Do you really need to pee on a bale to help the environment?

You see more and more in the media today about global warming and the impact that you and I are having on the environment through what we eat, what we use and what we do.

A recent article in The Independent highlighted the fact that the world is on track for a 6ºC rise in temperature by the end of the century and another news item claimed that there are now 46,000 pieces of plastic per square kilometre of the world’s oceans, killing a million seabirds and 100,000 marine mammals each year.

So what can we do to be more eco-friendly?

Reducing the amount of electricity, gas and petrol we use can help significantly as well as recycling, reducing the water that we use and minimizing the waste that we generate.

In addition, buying eco-friendly products will also help bring down the overall carbon footprint that we create; a good example around the house being the use of plastic bags that only take 18 months to totally biodegrade and buying reusable shopping bags as opposed to using conventional plastic bags and continually getting carriers from the supermarket made of plastics that can take a generation or longer to decompose fully.

Did you also know that 22% of all insecticides and 20% of all pesticides in the world are used in the production of cotton. Sourcing organically grown cotton will significantly reduce the impact these chemicals make to environment and ecological balance in the places where cotton is produced.

If you’re like me, all of these facts are fascinating and things he was not aware of until he became involved with an organization called Wikaniko (We Can Eco) whose aim it is to raise awareness of environmental and ecological issues as well as providing easy access to a wide range of eco-friendly products.

Wikaniko have over 650 eco-friendly products covering a wide range of categories including common household goods, health & beauty, body and skincare products, toiletries and cosmetics, electrical, water saving, gadgets, baby, pet, cards and stationery and much more; all of which are readily available to replace the ‘standard’ items that are used daily around the house through ordering online or via a catalogue.

A business advisor by day, I was so impressed by Wikaniko’s offering that I decided to ‘my bit’ for the environment and become a Wikaniko customer & independent distributor; buying products for me and promoting them to family, friends and his business networks.

I hadn’t really thought too much about my carbon footprint or the damage I was doing to the environment. When I learnt more about the potential damage and how I could start to make a contribution by changing the habit of what I buy around the house, I was more than happy to start buying eco-friendly products from Wikaniko as well as spreading the word to people and contacts who knew me.

Whilst there is a lot more that governments and industry can do, I think that as individuals we have a responsibility to take action and help to make a difference. I remember the anecdote of thousands of starfish that were dying having been washed up on a beach and someone was picking one up at a time and throwing it back into the sea. A passerby commented “What is the point, it doesn’t make any difference” to which the person replied – “It did to that one”! I think the same applies to each little contribution that we can all make.

On a lighter note, there was an intriguing  BBC news item about the gardening staff at the National Trust property, Wimpole Hall in Cambridgeshire, who have introduced a ‘pee bale’ for staff to use when relieving themselves. The idea is that when they need to spend a penny, they urinate on bales of straw which are then in turn added to the compost heap helping the process happen more quickly.

Maybe you don’t need to go that far, although the choice is yours – but what are you going to do to do ‘your bit’ for the environment and help you and your family become more eco-friendly?