Environmentality 17 October 2012

Dear Environmentality Listeners,

Jaime and Sarah were joined by our resident gardening expert, Jodi Jackson, to discuss her top 10 herbs to grow in the garden, and gardening tips for limited spaces.

Jodi's top ten herbs for growing at home:

1. Parsley - grows all through the year, in many locations.  Easy to re-establish once has seeded.

Flat Leaf Parsley, Image by Y.Larratt

2. Chives - great for salads and sauces. Can use flowers as a garnish.

3. Dill - works well in salads and with fish. Easy to grow.

4. Mint - great in salads and Asian cuisine, again very easy to grow. If it starts to 'take over', you can always just pull it out!

5. Chervil - a relative of parsley and carrot, it has a mild aniseed flavour. Can be used in soups, salads and dressings.

6. Rosemary - very easy to grow, likes dry conditions. Great with garlic on bread!

Rosemary, Image by Y. Larratt

7. Oregano - very easy to propagate through breaking of small 'branches'. Cut it back in late autumn/winter then it will bounce back in spring.

8. Basil - versatile and delicious fresh. Need we say more about this wonderful herb!

9.Thyme - hardy plant, will look after itself.

Thyme, Image by Y.Larratt

10. Bay leaf - extremely versatile in a range of cooked dishes.

Delicious coriander just missed out on Jodi's top 10 list, due to it being a little more difficult to grow!

Jodi has her own website : www.everydayinthegarden.com where you can find out more about spring gardening.

For small spaces Jodi recommends:
- Pot stacking, whereby pots are placed in a tiered layout, allowing varying spaces for shade and moisture.  Plants that enjoy the sun and dry conditions can be placed on the top.
- Vertical design gardens are also great to save space and look fantastic.
- Potted plants require extra care, feeding, mulching and watering.

Jodi will be hosting the following free garden workshops:

• 'Veggies to Plant in Spring'. Tuesday 23rd October. Roxborough Park Community Garden 12-2pm.
• 'Controlling Pests in the Garden'.  Friday 2nd of November. Meadows Primary School, Gerbet Street, Broadmeadows 10-12pm.

Other upcoming events include:

• The Broadmeadows and District Garden Club 2012 Spring Show on 20th October -21st October, at Wiseman House Cnr Melbourne Ave and Widford St Glenroy.   Will feature different plants, orchids, roses and a sausage sizzle! Entry costs is $2.
• The Lemon Tree Project is hosting a community information session, featuring guest speakers, a short film and refreshments. The objective of the project is to have a communal lemon tree and park bench on as many streets as possible. Wednesday 24th of October Cragieburn Hume Global Learning Centre from 7pm.

Songs played on the show include:
  Portishead - Wandering Star
  Feist -  When I was a Young Girl
  Astrid Gilberto
  The Wailin' Jennys - Arlington

Listen to the show!

Environmentality 10 October 2012

Dear Environmentality Listeners,

Today was a very relaxed show, with co-presenters Smokey, Jaime and Sarah enjoying the opportunity to play lots of great music and discuss news and current events of relevance to the environment.

Banksia Gardens are hosting a Sustainability Workshop, held at 71 Pearcedale Pde Broadmeadows on the 17th of October 6-8pm.  Brainstorming is taking place and working groups are being formed about environmental initiatives for the area.   This is a great opportunity to get involved in environmental projects relevant to Hume and the North West region.

Some of the topics discussed on the program included:

• New modelling of the Murray Darling Basin floodplains show irrigators might not have to give up as much water as first thought, at 3,200 gigalitres a year as opposed to 4,000 gigalitres. This is good news towards coming to an agreement amongst basin stakeholders.
• Protests continue about the gas pipe proposal by Woodside Petroleum at James Price Point, an environmentally sensitive area. The area is a breeding ground and thoroughfare for humpback whales and other marine life, and has the longest chain of dinosaur footprints in the world.

Environmentality is open to ideas about topics to discuss on the show and people we can interview.  Do you know of an environmental program that needs promoting or someone of  interest working in the area of sustainability?  It may be your neighbour, it may even be yourself!  Leave a message on this blog or text message 0447777989.  We would love to hear from you.

Music played today included:
Julian Cope - Reynard the Fox
The Pale Saints - Baby Maker
Dave Graney - Playin' Chicken
Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition
Ainslie Wills - Stop Pulling the String
The Jezabels - Mace Spray

Listen to the show!

Environmentality 3 October 2012

Dear Environmentality Listeners,

Smokey, Jaime and Sarah hosted the show with guests Robyn, Editor from Renew Magazine and Scott Parker, General Manager, Corporate Affairs & Marketing from Jemena.

Renew Magazine is a quarterly publication that features articles on renewable energy technology and fuels, DIY projects and sustainable building.   Renew have a new editor, Robyn, who shared with listeners an overview of the current issue.

The articles covered in the October -December 2012 issue include energy efficiency, the future of energy generation companies, grid interactive wind turbines, choosing regulators for independent power systems, future technology in sustainability and  a renewable energy courses guide.  Find out more on their website and obtain a subscription:  http://renew.org.au

Further along in the show Scott Parker from Jemena talked about the introduction of voluntary flexible pricing in Victoria.  The smart meter roll out means that customers are able to reduce their electricity bills through taking more control of their usage.

Customers using flexible pricing will be able to shift using their appliances from peak times, to off peak times.  For example, customer would be able to save in electricity costs by using their washing machines on the weekends or at night as opposed to weekdays.

Jemena has an electricity outlook portal which means customers can compare different electricity retailers to obtain the best prices, monitor electricity usage, set electricity usage targets and install a device to get information about 'real time' electricity usage.

As Smokey commented, this is ultimately good news as with better management of electricity usage by customers, the demand curve will be flattened making electricity generation more efficient.  Information can be obtained here: https://electricityoutlook.jemena.com.au/

Find out more about topics discussed on show by listening to the podcast.  Some excellent tunes were played:
Astrid Gilberto - The Girl from Ipanema
Daniel Johnston & Yo La Tengo - Speeding Motorcycle
Feist - Gatekeeper

Listen to the show!

Environmentality 26 September 2012

Dear Environmentality Listeners,

Jaime and Smokey were joined in the studio by the wonderful Amadis Lacheta, Business Efficiency Network (BEN) Officer from the Hume City Council to talk about business and sustainability.  Amadis is also a composer and member of the Daquqi Trio, and listeners were treated to hearing this incredible music through the show.

Amadis shared details about the Business Efficiency Network (BEN).   BEN works to create partnerships between the Hume Council and businesses to reduce their operating costs and environmental impact.   They means in which this is done is through:

• Forums for businesses on industry specific topics.
• Coordinating funding initiatives support environmental impact reduction.
• Coordinating business programs that support environmental impact reduction.
• Networking opportunities.

The types of environmental programs focused on include areas such as industrial ecology, energy efficiency and renewable energy.  BEN is proving successful with between 200-500 members, regular forums and opportunities for businesses to collaborate and reduce their environmental impact.

The next upcoming event hosted by BEN includes the Sustainability in Hospitality Forum on the 27th of November at the Hume Global Centre.  BEN will also participate at the 4th Australasian Ecology Conference on the 14th-16th of November, with a theme of plastics in 2012.

Find out more about the programs of BEN here:  http://www.hume.vic.gov.au/Business_Major_Projects/Business_Networking_Training/Business_Sustainability

Environmentality is asking business owners in Hume:  What is your business doing in terms of sustainability or reducing environmental impact?  We are giving away some fantastic books about sustainability including 'The Ecology of Commerce' and others.   Tell us about the actions your business has taken towards sustainability.  Environmentality will reward the most outstanding businesses with one of these books.

As mentioned, Amadis also happens to be an accomplished pianist and composer of contemporary classical music!  Listeners were privileged to have the opportunity to listen to some of her beautiful compositions and music as part of the Daquqi trio.  The Daquqi trio comprises piano, double bass and the viola.  Tracks were played from "The Lift Equation" and a live recording of "January/The Months" from the Darebin Music Festival in 2012.  See www.daquqi.com for more details.

Finally, we have a new recruit to the Environmentality team, Sarah Schefe, and we look forward to hearing more from her over the coming weeks.   Remember you can listen to the podcast if you missed the show.

Listen to the show!

Environmentality 19 September 2012

Dear Environmentality Listeners,

Jaime and Yolande had the pleasure of being joined by two guests in the studio, firstly Jodi for our monthly 'Garden Times' session, followed by Emily Dunstan from Zoos Victoria.

Jodi has just returned from a very exciting trip to Germany where she gathered much inspiration for garden displays and decoration, cooking and more.  Some of what Jodi talked about in regards to her trip included:

• The joys of foraging for wild hazlenuts and blackberries.
• Discovering rare and exciting heirloom apples, pears and grapes.  
• Learning more about regional recipes.
• Visiting Shrebergartens and permaculture gardens. 

Jodi spoke about these interesting topics in detail and we encourage you to listen to the podcast to find out more. We will also post some of her photos on this blog, stay tuned!

Jodi also gave listeners an update on gardening in September and beyond.  Here are some tips:

• Feed strawberry plants with chook manure, blood and bone and /or rock dust.  The first crop always yields the largest, juiciest strawberries.
• Salvias can be cut back by a third.
• Summer herbs and vegetables are ready to be sowed.
• Flowers are also ready to be sowed!
• Pot flowers in beds for attractive displays.  Jodi recommends Sweet Alyssums, Brachyscome, Geraniums, Impatiens, Lobelias, Marigolds, Pansies, Petunias, Plectranthus, Sedums.

Next up, we welcomed Emily Dunstan, General Manager of Community Conservation at Zoos Victoria, to talk about their 'Don't Palm Us Off' campaign.  The production of palm oil is a leading cause of deforestation in South East Asia, threatening the habitat and survival of orang-utans and other endangered species.

Image Courtesy of Zoos Victoria

It is currently very difficult for Australian consumers to tell whether there is palm oil in their food as it is most often labelled as 'vegetable oil'.   The research varies, but a current estimate is that around 50% of packaged food in Australia contains palm oil.   Emily also talked about the fact that palm oil is contained in many cosmetics and cleaning products.

The Don't Palm Us Off campaign is advocating for mandatory labelling of palm oil products in Australia and New Zealand.  Consumers then are able to choose products that are labelled 'certified sustainable palm oil' (CSPO).   To find out more about the campaign and what you can do to help, go to:

http://www.zoo.org.au/get-involved/act-for-wildlife/dont-palm-us-off

The following classic tunes were played:

  Nina Simone - I Wish I Knew How it Would Feel to be Free (Released)

  Otis Redding - Sitting on the Dock of the Bay (The Very Best of Nina Simone)

  The Beatles - What Goes On (Rubber Soul)

  Elvis - A Little Less Conversation (30 #1 Hits)

Listen to the show!

Environmentality 12 September 2012

Dear Environmentality Listeners,

Dog lovers and dog haters should at least agree on one thing, dog waste could be put to better use than ending up as landfill.  This was where one man had a great idea, creating the Poo Power initiative, a concept where dog poo is collected and utilised in biogas generators in parks and elsewhere.

The man with the great idea is Duncan Chew, a Lecturer in Sustainability, and was interviewed today by Jaime, Smokey and Yolande.  Duncan has two wonderful dogs (Diesel and Sally, both boxers).  Whilst taking his dogs for walks around the local park, it occurred to Duncan that biogas generators could be set up in parks where dogs frequent.

Duncan and Diesel, Image Courtesy of Janine Eastgate/Newspix.

Duncan shared with listeners his story about how Poo Power came about.  Duncan had a time in his life where he was recovering from a very rare form of cancer on his knee.   Accompanied by his trusted dog companions, Duncan used the time of bed rest to undertake research and found Poo Power.  

Collecting animal waste and using it to create biogas has a lot of potential in Australia, with 63% of 7.5 million households owning a pet.   One dog produces 0.34 kg of poo per day.  Each day around Australia, 1,350 tonnes of dog waste needs to be disposed of. 

An 'anaerobic methane digester' is the item that would process the dog waste alongside other waste material like compost.  The system processes the waste into different streams and treats bacteria.  A biogas (primarily methane) is generated that can be a source of renewable energy, used for purposes such as powering barbecues and lights.

Duncan has secured a Federal Government grant as part of the 'Inspiring Australia - Unlocking Australia's Potential' program, helping to pilot the Poo Power project and undertake testing of organic waste management from animals.  The initiative is attracting a lot of interest from local councils, engineers, schools and families.  The Poo Power model has the potential to be both affordable and scalable.  One day your dog's poo could help power the lights in your local park or even your backyard!

Find out more about Poo Power on the website: http://www.poopower.com.au

Smokey and Jaime also covered some items currently making the news, namely, discussions concerning the ban on the super trawler Abel Tasman and the closure of the Hazelwood power station.   Feel free to leave a comment about these topics or any other part of the show.

Smokey played 'Dog on Wheels' by Belle & Sebastian, a tune he happily obtained whilst holidaying and thrift shopping in California.  

Duncan selected the following music for today's show:

   Never Miss Your Water - Diesel

   Shine - Take That

   Life is Wonderful - Jason Mraz

   Nuclear - Ryan Adams

   Wonderwall - Oasis

Listen to the show!

Environmentality 22 August 2012

Dear Environmentality Listeners,

Jaime had the pleasure of interviewing Hanna Aulbey, Campaign Manager from the wonderful Beyond Zero Emissions.

Beyond Zero Emissions is a think tank organization, undertaking research and education as the blueprint towards combating climate climate change.  Areas focused on include energy, transport and building.

Established in 2006, the current organization consists of a management team of 10 people, who coordinate large teams of volunteers.  The aim of Beyond Zero Emissions is to promote a change towards a zero carbon future.  

Beyond Zero Emissions have thus far provided public talks to over 40,000 people around Australia.  As a think tank, they have the credibility of research behind their campaigns.

Hanna shared with listeners details about the Repower Port Augusta campaign.   Port Augusta, a town four hours north of Adelaide, is closing two coal-fired power stations.  There is now the opportunity to replace these with either solar thermal energy or a combined cycle gas plant.  Beyond Zero Emissions has prepared proposals as to how to replace the plants with solar thermal and wind. 

The Port Augusta community are supportive of the switch to renewables, which would create 360 permanent jobs.  Solar thermal power has the added advantage of of providing electricity to the grid day and night, not just during the day.  Find out more about the campaign here and sign the petition towards solar thermal and wind in Port Augusta: http://repowerportaugusta.org/  

Hanna also talked about some key messages that Beyond Zero Emissions promote.  These include being supportive of a feed-in-tariff to build the renewables industry, transitioning to a 'smart grid', energy savings and conservation, and innovation.  Find out more about Beyond Zero Emissions, including the Zero Carbon Australia Stationary Energy Plan on their website: http://beyondzeroemissions.org.  

Thankyou to Hanna for speaking on Environmentality 98.9 FM.  Be sure to listen to the podcast if you missed the show!