Sustainable in Suburbia

Nice to see a Darwin business aiming at the green market…

eco options is a passionate company committed to providing viable cost and eco-effective building solutions to make Top End tropical homes more comfortable and energy efficient.Here at eco options we specialise in providing sustainable solutions for your home including natural lighting, roofing, ventilation, heat reflective coatings, environmentally responsible decking, screening, composting toilets and waterless urinals.What’s more, our skylights and ventilation products are deemed to comply with Darwin’s stringent cyclone code.Starting some 15 years ago as Darwin Skylights, the business rebranded in 2005 to encompass all its other eco friendly services. With a team of fulltime installers supported by highly efficient administration and management, our mixture of experience, youthful energy and total commitment to quality makes eco options the eco nomical and eco logical choice for you.

Eco Options

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A new report by respected consultants McKinsey & Company has found Australia could reduce emissions to 30 per cent below 1990 levels by 2020, and it would cost Australian families less than $1 a day. ACF’s executive director Don Henry said “the Australian public should be assured emission reductions of at least 30 per cent by 2020 – the sort of cuts science is saying we need – are achievable and affordable”.The Federal Government has not set a target for 2020 yet and is waiting for advice from the Garnaut Review. The review will be similar to the UK Stern review in 2006, but will focus on Australia. It will weigh up the costs of climate change impacts if we don’t reduce emissions versus the costs and benefits of reducing emissions to avoid dangerous climate change.The 2002-03 drought cost Australia $A10 billion. The total cost of a 30 per cent cut in emissions by 2020 would be less than a third of this. However, if we fail to reduce emissions, the CSIRO says Australia will experience drought 20 per cent more often by 2030 than we do now.Don Henry said the McKinsey report confirmed that these emission cuts are achievable and affordable… and they are in Australia’s national interest.The report also found Australia could reduce its emissions by 60 per cent by 2030 – a full 20 years ahead of the Federal Government’s commitment of a 60 per cent cut by 2050. What’s more, these targets can be achieved without having to resort to expensive, dangerous nuclear power.The report did not consider the emission reductions that can be achieved by a big shift towards public transport, or lifestyle changes. Don Henry said “this makes the report conservative and suggests we could reduce emissions even further than 30 per cent – something we’ll need to do in order to give the Great Barrier reef a fighting chance of survival”.Every Australian can make a submission to the Garnaut review and call for strong greenhouse pollution targets for 2020.You have until 11 April to let Professor Garnaut know you support a healthy environment for future generations.

ACF - Take action on Garnaut!

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Tags: ACF

I did say I was am very much a beginner knitter?

Well, I made a dishcloth in January.

Not just any dishcloth.

Grandmother’s favourite dishcloth.

The first hassle was finding the appropriate cotton yarn. Never did find the Lion cotton. Had to settle for Anchor Magicline.

Anchor Magicline, originally uploaded by Knitdaisies.

117_1746, originally uploaded by kyliernz.

But when its $2 a ball and you just want to try a pattern, that’s perfect.

And said dishcloth?

Well, it did get finished LOL. But since I don’t have a photo of it [and that should tell you everything because I use my camera most days], I’ll wait until another post.

I’m turning into my mother, I swear it. Just as well my mother was pretty cool and well-loved.

But here I am, a professional woman, who is enjoying doing those old traditional things like making preserves, and cooking and the latest evidence of mother metamorphosis, knitting.

I totally blame my children for this.

And thank them.

“ Packaged Goods Manufacturers

More and more packaged goods manufacturers are becoming ARC members - displaying the ARC logo on their packaging - so you know that you’re buying products packaged in Australian Made Recycled Cartonboard.

Some of the companies who have taken the initiative to change their packaging to “greener” options can be found here along with a list of their products:

* Arnott’s Biscuits * Balfours Cakes * Campbell’s Consumer Product * Cerebos * Chef’s Pride * Colgate Palmolive * Cussons * Dairy Farmers * Dick Smith Foods * General Mills (Betty Crocker) * Green’s General Foods * Goodman Fielder (Uncle Toby’s) * Heinz Watties Australasia * Kellogg’s Australia * Kimberly-Clark Aust * KFC * Kraft Foods * Lanes Biscuits * Living Earth Games * Merino Products * Mother Earth Fine Foods * McCormick Foods Australia * Nerada Tea * Noble Cakes * Pace Farms * Players Biscuits * Paradise Foods * Ricegrowers * Sanitarium * Softex Industries * Southern Cross Laboratories * Swedish Match Australia (Redheads) * Tetley * Tussock Nominees * The Gift Guys * YBD Pty Ltd

Packaged Goods Manufacturers