Posted on August 7, 2008 by Gerald Pugliese
Advertisers who violate the law face fines from $250 for a first offense to $1,000 for repeat violators.
The “lawn litter” legislation was sponsored by State Senator Frank Padavan and Assemblyman Mark S. Weprin, both of Queens, where complaints about “lawn litter” have been particularly acute.
The property owner’s sign must be at least five inches tall and seven inches wide, and display the following language in legible letters at least one inch in size: “Do Not Place Unsolicited Advertising Materials On This Property.”
AT A SPANKING new lingerie factory in Thulhiriya, a short drive from Colombo, Sri Lanka's capital, senior managers wear T-shirts. This is not because MAS Holdings, the country's biggest apparel company, which recently opened the factory, is a dress-down sort of a firm. It is because the factory has no air-conditioning. Instead it uses evaporative cooling, which leaves the workplace around four degrees hotter than air-conditioning would—but uses much less energy.
The factory has many energy-saving features. Its carefully designed windows provide enough natural light for workers stitching bras. Its turf roofs provide a cooling shade. Overall it uses 40% less energy than an ordinary factory of the same size. And the electricity it uses is from renewable sources: 90% from a hydro-power plant and 10% from on-site solar panels. MAS reckons it has built the world's first carbon-neutral clothes factory.
It was built at the instigation of Britain's biggest clothier, Marks & Spencer (M&S), which contributed £200,000 ($400,000) towards the cost of the solar panels and design. The "green" underwear that MAS is now making at the factory for M&S will reach British high streets in June, and will cost no more than existing garments.
While gas prices are retreating somewhat now, people need to understand that the recent hikes were a tap on the shoulder; a perhaps final hint that we need to alter our lifestyles dramatically. Nature has a funny way of working - all things must be kept in balance and sometimes it will deliver a direct slap in the face, other times via other mediums.
The point is that all things are connected in Nature and for us to believe we have tamed it is a massive mistake. Whether through political unrest, peak oil or environmental disaster; the days of cheap fossil fuel are certainly numbered and that's probably a good thing as otherwise we'd just choke on our own hyperconsumption.
In that aspect, we're very much like children. Give a small child a bag of candy and tell them they can only have one piece a day, but it's up to them to control their consumption - and watch what happens :). Nature is the parent, and like any good parent, it will monitor and discipline us - harshly if we don't get the hint.
