Drawdown Ecochallenge 2023

October 1 - October 31, 2023

Team NCW Feed

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Reflection, encouragement, and relationship building are all important aspects of getting a new habit to stick.
Share thoughts, encourage others, and reinforce positive new habits on the Feed.

To get started, share “your why.” Why did you join the challenge and choose the actions you did?

Sue Kane 10/31/2023 9:49 PM
Today I balanced my 4 fruits and vegetables with a PB&J sandwich and Halloween Treats! Happy Halloween! Best wishes to all you Eco Challengers out there!

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Jeanne Poirier 10/31/2023 6:48 PM
This has been a great experience for me - the learnings, the trophies sparkling when I do my challenges! Ditto to Mary Hanks earlier post - it has been the feed and sharing of what this month has brought us. Really fun to check out and see what we've learned and done. Congratulations everyone! Happy Halloween!

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- Mary Hanks 10/31/2023 8:36 PM
  Thank you, Jeanne! I really enjoyed reading your feed and being inspired by the things you do. Happy Halloween! (I have four bags of leftover candy, but it's PALM OIL-FREE!)
  
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Jeanne Poirier 10/31/2023 6:43 PM
Books picked up at GreenDrinks event earlier this month from Hannah, librarian who brings books to our events and is such a pleasure! Looking forward to carrying on the learnings!

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Jeanne Poirier 10/31/2023 6:41 PM
Loved using the last foods from Farmer's Market in a "chicken" pot pie - vegan and the "chicken" was made in Hood River Oregon! Local!

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Jeanne Poirier 10/31/2023 6:38 PM
For my last post on micro-algae/seaweed I enjoyed finding this 2023 Plant based World Expo three minute video! Check out the winner! 03:00 YouTube Aliga Microalgae | Best Ingredient Innovation | World Plant-Based Innovation Awards 2023 Sep 26, 2023

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Shayne Magdoff 10/31/2023 12:21 PM
Food waste is one of the largest contributors to climate change not only because of the methane but also because the energy and resources that went into its production and transport have been wasted, too.

The system in South Korea, as mentioned in an earlier post, keeps about 90 percent of discarded food out of landfills and incinerators and has been studied by governments around the world. Officials from China, Denmark and elsewhere have toured South Korea’s facilities. New York City, which will require residents to separate their food waste from other trash by next fall, has been observing the Korean system for years. Who knew?

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Shayne Magdoff 10/31/2023 12:18 PM
One of the things we can do is build a public compost facility. There is one started up north of Leavenworth, Winton Mfg. It is striving to become a full blown facility to all - even working on weekly pickups possibly. They would love WM to accommodate street side pickup but that seems unlikely for the moment. Compost has many uses -not just gardens. Actually, in South Korea, food scraps were banned from its landfills almost 20 years ago. Here, the vast majority of it gets turned into animal feed, fertilizer and fuel for heating homes.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Why do people in richer countries eat more meat than people in other places? How does eating more meat affect our bodies, our planet, and other people?
Shayne Magdoff 10/31/2023 12:12 PM
It's human nature, the richer you are the more you can afford expensive grocery items - meat is one of them.
Red meat is not good for your heart or overall health - actually a plant based diet would be best. It affects our planet in many ways - the animals give off methane gas - something worse than carbon - we need to plant more feed acres to feed the animals - takes out more green to do that. It becomes a vicious cycle.
On average, U.S. farmers plant about 90 million acres of corn each year and most of the crop is used domestically as the main energy ingredient in livestock feed 50% and for fuel ethanol production 45%.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Industry

Concrete is a good example of a material that most of us encounter every day, but its carbon footprint may not be obvious. What other everyday materials might have a large carbon footprint? How can you find out more?
Shayne Magdoff 10/31/2023 12:05 PM
I added this to my actions when I was researching types of concrete and found Pervious concrete - I had heard of it a while back but never looked into it.
It creates a pavement that allows infiltration of rainwater rather than creating runoff. Because of the infiltration, ground water supplies are recharged and pollutants are treated.

Pervious concrete pavement is a pavement type that allows rainwater and other sources of water to percolate into the base layer below the concrete. Thus allowing the base material to absorb and control the flow rate of the water as it moves off site.

Pervious concrete's mass consists of an interconnected void structure, which allows water to flow through at very high rates. Typically, when cast on a sandy subgrade soil, the pavement will infiltrate stormwater at a higher rate than that of the soil below.

Structurally, pervious concrete is weaker than plain concrete and because of this, the product is not acceptable for building things. It is acceptable for light duty applications such as car parking facilities, pedestrian areas, and low traffic pavements.

It can be produced with a variety of coarse aggregates that result in many variations of concrete density. The key elements to pervious concrete pavements are the percent voids, permeability and compressive strength.

Uses/Applications

Pervious pavements are most often used for sidewalks and parking lots around residential and commercial

buildings. They are most beneficial when they increase the usable space on a project site as normally required retention ponds can be minimized or eliminated.

Product Benefits

Because of its porous structure, pervious pavement allows stormwater to percolate into the underlying soil while filtering out harmful sediments. This results in better stormwater quality, complying with new EPA regulations.

Pervious concrete pavement is a "green" product which can be laid next to trees and foliage, protecting root systems that may be beneath the paved areas. This pavement does not create hazardous runoff, nor does it prevent water from reaching roots.

Pervious pavement can double as a parking lot and retention area, maximizing the land that can be developed and lowering construction costs.

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- Jeanne Poirier 10/31/2023 6:29 PM
  Sounds like a great tool in future infrastructure. I'd love to see it used for lots more sidewalks!
  
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Shayne Magdoff 10/31/2023 11:44 AM
I thought this would be a good time to share other activities i support for the environment. I belong to GWADA - Greater Wenatchee Arbor Day Associaation. We have a tree sale - typically on Earth Day as celebrated at Pybus - and sell trees and shrubs to communities in Wenatchee, East Wenatchee, Entiat and Cashmere. It is always well recieved. Planting these items is great for building shade and carbon absorption but getting the younger set outside planting does much more - enhances how good one feels outdoors with nature.

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