Standby Power - A Candid Perspective

A surprisingly large number of electrical products — TVs to microwave ovens to air conditioners—cannot be switched off completely without being unplugged. These products draw power 24 hours a day, often without the knowledge of the consumer. We call this power consumption "standby power." An individual product draws relatively little standby power but a typical American home has forty products constantly drawing power. Together these amount to almost 10% of residential electricity use. Most experts agree that standby power is electricity used by appliances and equipment while they are switched off or not performing their primary function. That power is consumed by power supplies (the black cubes—sometimes called "vampires"—converting AC into DC), the circuits and sensors needed to receive a remote signal, soft keypads and displays including miscellaneous LED status lights. Standby power use is also caused by circuits that continue to be energized even when the device is "off".

Take a look at the following table from the "Standby Power" site at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

http://standby.lbl.gov/summary-table.html

It is time to think about this issue seriously and find some simple solutions. How can I reduce standby power use in my home? It's not easy, but here are some suggestions. If you aren't frequently using a device, unplug it. Use a switchable power strip for clusters of computer or video products. That way you can switch everything to zero with one action.

As suggested in another article on this blog, the Belkin Conserve Surge Protector is simple and easy to use. We have purchase three for our home already. You can do it too.

Bioremediation: harnessing the power of nature’s cleanup specialists

The phenomenal industrial and agricultural growth that has occurred over the last century has led to a massive increase in the amount and complexity of toxic wastes that make their way into the environment each year. Bioremediation involves the use of living processes within microorganisms or even plants (phytoremediation) to degrade the harmful by-products of human activity. Hazardous chemicals in the environment can be removed or converted into less toxic forms by bacteria and fungi that may degrade these materials and thus aid in decontaminating polluted sites (in situ bioremediation) or in removing pollutants from water and soil pumped into a treatment facility (ex situ bio-treatment). Bioremediation involves helping the growth of specific beneficial microbes and creating the optimal environment for pollutant detoxification. Bio-degradation works very well for several types of organic wastes and is a cost-effective, natural strategy to deal with chemical pollution. Other applications include removal of pesticide residues from agricultural lands by creating a continual cleanup system. An added benefit of such a system is that of self-regulation since many of these microbes depend on these pollutants or on the pathway that leads to the degradation of these chemicals for survival; the numbers of these microbes are thus controlled by the level of pollutant in the environment. Bioreactors, where the process of bioremediation can occur in a controlled environment, have been used for the remediation of water and soil contaminated with fuel hydrocarbons and recalcitrant industrial organics. Different microorganisms breakdown different types of compounds and require different conditions for survival. By using a cocktail of microbial species, both the range of pollutants degraded and the effectiveness of the cleanup process can be enhanced. Furthermore, genetic engineering can be used to make the genetic pathways responsible for such bioremediation more effective or to expand the repertoire of chemicals that the microbes can break down. Such designer microbes, tailor-made to handle new classes of chemical wastes, may be the next generation of cleanup specialists.

So, make waste reduction a priority and support eco-friendly methods of waste management!

The Myth about Styrofoam

Styrofoam is often maligned for being bad for the environment. It's been banned in some cities for not being "recyclable". The truth is that plastic materials are divided into two types. One is called thermosetting plastic because it takes its shape when heated, and can thus not be melted down to be reformed. Probably the most visible example of this is vulcanized rubber. The second type is called thermoplastics. These plastics like styrofoam and plastic bags become soft and malleable when heated. These types of plastics can be recycled by melting them down and reshaping them. Styrofoam has an undeserved bad reputation, and is easily recycled and reused.

Forest Fires

Forest fires have a lot of negative effects. Here are just a few:

• Forest fires release tons of CO2 (carbon dioxide), CH4 (methane) and other pollutants into the atmosphere.
• Forest fires cause lots of health problems like bronchitis, pneumonia, respiratory problems, asthma, and burns.
• Forest fires burn millions of hectares of land.

You can help stop forest fires. Nine out of ten forest fires are caused by people.

Baby steps to save power

The bad news is that environmental concerns are growing every minute with changing lifestyles. The good news is that there is something simple that each one of us can do to make a difference.

Small things that add up:
During winter, turn the heat down by 1 degree-you won't notice the difference and you'll save a whole lot of power
Bike whenever possible-helps stay in shape as well
Unplug cellphone chargers, wireless routers (draw around 5.4W when plugged in) that are not always in use
Switch off appliances, instead of putting them on standby
Spread the word, like this blog does!!! Just like the SapphireForce team talking about these problems with their friends and family has helped increase awareness a whole lot.