Easter · Eco-Chick

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Saving the Great Bahama Banks

Two weeks ago I had the opportunity to take an incredible trip to the Bahamas. I wasn’t there to relax and enjoy myself for a vacation, though I certainly did some relaxing and had a fabulous time. I was there to see the Grand Bahama Banks- and why they need to be protected.

There are over 700 islands in the extensive collection that together form the Bahamas, and they all have their different charms. New Providence Island is the center of the tourist industry, onto which quite a few resorts and bunches of hotels, bars and restaurants crowd. But if you never leave New Providence, and you take it to be the whole of the Bahamian experience, you’ve seen just 1/700th of this amazing ecosystem and met just a few of its people.

Andros Island (above, from the air), is the largest of the Bahamian islands, and lies just a 10-minute small plane ride from the cosmopolitan New Providence. The Nature Conservancy is working with the Bahamas National Trust and the Kerzner Marine Foundation to protect the Western waters of Andros, called the Great Bahama Banks.

Before I started my work, I explored the beach of Small Hope Bay Lodge (a 60′s-style eco hotel where I stayed) which was natural sand, covered in bits of seaweed, shells, and old coral. I snorkelled in the water below and spotted starfish, anenomes, about 10 different kinds of fish, and some brain and other corals holding on (for information on coral click here, for information on the devastation of coral in the Caribbean, click here.)

Looking out of one of the doors of Small Hope Bay Lodge and the Lodge itself.

The Lodge on the Eastern side of the island was one of the few places to stay, so it took us several hours by van and then on the boat below, to get to the Western side of the island. It is as deserted as it looks; there are no major towns or settlements on this side of the island.

Our guide, the extremely well-informed Shawn Leadon, said sometimes its hard to tell the difference between ocean and sky, and it’s easy to see why (below). This very shallow (about 2-4 feet deep) water is an unbelievable shade of aquamarine, and besides making for great photos, is an incubator and nursery for hundreds of species of fish including tarpin, bonefish, pufferfish, sharks, green turtles, and more that populate the Carribbean seas. Flamingoes, osprey, cranes, egrets, and other birds all like to nest here (due to the fantastic meals maybe?).

birds, car, conservation, Easter, fall, filter, fish, local, marine conservation, Plants, restaurant, style, Tea, teaching, water, wetlands

Laurie David, I Presume?

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by Starre Vartan · 04/02/06

Laurie David is everywhere these days. And that’s not hyperbole. She’s omnipresent in the green world, from a huge profile in Vogue’s March “Power” issue, to Women’s Wear Daily, to another profile in Elle (which I’m guessing led to her guest-editing the upcoming May “Green” Elle, printed on 10% recyled stock).

Who is this eco-warrioress? A former talent coordinator for David Letterman, ex-comedy producer, and former vp of comedy devlopment for Fox, and current NRDC trustee, and oh-yeah, she’s married to Larry David of Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm fame.

She’s using her considerable Hollywood clout for the good of the greens. She’s begun the Virtual March on Washington to stop global warming, and got both Oprah and Fox News to do a show on the topic (not together! Though that’s a funny thought)

In March’s Vogue Laurie explains that her children were her impetus to get involved:”I say what the impact would be on my kids’ lives.”

On top of all this work, Laurie has been involved in getting three different enviro specials on the air.

As E/The Environmental Magazine summed up in a recent interview:

Today, if you haven’t seen an information-crammed environmental special produced by Laurie David, it’s because you aren’t paying attention. Her live Earth to America special featured Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Robin Williams, Will Ferrell and many others. Her excellent and sober (no rock music, no celebrity voice overs) HBO documentary Too Hot Not to Handle will air on Earth Day, April 22 (7 p.m. Eastern Time, 8 p.m. Central). And Participant Productions’ An Inconvenient Truth, featuring former Vice President Al Gore talking about global warming, is coming soon to a theater near you.

But don’t let the big name-dropping fool you. From Newsweek’s “quote of the week” section, talking about Too Hot Not to Handle: “This isn’t about box office. None of us are going to make a dime. [What's at stake] is, you know, the planet.” I’m sure I’m not the only one who likes to read those kinds of quotes from someone with real influence.

I’ll leave you with these words from Laurie, from the E Magazine interview:

Scientists are the most cautious humans on the planet, and they are now all saying that they have underestimated everything. They are saying we now have less than 10 years to start slowing [global warming] down. Less than 10 years. If you need a better wakeup call then that, I don’t know what it is. And if they are saying less than 10 years, my feeling is that it’s probably five years.

children, comedy, earth day, Easter, Eco-Chick, Global Warming, Hollywood, interview, kids, magazine, Music, News, produce, spa, stop global warming, style, Vogue, women, wood

Ask Chicky: Clear Skies or Dirty Air?

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by Starre Vartan · 03/06/06

Dear Chicky,

My boyfriend and I (we’re both in our early 30′s) have a bet: I say air quality is better than when we were kids, he says it’s worse. Who’s right?

–Itching to Be Right
Dear Itching,

Though it’s always fun to watch one half of a couple do the “I’m right and you’re wrong” dance, I’m sorry to report that nobody’s winning the bet on this one. You’re both right, depending on what kind of standard you’re using to judge air quality, and where you live.
Overall, air quality has improved in most parts of the United States, due to several decades of pollution rules and enforcement under the Clean Air Act. In the Southeastern parts of the country where population growth has exploded, there are higher levels of pollution than before (since housing wasn’t exactly planned around people riding their air-friendly bikes to work), but they’re still within the normal range on most days. Some cities, like Los Angeles, have made dramatic improvements in air quality, something that Angelenos notice when they step outside their doors and enjoy visible views. That’s the good news.

Ask Chicky, bikes, car, carbon, cars, children, cities, Easter, Eco-Chick, emissions, Energy, epa, fur, health, kids, Los Angeles, News, Plants, Pollution, reduce, Technology

Ask Chicky: Vermicomposting

3 Comments

by Starre Vartan · 11/22/05

worms

Dear Chicky,
I went to a dinner party last week and the host had a tiny composter in her apartment’s kitchen; she said there were bugs inside that eat the food she deposits. It sounds gross, but I feel bad tossing all my leftovers in the garbage—how do these things work? Why don’t they smell?
—Curious about compost

Dear Curious Composter,
All compost systems rely on the same principle: stuff rots and then turns into dirt. If you do it right. The good news is it’s not that hard to replicate what nature does on a grand scale in your very own kitchen. Properly composted food is never smelly and can cut down on your trips to the garbage bin (and the inevitable filling of our landfills). In fact, if you get into it, you can compost up to 1/3 of your household waste.

What your friend most likely had was a worm composter, also called a vermicomposter. This kind of composting is great for an apartment because it doesn’t take up much space, is totally hygienic and the final product is humus. Not the middle-eastern bean spread, but the ultimate fertilizer for your organic container gardening.

The busy earthworms, called red worms or manure worms, (yes, they wiggle, but no, you don’t have to touch them) will keep your composter functioning and odor-free. These special guys eat up to their weight in food every day, and their excrement is the aforementioned humus. Their casts (a nicer name for poop) contain all sorts of good stuff like nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium, meaning that the humus they produce will make your garden grow. And on top of all that, once your scraps are devoured by the worms, all the nasty pathenogenic bacteria (the kind that can make you sick) are totally neutralized.

But there are some caveats; you can’t just dump all your leftovers in a vermicomposter, but fruit and vegetable scraps, eggshells, old bread, coffee grounds, shredded computer paper (no colored ink) and newspaper, and houseplant trimmings are all OK. Go light on the vegetable oils, dairy and meat; all these things take more time for the worms to digest, so don’t throw a big hunk of steak in your composter, no matter how free-range and organic it might be. Some people say small amounts of meat or bone will break down just fine, but it might take some experimenting. It isn’t complicated, by you will need to read up on the subject. You will need to keep the whole operation moist, and you can make your own or buy a composter ready-to-go at a host of websites and garden centers. The worms are also available online or from your neighborhood plant store. Try wormdigest.org, cityfarmer.com and cityknowlege.com.

Wormily yours,
Chicky