Not in My Front Yard, says the Daily Mail.

Yesterday, the Daily Mail devoted seven (seven!) pages to its new campaign to rid England of wheelie bins, describing them as a “bin explosion” blighting “our streets and gardens”.

Even accounting for the fact that I've yet to see any bins explode when I've been out walking, these histrionics have taken me a little bit by surprise. After all, how many people do you know who feel genuinely aggrieved by the country's 'bin bureaucrats'?

As much as it pains me to say it though, they do have a point. These bins are quite ugly, which is why our recycling box and wheelie bin stores are selling well.

There's no real alternative to the boxes themselves though – the council's designs keep out foxes and prevent the rubbish collectors handling potentially hazardous waste, something the Daily Mail has attributed to the 'dreaded health and safety'.

It's all reminded me of something. When I was at university, I lived with a chap whose parents had recently retired. He said that his Dad became obsessed with bread – he would drive miles everyday to find the perfect loaf, checking its crust methodically for the 'right level of burning.' He even built a wood-burning oven in the garden of their city terrace.

Instead of being worried by this little hobby, my friend took it that everything was well with his father. After all, he reasoned, if bread is the only thing he can think of worrying about, then all must be right in his world.

I have to say, this is how I feel about the Daily Mail's campaign. There may (or may not, depending which definition you choose) be a recession on, but if that's what's worrying them most, then I guess it's not all doom and gloom.

Have a great week.

Edwin

Won't somebody think of the chickens?

Hello again. Chickens seems to be featuring quite highly in my life at moment, with My Greener Home having recently started selling poultry coops, and seeing this story in our local paper.

As the article says, a local animal rescue centre has received an influx of chickens dumped by owners who turned to the “Good Life” to beat the recession, without realising just how much work they can take to look after - something that is apparently happening more and more often.

Keeping chickens can seem quite labour-intensive at first, but it's really not that bad. If you're a first-timer though, there's a fair bit of information to take in to get the best out of them, and they can definitely feel a bit of a responsibility sometimes, especially if you want to get away for the weekend and can't find anybody to feed them.

As a child, my family kept chickens, so I was lucky enough to grow up with them around – although cleaning them out was never my favourite job!

I wrote a chicken keeping guide a little while ago that I've been meaning to mention, so this is a good a time as any. I'd love to hear from anybody that's found it useful, as well as any suggestions or tips that you'd like to add. There's always room for improvement!

Sorry about the slightly boring picture, by the way. Typing 'chick' into Google Image Search certainly throws up some interesting results, many of which I didn't think were appropriate to post here...

Have a great week!

World Environment Day 2009

Hello, and happy World Environment Day! This year it's Mexico's turn to take hold of what's been a major event in the green calendar since 1972. This time it is with the (somewhat clunkily worded) theme of Your Planet Needs You - UNite to Combat Climate Change.

In case you've never heard of the UN-backed WED, it's one of those giant international expo-led events that seem to completely divide opinion. Some think of them as vital for promoting the understanding of important issues, some see them as gaudy, expensive and not a little ineffective.

"On this World Environment Day, I encourage all people to take concrete steps toward making the planet greener and cleaner," said the UN's Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, getting into the swing of things.

"Switch off the lights. Take public transportation. Recycle. Plant a tree. Clean up your local park. Hold corporations responsible for their environmental practices. And urge your government representatives to seal the deal in Copenhagen."

Normally on occasions like this, I tend to be a bit cynical - probably no doubt commentating on the lack of effectiveness that NGOs, world governments and the UN have when it comes to programmes like this.

Today, I'm going to have to break with habit. Despite the slightly dreamy tone of Mr. Ban's statement, his latter point is a important one to consider, with WED serving as a precursor to the climate convention meeting in Denmark in December, where world leaders are expected to wrap up negotiations on a successor pact to the Kyoto Protocol.

That is not the only thing I found encouraging though. With the recession making more and more people think that green issues should be put on hold, hearing Mr. Ban say that "If we invest even part of the substantial new economic stimulus packages in the green economy, we can turn today's crisis into tomorrow's sustainable growth" didn't just sound positive, but attainable.

And that's no bad thing, right?

Going green is easier than you think, for some

Dick Strawbridge is a bit of a hero of mine. 'It's Not Easy Being Green' wasn't just great TV, it also showed the benefits of a greener lifestyle to millions of viewers. And, as Wikipedia says, he is also 'the proud owner of a rather large and impressive moustache'.

So I was pleased to see Strawbridge in the Guardian last week, laying out his mission to dispel environmentally-friendly myths, including 'eco-gadgets are cons', 'You have to be an engineer to undertake your own eco home projects' and 'Most eco-renovation take decades to pay back the cost'.

Reading through the comments on the article did make me think, however.

Strawbridge says that in the 21st century 'there is no excuse for not being able to get stuck into any eco-project. Information is readily available and all the materials you need can usually be sourced within ten miles' - a point that was seized on by readers who, quite rightly, pointed out that not everybody is in a position to make significant changes to your home.

'Try living in a council flat where you can't change or install anything and have to fight for a recycling box because you live on the first floor and 'might fall carrying it downstairs and sue the council'', says 'Cowgirl'.

I'd love to be able to come up with an easy comeback to this, but I'm afraid I can't. The simple truth is that some of us are are in a lot better positions than others to make changes that can help the environment and save money. Of course, I don't think Strawbridge meant to offend anybody deliberately, but his comment has made me stop and appreciate the amount of control I have over the way I choose to live my life.

My 10 reasons for going green

Since I made the decision to live a greener lifestyle, I've often been asked exactly what it was that prompted me to make the jump. To tell the truth, it wasn't any single incident. Instead, there were a series of things that I had been considering for some time.

While spending some time away on holiday recently, I came up with this list. I thought I'd share it here partly for posterity, and partly for convenience – the next time it comes up, I've got my response already figured out...

My 10 reasons for going green

1. I realised that we have a responsibility to the planet

2. After becoming a parent, I wanted to set an example for my children

3. Because, and this is where the idea for My Greener Home came from, I knew it would save me money

4. I wanted to feel more in tune with the world we live in – and get away from the TV!

5. Because I'm competitive and love coming up with new targets and goals

6. I wanted to try something new, both personally and professionally

7. I've always tried to live a healthy lifestyle, and being green means I eat well (most credit to my wife here though) and get more exercise

8. I wanted to live more efficiently – both in terms of the energy I use and the free time I have to spend

9. I was told it would help cut down on stress and, much to my surprise, it has

10. I was fed up with commuting. Not my main reason admittedly – but using public transport less, reduces my carbon footprint and keeps me healthier!

So, there it is. It feels quite strange seeing it written down like that! I'd be interested to hear your comments, as well see any lists of your own.

Have a great week!

Edwin

Wales goes zero waste

Good news! After the success of a trial in St. Arvans, Wales has outlined plans to become a zero waste nation by 2050, setting a target of 70% of all waste to be recycled by 2025.

They're certainly making all the right noises too. Launching the strategy, Environment, Sustainability & Housing Minister Jane Davidson said: "What we do with our waste reflects how we treat our country and planet.

"We can no longer simply bury waste in the land to rot. We need to act now for the sake of our country. Will we be able to look our grandchildren in the eye and say we did all we could to protect where they live?"

Sounds positive, doesn't it? However, before we get too excited it's worth remembering the Australian capital of Canberra. Having set a 'No waste by 2010' deadline back in 1996, they waited until January this year to admit that it was an 'aspirational exercise' all along.

"Almost all slogans have an aspirational purpose," said Australian Chief Minister Jon Stanhope.

"We will never achieve a situation where there is no waste that's actually [sent] to landfill, it will never ever be achieved. I think it was an appropriate slogan and an appropriate target."

Stanhope is, of course, wrong. Difficult as it might be, zero waste is possible. The question is, does the Welsh Assembly agree? Let's just hope we don't have to wait until 2049 to find out.

0800Buster - Call Freephone numbers from your mobile

In the past, I have commented on the excessive cost of calling 0870, 0845 and 0800 telephone numbers from a mobile phone. The most absurd aspect of this is that the mobile networks charge users to call Freephone numbers (0800, 0808, 0500).

Now along comes 0800Buster. This allows you to call a standard landline number (given at the top left of this page) and then enter your Freephone number. You make your call and it only costs you the landline rate (which is usually included in your bundle of minutes). This is great step forward and all I want now is a method of calling 0845 and 0870 numbers from my mobile phone in the same way.

There are ways to call international numbers, but they are a bit fiddly and require a secondary bill (i.e. you pay from your bundle of minutes and from another account aswell). Try 18185.co.uk for a start.