Christmas train is a coming...

We have been madly preparing for Christmas and hence no posts for a while.  This is our sixth Christmas trading season at Biome and we have not worked out the magic formula for making it a breeze.  A healthy sense of humour, tolerant and compassionate work mates and plenty of sleep are a great start.

Christmas is like a fast and heavy freight train barrelling down the track towards us and if you don't leap on and ride it, you miss it...and it is not on the schedule for another 12 months.   Being able to leap on takes a tremendous amount of preparation and energy!

Of course with our eco hats on, we do think alot about encouraging consumption at Christmas.  Yet, the reality of operating in retail is that we must make Christmas work for us.  We offer our customers alternative choices for gifts and celebrations that have integrity and meaning - products where great care has been taken to consider the environmental and social impacts.

We truly appreciate all the wonderful comments about how beautiful the stores are looking.    Here are some photos of our Green Christmas displays taken by hjimagery.com

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Thirsty Shingleback lizard drinks from reusable bottle

Everyone in South Australia is withering from the intense heat wave - even the hardy Shingleback lizards, known as Sleepies to the locals.

Thank goodness for a Hannah Montana SIGG bottle, its cool contents and a brave seven year old girl with a love for every little creature that crawls...
Thank you to my brother for this awesome photo.

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Brisbane to have largest solar powered green Christmas tree

A sneak peek of Biome's City store Christmas window

Good on Brisvegas for laying claim to the world's largest solar powered green Christmas tree!

This year, the Christmas tree returns to the newly refurbished King George Square, where it will come alight on Friday, 27 November from 6:30pm.

The 18 metre green tree is solely powered by the sun.  The solar panel will generate 50 amps per hour, stored in five heavy duty dry cell gel batteries located inside the base of the tree.  The tree previously used 5,000 watts of power each hour.

The green Christmas Tree has a sophisticated solar powered lighting system featuring 16,000 bulbs, 250 red opaque baubles, a multi-coloured twinkling light system and a giant star made up of solar panels for the tree’s top.  

Everyone is invited to attend the free event to light the tree, with entertainment including celebrated Brisbane singer, Katie Noonan, theatre legend, Bille Brown, and Christmas Elves from Flipside Circus.

Catch some public transport to see the tree before 26 December - and while you're there, please pop by the Biome City store just down the road at 215 Adelaide Street to enjoy our beautiful green Christmas display and Australian Christmas decorations.

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Interesting update on recycling Coltan from mobile phones

We received the below informative response from Mobile Muster to explain the situation with recycling Coltan from mobile phones. Plus, it is a chance to publish another gorgeous Gorilla photo (you can download this photo as a screen saver from National Geographic).

Coltan cannot be recovered during the recycling process of circuit boards. This is because it exists in such minute quantities and is in a non-metallic form making it extremely difficult to extract.

Recently there has been some misleading information published about the widespread use of coltan in mobile phones.

Firstly, handset manufacturers require suppliers of coltan/tantalum, which is used in some handset capacitors, to verify and certify that it was not obtained from the Congo.

Secondly, many handsets do not use coltan. Some manufacturers have eliminated the use of coltan altogether and in those handsets that contain coltan its use has been significantly reduced. In a handset containing coltan, typically only one capacitor out of more than 100 would contain coltan. In such a phone, this equates to less than 0.04g of coltan, which is about 0.04% of the phone’s weight.

Although the use of coltan is being phased out, when it is used (from non-illegal sources), coltan capacitors provide superior voice quality for users, such as those with a hearing impairment

Thirdly, Tantalum (from Coltan) is used in a wide range of products, including computer motherboards, computer disc drivers, video camcorders, engine control units, surgical equipment, turbine blades in jet engines and lining chemical reactors. It was estimated that the mobile telecommunications industry used less than 2% of the yearly worldwide production (not from Africa) of tantalum.

Fourthly, the mobile telecommunications industry is working with the environmental movement and consumers to explore any other measures that could effectively safeguard the gorillas’ habitat in the DRC. Our members are involved in the Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSI), which is a global partnership of ICT companies supported by the United Nations Environment Program and International Telecommunications Union. It promotes technologies for sustainable development and it addresses issues including: supply chains, climate change and e-waste.

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How to clean SIGG, Klean Kanteen and water bottles

Whether your bottle is a Klean Kanteen, or other stainless steel bottle , SIGG aluminium bottle with lining or a BPA free plastic water bottle, it is important to stop mould and other deposits forming inside the bottle.  Any material kept constantly wet will breed bacteria.

Wash your bottles with warm, soapy water at the end of every day and let the bottle air dry upside down with the top off.   We of course recommend eco friendly mild dishwashing detergent!

Should any mineral deposits or lime scale form inside, fill your clean bottle with Distilled White Vinegar (no other kind) and let soak for 24 hours. Then rinse the bottle with warm water and one tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda and let dry.   Spots inside that look like "corrosion" are most likely a mineral deposit.

We recommend using filtered water where possible.   It tastes so much better--but also because water contains different minerals in every area and this may affect what happens inside your bottle.

You can also try SIGG cleaning tablets and specially-designed SIGG cleaning brush on all drink bottles.  Please only ever use a soft brush on SIGG so as not to damage the lining.  Stainless Steel bottles can handle a hard brush.  There is also a nifty thin straw cleaning brush that works for straws and sippy tops.

While all bottles are technically dishwasher-safe, we recommend not putting them in a dishwasher.  The dishwasher can damage the external paint coating and because most dishwasher powders are caustic, they will eat into the metal.  Tops should also not be put through the dishwasher because extreme heat expands and deteriorates the plastic.

Never freeze bottles as metal can split even with only a little water inside.   Trust us, we have seen many bottles that expanded and split.  Water does not always expand in a predictable direction!  Even stainless steel bottles are not suitable to freeze. 

If you want to keep your liquid extra cool, buy a wide mouth bottle from Klean Kanteen or SIGG that has an opening big enough for ice cubes - and actually makes the bottle easier to clean also.  I recently heard there are water bottle ice cube trays to make long skinny ice blocks for putting into your water bottle.

See the new SIGG water bottle range.

• safe, non-toxic, BPA free lining; no leaching, metal migration or taste transfer
• every water bottle is an international work of art
• aluminium is lightweight, durable & eco-friendly because it recycles without degrading
• leak proof, interchangeable tops
• made in Switzerland for 100 years; member of 1% for The Planet

See the new Klean Kanteen stainless steel bottle range.

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More about BPA and SIGG

This is our third post on the issue of reusable water bottles and BPA. The two earlier articles explain more about SIGG & BPA and the exchange program.

Are SIGG bottles safe?
While SIGG should have been more transparent about the fact its bottles prior to August 2008 contained BPA in the manufacturing, the bottles are still safe based on independent tests that show no leaching of BPA or other toxins.

When most people purchased their bottles in 2008 and before, it was on the understanding that the bottles did not leach BPA or any toxins--and that has not changed.  It was only in 2009 that SIGG said the new bottles were BPA free.

Is this a product recall? 
The exchange program being offered by SIGG and retailers is not a recall, because the bottles are not unsafe.   SIGG promoted the bottles as not leaching BPA or other toxins, and this is still the case.

SIGG has explained that while BPA was an ingredient in the lining, it was manufactured in such a way that it was polymerised, essentially locking in the ingredients.

See more details on the exhange program below.  The program will end soon, as SIGG worldwide has already ended the program.

What is BPA & how is it used?
Bisphenol A (BPA) is a plastic and resin ingredient used to line metal food and drink cans and to make hard and clear polycarbonate plastics.  Here is a summary of the Environmental Working Group study in 2007 which found BPA in over half of 97 cans of name-brand fruit, vegetables, soda, and other commonly eaten canned goods.

Its use is widespread, as is its permeation into the environment around us including drinking water and human breast milk.

BPA can leach into food from the protective internal lining of canned foods and from consumer products such as polycarbonate tableware, food storage containers, water bottles, and baby bottles.  The degree to which BPA leaches from polycarbonate bottles into liquid may depend more on the temperature of the liquid or bottle, than the age of the container.  (Source: National Toxicology Program).

This Z recommends article explains the great advances made away from unsafe polycarbonate bottles that contained high levels of BPA, but calls for putting BPA-free into perspective.

Canada was the first country to ban BPA from baby products, followed by several US States.

How to limit exposure to BPA?

• Do not heat or microwave food in any type of plastic container - use glass or ceramic instead. Heating plastics to high temperatures promotes the leaching of chemicals.
• Reduce your use of canned foods - canned pasta and soups contain the highest levels of BPA
• Avoid polycarbonate #7 and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) #3 plastics, especially for children's food. Plastics with the recycling labels #1, #2 and #4 on the bottom are safer choices and do not contain BPA. 
• Use glass baby bottles.
• Use high quality reusable bottles from trusted brands that publish results of quality control and testing.

Which bottles are safest to use?
In most cases, the old rule "you get what you pay for" is a good starting point.  There are many cheap metal bottles in stores to meet the consumer demand for moving away from plastics.  We recommend only choosing an established brand that you know and trust, that openly publishes independent test results, and that can be held accountable should there be a problem. 

Metal bottles can still leach toxins, whether an aluminium bottle with no lining at all or an unsafe lining, or a stainless steel bottle leaching nickel - particularly if there has not been a tightly controlled and monitored approach to the manfacturing.

Klean Kanteen and Nathan and Thermos are long standing, high quality stainless steel bottle brands.

At the end of the day, you and your family are the ones who drink from the bottles and need to feel comfortable with whichever choice you make.  More about SIGG on this blog.

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Year of the Gorilla

Mountain Gorilla Silverback Titus and Family, Virungas National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo (Picture by Ian Redmond, GRASP).

Article updated 4 November 2009
When we first published this post, we said that recycling mobile phones helps relieve pressure on Gorilla habitat due to the recycling of a metal called Coltan, as reported on Channel 7's Sunday Night program.  Mobile Muster has advised that is not actually the case because Coltan is not recovered.  Coltan is only used in a small number of phones that are specifically for people with hearing impairments.  They say it would be too expensive to have a system for recovering such a tiny amount of metal.

Channel 7's Sunday Night program ran a story by Grant Denyer on the Mountain Gorillas of Kahuzi-Biega National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  Grant showed the complex threats facing the gorillas from armed conflict, habitat loss, the bushmeat trade, diseases and the mining of coltan used in electronics and mobile phones.

2009 is actually the Year of the Gorilla.  It is difficult to understand how the catastrophy in these regions can ever be solved for the people and animals.  Most of us can only take solace from knowing about the amazing partnerships of organisations working to save the gorillas.

The Year of the Gorilla is a collaboration between the UNEP/UNESCO Great Apes Survival Partnership and other incredible groups.  This excerpt from the Year of the Gorilla website explains:

Why are gorillas so important?
Great Apes, and especially the largest of all, gorillas, have always been a source of inspiration and fascination for humans. Their close kinship to humans makes them stand out in the animal kingdom. Gorillas have been shown to possess self-awareness, remarkable intelligence and an ability to communicate with signs and symbols as well as use some basic tools. They express emotions such as joy and distress in a way similar to humans.

Gorillas are endangered and continue to face severe threats. All the great ape species of Africa - the bonobos, chimpanzees and gorillas- and the orangutans of Southeast Asia are in steep decline, and the rate of loss is increasing virtually everywhere. The conservation of viable wild populations of each species, necessary to prevent their extinction, represents a difficult challenge to humanity. Not only are these species humankind’s closest relatives, they also play a key role in their forest homes, which in turn regulate the global climate.

Read more at the Year of the Gorilla Blog

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Lunch time talk - "Eco Angels & Demons" on Friday, 23 October at the Biome City Store

Help celebrate National Organic Week.
Join Biome founder, Tracey Bailey for an inspiring, informative talk from personal perspectives on companies who behave badly, and those that shine in the field of organics and eco friendly alternatives.

Join from 12:30pm for the whole session, or feel free to drop in any time until 1:30pm to listen in on various case studies.   It will be a casual affair and we welcome your questions.

As we have limited space, we would greatly appreciate your RSVP should you be thinking of attending.

Where: Biome's Brisbane City Store, 215 Adelaide Street

When: Friday, 23 October 2009 ~ 12:30pm - 1:30pm

More info about the Biome Brisbane City Store and how to get there

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Zaishu: art function eco

Zaishu's latest slot-together seat/table features artwork by acclaimed Australian textile designer, Nicola Cerini. The inspiration for this work evolved from an ecology camp about rare, native and vulnerable plants of East Gippsland. The Baw Baw Daisy is from that body of work and the Waratah is also endemic to that region.

Zaishu Studio designers, Matthew Butler and Helen Punton, create beautiful and meaningful designs often in collaboration with other artists around the world. They use only certified sustainable materials, handprinting the designs in their coastal studio.  Both artistic and functional, Zaishu's signature creation can be utilised as either a seat or a table.   See the full Zaishu range at Biome.  Here's a sneak peek of their new creation for the boys...or girls...arriving at Biome.   The pretty designs are popular for Mothers Day gifts.
Gaskets & Gears...

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Recipe: Lemon Myrtle baked cheesecake with Finger Lime marmalade

From Briony, our Biome City Store Manager
After the hectic week of a working eco-Mum, including one too many take-away meals, I needed some good, old fashioned home baking therapy!  It was also the weekend of a visit from my mother and sister so I intended to dazzle them with my cooking skills in the hope they would not notice the unmade beds or piles of ironing.

Well, the outcome was an AMAZING Lemon Myrtle baked cheesecake drizzled with Finger Lime Marmalade.  Biome's Australian native food corner was the inspiration for the Oz Tukka Lemon Myrtle and Finger Lime marmalade.  Did it do the job you ask? Oh yes...

Lemon Myrtle baked cheesecake drizzled with Finger Lime marmalade

150g plain sweet biscuits, crushed (I use half gingernuts - half digestives)
75g Butter, melted
500g Cream Cheese
3/4 cup castor sugar
Finely grated rind of 1 lemon
1 Tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp ground Oz tukka Lemon Myrtle
3 eggs
300ml cream
Finger Lime Marmalade

Combine biscuits and butter. Press firmly into springform pan. Refrigerate until firm.

Beat cheese and sugar together until smooth.
Thoroughly beat in lemon rind, juice and eggs. Gently blend in cream then Lemon myrtle.
Pour into pan. Drizzle with warmed Marmalade.

Bake at 160 for 45 minutes. Turn oven off. Leave to cool in oven undisturbed for further 1/2 hour.
Cool and serve with double cream if you dare!

Wild Hibiscus Flowers and other Australian native foods

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