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Show Aggieltt* Monday, Jan. 30, 2008 PageS Ways to save water in kitchen VSV Remembers By KATHLEEN PURVIS McQatchy Newspapers, MCT Saving water in the kitchen isn't just the right thing to do during a drought. It's the right thing to do all of the time. Sure, it's important to use clean water when we prepare food. But much of the water we use in our kitchens spills right down the sink, where it goes back to the water treatment plant without doing anyone any good. Getting into these habits not only saves water- it can make your cooking more healthful and even tastier. GET YOUR MONEY'S WORTH 1. When you get a drink of water, don't run the faucet until the water is cool. Put a pitcher or jug of water in the refrigerator. 2. Plastic bottles of drinking water cost more and add to landfills. Fill your own water bottle and take it with you. 3. Need a little hot water? Don't just run the faucet until it gets hot. Heat water on the stove, hi the microwave or with an electric kettle. 4. Wash fruits and vegetables in a container of water. Then use it to water plants. 5. When you rinse out the coffee pot, use the water in your compost bin or on your garden. It may have minerals from inside the pot. 6. A garbage disposal is an inefficient way to get rid of kitchen scraps. Peel fruits and vegetables on a sheet of old newspaper.then fold it up and throw them awav. Even better: Make compost. Save egg shells, used coffee grounds (and the unbleached paper filter), tea bags and trimmings from fruits and vegetables for your compost bin. (Don't compost meat and dairy products, including fats.) 7. Must we say it? Fix drippy faucets and leaking pipes. A faucet that drips one drop per second can waste up to 2,700 gallons of water a year. 8. When the dishwasher needs replacing, choose one with the highest efficiency rating you can afford. 9. If you can stop your ice maker easily (for most models, just raise the wire guide inside), don't keep making ice when you have enough for the day. WASHING UP 10. It takes less scrubbing to clean residue from pots and pans if you clean them right after you use them, before the food dries and sets. 11. Don't waste water (and energy) scrubbing pots under running water. Fill them with water and let them sit to loosen residue. For stuck-on on food, add water and a little dishwashing powder, then bring to a simmer on the stove. 12. Don't run the dishwasher until it's full. And wait until after 10 p.m., when water demand is lower. 13. There's no need to rinse plates and utensils thoroughly before putting them in the dishwasher. Just scrape off food and let the dishwasher do its job. 14. Washing by hand? Use the two-sink method: Fill one sink with hot, soapy water and the second with water for rinsing. Or use the one-sink method: Put a few inches of hot, soapy water in the sink. Hold the dish . under hot running water just long enough to rinse it. The rinse water will add to the soapy water, keeping it hot as you work. 15. Don't keep adding glasses to the dishwasher every time you get a drink. Designate a daily drinking glass and don't wash it until the end of the day. COOKING 16. Don't thaw frozen food under running water. Place it in a bowl of cold water (check it every 30 minutes to make sure the water is cold.) Even better: Plan ahead and thaw food overnight in the refrigerator. 17. Don't cool hot items, such as hard-cooked eggs, under running water. Put them in a bowl of water to cool. (Use that water on your garden, too.) 18. Don't pour cooking water down the drain. Water from pasta, vegetables, rice and potatoes can be saved in the refrigerator for a couple of days and used for soup. That captures flavor and water-soluble vitamins and minerals, too. (Potato cooking water is great for making bread.) 19. Cook frozen vegetables in as little water as possible (package directions usually only call for a couple of tablespoons). Steam fresh vegetables instead of boiling: It saves vitamins and minerals and boosts flavor. 20. Put a lid on it. Heating a pot of water without a lid takes longer, and it releases heat that makes your air conditioner work harder, too. T H E FLAG IS L O W E R E D T O H A L F - M A S T Tuesday at the Old Main flagpole out of respect to Gordon B. Hinckley's death, the longest living prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. DEBRA HAWKINS photo Standing up for SUV owners ByKATYMOELLER McCiatchey Newspapers, MCT CRESTWOODS Brentwood 736 E 900 N Lynwood 880 N 650 E Ecljrcwood 736 h 800 N Stay in the Very Best Single Student Housing! •Practically on Campus •Full Bath in each bedroom •Free Wireless Internet •Fully equipped kitchen •Washer & dryer in apartment •Furnished •Covered Parking (Edgewood) • Entire Summer from $450 •School Year: Private: $2250-3210 Shared: $1980-$2370 755-3181 www.logancrestwoods.com BOISE, Idaho _ Barry McCahiU is used to getting hate mail. The Eagle, Idaho, resident is president of the SUV Owners of America, a national advocacy group whose members have been attacked as being selfish environmental marauders who choose gas-guzzling sport utility vehicles over fuel-efficient cars. The 60-year-old, a former longtime spokesman for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said the criticism comes largely from people living in urban areas like New York City, "They have a perspective that SUVs are a plague upon the Earth," said McCahill. who chafes at comments that SUVs are an unnecessary and wasteful extravagance in urban areas. But really, the hate mail doesn't bother him - not nearly as much 30% OFF For usu Students 435.753.4870 • 45 North Main, Logan Visit our other Locations in Pocatello, Idaho Falls, & Rexburg ID door pickup. "I work from home," he said. "I use less gas in a month than someone who drives a Honda Civic... every day." SUVs have much more space for passengers, pets and luggage than most cars, making them the vehicle of choice for families who previously preferred minivans or station wagons. Some SUVs, but not all, have four-wheel drive and towing ability, adding to their appealSUVs aren't very fuel-efficient vehicles, and some say their size makes them a menace on the highway. But some choose SUVs for that reason, believing they are safer. Studies, including a 2007 report from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, show that bigger often is safer. But they also point out that not all SUVs offer the same protections, and some cars rate better that some SUVs in crash tests. Getting rid of excess catalog mail ByMIKEANTONUCCl San Jose Mercury News, MCT mmoneffyaffe as thefirebombingsof SUV dealerships by ecoterrorists around the country since 2001. "I've never seen a vehicle so demagogued and attacked, its drivers criticized as inconsiderate," McCahili said. "We're just saying in America, people have a right to buy vehicles that meet their needs." McCahili has been in the midst of all this national debate since 2004, when he was asked to head the association. He answers letters, writes a blog on the SUV association's Web site, does print and TV interviews, testifies before congressional committees and stays obsessively up-to-date on the latest automotive industry news. And here's the kicker: SUV association president McCahili doesn't own an SUV. But he feels strongly about consumers having the right to choose whatever vehicle suits their needs. He drives a Harley and a big four- SAN JOSE, Calif.-Catalog Choice, the relatively new Web site designed to eliminate millions of catalog mailings, says its plan is working. The Direct Marketing Association, the trade group for many of those catalog companies, says it has more trustworthy solutions for people who want fewer catalogs. Either way, consumers seem to be benefiting. A quick recap: Catalog Choice (www.catalogchoice.org) is a joint project of environmental organizations that include the Ecology Center in Berkeley, Calif. The free Web site makes it easy for anyone to check off catalogs they don't want, and also offers a convenient way for merchants to accommodate those requests - if they choose to cooperate. In mid-November, Catalog Choice was reporting that 148,000 consumers had requested to be taken off the lists for almost 1.5 million catalog mailings. The totals at the beginning of January: Almost 350,000 people have asked to opt out of almost 4.3 million catalogs. But are the catalog companies honoring the requests? Chuck Teller, executive director of Catalog Choice, said that almost 100 companies have established merchant accounts, which create an easy way for them to mesh the opt-out requests with their own data. Those 100 merchants (out of about 1,000 on Catalog Choice's radar) have drawn about 15 percent of the opt-out requests. And Teller said he's confident the merchants are using the accounts to honor at least some requests because of the way they're asking questions about file formats and other data issues. Catalog Choice says merchants with activated accounts include L.L. Bean, Lands' End, Lillian Vernon, Gardener's Supply, Omaha Steaks and Urban Outfitters. At a Dec. 17 "catalog summit" in New York, the DMA discussed what it considers an "assault" on marketing done by mail. That's a reference to a variety of efforts that might restrict mailings, such as "do not mail" movements that want to emulate the "do not call" registry. And it includes "activist group" initiatives such as Catalog Choice. The DMA says it's concerned that groups compiling opt-out lists might not have verified names and addresses, might not ultimately protect those names and addresses from being sold or traded to other organizations and might use the lists to contact people for additional purposes. In a recent Business Week article, e-mail from DMA President John A. Greco Jr. to DMA members was quoted as saying Catalog Choice was trying "to eliminate catalogs as a marketing medium" and that members would be making "a significant mistake to cooperate" with such organizations. Teller sent the Mercury News a response to the DMA's concerns and included a copy of Greco's e-mail, which a DMA spokeswoman said appeared to be authentic. Teller's response: Catalog Choice uses the "same user authentication and verification process followed by the FTC on the Do Not Call registry - that is, upon registration we send an e-mail to the member's e-mail account that includes a unique authentication link for that user. The member's account is not fully verified until either he or she clicks the verification link or contacts our customer service team to request manual verification. ...Our system does not permit a member to enter more than one opt-out request for the same member name, address and catalog title." Teller added that a privacy policy promises that Catalog Choice's data will never be used by any organization for marketing purposes. Whatever the tension between Catalog Choice and the DMA, part of the fallout is an effort by the DMA to improve its own opt-out service (www. dmachoice.org). At this point, it's still more complicated than Catalog Choice's site, but the DMA is arguing that it has a track record for effectiveness and trustworthiness. |