Green Options » grey water

Coco Eco Bed and Breakfast in Australia

Lucille Chi — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 21:58:02 +0000

Coco Eco is an award winning bed and breakfast named both after the area it is located (Coconut Well, Australia) and the ecological principles that it embraces such as:

solar powered facilities
black & grey water recycled and purified in Wastewatergarden®.
plantation & recycled timbers
solar passive design principles
building footprints designed to minimize impact on local flora and fauna
reduced use of chemicals & PVC products
recycling programs
organic vegetable garden & free range eggs

Building a DIY Wetland

Philip Proefrock — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 13:59:38 +0000

A family in Australia has created their own tiny wetland as a part of a household grey water system. It is a fairly large DIY project, but, as the article demonstrates, not an overwhelming project. The writer even enlisted his young children to help in the construction.

Black water is toilet waste and other water that requires more substantial treatment. Grey water is non-sewer waste water from washing clothes and showers and the like. Although in most homes, both black water and grey water go into the sewer system and are handled in water treatment plants with the same processing, grey water really requires much less treatment. It is possible to find other uses for grey water, including using the water for toilet flushing or for irrigation.

Meet your MAKER FAIRE: Lo-Fi Solutions for a Planetary Crisis

Autumn Wiggins — Mon, 12 May 2008 05:00:26 +0000

Nearly two weeks ago I hopped on a plane to San Francisco(again) and translated a presentation based on my “Make Like a Tree” articles into binary code, so the computer programmers would understand it.

Maker Faire is much more than your average craft show. Around every corner, you’ll find a a pointless yet poignant doodad, a jaw-dropping technology demonstration, or the tools and materials that invite you to imagine the possibilities…because we hope to inspire others to make stuff too.

Why is this reconnection to our creativity so important? It was one purpose-driven thought from ordinary individuals that invented the wheel, set out to cross the Atlantic, and revealed the fabric of space-time. Making things, both literal and existential, pulls us through history, and simultaneously brings humanity to the verge of a collapsing eco-system. Most of us had no hand in executing modern manufacturing techniques, but we must use both hands to fix them.

Eco-consciousness was a dominant theme throughout this event. The concerns are now common knowledge, and solutions are surprisingly revealed through grass root efforts.