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When going "green" doesn't work

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23 replies

by jdclyde

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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090328/ap_on_re_us/bootleg_detergent

The sale of traditional detergents has been banned in Spokane, Wash, but unfortunately without the proper thought involved. (surprised?)

Seems the "green" replacements just don't work.

Just one more example of how simpletons in office think they can legislate solutions from on high.

The idea of reducing phosphates in our drinking water is a good idea, and locally we have gotten fliers with tips, such as not leaving grass clippings in the street to get washed into the storm drains. High phosphate fertilizer is already restricted, but I can live with that.

23 replies

by hal 9000

Just get rid of those useless machines called Dish Washers and get the wife to do it by hand and there is no problem.

Saves both the discharge of phosphates into the Waste Water and Electricity used to run the Dirty Dish washing Machines.

Only possible problem is that the Landfill Sites will become clogged with Dishwashers and these may pollute the environment. :D

However to work within the Laws I'm selling Paper Plates so there are no Dishwashers required or Detergents that mess things up. And I only chop down 800 Football Sized Fields of trees a day to make these Paper Plates. See just how much I'm improving things here. :p

It's much better than those Biofules which take away food from the plates as you can not drink BioFule safely. Even if you are really desperate and the entire community drinks it the only possible problems are Explosions and fires in your septic Tank Outlet or at the local Sewerage Treatment Plant and a few extra Grave Plots being required. But they say that people are the biggest danger to the world so I'm helping get rid of them as fast as I can. :^0

[b]Remember Stalk and Shot a Politician a Day to Remain Green.[/b] Do your Bit to cut down Overpopulation and [b]Save the Planet.[/b] :0

Col 0:-)

by jdclyde

I have found, a dish washer makes a lot less noise than a wife does, and I am very concerned about sound pollution! :D

And yes, I LOVE paper plates! B-)

by hal 9000

You could glue her Lips shut to cut down Noise Pollution.

See no problems. ;)

Col 0:-)

by mdhealy

Unless you and your wife are extremely careful to do it with the minimum possible water, washing dishes by hand almost always uses lots more hot water than does a dishwasher.

by hal 9000

Not the Environment when it hits the streams.

Of course the Electricity used to make it hot is a different matter but if you waste Hot Water only you are the one paying for it so you have incentive to use it less. :p

See something like that is simple you see how much you are wasting and then you are free to change your Ways. Of course the more that the costs of Electricity goes up the more that people will look at saving money. ?:|

I currently have Energy Efficient Light Bulbs all through the house not because I'm overly green but because the Power Company is already getting more than enough of my money. :0

I don't see why I should feel that I'm working so hard to give so much money away to places like the Power Company, The Banks and so on. So I chose to use them as little as possible. :D

That is the only way to save resources make the users realize just how much of their money that they are wasting and then let them decide for themselves not promise benefits in some kind in the future that may or may not be of any use, hit em in the Hip Pocket now and see just how many want to turn Green today. :^0

Col 0:-)

by dr dij

not the phosphates so much but the lack of sewage treatment.

If people keep spewing their filth directly into the oceans it does cause serious problems.

Just ask Hal. The reefs of aussie are dying due to algae blooms from phosphates used as fertilizers in the cane fields. The algae cover the corals and also stimulate crown-of-thorns population explosions, which eat the reefs. Overfishing of fish that eat the crown of thorns also doesn't help.

Home users shouldn't be a problem tho, if their runoff water is treated. Is only a problem with endless people who build houses outside cities and of course are not connected to a treatment grid and think that 'just they' won't cause any problems. The 'just thems' build into hundreds of thousands and it causes "non-point pollution" buildup to massive levels.

tertiary treatment involves removing most cr*p from the water. including the phosphates, which can then be recycled as bio fertilizers.

by mdhealy

A large proportion of septic tanks today are in places just a few miles from the nearest sewer system because of sprawl. Smart growth would redirect new housing to where infrastructure already exists.

by nicknielsen

Isn't that an oxymoron?

I'm a firm believer that developers and new homeowners should pick up all costs associated with connecting developments and new homes to the public infrastructure: roads, sewers, water, etc. Unfortunately, I only vote, whereas developers buy politicians.

by hal 9000

By Law have to supply all of the New Infrastructure and connect to the Existing Infrastructure. So things like Sewers, Underground Electricity and Roads are supplied by the developer and this directly benefits the Council who eventually is the one who owns the Land and all Associated Infrastructure of new Building developments. It increases the costs initially but it also cuts out the Cowboy Developers as they just don't have the available funds to tie up till the development is finished installing the Infrastructure.

Of course the other side of things is in one town up north where all Mining is Outlawed I have seen Developers put in Infrastructure to get the dirt out of the ground. They of course had it all carted away and sent through the Cyanide Separation Process and kept the gold that they got. Even doing it this way they still made more money in Gold Mining that what it cost them to install the Sewers. :D

Col

by mdhealy

One guy interviewed in that article said with the phosphate-free detergents he finds himself using the "pots and pans" cycle -- which uses six more gallons of hot water -- most of the time now. And of course another workaround is more-thorough rinsing before putting dishes into the sink.

I do hope the detergent makers will eventually figure out how to make good phosphate-free dishwasher detergents, just as they seem to have done with laundry detergents. Remember when toilets were first required by law to use less water? The first generation of water-saving toilets were very unreliable, but the ones I have now work a lot better than the first-generation water-savers did.

by the scummy one

"install water softeners to help the green detergents work better."

Yes, like every renter out there is going to install a water softener in a rented apartment to get cleaner dishes.

LOL

Yes, dumba$$es abound that make legislation. I think the time is nearing when HAL's new Sport should come into effect. Stalk and Hunt the politicians!

by jdclyde

is they listen to dumbass eco groups that are quite insane.

Pass another law, that will fix everything!

by the scummy one

they listen to whoever is going to benefit them the most at the moment, without stopping to think "is this a good or bad thing" or "I need more details"

Edit: Oops, my bad -- there are those that ask for more details. Then they make a committee to spend way too much money to find out way too little and spend way, way to long to do it

by boxfiddler

Headline: Spokane Spate of Cracked Skulls Linked to Water Softener.

There will be an expensive investigation that will correlate water softeners to cracked skulls, water softeners will be pulled from the market in yet another effort to save us from ourselves.

by tonythetiger

[i]I currently have Energy Efficient Light Bulbs all through the house not because I'm overly green but because the Power Company is already getting more than enough of my money.[/i]

I do during the summer, but I change them back during the winter, the excess heat put out by the incandescents lowers my natural gas bill :)

by ksoniat

My parents lived in Washington state for 20 years - their friends still there say it is like prohibition - except people are sneaking across state lines to get real detergent.

Wait until someone gets sick from unclean dishes....

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