Is it true?

As we said in our last post, making greener choices is not only good for the environment, but also for your wallet, and sometimes they’re good for your health too.

You don’t believe me, do you? Well, I don’t blame you because many people don’t know either. I’m talking about the cat litter market. How are these things related?

Although there are no studies on this issue, there is a controversy about the safety of clay cat litters that use sodium bentonite as their clumping ingredient. It is believed that clay particles can cause even death if a cat swallows them while licking their paws and fur, because they can expand and harden in the gastrointestinal tract. In addition to this, most clumping litters are considered toxic substances because they can induce abortion in humans.

We haven´t mentioned yet the consequences for the environment. The mass formed by clumping clay cat litters are non-biodegradable; therefore they do NOT decompose in landfills. So, let’s think of all the waste we’re throwing away. How many bags do you use in a month? I used about 2 bags of 6 kg each month, which is 144 kg in a year. That’s too much, don’t you think?

Fortunately, there are eco-friendly alternatives.  Each day, organic biodegradable cat litters are appearing in the market with new brands. This is the result of a new market niche. These alternative cat litters are made from: corn, wheat, wood fibers or shaving (pine and walnut pellets), volcanic rocks (zeolite), paper, among others.

 As you can see there is a wide range of cat litter alternatives chemical free, which are 100% natural and therefore is safe for landfill disposal. And also, they are NOT harmful to humans or cats.

But that is not all; they’re much cheaper than clay litters. Let’s compare:

I used to buy mainly two clumping cat litters: one is Super Mix of 7.5 kg which costs about CLP 7,000. But, my cat used 1 and ½ bags in a month, so I spent about CLP 14,000 every two months. The other one was Traper of 5 kg, which costs CLP 5,290. Whit this one, I also needed 2 bags per month. Once I bought Cat’s Pride litter (5,290), but it didn’t even last for 2 weeks!

What about the eco-friendly ones? Well, I compared prices in different supermarkets and home centers and there is a wide gap when compared to non-biodegradable litters. The prices of natural cat litters are very similar: CLP 1,790 (2 kg); 2,260 (2 kg); and 3,290 (2.5 kg). I bought the CLP 2,260 litter and I must say that it lasts longer than the clumping cat litter. I also had to buy 2 bags, but I saved CLP 9,480at the end.

So, what do you think? Do you take up the challenge? Try with an eco-friendly cat litter during 1 month and then share your experience with us!  

*Prices from: Easy, Homecenter Sodimac, Lider and Santa Isabel.

Sources:

http://cats.lovetoknow.com/Safe_Cat_Litter

http://www.cosasdegatos.es/cuidado-gato/arena-para-gatos-biodegradable

Making greener choices

Would you like to be more eco-friendly but you don´t know where to start? I know that sometimes it may be difficult to start doing something new and making it part of your habits. But, what if we begin with something simple? Remember: try with one step a time! 

I can assure you that whit this easy and simple action you will be in the right way to go green.

I’m talking about replacing your traditional or incandescent light bulbs with energy-efficient ones, such as compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) or light emitting diodes (LED). Today, I’m focusing on the CFLs because they have a greater presence in the Chilean market and also because they’re cheaper than LED light bulbs.

First of all, we should know, what’s the main difference between traditional bulbs and energy saving ones? The difference is the amount of energy they use to produce light and heat. 

 While, incandescent bulbs release 90% of their energy as heat and only 10% as light, CFLs produce light with 75% of the electricity they use. In fact, when compared to traditional bulbs, CFLs use 75% less energy.

http://inside.edison.com/g912 

As you might think, that waste of energy is money we’re throwing away. Lighting represents a high percentage of electricity consumption in households so, by replacing light bulbs you can reduce up to 80% of your electricity consumption. You will notice this on your bill each month. For example, if you just change the most used bulbs at home, you could save between 25% and 30% of electricity.

It’s true; CFLs are more expensive, but don’t worry because in the short term you will start saving money. An incandescent bulb of 75 Watts costs on average CLP 450, while the price of a CFL varies from CLP 2,290 to 3,290*. However, you should keep in mind that an energy-efficient bulb last 10 to 25 times longer than traditional ones. 

Let’s compare both bulbs in detail. Take a look at the following table:

	Average lifespan (h)	Use (W)	Daily use (h)	Use kWh1			Cost (CLP)
				daily	monthly	annual	daily	monthly	annual
Incandescent bulb	1,000	75	5	0.375	11.25	135	41.25	1,237.5	14,850
CFL	8,000	14	5	0.07	2.1	25.2	7.7	231	2,772

	Annual cost (CLP)	Market price (CLP)	N° of bulbs needed for   8,000 h	Total cost (CLP)
Incandescent bulb	14,850	450	8	18,450
CFL	2,772	2,7902	1	5,562

1: Based on an electricity rate of CLP 110 per kilowatt-hour (Concepción may, 2016).
2: Average price.

By just replacing incandescent bulbs at home, you can save CLP 12,888 in a year. Not bad, isn’t it? We’ve already replaced all light bulbs. What are you waiting for?

For our second post, we would like to continue  talking about the situation of plastic bags in our country because we want you to realize the critical situation we’re going through. You probably have read or heard about the “Plastic Bag Reduction Ordinance” that some regions started to implement. Well, you might think why this? Why now?  

In case you didn’t know, our country has the highest production of solid waste in Latin America but only 10% of garbage is recycled. If we only consider the use of plastic carryout bags, more than 3 millions are being used every year, that is, 200 plastic bags per person which generally end up in landfills or public spaces such as squares, even in tourist places like national parks.

For this reason, we saw mainly supermarkets promoting a more environmentally friendly alternative. The nonwoven fabric bags spread quickly and today not only supermarkets but also shoes and departmental stores have replaced the traditional plastic bag by reusable shopping ones.

As my partner pointed out in the previous post, the case of Chile is not different from what happened in many other countries. The popularity of reusable bags has reached such a level that a new niche product has been created. Consequently, several small and medium-sized enterprises have emerged; some of which are expanding abroad. This is something beneficial for the economy and the environment; however, there are other aspects to take into consideration when it comes to the disadvantages such as the monetary cost for users.

We may all agree that plastic bags are like a plague difficult to eradicate and that any attempt to reduce their use has only positive aspects. Nevertheless, there is one thing I’m concerned about: The price of reusable bags. At the beginning, supermarkets sold these bags at $100 CLP then at $290 and now they cost $800 in some places.

You might think that $800 CLP is not that much, but if we think about this when doing the grocery shopping, we usually need more that one carrier bag. Therefore, we have to spend about $1600 or 2400 CLP additionally only in bags because –and let’s admit this– most Chileans are not accustomed to bring their own bags when shopping.  

This may not look like a big deal; even so, spending $2400 in carrier bags seems a considerable amount of money when we consider that about 50% of Chilean workers earn the minimum wage and that they would spend that money on other needs. Besides, what it bothers me the most is the fact that supermarkets are taking advantage of this situation. 

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against reusable bags! But, why do they increase prices so often? In just a few months supermarkets increased the price of bags eight times their initial cost and given the fact that so far no one has said the opposite, now I’m wondering, are they continuing to rise?

From my perspective, I don’t see the point in restricting the use of plastic bags –which had no cost for consumers– and imposing a new system that is advantageous to companies. In order to make a major change in our habits, first of all, I would suggest that bags shouldn’t be so expensive and secondly, that the government or even supermarkets should create a strong campaign for raising people’s awareness about the importance of reusable shopping bags.