Sixty Ways To Use Salt

1. Soak stained hankies in salt water before washing.

2. Sprinkle salt on your shelves to keep ants away.

3. Soak fish in salt water before descaling; the scales will come off easier.

4. Put a few grains of rice in your salt shaker for easier pouring.

5. Add salt to green salads to prevent wilting.

6. Test the freshness of eggs in a cup of salt water; fresh eggs sink; bad ones float.

7. Add a little salt to your boiling water when cooking eggs; a cracked egg will stay in its shell this way. If the egg cracks before putting it in boiling water, seal the crack with salt and boil as usual.

8. A tiny pinch of salt with egg whites makes them beat up fluffier.

9. Soak wrinkled apples in a mildly salted water solution to perk them up.

10. Rub salt on your pancake griddle and your flapjacks won't stick.

11. Soak toothbrushes in salt water before you first use them; they will last longer.

12. Use salt to clean your discolored coffee pot.

13. Mix salt with turpentine to whiten you bathtub and toilet bowl.

14. Soak nuts in salt brine overnight and they will crack out of their shells whole. Just tap the end of the shell with a hammer to break it open easily.

15. Boil clothespins in salt water before using them and they will last longer.

16. Clean brass, copper and pewter with paste made of salt and vinegar, thickened with flour.

17. Add a little salt to the water your cut flowers will stand in for a longer life.

18. Pour a mound of salt on an ink spot on your carpet; let the salt soak up the stain.

19. Clean your iron by rubbing some salt on the damp cloth on the ironing surface.

20. Adding a little salt to the water when cooking foods in a double boiler will make the food cook faster.

21. Use a mixture of salt and lemon juice to clean piano keys.

22. To fill plaster holes in your walls, use equal parts of salt and starch, with just enough water to make a stiff putty.

23. Rinse a sore eye with a little salt water.

24. Mildly salted water makes an effective mouthwash. Use it hot for a sore throat gargle.

25. Dry salt sprinkled on your toothbrush makes a good tooth polisher.

26. Use salt for killing weeds in your lawn.

27. Eliminate excess suds with a sprinkle of salt. This is way sticking your finger in the foam from pop or beer will cause it to disappear. It's the salt on your finger.

28. A dash of salt in warm milk makes a more relaxing beverage.

29. Before using new glasses, soak them in warm salty water for awhile.

30. A dash of salt enhances the taste of tea.

31. Salt improves the taste of cooking apples.

32. Soak your clothes line in salt water to prevent your clothes from freezing to the line; likewise, use salt in your final rinse to prevent the clothes from freezing.

33. Rub any wicker furniture you may have with salt water to prevent yellowing.

34. Freshen sponges by soaking them in salt water.

35. Add raw potatoes to stews and soups that are too salty.

36. Soak enamel pans in salt water overnight and boil salt water in the next day to remove burned-on stains.

37. Clean your greens in salt water for easier removal of dirt.

38. Gelatin sets more quickly when a dash of salt is added.

39. Fruits put in mildly salted water after peeling will not discolor.

40. Fabric colors hold fast in salty water wash.

41. Milk stays fresh longer when a little salt is added.

42. Use equal parts of salt and soda for brushing your teeth.

43. Sprinkle salt in your oven before scrubbing clean.

44. Soaked discolored glass in a salt and vinegar solution to remove stains.

45. Clean greasy pans with a paper towel and salt.

46. Salty water boils faster when cooking eggs.

47. Add a pinch of salt to whipping cream to make it whip more quickly.

48. Sprinkle salt in milk-scorched pans to remove odor.

49. A dash of salt improves the taste of coffee.

50. Boil mismatched hose in salty water and they will come out matched.

51. Salt and soda will sweeten the odor of your refrigerator.

52. Cover wine-stained fabric with salt; rinse in cool water later.

53. Remove offensive odors from stove with salt and cinnamon.

54. A pinch of salt improves the flavor of cocoa.

55. To remove grease stains in clothing, mix one part salt to four parts alcohol.

56. Salt and lemon juice removes mildew.

57. Sprinkle salt between sidewalk bricks where you don't want grass growing.

58. Polish your old kerosene lamp with salt for a better look.

59. Remove odors from sink drainpipes with a strong, hot solution of salt water.

60. If a pie bubbles over in your oven, put a handful of salt on top of the spilled juice. The mess won't smell and will bake into a dry, light crust which will wipe off easily when the oven has cooled.

Get Cracking, McDonalds

I will only eat eggs from free-range, organically-fed chickens. The photo below shows what I think is the idyllic setting for raising poultry. There is a totally different taste to eggs from free-range, organically-fed hens. The yolks are a brilliant golden in colour coming from the variety in the chickens’ diet – grass, insects, worms, and seeds that are full of nothing but natural goodness.

Photo courtesy UBC Chicken Feed Project.

However, the taste of the end product (pun, intended!) is a very small concern when you consider the unnatural, unhappy, life of the battery hen. These poor birds are condemned to a shortened life in a barn with no fresh air, tiny cages, drugged-up food, no mental stimulation, no way to indulge in any natural behaviours and an artificial night/day environment.

Fortunately, battery operations seem to be losing ground in the court of public opinion.

Photo courtesy Public Record Office Victoria.

Lately, McDonald’s has been accused of being slow to act in fulfilling its promise to use 100% cage-free birds in supplying the 3 billion eggs used annually by 2010.

While the Chicago-based burger empire is taking part in a trial of alternatives to the battery cages that are used at farms across the US, it would appear that public opinion plays a major role in some of their decision making.

Some animal rights activists are accusing McDonald’s of engaging in unnecessary research to delay the change to switching to free-range hens. They point out that in Britain, where animal rights are a prominent public concern; almost all of the chain’s eggs come from free-range chickens.

McDonald’s might even been seen as trying to get out of their commitment to be cage-free by 2010 when one listens to Bob Langart, McDonald’s head of corporate social responsibility. He says: "Our experience and the evidence suggests that there's room for both, and that there are pros and cons to both."

He went on to state that there was a "lack of objective information and science" over the benefits of abandoning cages. He said free-range farms had disadvantages, including "issues with aggressive behaviour, issues with increased mortality rates and issues with cleanliness".

Part of McDonald’s success has been its unwavering uniformity of product no matter where on the planet you purchase it; so, this differing international approach to animal welfare is a rare area of variation.

Steve Easterbrook, the chain’s UK chief executive has taken every opportunity to emphasize his country’s operation's progressive policies citing the UK’s use of free-range eggs, fair-trade coffee and organic milk.

He told a conference last year that McDonald's wanted to stay ahead of the national debate on animal rights: "Animal welfare across the next couple of years will become a mass topic of discussion in the general public."

The Humane Society of the United States said the US chain lags behind competitors such as Burger King, Quiznos, Denny's and Hardee's – all of which use cage-free eggs.

However, despite everything, eggs laid by tens of thousands of birds in the study will begin appearing in Egg McMuffins and other breakfast offerings by 2011 at the company's 14,000 US restaurants. The study will be exploring free-range chickens or enlarged cages with perches and nests.

A McDonald's restaurant on 42nd Street in Times Square, New York. Photograph Reuters.

Still not my idyllic picture of where my egg should come from. Let McDonald’s know how you feel about their hesitancy to change from using battery hens.

1. Go to the USA headquarter's website and use their "contact us" feature to send an email protesting the use of caged hens and urging them to use eggs from free-range chickens only.

2. Write a letter to your local McDonald's expressing your concern. Point out that the UK McDonalds use 95% free-range hens.

3. Ask your friends who eat at McDonald's if they realize the eggs they are eating are from battery hens. I bet most of them have never thought about it.

4. Have a blog or website? Do a short article on this and inform your readers of what's happening.

5. Let McDonald's know you will take your breakfast business (if not all your business) to an establishment that uses free-range eggs.

6. Write a letter to the editor of your local paper and send a copy to McDonald's.

World Oceans Day - June 8

Photo by Jaymi Heimbuch.

With all the land-based activities of celebrations such as Earth Day, it’s easy to forget that there is an entire oceanic world that also needs our help.

The proposition to create a World Oceans Day was first made in 1992 at the Earth Summit by the Government of Canada. However, it took activists from Oceana, other conservation groups and ocean protection groups signing petitions by the thousands to “encourage” the UN to finally declare June 8 as official World Oceans Day. Finally, after 16 years of tabling it, the United Nations has acted. It was a long time coming.

A quote from the C.E.O. of Oceana, Andrew Sharpless.

“We applaud the United Nations for formally establishing a day for the other 71 percent of the planet.” Making World Oceans Day official will help us and other ocean groups to engage more people and to increase public support for efforts to reverse the declining health of marine ecosystems.”

The U.N. will organize events to be held on World Oceans Day at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. Oceana is also working on a big event, planning its largest-ever celebration in 2009 in honor of the now official World Oceans Day.

Ways in which we can help our oceans: (taken from The Ocean Conservancy)

1. Not all fish are created equal: If you eat fish, choose sustainably harvested seafood, which helps keep fish stocks healthy and ensures that marine mammals aren't caught by mistake. Speak up at your favorite restaurant and let them know you'd like sustainable seafood on the menu. (To read about one man's plight to save fisheries and fish stocks in the North Atlantic, check out our recent post on Goldman Environmental Prize Winner Orri Vigfusson).

2. Get down and dirty: Help spruce up beaches and shorelines. Trash is unsightly and it threatens the lives of birds and animals that ingest it and get entangled in it.

3. Fishmongers beware: If you can't kick your fishing hobby, at least be sure to retrieve your lines right after you're finished angling. Just be careful not to tug too hard on snagged lines-they could disrupt habitats below the surface.

4. Drain your brain: Mapping out local drains will help you understand where things that get dumped end up. Illegal dumping into pipes that drain to the ocean or other waterways can severely damage coastal habitats.

5. Be a good guest: Enjoy the beach, but keep a respectful distance from wildlife, especially at night, when animals may be nesting.

6. Brag about it! Tell your friends and family about your ocean conservation efforts and get others involved.

7. Boat but don't gloat: Be responsible about fueling up and cleaning up. If spilled, a single quart of oil can create a two-acre oil slick. Releasing untreated sewage from a 20-gallon holding tank has the same impact as discharging several thousand gallons of treated sewage from a treatment plant.

8. Relax without guilt: Take vacations in places where locals are protecting endangered sea animals, such as sea turtles. Your financial support keeps conservation alive in areas that need it most.

9. Just say no: When shopping, decline plastic bags and take reusable ones with you instead. Too much plastic ends up in our oceans, where it can choke and drown marine life.

10. Use your voice: Join an online activist network such as the Ocean Conservancy, which makes contacting your legislators easy.

For more wet-n-wild ways to take action, visit the Ocean Conservancy.

A Quote From John Burroughs

"I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order".

In my mind, there is no better place to sweep the cobwebs from your mind than out in nature. A short time there and the right thing always becomes apparent.

Did You Know That...

The Beluga whale is the only whale that can bend its neck, giving it increased mobility compared to other whales.

Mankind - 2; Orangutans - 0

Orangutans at Pringen Safari park in Pasuruan. Part of a national park on Borneo island home to hundreds of endangered orangutans has been turned into a development zone complete with an airport and brothels, Indonesian activists said. (Photo courtesy: AFP/File/Aman Rahman)

At the risk of causing my good friend, K, to cry, I regretfully post this further violation to the Orangutan population.

The Centre for Orangutan Protection (COP) released a statement revealing that almost 600 orangutans have disappeared from the Kutai National Park over the last seven years. The Park is located in the East Kalimantan province which, coincidentally, has seen unchecked construction for the past seven years.

"The number of orangutans in the area, which was 600 individuals in 2004, has fallen to only 30 to 60 individuals at present," Hardi Baktiantoro from the Centre for Orangutan Protection (COP) told AFP.

The main cause of this incredible decrease in the Orangutan population lies with the East Kalimantan administration. In 2002, they received permission from the national Forestry Ministry to build a 60 km (37.2 mi) road through the park, the COP says. Commercial and residential development stole 23,712 hectares (58,569 acres) of forest from the “old people of the jungle”. Almost overnight, seven new villages sprung up causing the Orangutans to retreat even further into the forest.

"The Kutai National Park has been changing into a city, complete with an airport, gas stations, marketplace... a bus terminal and prostitution complex," COP habitat campaign manager Yon Thayrun said in a press release.

Thayrun elaborates: "The root of the problem with the Kutai National Park is a breach of duty committed by officials to get political and financial advantages. They gave away land spaces to people to win their votes in the local administration elections. They also mobilize people to seize the national park area."

As one would expect, Forest Ministry spokesman Masyhud denied that the forest had been badly damaged. In an effort to downplay the claims of conservationists he accused them of exaggerating the impact of the road on the orangutans.

"Its scale is not as dramatic as they have said. The road development has not sacrificed the national park. Like in many countries, a national park isn't meant to be completely sterile of social and economic development. It's true that this road development affected the orangutan habitat; but, it's only temporary as they have adapted to it. We have also implemented some conservation programmes involving local communities."

Following is a video of Kutai National Park.

Ghent, Belgium Goes Vegetarian

Photo courtesy of: care2

Ghent, Belgium (pop. 200,000) is 30 miles west of Brussels. Two weeks ago, this small city decided to try an unusual approach in reduce global warming. Despite the fact that the city is renowned for its fish and shellfish, Ghent has decided to go meat and seafood free every Thursday.

The Guardian praises the move:

"On the eve of what is being touted as an unprecedented exercise, the biggest queue in the Flemish university town of 200,000 yesterday was for signatures – to collect a bag of wholefood goodies and sign up for 'Donderdag – Veggie Dag', turning the burghers of Ghent into pioneers in the fight against obesity, global warming, cruelty to animals and against the myth that meat-free eating amounts to a diet of soggy lettuce, a slice of tomato, and a foul-tasting bean burger."

Ghent's officials are teaming up with Belgium's national vegetarian organization, EVA (Ethical Vegetarian Alternative). An EVA statement said: "Ghent, in co-operation with the vegetarian organization EVA, is determined to go the extra mile in our common battle against climate change. Other Belgian cities have already shown interest in following Ghent's example."

Apparently, the city council was persuaded to back the idea when vegetarian chef Philippe van den Bulck served a gourmet banquet at the town hall. It appears that Chef Philippe managed to change minds about how delicious vegetarian cooking can be.

As any self-respecting city should do when promoting an idea as great as this one, Ghent threw a party to celebrate the first veggie Thursday. The city distributed vegetarian recipes; lists of vegetarian restaurants, food samples, fair-trade wine and demonstrations were given on how to cook a 'green' meal.

We hope that the university, other institutions, enterprises and other towns will jump on the train," said the director of the local branch of EVA. Already other towns in Belgium, the Netherlands and Canada are making inquiries regarding the planning and promotion of this type of event.

As explained in Kathy Freston's article, Vegetarian is the New Prius,

"For a decade now, the image of Leonardo DiCaprio cruising in his hybrid Toyota Prius has defined the gold standard for environmentalism. These gas-sipping vehicles became a veritable symbol of the consumers' power to strike a blow against global warming. Just think: a car that could cut your vehicle emissions in half - in a country responsible for 25% of the world's total greenhouse gas emissions… Last year researchers turned their attention to another gas guzzling consumer purchase… The researchers found that, when it's all added up, the average American does more to reduce global warming emissions by going vegetarian than by switching to a Prius."

Will Veggie Thursdays catch on? I hope so!

Asian Pulp & Paper - 1; Orangutans - 0

Photo: James Gagen via flickr.

It has been a case of one step forward, two steps back for the orangutans of Sumatra. The first orangutans to be reintroduced to the wild were released in 2002. Since that time, they have established themselves in the area, breeding and forming new family groups. They have been an environmentalist’s dream – thriving, breeding, increasing in numbers – and blissfully unaware of Asian Pulp and Paper (APP) and the Sinar Mas Group (SMG).

Enter Asian Pulp & Paper and the Sinar Mas Group. They are planning to log the only area in which orangutans have been so successfully reintroduced. The area in question is the forest surrounding the Bukit Tigapuluh National Park. Unfortunately, not only the orangutans are being threatened.

Map courtesy of WWF (World Wildlife Fund)

The Bukit Tigapuluh National Park in addition to orangutans contains about one quarter of the world's remaining Sumatran tigers, and a significant population of Sumatran elephants. Also in danger are the Talang Mamak and Orang Rimba forest-dwelling indigenous people along with the traditional Malay peasants who inhabit the forest edges. Both the Malay and the tribal people represent a living tradition of interaction with the rainforest and the use of its resources in harmony with. The rapid deforestation of this area is quickly increasing the marginalization of these peoples.

The park also provides vital catchment protection for several large rivers that sustain downstream agricultural communities. Without this system intact, there is a very real danger that food crops downstream from the Park will be affected with possible food shortages in those areas.

The Bukit Tigapuluh area was surveyed by NORINDRA (Norwegian-Indonesian Rainforest and Resource Management Project). Researchers observed and recorded 660 plant species (including 246 medicinal plants used by the local population) preserving 550 of the species found. Many rare and threatened non-utilized plant species were also recorded.

Many rare and threatened non-utilized plant species were also recorded. One example is the locally named Cendawan muka rimau ("Tiger-face mushroom"), which is none other than Rafflesia hasseltii previously observed in only two locations (West Sumatra and Pulau Tioman, Malaysia). Photo courtesy Kki-WARSI website.

Also discovered were 192 species of birds, almost 1/3 of all bird species known from Sumatra. Breeding was confirmed of 18 species of birds not previously known to breed on Sumatra, including the Garnet pitta (Pitta granatina) which had not been recorded for this island for more than 70 years. At least 10 of the bird species recorded are globally threatened.

Some 59 species of mammals were recorded, 5 of which are globally threatened, including the Oriental small-clawed otter (Aonyx cincerea), Clouded leopard (Neofelic nebulosa), Tiger (Panthera tigris), Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus), and Elephant (Elephas maximus).

Of the 98 species of fish collected and preserved, one of these, a Glass-perch, turned out to be a previously undiscovered species. It has been given the name Gymnochanda limi.

Here’s the situation as WWF sees it.

APP/SMG pushed a legally questionable logging road through both areas last year, opening up access for rampant illegal logging and clearing linked with increased fatalities as tigers are driven into closer contact with humans.

With the latest acquisition, APP/SMG now holds the majority of the buffer areas to the national park, including large areas the Forestry Service of Jambi and the National Park management authority agreed in 2008 to designate as the Bukit Tigapuluh Ecosystem which would be sustainably managed as natural forest.

Less than one third of the 2007 forest cover is within the National Park, with the areas most preferred by animals and indigenous peoples lying in the surrounding lowland forests now vulnerable to clearing.

Peter Pratje of the Frankfurt Zoological Society has this to say: “It took scientists decades to discover how to successfully reintroduce critically endangered orangutans from captivity into the wild. It could take APP just months to destroy an important part of their new habitat.”

He continues, “these lowland forests are excellent habitat for orangutans, which is why we got government permission to release them here beginning in 2002. The apes are thriving now, breeding and establishing new family groups.”

Things we can do to help preserve one of Indonesia’s key areas of biodiversity:

1. Send an email to Asian Pulp & Paper explaining your boycott of their products - customer_talk@app.co.id
2. Visit the website and leave a comment on their "Ethics" section.
3. Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper drawing attention to this environmental disaster in the making.
4. If one of their products is stocked locally, let the store owner what AP&P is planning.
5. If anyone you know and/or your company use these products, let them know what AP& P is planning and request their assistance in your boycott of their products.

California Condor Endangered Due To Lead Poisoning

Image courtesy of: Audubon Arizona (The California Condor © Chris Parish, Peregrine Fund)

On July 11, 2007, Audubon California, Defenders of Wildlife and Ventana Wildlife Society issued a joint press release highlighting a Statement of Scientific Agreement. It has already been accepted that lead ammunition causes lead poisoning and eventual death in California Condors. The press release stressed the importance of a broad coalition of scientists backing the conclusion that lead ammunition should be banned in condor country.

Audubon Arizona is partnering with the Arizona Game and Fish Department, Peregrine Fund, Audubon California and the US Fish and Wildlife Service to disseminate information about lead toxicity and the California Condor. They will also disseminate information on the need to remove lead ammunition from the environment.

Here are the Condor statistics from 2007:

Condor Numbers (updated 4/26/07)
Total population 285
Captive population 144
Wild population 141
Arizona population 63
California population 69
Baja population 12

Many hunters are getting the message. Most apparently have switched to steel and copper shot; but, some farmers and ranchers who are worried about wild pigs and vermin harming their livelihood still use lead bullets. The lead ends up digested by some condors, leading to poisoning and eventual death.

In northern Arizona, condors are located primarily near the Vermilion cliffs and Grand Canyon. The Marble Canyon Important Bird Area is being considered for global designation based upon the importance of the canyon to condors.

A recent condor death from lead poisoning marked the 14th since 1992.

Image courtesy of: USFWS (US Fish and Wildlife Service)

A Few Changes

Hi Readers:

I've moved the "Food and Other Products Recall" list to the right-hand side of the page. I won't use any blog space printing them; but, if you are interested, click the link. I have posted the two that I know of. If I discover any more I will add them as found.

I have also started a "Environmental Groups Needing Help". I have posted links to groups that require help with a cause. Many times the help required is just a signature on a petition; a request to help spread the word on an environmental issue; send one e-mail; or other similar request.

I do not/will not post a link to some organization that is ONLY requesting a donation.

Hope this helps make me more readable. Leave me a comment, request, criticism, musing or whatever anytime.