Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes wallpaper. Official site.
Starbucks expanding recycling program with coffee cups in Chicago
Starbucks Corp. is finding new ways to use the 3 billion paper cups its customers use each year, even in cities where recycling is not popular or mandated.
This fall, the Seattle-based company will send cups used at its Chicago stores to Green Bay, Wis., where a Georgia-Pacific paper mill will turn them into Starbucks napkins.
Starbucks also uses 1 billion plastic cups for cold drinks. A new recycling ordinance in Starbucks home town of Seattle is expected to save 6,000 tons of food and serviceware from ending up in landfills.
Electrolux starts Vac from the Sea program
Electrolux starts Vac from the Sea program Electrolux has decided to draw attention to our plastic pollution problem by starting a new Vac from the Sea initiative. The company will be collecting plastic from the floating waste dumps on oceans and seas around the world. The recovered plastic will be used to make a special line of concept vacuum cleaners.
These “concept” vacuums will be made from the plastic vortexes that exists in the Pacific, Atlantic, Baltic, North and Mediterranean seas.
Couple collect 400,000 cans to pay for wedding
SPOKANE, Wash. — A Spokane couple has reached its goal of collecting enough recyclable aluminum cans to pay for their wedding.
Kitchen gets personalized with eco-friendly materials
Re-used cabinets: Penrod and Foss didn’t see a need to tear out perfectly good cabinets, so they had them refaced with Plyboo (bamboo plywood), which is sustainably harvested and a rapidly renewable resource, Foss said. The Plyboo was installed on its side, with the grain running horizontally instead of vertically, to visually expand the space and create a fresh, distinctive look. The cabinets above the sink were refaced with metal frames inset with frosted panels, to lighten that space and create a visual connection with the new appliances, Penrod said.
Recycled countertops: For her countertops, she chose a material made from 75 recycled materials (Eco by Cosentino), including glass fragments set in industrial ash resin. “It has bits of mirror in it, with beautiful reflective value,” Foss said. Other green choices included Energy Star appliances, energy-efficient lighting, low-VOC paint and water-based coating on the refinished wood floors.
Cosentino’s site is here.
Gulf Oil Spill: ‘A Whale’ Of A Skimmer Offers Up Its Services
A massive, newly-retooled supertanker that its owner claims could skim millions of gallons of oily water a day is now in the Gulf of Mexico, where government and BP officials intend to run tests shortly to see if it actually works.
And no, despite what Fox News might say to the contrary, the Jones Act is not keeping this ship or any other ship from a foreign country out that wants to help with the spill. The refitted tanker is 10 stories tall, called ” A Whale”, the owner claims it could ingest and process some 15 million gallons of oily water a day. Which would be great if it works. It is also not a simple story of the owner volunteering and waiting to clear some burdensome bureaucratic red tape. He is going to charge for the use of the tanker, if and when it clears testing. The tab will run into the millions.
American Black Bear cub. Ursus americanus is the most common and least endangered of North America’s bears. While not generally dangerous, they do cause an average of a couple of deaths per year. Some of that is because they appear so friendly people try to feed them by hand. It is wise to especially avoid females with cubs as they can be very protective.
tangledwing 