Eureco recognised for World Environment Day!

Farming future fibres

-Life Cycle of Bamboo Series-

The environmental sustainability of bamboo fibre originates at the farming level, as this is where bamboo's self-sustainable characteristics best exemplify its' limited effect on the environment.

Bamboo as a commercial crop doesn’t need much help – it thrives and regenerates naturally without the use of pesticides, and with few farming inputs. A natural bio agent found in the bamboo plant is known as ‘bamboo kun’ and acts as a kind of self protecting barrier, which is what keeps the plant healthy without needing any polluting agricultural chemicals. Bamboo kun is bound to the plant at the molecular level and is the same substance which gives finished bamboo products their antibacterial properties. Bamboo also grows incredibly rapidly, and as a commercial crop will start to yield within 3-5 years of planting. Bamboo will also grow on slopes where nothing else is viable.

Unlike cotton, Bamboo does not require much water to grow, and can be grown in dry conditions thus making it a more sustainable crop. It needs about one quarter of the amount of water that cotton does.

As bamboo regenerates naturally, it doesn’t need replanting after it has been harvested, making it an easily renewable resource. This also saves heavy replanting machinery from over working the soil.

The structure of bamboo itself is also good for maintaining the soil it grows in, due to its large and deep root system being thickly clumped balls, which helps keep soil together and prevent erosion. Bamboo’s self sufficiency continues as any debris that falls from a growing clump of bamboo also fertilises the ground at the base of the bamboo culms and feeds it, eventually fertilising the soil as well.

Bamboo is a grass, not a tree. The significance of this is seen in its harvesting, as it is cut, not uprooted, further preventing soil erosion. Also, as a grass it absorbs far more carbon dioxide and emits more oxygen than a tree does, limiting the commercial affects on climate change.

Currently bamboo is not grown commercially in Australia, except as a food product. As there are no commercial plantations outside of China, there are inevitably carbon emissions associated with the shipping and transport. Temporarily we unfortunately need to take this environmental impact into account, and of course we would love to source locally if we could.

Bamboo fibre that makes Eureco’s towels originates from a company in China called Bambrotex. The raw material is grown in non-polluted regions in Yunnan and Sichuan Provinces. Bambrotex produces bamboo fibre strictly in adherence with international standards ISO9000 and ISO 14000.

Our manufacturing partner Santens is committed to ensuring their supply partners, including Bambrotex employ their staff in ethical and fair labour conditions, including farmers working in the bamboo crops.

Life Cycle of Bamboo Series

This is the first in a series of Eureco blogs about the life cycle of a bamboo towel, from cradle to grave... okay that’s a horrible expression, more like how does a plant like bamboo end up as a soft absorbent towel, and what is the real impact on the environment?

The point of all this is to draw attention to the real issues behind the sustainability of our towels. We don't want you to just take our word for it, we are going to show you so you can decide for yourself.

Remember the blog about The Story Of Stuff? Well this will hopefully be kind of like that, minus the cool cartoons (I can't draw).

As this is obviously a long process with many parts, it will be broken down into more easily digestible chunks as a series of blogs. Along the way I’ll also add in some comparative articles about cotton and organic cotton, so we can see what the real differences are.

The stages of the life cycle goes roughly like this; extraction (farming), production, distribution, consumption, disposal. These are the same categories as used by "The Story Of Stuff" but will be adapted to suit our purposes along the way.

We at Eureco are not going to claim that we're always perfect, or that our products are completely without environmental impact. But what we do hope to show you is that our towels are a step in the right direction for the environment. We want you to be informed about what we are doing, so that you can make your own decisions, because ultimately you have to be satisfied that what you use as a consumer is green by your own definition. Hopefully we will give you enough information to enable you to make that judgment for yourself.

Celebrate World Environment Day!

Today is World Environment Day! Celebrate with Eureco and get 20% off!

WED in 2010 aims to be the biggest day for environmental action around the world. It has been going since 5th June 1972, and is the UN's way of promoting environmental change. The theme this year is: Many Species. One Planet. One Future. The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon gives this message on WED:

"Biodiversity, the incredible variety of life on Earth that sustains us, is in peril. Species are becoming extinct at the fastest rate ever recorded. Most of these extinctions are tied to human activities that are polluting and depleting water resources, changing and degrading habitats and altering the global climate. From frogs to gorillas, from huge plants to tiny insects, thousands of species are in jeopardy.

The theme of this year’s World Environment Day, “Many Species. One Planet. One Future”, echoes the call of the International Year of Biodiversity to stop this mass extinction and raise awareness about the vital importance of the millions of species that inhabit our planet’s soils, forests, oceans, coral reefs and mountains. Our health, well-being and sustainable future depend on this intricate, delicate web of ecosystems and life."

-UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon

Through decades of WED celebrations, hundreds of thousands of people from countries all over the world have been mobilised for individual and organized environmental action, and in 2010 Eureco is one of them!

We are offering 20% off all full priced products this weekend only to celebrate World Environment Day! Simply enter ENVIRODAY in the discount/coupon field at the checkout to get your saving! Check out our range here.

We also love how you can Easily Green Your Daily Routine!

Please note WED promotion ends Monday, and discount code only valid if entered as appears above. Happy shopping!

Easily Green Your Daily Routine

The lovely people at World Environment Day 2010 have passed on these daily changes you can make to your life which will help the environment. Don't forget to use your bamboo towel!

WED is about taking action to be a part of the solution. And the Daily do something Tips are a great start.

We can all do our part to protect the planet by using less and acting more. Going green is not as difficult as you might think. Here we walk you through 30 easy ways to green your daily routine, from the moment you hit snooze on your solar-powered alarm clock to the point when you crawl into your eco-washed, organic cotton sheets.

Make your WED commitment today. But don’t stop at today and don’t stop here. Try to incorporate all of these into your life as a matter of routine. Get others to do so the same. And get involved!

IN GENERAL:

• Plant a tree! Help achieve UNEP’s Billion Tree Campaign target of planting seven billion trees – one for every person on the planet – by the end of this year! Three billion are planted. Five billion are pledged. On every continent in the world trees can be planted in June, so start your efforts on WED.
• Find needy homes or charitable organizations for things that you no longer need or want rather than throwing it away.

DAILY ROUTINE:

AT HOME…

• It would seem to go without saying, but many of us forget that we can save water in simple ways like not letting the tap run while shaving, washing your face, or brushing your teeth.
• Insulating your water heater will help save valuable energy, and you can go the extra mile by installing showerheads with a low flow in your bathrooms for bathing purposes to help save water. You can also put a timer on your heaters to save power.
• Using an electric razor or hand razor with replaceable blades instead of disposable razors goes a long way to cutting back on waste. And plant a tree.
• Use towels for drying your face and hands instead of tissues that are used and thrown away. Also, hang your towels to dry so that they can be reused several times. You are after all clean when you use them! [Eureco reckons bamboo towels are even better, check them out here!]
  
• Juice or yoghurt lovers can do their bit by buying juice in concentrates and yoghurt in reusable containers instead of single serving packages.
• Many of us like to leaf through the paper as we munch on breakfast, but consider reading the dailies in communal spaces like the office or coffee shops. However, if you prefer to have your own copy, make sure you recycle!
• When packing your lunch, opt for reusable containers for food storage instead of wrapping the food with aluminum foil or plastic wrap.
• When deciding what you're going to eat for the day, go vegan once a week. Many people may not know this, but raising animals for food generates a considerable amount of greenhouse gases!
• As you leave the house, don’t forget to switch off all the lights and appliances at the wall unit (if you have this feature) and unplug chargers as they continue to consume even if they are not charging; saving energy helps reduce air pollution.

GETTING TO WORK:

• Don’t go anywhere without your cloth bag so you can just say no to plastic whenever you shop.
• Radical as it may seem, in today’s “the easier the better” society, the easiest way to reduce your carbon footprint is by avoiding driving altogether. Power down and Instead try biking, walking, carpooling, public transport or an occasional telecommute.
• If you have no other choice than to drive to work, look for the most fuel- efficient car model for your next purchase and keep your tyres inflated to the correct pressure.

• If you’re one of the lucky few blessed with clear stretches of road on your way to work, use cruise control, as it saves fuel and also helps you maintain a constant speed.
• If you’re among the majority of drivers who spend their mornings stuck in traffic, consider turning your engine off if you will be idling for long periods of time. And plant a tree.
• For those who suffer from road rage, remember that aggressive driving lowers your mileage, so if you want to save on fuel and save the planet while you’re at it, accelerate gradually-- something to keep that in mind the next time that bad driver cuts you off! Just count to 10 and say the planet needs me!

AT WORK:

• Do you have a morning hot drink routine? Using a washable mug is an environmentally-friendly alternative to non-biodegradable styrofoam or plastic cups.
• Leave a cup and reusable bottle for water at work to eliminate buying drinks, which get served in plastic cups, or bottled water. 80% of plastic bottles are recyclable but only 20% are actually recycled.
• When you need a pad for lists and messages, turn over an old document and write on the back of that instead.
• If there isn’t an office recycling system, start one yourself! Recycling our trash actually contributes to reducing global warming emissions. And it is estimated that 75% of what is thrown in the trash could actually be recycled, though currently only 25% is.
• When you must have a paper copy, make sure you default your printer option to use both sides. This is an easy tree-saver!
• Most computer accessories like ink cartridges and CDs and DVDs are made of materials that could be reused. Computer cords and speakers are fairly standardized, meaning they can be used for a variety of computer models and makes.
• Lower your office’s carbon footprint by seeing computers, monitors, printers, copiers, speakers and other business equipment to their energy saving feature and turning them off at the end of the day. And plant a tree!
• Turning off all unnecessary lights, especially in unused offices and conference rooms is an easy way to save energy.
• If you’re in search of something to personalize your workspace, look no further than the humble houseplant. Houseplants are good for the environment because they remove quantities of pollutants present in the air.

AFTER A LONG DAY:

• In the summer/warmer months, consider using an interior fan in conjunction with your window air-conditioner to spread the cooled air more effectively through your home. While you’re at it, in winter, lower your thermostat and put on a jumper. In summer, increase it and wear lighter clothes, you will also save money!
• Don’t place lamps or TV sets near your air-conditioning thermostat as it senses heat from these appliances, which can cause the air-conditioner to run longer than necessary.
• When cooking dinner, match the size of the pan to the size of the heating element to lower energy wastage.
• When you are feeling at your laziest, don’t throw clean clothes in the hamper to avoid hanging them up! Wear jeans more than once…
• When you wash, use only eco-friendly products in your home. It’s best for you and the environment! And did we mention plant a tree!

Info courtesy of WED