Unshopping

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Ten Things You Should Never Buy Again1. Styrofoam cupsStyrofoam is forever. It's not biodegradable.Alternative: Buy recyclable and compostable paper cups.Best option: Invest in some reusable mugs that you can take with you.2. Paper towelsPaper towels waste forest resources, landfill space, and your money.Alternative: When you do buy paper towels, look for recycled, non-bleachedproducts. Search the National Green Pages™ for recycled paper products.Best option: Buy dishtowels or rags to wash and reuse.3. Bleached coffee filtersDioxins, chemicals formed during the chlorine bleaching process,

contaminategroundwater and air and are linked to cancer in humans and animals.Alternative: Look for unbleached paper filters.Best Option: Use reusable filters such as washable cloth filters.4. Overpackaged foods and other productsExcess packaging wastes resources and costs you much more. Around thirtythree percent of trash in the average American household comes frompackaging.Alternative: Buy products with minimal or reusable packaging.Best Option: Buy in bulk and use your own containers when shopping.5. Teak and mahoganyEvery year, 27 million acres of tropical rainforest (an area the size ofOhio) are destroyed. Rainforests cover 6% of Earth’s surface and are home toover half of the world’s wild plant, animal, and insect species. The Amazonrainforest produces 40 percent of the world’s oxygen.Alternative: Look for Forest Stewardship Council certified wood.Best Option: Reuse wood, and buy furniture and

other products made from usedor salvaged wood.6.Chemical pesticides and herbicidesAmerican households use 80 million pounds of pesticides each year. The EPAfound at least one pesticide in almost every water and fish sample fromstreams and in more than one-half of shallow wells sampled in agriculturaland urban areas. These chemicals pose threats to animals and people,especially children.Alternatives: Buy organic pest controllers such as diatomaceous earth.Best Option: Plant native plants and practice integrated pest management.Plant flowers and herbs that act as natural pesticides.7. Conventional household cleanersHousehold products can contain hazardous ingredients such as organicsolvents and petroleum-based chemicals that can release volatile organiccompounds (VOCs) into your indoor environment, positing a particular dangerfor children. The average American household has three to ten of

hazardousmatter in the home.Alternative: Look for nontoxic, vegetable-based, biodegradable cleaners.Best Option: Try making your own green cleaner using vinegar, water, andcastile soap.8. Higher octane gas than you needOnly one car in ten manufactured since 1982 requires high-octane gasoline.High-octane gas releases more hazardous pollutants into the air, and may bebad for your car.Alternative: Buy the lowest-octane gas your car requires as listed in yourowner's manualBest option: Make your next car purchase a hybrid. Or ditch the car and takepublic transportation, ride a bike, or walk.9. Toys made with PVC plastic70% of PVC is used in construction, but it is also found in everydayplastics, including some children’s toys. Vinyl chloride, the chemical usedto make PVC, is a known human carcinogen. Also, additives, such as lead andcadmium, are sometimes added to PVC to keep it from breaking down;

theseadditives can be particularly dangerous in children’s toys. PVC is also theleast recycled plastic.Alternative: Avoid plastics that are labeled as “PVC” or “#3.” Look for #1and #2 plastics, which are easier to recycle and don’t produce as manytoxins. Use sustainable construction materials.Best option: Take action to tell manufacturers to stop using PVC plastics,especially in children’s toys.10. Plastic forks and spoonsDisposable plastic utensils are not biodegradable and not recyclable in mostareas.Alternative: Use compostable food service items. Companies such as Biocorpmake cutlery from plant materials such as corn starch and cellulose.Best option: Carry your own utensils and food containers.ping/neverbuy.cfm>Kerri

Milam******************************************************* " Think occasionally of the suffering of which you spare yourself the sight. -Albert Schweitzer " Show Compassion, Go Vegan! ******************************************************* http://www.choosekindness.com/http://www.lcanimal.org/http://www.kinshipcircle.org/http://www.ad-international.org/http://www.awionline.org/ Don't pick lemons.See all the new 2007 cars at Autos. Sick sense of humor? Visit TV's Comedy with an Edge to see what's on, when.

LOOKIEEE -> www.meat.ORGLife is life - whether in a cat, or dog or man. There is no difference there between a cat or a man. The idea of difference is a human conception for man's own advantage. - Sri AurobindoA man can live and be healthy without killing animals for food; therefore, if he eats meat, he participates in taking animal life merely for the sake of his appetite. And to act so is immoral. - Leo Tolstoyhttp://www.crueltyfree.com/Vegan1

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