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green kiting?

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Dr Makani
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green kiting?

Postby Dr Makani » Mon Mar 04, 2013 7:58 am

I am not out to save the world. But I had an interesting conversation with couple of friends who are all watermen and waterwomen. So, we all are using the ocean as our power playground, but the 'one-million-dollar' question is:

How much of a 'green' agenda do we have? How sustainable is our life style to justify what we are doing in the water?

What material is our gear (kites, boards, harness, ...)? Do we even care? If new, sustainable product would be available, would be buy them? Do we carpool to go to the beach?

I know, I know - living in CA (with benefit of HI) being environmentally conscious is kinda' fashionable. But do we sometimes stop in our tracks and look beyond all the trash in the water, the broken surfboards at the beach and knowing that our boards been made of TDI - one of the nastiest stuff we can absorb through our skin ...

Some of the smaller surf shacks here in SoCal are starting to experiment with new, more sustainable material. I am eager to get my hands around it. I would wish some kite manufactures would turn their minds and join. No, solar panels don't pay off, but they make a difference. Driving a Hybrid isn't cheaper, but it makes a small difference - So many things won't get cheaper nor pay off, but it's the right thing to do. So, just wondering what you guys think.

peace

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Re: green kiting?

Postby herculon » Mon Mar 04, 2013 10:21 am

small things help already. for example, collect debris and waste from the beaches...


http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/adoptriver/peanut.html
Image

get other people aware of environmental issues. if the doubt is planted in the brains, it will grow and change the world.

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Re: green kiting?

Postby Kite2Heaven » Mon Mar 04, 2013 10:30 am

A very big question with a very small answer, blame Thomas Eddisson - once upon a time light bulbs never wore out !!!

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Re: green kiting?

Postby plummet » Mon Mar 04, 2013 10:43 am

well i just bought a massive 4x4 to get me to the beach with all my kite gear!... So thats no very green!

But i do have a bamboo board so thats pretty green.

Kiting is less green than the mountain biking and longboard skating I do. Why? i travel further to kite and i require more gear to kite and i need to replace my gear more often than my other sports.

My main longbaord skate board that I use I built in 2006. Its still going strong and will continue to do so for many more years. How many of us are still using 2006 kite as there main kite? or 2006 board for there main board? or 2006 wet suit?

Get my point?. kite gear wears out fast compared to other sporting equipment.

But hey. we are still more green that any motor sport.

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Re: green kiting?

Postby Westozzy » Mon Mar 04, 2013 11:14 am

Hey plummet mate how goes it. Don't know man a mountain bikes metal parts come from the ground to the smelter to the etc etc, blast furnaces use a hell a lot of energy! But metal rusts I suppose take a while for a kite or board to break down hey.

I know that north have a marketed their greeness with their kite production.

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Re: green kiting?

Postby Toby » Mon Mar 04, 2013 12:15 pm

we have to start with ourselves.
Yes, we consume, we drive cars, we fly...but why should we litter the nature with garbage?
Here we all can start.
I don't throw anything into nature...not even a chewing gum.

Use less energy...turn of lights etc.

Then in addition, clean the beach if you see garbage around.

Tell others to be aware as well.

If we all do it, we already help the nature.

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Re: green kiting?

Postby plummet » Mon Mar 04, 2013 7:00 pm

Westozzy wrote:Hey plummet mate how goes it. Don't know man a mountain bikes metal parts come from the ground to the smelter to the etc etc, blast furnaces use a hell a lot of energy! But metal rusts I suppose take a while for a kite or board to break down hey.

I know that north have a marketed their greeness with their kite production.
Yes indeed. but what is a kite made of? most of it is oils based synthetics, plastics.....

ps. my bike is carbon!!!.... mmmh carbon. that process isn't green either.

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Re: green kiting?

Postby C Johnson » Mon Mar 04, 2013 7:51 pm

to the OP.

no it is not green.

the companies that sell gear would like us to think so though so that we feel better about buying more.

As far as picking up trash goes and not littering. that's a good idea but don't be fooled into thinking its enough to save the environment. Unless of course we can figure out a way to stop the frequent storm surges brought on by hurricanes, tropical depressions and typhoons not to mention the occasional tsunami from sweeping huge amounts of waste products into the ocean every year.

Dr Makani
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Re: green kiting?

Postby Dr Makani » Mon Mar 04, 2013 8:41 pm

C Johnson wrote:to the OP.

no it is not green.

the companies that sell gear would like us to think so though so that we feel better about buying more.

As far as picking up trash goes and not littering. that's a good idea but don't be fooled into thinking its enough to save the environment. Unless of course we can figure out a way to stop the frequent storm surges brought on by hurricanes, tropical depressions and typhoons not to mention the occasional tsunami from sweeping huge amounts of waste products into the ocean every year.
I agree - picking up trash, participating in beach cleanups (without being ordered by a judge :lol: ) is sort of a given for us (isn't it?). But where are the bold moves? Discussions about gear are about price, price, price - and the cheap shit is made in China, Taiwan and only God-knows-where - where's basically zero awareness (or even consideration) for any 'green' impact. Just thinking about it that's probably also true for the 'expensive' brands.

Just looking at the boards - surfboards: foam core, TDI, epoxy, you friggin' name it what could cause cancer, decease and makes your eyeballs fall out (could be nuclear? 8) ) - there gotta be a better way to produce this stuff. Or is it just the little guy with his surf shack sticking his head out?

I know, I know - i probably got hit by a green train. :lol: But we gotta change, some industries are on it and I think, it's time ...

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Re: green kiting?

Postby handy » Mon Mar 04, 2013 9:18 pm

some shapers and glassers start to change their minds and try to build boards a little bit "greener"

http://www.sustainablesurf.org/ecoboard/shapers/

btw ahcustoms, that's me ;-)


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