Bottled water companies claim sustainability

Posted on November 29, 2015 by Naima

I was eavesdropping on their conversation. I really didn’t mean to, but I found the idea of two college guys grocery shopping together for the first time comical. As one grabbed a huge case of small bottled water and lugged it onto the cart, the other called out, “I didn’t know you were so classy?”

Now, I had to get closer. The two guys, whose cart was full with regular college kid grub, like hot dogs and ramen, joked about bottled water being classy? I could tell by their tone and attitude, they meant it. They did not want to be known for drinking tap water. Most people agree with these two college guys that bottled water is classy, clean and convenient. But is it? And at what cost?

About 25 percent of bottled water is purified municipal water or tap water. The water they grabbed very well could have been tap water made to look classy with packaging and labels. For every one liter of bottled water, it takes three liters to produce (from the PacificInstitute.org). It took more water to process the one water bottle than the water inside the water bottle, which doesn’t include the 17 million barrels of oil used annually to make water bottles to meet the American demand. The International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) reported every person in America drank an average of 30.8 gallons of bottled water in 2012, a number that was up 5.3 percent from previous years. The billion dollar bottled water industry is forecasting more growth in the future. Are we really dumping billions of dollars into bottled water?

As I drove home, I couldn’t help but notice the new large eye-catching billboards from Ozarka water (owned by Nestlè) strategically placed around Dallas. The trendy designed billboards are hard to miss, and their flashy words like “sustainable” are easy to read as you breeze by. The word sustainable holds a lot of prestige but no criteria. Sustainable means, “of, relating to, or being a method of harvesting or using a resource so that the resource is not depleted or permanently damaged.” But there is no criteria that Ozarka has to meet or certification process to go through to be able to describe them as sustainable. This current marketing by Ozarka is a great example of what the Natural Resource Defense Council describes as “marketing designed to convince the public of bottled water’s purity and safety, and capitalizing on public concern about tap water quality.”

Ozarka sustainable claims
The on label marketing that emphasizes the reduction in plastic used or addition of recycled plastic used to make the bottle is another example. Although all plastic bottles are 100 percent recyclable, only about 23 percent are actually recycled. And far fewer are reused a second time, filling them with tap water to drink again. Most water bottles end up in landfills, where they take hundreds of years to disintegrate. Or take a stroll around White Rock Lake to find another deposit spot for used water bottles.

I would argue my water bottle is classier than every disposable one-time use plastic water bottle out there. And the highest class water bottle are the new glass designs — the ultimate in fancy. But no matter what water bottle you choose, planning is key. Get in the habit of bringing your bottle everywhere, there are water faucets in most buildings and many now have a designed spout to easily fill up a bottle. Buy two and keep one in your refrigerator for the coldest of conveniences.

And lastly, the cost. I know those two college guys are on a tight budget, just like many of us are. I couldn’t help but think about what other beverages they’d rather be buying. Business Insider reports consumers are spending 300 times the cost of tap water to drink bottled water! Put the cash back in your pocket and ignore those huge eye catching Ozarka billboards.

One last thing – check out this awesome top 9 DIY ways to filter water!

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Next time you grab the toilet paper, take a closer look

Posted on November 20, 2015 by Naima

My sister-in-law, a registered nurse, describes the nest she builds. She loads the toilet seat up with toilet paper to protect her bottom from touching the same area as other people’s bottoms. This weekend traveling, I noticed the immense size of leftover nests being built by many just like her. Toilet paper draped over toilet seats, on the ground, seat covers emptied out and thrown aside, and paper towels that never dispense just one, I wondered how our bathroom habits are connected to the environment.

It turns out it’s all very connected. The soft fluffy mainstream toilet paper in the grocery store is made from old growth virgin trees. Old growth tree fibers are longer than recycled fibers, giving them the soft characteristics we’ve become attracted to. Old growth trees have taken hundreds of years, in some cases, to reach maturity storing carbon in their fibers. Felling old growth trees is a double edge sword that increases carbon in the environment in two ways. Not only does cutting a tree down release carbon back into the environment, but you are also removing another plant capable of turning carbon dioxide into oxygen through photosynthesis.

This wouldn’t be such a big deal if we didn’t use so much toilet paper. The average American uses about 23.6 rolls of toilet paper per year. Most of what we buy at home is not made of recycled content, only five percent of what we buy is recycled and about 75 percent of what we use outside of the home is recycled content. And don’t be confused; recycled content does not mean recycled used toilet paper, it means recycled paper, newspaper and other paper products. When the only option to use is recycled toilet paper, we use it, but we resist the same style at home.

Toilet paper has some other environmental issues. Here in the U.S., when toilet paper is flushed, our wastewater treatment plants break it down where the organic material of the wood is eaten by bacteria. Toilet paper does not only contain paper. In many cases chemicals, such as bleach, are used to dye the paper. This bleach and other chemicals are not as easy to remove at water treatment plants and can enter back into our rivers and lakes. Toilet paper also takes water to process and produce, and some estimates go as high as 37 gallons for each roll. The packaging for toilet paper also eats up resources, so much so, that some companies have gone to removing the cardboard center to reduce waste.

Toilet paper is a $9 billion industry. Each decision we make in the grocery store adds to this industry, and we, as consumers, are part of shaping the future of the industry. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) states, “If every household in the U.S. replaced just one roll of virgin fiber toilet paper (500 sheets) with 100 percent recycled ones, we could save 423,900 trees.” The NRDC has a list of the environmental ratings of household tissue paper on their website, of which a few low cost brands, such as Best Value and CVS Earth Essentials, made the recycled content cut. Find out more at nrdc.org/land/forests/tissueguide/ratings.aspx.

Are there other options? Yup, but they take another precious resource … water. A bidet takes the place of toilet paper in several European countries, yet culturally isn’t accepted here in the States. The WorldWatch Institute emphasizes, “‘Wet’ cultures (those using water for cleansing) can achieve health standards every bit as high as ‘dry’ cultures relying on toilet paper.” But is using water in drought stricken Texas better than toilet paper?

And as for the nest builders, the toilet seat is surprisingly clean compared to other surfaces in the bathroom. Studies have found you are more at risk of picking up bacteria on your hands in the bathroom than on your bottom. In one study, the floor contained the most bacteria followed by the sanitary napkin trash can. It’s better to keep your purse off the floor, forgo the toilet paper nest and reduce your carbon footprint while still maintaining your hygiene.

As seen in the Katy Trail Weekly. 

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Are you burning candles that are causing you harm?

Posted on November 9, 2015 by Naima

Nothing’s better than walking into a house with the warm scent of fresh baked cookies in the fall. Instead of actually baking cookies everyday and gaining lots of weight, we resort to obtaining the same smell from an artificial source. Fall is candle time. Cinnamon spice, autumn leaves, pumpkin pie and cranberry spice are a few of the wide variety of fall candles filling the store shelves.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, indoor air pollution levels of many pollutants may be two to five times, and, occasionally, more than 100 times higher than outdoor levels. And one of the unassuming culprits that increase air pollution in your home are candles.

Most candles are made from paraffin, a petroleum by-product of the nonrenewable resource, crude oil. When candles are burned they emit particulate pollution, into the air. These tiny bits of pollution known as particulates, can inflame the respiratory tract and aggravate asthma. The effects of air pollution in your home can take years to manifest. Candles also contain artificial “fragrances” just as other air fresheners such as sprays, plug-ins and gels do. Air fresheners emit harmful volatile organic compounds (VOC) such as benzene, formaldehyde, toluene, ethylene and more, which have toxic side effects, some that are carcinogens. VOCs are not all harmful and are compounds that evaporate quickly (i.e.: you can pick up their scent!), and the organic in VOCs means they contain the carbon molecule.

I’m attracted to the candles with the natural packaging. But very few candles are non-toxic. The popular choice for an environmentally friendly candle is candles made with soy wax. Soy candles burn on average 50 percent longer than paraffin candles and release less toxins. The problem is it takes about 60 pounds of beans to make 11 pounds of oil, making it a resource heavy product. Soy is also a soft oil and is often mixed with palm oil to harden for candle usage. If you read my column a few weeks ago, palm oil agriculture is causing huge environmental and social issues in Indonesia. You can imagine my dismay recently, when I found out my soy candle was in fact a soy/palm candle.

Beeswax is the least harmful, and known to be the least toxic when burning. Beeswax is harvested from bees that use the wax to make their honeycomb home. Harvesting too much of the beeswax can cause danger to the survival of the hive. Beeswax is also the most expensive wax to use and the hardest to add fragrance to. Synthetic fragrances can give off harmful VOC’s, so using fragrances derived from essential oils with an unbleached cotton wick is your best choice.

And then there are Scentsy’s. The new trendy electrical heated wax melt full of fragrance. Scentsy products do use natural oils for fragrance, but they are also utilizing artificial fragrances. That means even though you are not burning a candle, you can still be releasing harmful VOCs into the air from the wax blocks. And at high scent levels, the worst smell in the world could be covered up by a Scentsy which may cause more harm than the nasty smell.

Same thing with incense products. Studies in Singapore on a population of elderly adults found long-term exposure to incense burning at home was associated with increased risk of mortality and increased risk of upper respiratory tract cancer.

But I, like you, love a good candle. It makes me happy, and it makes me feel like I’m at home. If you are going to burn a candle, light up the incense or use a Scentsy, pick the most sustainable product and open the windows. The more air flow you have through your house, the less build up of harmful VOCs will occur. Also, remember you can recycle the glass container. A good trick is after the candle is used and leftover wax remains, throw the entire container into the freezer overnight. The next morning the wax will pop right out, and you can reuse or recycle the container.

sustainable candle

As seen in the Katy Trail Weekly. 

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Even the nail polish…

Posted on November 3, 2015 by Naima

I had just painted my toes, so I cringed when I read the popular media headline: “New study finds endocrine disruptor enters the body via nail polish.”

Endocrine disrupters are, as defined by the National Institute on Health, “chemicals that may interfere with the body’s endocrine system and produce adverse developmental, reproductive, neurological and immune effects in both humans and wildlife.” Natural and artificial substances found in everyday items such as plastic bottles, metal food cans, detergents, food, toys, cosmetics and more have been shown to interfere with hormones.

But here is how science works: This study, which has a much different headline than the news report, is a start to learning more and discovering how our world works around us. Further studies will help us shape our understanding of how triphenyl phosphate (TPHP), the chemical in nail polish focused on in this study, affects our body. The popular media headlines can be misleading, but I still cringed.

The cringe should remind us that everything we put in or on our body affects us in ways beyond what we see on the outside. And finding companies that are environmentally ethical and mindful about the chemicals they use isn’t easy.

I recently visited the Aveda Institute Dallas, located at the Shops at Park Lane, and was inspired by their vision to create a culture of connecting beauty, environment and well-being. The Aveda Institute Dallas is a place for students to receive their cosmetology degree through attending beauty school, which includes training in the Aveda mission to care for the world and set an example as environmental leaders.

The Aveda Institute Dallas’ director, Jennifer Haack, described the student’s introduction and curriculum throughout beauty school as “students are constantly reminded that they are a part of something that is bigger.” Aveda, as a company, is known for making efforts to source sustainable and organic ingredients. Aveda also buys wind credits to offset the electricity used to manufacture their products. On-site at the Dallas institute the building itself was built with green design principles such as installing efficient lighting, incorporating sustainable materials like bamboo plywood for some wall panels, and 95 percent recycled content was used in the interior steel mezzanine structure.

The energetic music playing inside mixed with a stage for fashion shows lures young students in with the fun of beauty, while the coupling of environmentally-sustainable cleaning products, in-house recycling programs and carbon footprint calculators in their training, gets them hooked on making a connection between beauty to the environment. This message also translates to the educators working on-site. After talking to several of the educators, it was obvious to see their passion for beauty, but also their inspiration and eagerness to learn more about how the products they use connect back to the environment.

SpaRitual, the vegan nail polish brand offered at the Aveda Institute Dallas, is pushing for high quality ingredients that are socially and environmentally friendly. SpaRitual nail elixirs are DBP, toluene and formaldahyde free yet they still contain other chemicals, such as TPHP. The Environmental Working Group found that 49 percent of 3,000 nail polishes in their database list TPHP as an ingredient, but the recent study found TPHP was found in more nail polishes that didn’t disclose TPHP as an ingredient on their label.

Well, my toenails currently have who knows what nail polish on it, and I’m eager to carve out some time to divulge in the luxury services at the Aveda Institute Dallas. Although the nail polish may have TPHP in it for now, the companies as a whole are making a commitment to the environment that my local pharmacy’s cheap nail polishes are not.

Aveda Institute Dallas

The Aveda Institute Dallas located at the Shops at Park Lane, focuses on creating harmony between beauty and nature.

As seen in the Katy Trail Weekly.

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The 2015 Halloween palm oil update

Posted on October 25, 2015 by Naima

Candy time, otherwise known as Halloween, presents an opportunity to become aware of an international environmental issue that makes its way into our homes every day. With a wide variety of candy at your disposal this time of year, ingredient lists allow discovery of just how entwined palm oil is in our lives. Chocolate, licorice, hard sugar candies and everything in between most likely contains palm oil. Palm oil is in more than 50 percent of products in the grocery stores from milk to makeup and of course, candy.

Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil grown in lush climates around the world. In the past 30 years, palm oil production has grown remarkably, and today about a third of all vegetable oil used worldwide is derived from the oil of palm trees. Eighty five percent of all palm oil produced is exported from Indonesia and Malaysia. Palm oil plantations are created by slash and burning rainforests, which destroys wildlife habitat and releases large amounts of carbon into the atmosphere, contributing to global warming. This habitat destruction has led to vast declines in orangutans, tigers and other endangered species.

Indonesia forests are currently on fire, and recent estimates suggest that the fires are producing more greenhouse gases than the entire U.S. economy. The burning of peat is the reason why. Indonesia is home to dense rainforests thickened by a base layer of peat, which is carbon rich organic matter or soil. When peat burns it releases thousands of years of carbon into the atmosphere and burns extensively until all of the fuel is exhausted.

Fires expand palm oil plantations allowing big companies to reap the benefits of a large burn. Those big companies then make their way into your everyday lives through crackers, lotions and soaps, connecting you to the devastation around the world.

So what can you do? Many organizations are encouraging consumers to buy sustainable palm oil certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). And member companies of the RSPO such as Hershey’s are boasting their sustainability claims. But the story goes deeper. The RSPO provides criteria for sustainable palm oil yet being a member does not ensure your supply chains are sustainable on the ground, and certified sustainable palm oil is not guaranteed to be deforestation-free. Laurel Sutherlin, spokesperson for the Rainforest Action Network, describes it best, “The RSPO has failed to live up to it’s potential. Standards are missing that impact climate issues and labor protections, and the RSPO has a spotty track record of enforcing standards they do have.”

It’s up to the companies to ensure the palm oil used in their products is being grown by suppliers who are maintaining sustainable practices on a daily basis. Sutherlin adds: “You can’t outsource your values to the RSPO,” implying companies need to have the moral standards to value the environmental and social impacts of producing their products. In the same way, we as consumers need to have the same standards as we voice our opinions through our dollars in the grocery store and encourage companies to improve their palm oil standards. Large companies care about the public’s opinion ­— join the Rainforest Action Network (ran.org) and The Union of Concerned Scientists (ucsusa.org) in their work to encourage large companies to adopt strong deforestation-free and socially-just palm oil commitments.

PepsiCo, a member of the RSPO and maker of Quaker Chewy Granola Bars, Cheetos and Lays potato chips to name a few, recently announced their palm oil commitment with one big loophole: their commitment does not include the world’s biggest producer of palm oil, Indonesia. Empty commitments from big companies such as this are not improving the social and environmental effects of palm oil.

This Halloween pick up your candy and the milk you’re going to dip your chocolate in, turn it over and read the ingredients. Palm oil is identified on labels as more than 30 alternative names such as palm kernel oil, palmitate, and in soaps as sodium laureth sulfate. It’s imperative that we as consumers connect the palm oil that has infiltrated our lives with the worldwide devastation of significant habitats.

Palm oil is derived from oil palm trees.

Palm oil is derived from oil palm trees.

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Connect to Cool Climate Change – My TEDx Talk!

Posted on October 22, 2015 by Naima

Oh my goodness… My TEDx talk is on YouTube!

This has been a labor of love.

Since the beginning of 2015 I have been working on this TEDx talk. Auditions were held in the Spring, in which you had to deliver the talk as you would during the actual event. The preparation and extensive research started well before auditions and included watching tons of TED videos, analyzing presentation tactics, shaping a story, working with professionals in their field to gain insight, researching companies and organizations, interviewing specific people that ended up spanning the world, digging deep to make sure my words were accurate and then prepping for the actual talk. By the time of the audition, I had already learned so much and grown from the experience. The audition was terrifying but, I put myself out there hard core. When I found out the news I was chosen, I was elated.

More hard work followed as I researched more and then started memorizing. A TEDx talk is unlike any other presentation. I’ve given hundreds of presentations in front of large crowds, on TV and elsewhere, but this was the biggest challenge I’ve faced. The talk had to be on script yet look natural and you don’t have cues. In most presentations you can use your slides as your cues but this was reverse. Your words cued your slides. All from memory. About 2000-2500 words.

I practiced at work, practiced in the car, practiced in bed, practiced anywhere I could. I woke up in the middle of the night suddenly overstressed about a certain line only to lead me to my computer for more research. I stressed over skipping a part I spent months researching. Maybe no one would know I skipped it, but I would and I would be pissed.

As the event approached I was a little more at ease – a breakthrough came about a week before and I finally felt more confident. In the green room at the event my fellow speakers were all jazzed and encouraging. We chatted with Krys Boyd and I was so flustered and inspired by her all at the same time. She is a woman of character, knowledge, passion and just as personable as you hear on her KERA show, “Think“. I am grateful she was our announcer!

In the minutes before my talk I grabbed my headphones, turned up Katy Perry, and danced my flipping heart out behind the stage. ROAR. I was ready.

A little hiccup on my slides in the beginning made me relax. I felt confident and ready to deliver the message. My fellow speaker, Professor Deb Yoder gave the best advice. She said, “It’s not about you, it’s about the message.” And she was right, all of the preparation led to this. Time to connect people to climate change on a personal level.

Here we go, click below to watch!

 

TEDx climate change

My slides in the video are a little “off.” It’s not a huge deal and is probably way more important to me than the viewer but I at least have to share with you the actual last slide. So here it is, feel free to share this picture far and wide. #IChooseGreen

#IChooseGreen

The event was held at Mountain View College on September 24, 2015 and the video was  released October 22, 2015 on the TEDx YouTube Channel. 

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On the local news!

Posted on October 21, 2015 by Naima

A few weeks ago I wrote about the ridiculous amount of tires we found at Goat Island Preserve during a hike. My article which talks about the environmental impacts of tires, ways to recycle tires, and new tire technology can be read here.

A few days after it was published in the Katy Trail Weekly, Ben Russell, a reporter for NBC5 Dallas/Fort Worth, tweeted me. Russell mentioned he read my article and asked if I could show them around Goat Island Preserve. I was happy to collaborate with the local TV news and met Russell and the camera man, Kevin, early one morning to hike the trails. I made them walk a littler farther than expected but it paid off in seeing tires hanging from the trees, huge tractor tires, and some other great shots.

It resulted in a story that aired on the morning news here in Dallas/Fort Worth this past Tuesday. Take a peek at the video by clicking the link below:

NBC 5 DFW morning news tire story with Naima Montacer 

FullSizeRender

What fun to be on camera again!

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Jean Shin’s artwork inspires a new definition of waste

Posted on October 18, 2015 by Naima

The Trammell & Margaret Crow Collection of Asian Art, located in downtown Dallas, is currently exhibiting the work of Jean Shin, a Brooklyn-based artist known for reviving discarded objects into beautiful works of art. The free museum is a small treasure I only recently visited but now highly recommend. The top floor is dedicated to the “Inclusion” exhibition — Shin’s creative artwork that inspires people to look at waste in a new way.

From a distance stands an attractive metallic tree sculpture lit by a strong light creating an intricate shadow on the wall behind it. As you move closer to the tree, the details become apparent, and you realize each branch and in fact the entire tree is made from silverware — spoons, forks and knives. A video plays across from the tree, highlighting one of Shin’s community installations done in New York, bringing life back to ratty umbrella fabric by turning them into a large hanging canopy structure. Next to the video lies a section of what looks like comfortable trendy flooring, but upon closer examination is hundreds of chopsticks placed together like a puzzle.

Outside in the Crow Collection’s Sculpture Garden, Shin has installed another thought-provoking art piece, this time made from shards of celadon pottery. “I know that this is broken, and I know that this is trash but look how beautiful it is,” Shin said as she describes first seeing a piece of the broken pottery in an online video for the Crow Collection. Shin has shaped the celadon shards with their crackling, aquaish glaze into outdoor, enormous, traditional pottery-shaped pieces. The broken shards that surround the installation remind you of the trash the artwork originated from.

The idea of “Inclusion” is to challenge the thought of what we preserve and care for, and what we choose to toss away. “I see that someone else doesn’t want this, and I’m like yes, but could there be use; could there be a way to recontextualize it’s needs and create a second life?” Shin said on a video interview for the Crow. Shin makes you see the art and then makes you question the waste — why did we throw that away in the first place?

Art is inspiring in many ways but work like Shin’s is encouraging people to take care and put thought into what we make, what we use and what we throw away. Although Shin may not promote herself as an environmental artist her work is advancing thoughts just as several other environmental artists are. Chris Jordan, who uses trash to create beautiful murals and elaborate pictures you would never know until close examination, are made of tiny rubbish. Or Henrique Oliveira, who uses weathered wood in the place of brushstrokes to create large scale installations that from a distance look like an effortless painting.

Art is as much about the story as it is about the piece in front of you. Shin’s current installation at the Crow Collection is a little bit of contrast in not only respecting the value of pristine museum pieces found throughout the Crow Collection, but also finding value in the often discarded and excluded fragments and waste. In the right light, the unwanted trash is back in the spotlight.

Let the artwork inspire you to reconsider the trash in your home and office. How can your old magazines be creatively used in a way you haven’t thought of, what will you do with old clothes, broken plates or the bucket of wine corks?

Jean Shin’s exhibition entitled “Inclusion” is on display until Jan. 3, 2016. The Trammell & Margaret Crow Collection of Asian Art is open Tuesday through Sunday at 2010 Flora St. in downtown Dallas. Admission is free (donations welcome).

As seen in the Katy Trail Weekly. 

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Tires, tires everywhere!

Posted on October 12, 2015 by Naima

We took a hike amongst tires recently in South Dallas. By far, the most discarded tires I’ve ever seen in one area.

We decided to hike the newly opened Goat Island Preserve along the Trinity River in South Dallas, and after finally finding the trailhead, we did not make it far before starting to count tires. Small tires, car tires and huge tractor tires were everywhere ­— surrounding trees, hanging from branches and under my feet. It was insane.

David standing next to one of the many discarded tires at Goat Island Preserve in South Dallas.

David standing next to one of the many discarded tires at Goat Island Preserve in South Dallas.

Dumped tires are major environmental hazards. Tires exposed to the elements can collect water and provide a breeding ground for mosquitoes. This can increase the risk for mosquito borne diseases such as West Nile virus. As tires degrade, they release chemicals and heavy metals contained within them into the environment polluting soil and water quality. Another major concern of discarded tires is their flammability and susceptibility to spontaneous combustion. Tire fires emit high levels of pollution and are notoriously difficult to extinguish.

Despite the city’s efforts to discourage illegal tire dumping, it’s obvious the problem is still rampant. In the City of Dallas, if you are found illegally dumping scrapped tires or any other waste, you can go to jail for up to two years and be fined up to $10,000. Several organizations are working to clean up the Trinity. The City of Dallas’ team removed approximately 33,000 tires from the Trinity River in fiscal year 2013. The dumping still outweighs the clean up and there is no reason to dump. Our landfill, the McCommas Bluff Landfill, accepts up to six tires free of any disposal fee, as long as you show a Dallas Water Utilities bill to prove you live in the area.

But you don’t have to bring your tires to the landfill. There are many other options. While driving out from Goat Island Preserve, right before I-45, there is a tire recycling facility. You can drop off your used tires at Vista International Technologies Incorporated (VITI) for a charge of $0.80 per tire or even better, schedule them to come pick up your used tires. VITI uses a thermal gasifier to convert the chemical energy contained within tires into electricity and thermal energy. Some environmentalists question this practice due to air emissions from the process, but these facilities must meet the Environmental Protection Agency air emission standards to operate.

Old tires can also be used for a variety of at home repurpose projects. Entire homes can be built from used tires, but on a smaller scale can be used as planters, raised garden beds, compost bins, bird baths, tire swings and other playground structures. A quick Pinterest used tire search, results in hundreds of ideas to repurpose old tires in a unique way. There have been concerns about the health implications of used tires in playgrounds and synthetic turfs. The EPA conducted limited studies and found concentrations of components monitored below levels of concern, but more research needs to be completed to get an accurate assessment.

The best way to reduce the amount of tires in our landfills or our river is to take good care of the tires you have. That means, making sure your tires are properly inflated. Tire inflation is important to check at the change of seasons. Our mornings are getting cooler, therefore it’s important to stop and make sure your tires are inflated to the maximum recommended pressure. This ensures your tires will last longer and deliver better gas mileage.

Tire technology is evolving. A new concept tire was introduced earlier this year by Goodyear which generates electricity by converting heat and motion into energy as the tire rolls. The new BHO3 tires are designed to reduce friction and charge your electric car at the same time. The tire is still a concept, but I wonder what the life span will be and how we will discard or recycle their components.

The sight of so many tires in a beautiful natural area was shocking. Next time I have to change tires, the car shop is getting 20 questions on their plans for my old tires. Until then, I’ll be checking my tire inflation weekly, and I hope you are too.

TO REPORT ILLEGAL DUMPING contact Dallas Marshal’s Office – Illegal Dump Team at: 214-670-6820 (IN PROGRESS) and NOT IN PROGRESS – call 3-1-1.

As seen in the Katy Trail Weekly. 

And if you are planning on visiting Goat Island Preserve let me help you not get lost like we did. Take I-45 South to Fulghum Road exit. Turn left or east onto Fulghum Road. Turn right onto Post Oak Road and you will run right into the parking lot for Goat Island Preserve. Have fun!

A few more pictures below:

Screenshot of location of Goat Island Preserve parking lot.

Screenshot of location of Goat Island Preserve parking lot.

FullSizeRender 3 IMG_9349

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Your home – Is bigger always better?

Posted on October 4, 2015 by Naima

I grew up in a small two-bedroom house. The dining room was converted into a bedroom so I could have my own space. I don’t remember feeling cramped for space unless I was pounding on the only bathroom door urging whoever was inside to vacate immediately. I now reside in a small one-bedroom/one-bathroom duplex here in Dallas, yet I’m waiting for the day my old creaky house is the next on the demolition list. And that list has claimed most of the similar sized houses in the area, to be replaced with huge monstrosities.

But, is bigger always better? Small houses are being knocked down to make way for bigger spaces that come at a cost: a high price tag and high environmental impact. In 1974, the average single family home was 1,695 square feet, and by 2004 the average size had risen to 2,349 square feet, and today is more than 2,600 square feet. The larger houses take more natural resources to build, consume more energy to heat and cool, and come at a high price tag.

But around the country and even here in Dallas, simplifying your life and moving into a smaller space is becoming more popular. The tiny house movement is a great way to reduce raw materials and decrease energy consumption at a price tag you can afford. Joel Weber, a local hometown Dallas resident, recently made national news after building a tiny home to live in to avoid high college rent prices. He parked his home, mounted on a trailer here in Dallas before driving it to Austin this year for his junior year.

Tiny houses are usually less than 400 square feet and can cost anywhere from $20,000 to $40,000. The houses can be built on a flatbed trailer to make them mobile, so when you move, your home comes with you. They are designed with efficiency in mind and have everyday luxuries of electricity, small kitchens, showers and toilets. Many are equipped with solar panels to make them completely off the grid. No electricity payments!

B.A. Norrgard (abedovermyhead.com) worked as a paralegal in Dallas, with a house in the outskirts, for more than 20 years before deciding to transition to a tiny home. Norrgard put her 1,100 square foot house on the market, sold most of her possessions and moved into her hand built 112 square foot tiny home a few years ago. Norrgard said: “I certainly recognize that tiny houses are not for everybody. But, I really believe that living more simply makes you happy. More time with friends, family and in the community. Free from a big mortgage, it’s very liberating.”

B.A. Norrgard (abedovermyhead.com) sold her house in Dallas to move into her hand made tiny home. Photo Credit: John D. Werner

B.A. Norrgard (abedovermyhead.com) sold her house in Dallas to move into her hand made tiny home. Photo Credit: John D. Werner

North Texas median home prices have just surpassed the $200,000 mark this year. Most tiny home owners don’t even have a mortgage. Fifty five percent of tiny house owners have more savings than the average American with more than $10,000 in the bank.

Even the State Fair of Texas is getting in on the tiny house movement. On your trip to the fair this year, make sure to stop by the prebuilt tiny homes for purchase and check out a neat relic of a tiny home built inside a carved out redwood log (redwoodloghouse.com) or visit the new Tiny Houses for sale across from Canstruction.

You don’t have to pack up your family and move into a home the size of a parking space to lift the financial burden and lessen the impact on the environment. Smaller houses can ease your wallets and use fewer resources than houses with excessive square footage. The size of your house doesn’t make it a home: remember the saying, “Home is where your heart is.”

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