rebeccmeister: (Default)
[personal profile] rebeccmeister
There was an article in yesterday's NYT about indigenous communities in Ecuador who are switching from gas-powered to solar-powered canoes as their primary form of transportation (link, but paywalled). Apparently the communities noticed detrimental effects of the gas-powered canoes on local fish stocks, and in addition, traveling via gas-powered canoes is prohibitively expensive because of the price of gas.

Electric boats are really lovely. They are quiet. And in an environment like the Ecuadorean Amazon, it only makes sense to shade an electric boat with an array of solar panels. It's great that communities there were able to figure out a way to make the change.

Today there's an article in the local paper about a developer breaking ground in neighboring Troy for an apartment complex that will be zero-emissions. I'm just glad to learn there are people with the vision and will to see that sort of project go forward, in spite of countless hurdles. I didn't know about the existence of the Passive House Institute U.S. (Phius) CORE certification program.

While there are a lot of terrible things happening in the world these days, it's also important to identify sources of hope.

-

I also read an article about why it seems like appliances don't last as long now, as they did historically. It was interesting to learn that many appliances are manufactured using plastic components that are more difficult to repair or replace, because the plastic components contribute to a higher energy efficiency rating, in compliance with government-mandated standards.

Apparently if you are appliance shopping, you are probably best off with either the very basic budget models (fewer moving parts to fail in general), or the very expensive models (actually have repairable/replaceable parts). The mid-tier appliances are the ones with the most issues.

There was more to the story on appliances, but these were the most interesting tidbits.

Date: 2025-06-25 02:20 pm (UTC)
yarnandglue: (Default)
From: [personal profile] yarnandglue
I have a policy of always buying the most basic appliances that does the least amount of things. It's getting harder now though! Almost everything seems so unnecessarily complicated.

Date: 2025-06-25 03:15 pm (UTC)
From: [personal profile] annikusrex
i read that article, very interesting. government incentives often have unintended effects. my favorite example is the glass tax in georgian england that led to a distinctive architectural use of windows. i had an LG (midteir? probably even lower than that) washer conk out due to computing issues (computing issues!) and i replaced it with an expensive one (but the lowest tier of that brand). i still have a probably energy-hogging older dryer that lacks computer parts.

Date: 2025-06-26 12:05 am (UTC)
bluepapercup: (Default)
From: [personal profile] bluepapercup
When we replaced our washer and dryer (which were old and no longer functioning) we went to several actual appliance stores instead of big box stores. We got the advice to either go with top of the line consumer grade, or basic commercial grade. We went with top of the line consumer grade (Electrolux) and it's been very worth it. It was a hellacious amount of money up front but we've had no problems and almost every part is replaceable.

Date: 2025-06-26 02:04 am (UTC)
ranunculus: (Default)
From: [personal profile] ranunculus
I saw that article and thought it was very interesting. Here at the Ranch I want basic, basic, basic. In the case of my washing machine I also want to be able to add water, because most (or all) water conservation models use so little water they don't actually get my clothes clean. They aren't made to remove actual dirt!
Edited Date: 2025-06-26 02:04 am (UTC)

Date: 2025-06-26 06:53 pm (UTC)
moodyduck: (Default)
From: [personal profile] moodyduck
I don't know how old my washer and dryer are, because they came with the house (which I've been in for almost nine years.) but I wouldn't be surprised if they were original to the house in 2002. Zero problems so far and I kind of hope they'll just keep plugging along indefinitely. Of course I don't do a ton of laundry, and use the dryer minimally.

Date: 2025-06-26 07:00 pm (UTC)
moodyduck: (shadow)
From: [personal profile] moodyduck
There was a sustainable energy conference in Alaska a few weeks ago. My boss was there, as was the director of our entire lab. The energy secretary and interior secretary were also there. Apparently they were informed very bluntly by the Alaskans that policies of this administration that affect access to wind and solar will really hurt Alaskans because of the sky-high cost of getting fuel to communities. I heard this from my supervisor, then yesterday the lab director was visiting us and ended up sitting next to me at the lunch event. I mentioned our research in Alaska with in-river turbines and he mentioned what went on at the conference. He was pretty interested in our turbine project and I was interested to hear about the pushback from people actually affected by energy policy to the cabinet members. As a former Alaskan myself I know how little political voice Alaska has, but it's good to see the pushback coming from red states. They have the exact opportunities we need to get new tech through the "valley of death" between device concepts and approved, commercially available energy generation because of the cost of fossil energy.

Date: 2025-06-27 12:15 am (UTC)
asakiyume: created by the ninja girl (Default)
From: [personal profile] asakiyume
Thank you for sharing that good-news story from the Ecuadorian Amazon! I don't have an NYT account, but just hearing your summary was cheering. And great news about the housing project in Troy too.

My husband often says this about modern appliances: one plastic part breaks, and suddenly the whole thing is no good--terrible. But plastic is cheap and lightweight and so (dot dot dot...)

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