BAGS ! Not so fab plastics ....

Plastic, plastic everywhere, but if you look and stare, it stays the same.....look and stare.....

Ok, I admit I have seen a little too much playschool, the above an adapted tune from music time.
Major stores in Australia have introduced a fee for shoppers to take home a plastic bag, but is this really making a big difference ?  Perhaps it would make people feel more encouraged to know that using alternatives to plastic bags is great for human health as well as the health of the environment and in some cases aids the financial health of small underprivileged international communities where bag products are made in countries such as India, Indonesia and Bangladesh.
 
Alternatives to plastic bags use more material and energy to make than plastic bags. Research at RMIT University found that a reusable (green shopper bag) is only more environmentally friendly than a plastic bag when it is used more than 100 times. I recently read in an inflight magazine that Philip R Rozenski, a director at US based Hilex Poly Co (largest plastic bag recycling plant), claims that reusable bags are used on average less than eight times before being thrown out.

So it is not very helpful for us to get a momentary urge to buy reusable bags and then leave them in the cupboard or the car. We need to buy quality reusable bags,  use them often, look after them and get longevity from the products we buy. Owning reusable bags and not using them equates to excessive energy consumptions and contribution to waste.

The Good news is that reusable natural fiber bags made from Jute are not toxic to the environment, not toxic to food, do not emit toxic VOCs and can be put into the compost bin when you are finished with them.

There is a shift happening ...

The way people think about health & the home environment is shifting in a positive way ......

Over the past few weeks I have concentrated on speaking with people from a variety of industries about the concept of healthy homes. People from manufacturing, trades, retail and medicine are starting to give greater thought to environmental health issues within the home . As a designer I am slowly finding fantastic home wares and personal products emerging that focus on being non toxic as well as beautiful.

It is an exciting time to be alive and making a difference, there is change evolving !  I am a big fan of natural fibers in the home as they reduce the chemical emissions (often odorless) into the indoor air. I am also a fan of natural body care and cleaning products as these also protect indoor air from contamination but also protect the skin from absorbing unwanted chemicals. A win / win for health and the environment.

I am loving the new television advert here in Australia where people are shown cleaning their homes with live marine animals...although disturbing it joins the dots between the act of cleaning and where the chemicals end up.  I will try and list a product each month that I have found that is worthy of being called a healthy homes option. Its been an exciting month, I have found two products that I love and are healthy too Mi Essence tahitian breeze deodorant  and  Eli Wilson skin care  !  Small steps is all it takes ...Enjoy

Inhale Inspiring Colour

I have recently spent some time with professionals in the paint industry educating myself on the healthier products available to consumers. I have been truly inspired by the efforts of some companies to improve paints and interested to see some green washing of some products in the market place. Green washing being products that have been talked up, or presented as eco friendly when perhaps they truly do not meet this criteria when examined closely.

Most paints in the past have been cocktails of chemicals that leach fumes into the environment which can take a toll of human health, detrimental to painters, residents and the environemnt. According to the World Health Organisation paints that are manufactured using petrochemical refinement processes have been found to cause cancer, respiratory allergic reactions and a list of associated health affects. Studies have found that exposure to paint fumes has been linked to respiratory infections, headaches, dizziness, allergy reactions etc. I had once thought that someone, somewhere was watching and protecting consumers from health hazards sold in the form of products - I was sooooo wrong.

I am inspired by the work of Jo Immig an Australian Environmental Scientist who has dedicated her time to try and educate people on dangerous chemicals in our environment and in particular our homes. The National Toxics Network & Total Environment Centre issued a paper by Jo Immig called "How the chemical cocktail inside our homes is poisoning our children - working together to clear the air ". This paper highlights that it is now well documented that children are uniquely vulnerable to the effects of chemical pollution and that their exposure to it is partly responsible for increasing rates of chronic childhood diseases such as asthma, allergies, cancers and birth defects.

The "Working to clear the air" report lists the potentially harmful chemicals in paints :

Acrylic (water based paints )- Glycols (ethylene and propylene), glcol ethers, alcohols, formeldehyde, preservatives, amines (ammonium hydroxide, amino-2-methyl propanol), monomers, volatile plasticisers, fungicides such as aromatic mercury compounds.

Enamel (pertroleum solvent-based) - Aliphatic & aromatic hydrocarbons (toulene, xylene),ketones (acetone, methyl ethyl ketone), alcohols (butanol, ethanol), esters (n-propyl acetate, butyl acetate) free monomers, volatile plasticisers, fungicides such as aromatic mercury compounds.

The Australian Government is lacking in legislation to protect consumers from many harmful chemicals that are indoor air pollutants. The Australian Government does offer a National Chemical Information Gateway for those who have the time to question products on the shelves of our stores. If you want to educate yourself on what people are exposing themselves and their children to in everyday life through the products bought for homes go to www.deh.gov.au/chemicals-gateway.

Although this information may seen overwhelming please don't retreat, there are non toxic paints on the market and as I have found out they are now getting very competitive with the major brands. When buying paint choose the product with the lowest VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) percentage you can find and that would be a great start to helping the health of your family, the painter and the environment !

If its all too hard call an environmentally passionate interior decorator who can help you create a healthy home.