10 ways to be more sustainable this year

Planet Earth
21

It’s useful to hear a different voice and views.

Does how we each make decisions differ? Consideration of circumstance, needs and priorities are all part of any reasoned decision.

Personal experience is Choice provides a range of informed support. Some through freely accessible guides and advice. Some through paid membership access to product reviews.

The product reviews most often provide product and brand recommendations that are far from the most expensive. Reality is many of the more expensive products are no better, and often among the worst performers. For those in a tight budget the review scoring and detailed assessments offer assistance in making a better informed choice.

If in making a better informed choice the product also uses less energy or puts less strain on the environment, is that outcome still valuable? There are products and brands noted for reliability which do not cost a premium.

Is there a middle ground where consumers can find solutions that meet more than just an immediate need based on cost alone?

For any saving by purchasing used, EG white goods, a past Choice review and the latest reliability survey may be more useful than the advice of the seller?

2 Likes
22

The seals of front loaders need to be dried after use, and the door left open, which prevents mould forming. We didn’t know this with our previous front loader, but read the instructions thoroughly with our current one. Since looking after our machine properly, we do not have mould problems.

5 Likes
23

We used Powershop for years and were very satisfied with the service and the cost. We could make it cheaper by buying “bundles” of power in advance if we wanted to. As Powershop has been bought out by another power company, we are so far at a loss as to which way to go now.
We know that renewable energy is cheaper than coal fired power, Australia has unending supplies of renewable energy available, how can we identify a supplier of 100% renewable energy?

2 Likes
24

The most basic question is has your experience with Powershop changed? Has the electricity product you purchased changed? If not why the concern?

2 Likes
25

I agree with all that you say here. Choice serves many different, often competing interests - its subscribers, its casual readers, friends and families of the above, and, through press releases and campaigns, the general public. In short, sometimes directly, sometimes at second, third or even fourth hand, it serves everybody in Australia. Yet there are few if any issues on which everybody in Australia has identical needs, such that any advice - as in recommendations - is all but certain to be bad advice for some people.

Writing as a long-time journalist and copywriter, I am advocating against headlines that do not mislead, and do not offer bad advice. I acknowledge that it can take a little more care than is customary in some circles to achieve this dream, but I think that Choice writers owe it to their public to make that effort.

1 Like
26

Perhaps they are concerned with the Green credentials of the business? I believe it is Shell who now own Powershop and there has been some concern with the “Greenness” of Shell. In that case it may not be the experience but the concern about Carbon??

1 Like
27

Not AGL, Shell, discussed and covered by Choice

2 Likes
28

Fixed the reference, though AGL do not always seem to really have Greenish tinges :slight_smile:

2 Likes
29

9 posts were merged into an existing topic: Climate change and the consumer - news

32

A relatively simple addition to the list would be to have as much home produce as possible.

Back in the old days when we had big back yards, there where fruit trees in most backyards, and people had vegetable patches to grow there own produce. Chooks often ran around the backyard fertilizing the gardens and eating the pests. As time went on the fruit trees were oft ripped out, and vegetable patches gave way to the House & Garden manicured backyard look. Excluding chicken farms, the chooks migrated to semi-rural environments where they keep the foxes and snakes well fed.

Whether you live in a home unit or a house it is possible to grow at least some produce. In home units herbs and small vegetables can be planted in pots. Even small or miniature fruit trees will also grow on balconies.

On even a small home block there is always a small section that can be devoted to growing produce, and a chicken (or duck) or two. If there is a lack of space, a wall can be turned into a hydroponic garden. In fact, all you need is some watertight barrels or containers and that can be the start of a hydroponic garden.

To feed the hydroponics or the garden, capture rain water into tanks, barrels etc and use the rainwater. Rainwater tank(s) helps to keep the water bill down too.

3 Likes
33

I was sent the following from a Facebook friend .Concerns Canada but really made me think about the way ahead .

"The coldest day of the year so far

According to the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) website, on December 31, 2021 the province’s 13 grid-connected solar facilities were rated at 736 megawatts of capacity but were contributing only 58 megawatts to the grid. Their 26 wind farms, with a combined rated capacity of 2,269 megawatts, were contributing only 18 megawatts. So, on a day that averaged somewhere around -30°C across the province (not exactly a rare event), at noon the total contribution of ALL solar and wind capacity was only 76 megawatts, or 2.5% of the rated solar/wind capacity. That means that someone (taxpayers?) paid for 97.5% of capacity that was totally absent at that particularly point in time. At that same time, the total load was 11,232 megawatts. So solar and wind was providing only 0.7% of the total electric energy that was demanded of the grid.

What would have happened that day if all of the existing coal and natural gas fired plants had been mothballed - as some “experts” are calling for in the near future? How many people would have frozen to death? How many electric cars would not have started? If, on the coldest day of the year, we can only count on 2.5% of the rated capacity of solar and wind power, what’s really going to happen?

Will we be subjected to rolling blackouts and brownouts? Will the fundamental requirements of our modern society be available to us?
Or will we be jerked back to medieval times burning wood in our homes and pulling our wagons with horses? Next time you’re talking to Justin Trudeau or David Suzuki, perhaps they would care to answer these questions.

So forget the debate of how much the government should rebate people when they buy an electric car or install a high-speed charger in their garage.
Forget the debate on how much carbon Canada emits into the air.

And ignore the people who believe that electric power somehow magically comes out of the wall socket without considering the immense complexity of operating a modern-day electric grid with power demands changing literally on a minute-by-minute basis 24/7/365.

Perhaps someone should, finally, start talking about where all of our power is going to come from, how reliable it will be, and how much it will really cost (both to install and operate) - after our so-called leaders shut down all of our fossil fuel and nuclear options."

34

Reads like someone who is not atop what is happening around the world and supports business as usual with fossil fuels? Selective data that to them implies ‘stop it all now’ without regard to batteries and other advances.

2 Likes
35

To be more sustainable?
Preference low carbon energy sources, whether electricity or for vehicles?
At a personal level the options to choose retailers with a lower carbon footprint are covered in another topic. There are many other actions from installing solar PV or a more energy efficient HW/home heating to low carbon vehicle replacement. Each of these has a cost, a timeline to payback embodied carbon, and optionally if important a financial return. Affordability pending?

On a broader level does will our future needs be better met by ensuring our leadership ensures delivery of sufficient short and long term storage to support renewables. It’s a slightly different but relevant point.

Notes:
Considering the monologue referenced and on its face value there is no mention of energy storage capacity within the example system. Canada also supplies nearly 60% of all its electrical energy from hydro. This suggests the original source or author of the shared text is not one with a balanced view.

Is the cold an issue for BEVs? Norway leads the world in BEV adoption. 65% of all new car registrations in 2021 were pure electric BEVs.

2 Likes
36

The author has used a fallacious argument technique by “cherry picking” one isolated set of circumstances and then generalised based on that. Then on top of that, adds further worst case scenarios involving fossil fuel energy production to make an absolutely worst case scenario.

How often do these first set of circumstances, that is, such low solar production and virtually no wind across the whole of Canada occur? No mention is made of the long term figures and trends.

This is pseudoscientific scaremongering at it’s worst.

1 Like
37

Par for the course for contrarian arguments that are very common in the climate change denial world.

“What would have happened that day if all of the existing coal and natural gas fired plants had been mothballed - as some “experts” are calling for in the near future?” It didn’t happen and no reason is given why it will happen in future. This assumes the controlling authority is incompetent and will shutter FF generation with no concern for the future.

I note also the tone of sweet reasonableness in the last para is a classic subterfuge. It strives to seem to ask such a good question while loading up the reader with the conclusion that there is a big problem with de-carbonising and there is no solution.

From the point of view of propaganda trying to instil a conclusion without evidence it is well written. From the point of view of informing the public not so much.

2 Likes