Cool It

The government has produced a booklet entitled "Global Warming - Cool It". Packed with information and tips, it is available for free. You can view it online or the good people at Cool the Globe can post one out to you.

Of course, if you're like me, you may be surprised that the current government is doing ANYTHING about global warming. And the booklet may well be just a method of distracting us from noticing they've done next to nothing to actually address the problem.

But if you're more optimistic than me, perhaps you might say that now that the pretty booklet-printing is done, they can get on with the serious stuff of actually making some gutsy decisions. Let's hope so.

Having got all that off my chest, the booklet IS a good one. And until we do switch over to renewable energy sources, the best we can do is to reduce the carbon dioxide we produce.

Running on Air

A friend of mine sent me an article about the new Compressed Air Vehicle.

Essentially, the difference is that instead of burning petrol to drive the engine, it uses compressed air to do the same thing. So, provided that the energy comes from a non-greenhouse source, the car could be carbon free.

Of course, the same thing could also be done with electric cars or hydrogen cars. It would just take companies and/or government to have the foresight to get behind one of these strategies. Not only would this enable cars to be greenhouse-free, but it would mean that the energy could be obtained through Australian renewable energy, rather than imported fuel.

6.5 Billion Dollars

What could a government do with 6.5 billion dollars? I'd forgive you if you said "Make serious reductions in greenhouse emissions" because that would be the intelligent response.

But instead, our government uses it to subsidise the coal industry. 6,500,000,000 dollars - every year! With around 20 million people in Australia, that's over $300 per person. I guess it feels good to see a cheap electricity bill. But the bill is only a fraction of the cost. The rest comes out of our tax.

So if you're wondering why renewable energy appears more expensive than coalpower - now you know!

Now, imagine if that money could be re-directed into production of renewable energy...

Solar Clothes Dryer

Drying clothes using solar power. It sounds high-tech, but it's actually been around for ages.


Ok it's not that high-tech, but what the old line and pegs method lacks in modern-ness and scientific ingenuity, it more than makes up for in being greenhouse-friendly. Producing 0 kg of greenhouse gases, and very cheap to run, this alternative technology could replace the old electic dryer ;)

Speaking of which, if you've got a couple of minutes, check out Merrick and Russo's Magical Dad skits from Cool Aid.

Keep it Cool

I don't personally know of anyone who uses the hot water option on their washing machine. But if you currently use it, consider switching to a cold wash...


It would take 5 loads of cold wash to use the same amount of energy as a hot one, because the energy needed to move the clothes around only a fraction of what is needed to heat a machine full of water.

Oh, and by the way, if you're in the market for a new washing machine, why not go with a front-loader, they use even less energy.

PNG on the move

According to a report just released, 2000 PNG people may be the first in the world forced to move as global warming causes sea levels to rise.


In Papua New Guinea's Carteret Islands, storms and high tides already destroy crops and contaminate freshwater supply. Currently receiving relief supplies, it could still be a year before residents can relocate to the mainland.

Low-lying atolls in Kiribati, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and the Marshall Islands are also reported to be in danger of submersion because of global warming.

Victoria on the Move

Recently i reported the great rate at which NSW people have signed up for green power. But it seems Victorians have been even quicker to change to environmentally-friendly power, according to figures released today.


More than 157,000 Victorians have signed up - making Victoria the leading state in terms of people now using green energy. Queensland is in second place (Go Qld!) with NSW (despite being the most populated state) only the third quickest to start switching to the environmentally-friendly power.

It is estimated that in the last year, Victorians have cut greenhouse pollution by 188,489 tonnes. If you wanna add to the Queensland effort, check out earthschoice.

Greenpower Powers Up

2000 per week! No it's not the southerners migrating to Queensland. It's the number of NSW residents switching to greenpower, as a continuing surge of people sign up for the environmentally-friendly energy.

In 2006 (before the surge) NSW electricity users bought 285,000 megawatt hours of energy from renewable sources such as solar and windpower. The greenhouse equivalent of taking around 64,000 cars off the road.

During 2006, the number of 'green' customers had increased 68%, to a total of 68,053 customers. Imagine what it will be by the end of 2007!

Yet more evidence

Just in case we needed more data about climate change. With still one day to go in this month, it has been announced that Adelaide has just experienced the hottest February in 100 years.

The hottest day was 41°C on Feb 17, with a monthly average of 32.9°C. Adelaide also went without any rain last month for the first time since 1991.

Choosing a Car

OK, it's not every day that you buy a car. But if you are in the market for some new wheels, why not checkout the Green Vehicle Guide?

From the drop-down menus, you can select the vehicles you might be thinking about getting, and the guide will compare their fuel consumptions. It also gives them a greenhouse rating out of 10.

Earth's Choice

While it seems fairly simple, there appears to be some confusion about the way green energy works - in the earthschoice setup.

You can purchase renewable energy in $10 units. For every ten bucks, 330kWh of energy comes from renewable sources rather than from burning coal.

If you want, you can purchase more than 330kWh per quarter. In fact, for an extra $120 per quarter you can buy 3960kWh of green energy (woah!). Of course, this is waaaaay more than most people would ever use - unless you have a family of 10 ;)

The average household uses around 2600kWh. To upgrade that amount of energy would be around 80 dollars per quarter. But this is only if you are an average user. If you are a good energy-saver, that will save you money. The easiest thing to do is to look at the amount of power (in kWh) from your last power bill, and compare that to the table at earthschoice.

Ditch Globe - Help World

Frequent readers will be familiar with my enthusiasm for the Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs). They use about 20% of the power of traditional light globes (bulbs) and last around 6 times as long. While they are slightly more expensive to purchase, they save many times that cost over time. And of course, they require less power, which means less carbon dioxide.

Anyway, today the environment minister Malcolm Turnbull announced plans to introduce minimum energy standards for lighting, which would effectively make it illegal to sell the old style bulbs by 2009.

Of course, i give the Australian public a fair amount of credit. I'm sure that with the increase in environmental awareness, that by 2009 it would require a fairly stupid person to even think of buying an old-style bulb. Although having said that, people still buy cigarettes.

AFL Green

In other sports news, the Australian Football League (AFL) has announced that the league will be carbon neutral by 2009.

Over the next three years, the ‘AFL Green’ program will neutralise an estimated 120,000 tonnes of greenhouse emissions through investment in renewable energy and energy efficiency. [see AFL announcement]

A Manly Decision

It's almost that time of year again. We are just weeks away from the start of a new NRL season. Of course, i will once again be supporting my beloved Brisbane Broncos, as they embark on their 20th season.

As such, it is with mixed emotions that today i praise Brisbane's former arch-nemesis, the Manly Sea Eagles. As reported on NRL news, the Sea Eagles have joined forces with Energy Australia to make a positive move against climate change.

For every unit of energy used at the Sea Eagles' Brookvale Oval, Energy Australia will provide the same amount of electricity from a renewable energy project. And to promote green energy, Manly will wear green jerseys for their pre-season match against the Melbourne Storm.

For the record, it is estimated that the impact of 11 home games at Brookvale (using coal power) is equivalent driving from Sydney to Queensland and back 375 times.

My favourite quote came from Energy Australia's Retail General Manager Tim O'Grady, who managed at least two rugby league puns. “The Sea Eagles are taking practical steps to tackle climate change head on ... The Sea Eagles should be congratulated for taking this step - but also for going that extra yard". Do you reckon he meant it?

Hey True ... Green?

Ok, it may not roll off the tongue the same way as "True Blue", but this Australian book does provide many suggestions that we can use to help the environment.


It's one of those books that's as much pictures as words, so it's quite a light read - while still being very useful.

Of course, if you feel it's not worth twenty bucks to buy a book that you can read in less time than it takes England to lose a game of cricket, you can borrow a copy from your local library, and spend the 20 on some energy-efficient light bulbs (that's tip number 16).