, but checking where products are made can make an enormous difference . Often our food is imported from overseas and packaged here or just imported. As a result a great deal of energy will go into getting those products to Australia. This is known as food miles.
When we buy something in Australia or the USA which has been imported from say.... Italy we are not only paying for the shipping of the product but the environment is also paying for it too. After the goods are packaged they are sent to the docks by freight often travelling hundreds of kilometres/miles then they are put on ships and travel thousands of Kilometres to arrive in their destination. All this takes energy which comes from our limited supply of oil, which also is adding to climate change.
When you do the shopping consider this, look at where the product was made and try and calculate the food miles. Each kilometre/mile adds to the amount of fuel used, which in turn will add to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.
When you do the shopping consider this, look at where the product was made and try and calculate the food miles. Each kilometre/mile adds to the amount of fuel used, which in turn will add to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.
The answere is to buy local produce. Take advantage of produce which is made in your area, state or region or even better grow your own and share it. Buy local. Purchase from your local market or green grocer rather than the supermarket, go to local farmers' markets or perhaps look for food co-ops in your area. Everyone will benefit and really it just makes sense.
I dont know about you but i'd much rather be looking at this:
than this:
I dont know about you but i'd much rather be looking at this:
than this:
Grow your own is the trend these days.
ReplyDeleteIt's always a difficult one, food miles. There are poor communities who rely on the export but on the flip side there the indisputable climate change evidence.
I'd definitely rather be looking at that picture of the park than the desserted street