Carbon Footprint Of An Indoor Grow

[greeny]

Hey crew

 

 

So I got some sweet life cycle assessment software for uni and instead of studying for my LCA exam I used the software to do a crude LCA of the environmental impacts of growing indoors.

The result was quite shocking

 

The LCA was based on the following:

 

400 Watts of HID lighting

100 Watts of peripherals (centrifugal fan, PC fan for air circulation, air pump and water pump)

18/6 for 4 weeks

12/12 for 8 weeks

Standard electricity (ie no green power or solar PV)

13 ounce yield.

 

The outcome of it was, that to produce 13 ounces would generate approximately 725 kilograms of CO2 equivalent, or 56kg per ounce

 

That is a huge amount considering that it does not include the impact caused by the production of all the equipment needed (lights, tents, hyrdo systems, fans etc.) or the ongoing need for synthetic nutrients, growth mediums and other consumables.

 

Something for us all to think about.

 

 

 

Peace

[phreakah]

Wow thats a huge amount... why not legalise outdoor grows?

[Naycha]

Yeah that is pretty big but basically unavoidable. You forgot to factor in that in a space of say 2m² the cannabis grown will sequester about 4.5 kilos of carbon, not that that will knock much off the 725kg.

 

Naycha

[SHEEPinWOLFskin]

OH sh1t...Carbon, everyone run for the hills...... fyi we are a carbon based life form on a carbon based life form planet.

 

 

In stead of freaking out about a natural product that is part of the building blocks of life on this planet, why don't you research genetic modified life made by science if you want nightmares or maybe research tap water?

 

AGW is a scam to fund the NWO don't fall for it. There is plenty of REAL sh1t going down with out making sh1t up.

 

peace&pot

Edited November 12, 2010 by SHEEPinWOLFskin

[Rose Gardener]

Yep! That's all the more reason to let us grow a gurls legally outdoors!

[Radic]

greetnz

irey thanx for this valuable info

The outcome of it was, that to produce 13 ounces would generate approximately 725 kilograms of CO2 equivalent, or 56kg per ounce

wooow

seen

thats stricty if your power source is petrochemical or coal driven

seen

power from the sun, water, or geothermal etc.,.,.change the goal post totally

then theres CF and LED lights, 12v pumps,etc.,.,

i love this info cause it means if i follow the recommended guidelines my running costs will come way down

saving me big $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

bring it on

[The Hash Nibbler]

I'm not even going to think about it, if we did everything to "save the planet" We'd all be sitting in caves wearing hemp clothes thinking about the good old days...........

.............Remember when we used to grow pot under lights, good times.

Gimme a break, This enviro shit that is going on at the moment is crap, tell me why for a campaign to help promote green energy and sustainable living in Australia, we employ a German company to run it , everybody who works for them flys from overseas to come here

and to go back, most of the promotional gear is made from plastic. Sounds like the program is part of the problem.

Germany, who bury Nuclear waste for France in Underground tunnels don't really give a shit about our enviroment, they just care about the Huge $$$ they make from running this type of shit we overpay them for.

Now I love my country, I look after the enviroment, I recycle, replaced all my globes with CFL's in the house and drive my car as little as possible, have an easy care garden and I do the clean up Australia thing, everyday, not just once a year.

 

But That's the problem with most Green types, always great at pointing out whats wrong with the world but never come up with solutions that work in the real world, with real people.

Lets just shut down all carbon producing equipment, then after we cripple our economy, we can go back to the dark ages maybe we'll be better off.

 

Maybe you can think about real change and discuss it with your friends and you can all say what an injustice it is to harm the planet and do SFA about it, or something useless like protesting for a better world. Go Hydro! Gh72

[greeny]

"You forgot to factor in that in a space of say 2m² the cannabis grown will sequester about 4.5 kilos of carbon, not that that will knock much off the 725kg." Naycha

 

Good point!

 

 

"In stead of freaking out about a natural product that is part of the building blocks of life on this planet, why don't you research genetic modified life made by science if you want nightmares or maybe research tap water?

 

AGW is a scam to fund the NWO don't fall for it. There is plenty of REAL sh1t going down with out making sh1t up ." Sheepinwolfskin

 

As an enviromental scientist I do actually research those issues.

 

GM isnt bad because it is made by that terrible thing called science, its bad because mega-corps are patenting the genes and suing the little guys who end up with their crops pollinated by them. Like it or not GM is probably going to be neccessary if we are going to keep food on everyones plate while the planet's weather systems get turned on their head. Ps. I grow all my food organically and would like it to see it done that way but im also a realist.

 

As to tap water, we have some of the best quality drinking water on the planet, a fact that Aussies should never take for granted. If you are paronoid about big bro putting flouride in it get a rainwater tank and make sure you brush your teeth.

 

Rejecting climate change science is on par with rejecting the rational argument for the legalisation of cannabis ("lets look after the status quo because change is scary")

Edited November 13, 2010 by greeny

[greeny]

Hopper, I wasnt preaching to anyone to shut down their indoor grows (im growing indoors myself)

Just thought that many on this forum may be interested and it would be good to get some discussion going on.

 

There are plenty of solutions to this problem and some have already been mentioned.

 

Others include:

• purchasing renewable energy from the grid (small cost considering the $ we spend on everything else)
• installing solar PV on roof (may also be good for hiding huge elec use from the authorities)
• using offsett programs ($20 per tonne @ carbonneutral.com.au)
• Using waste heat from grows to warm house during winter instead of pumping it out the roof.
• LED and CFLs for veg stages instead of MH.

[The Hash Nibbler]

Soz Greeny if i came on a bit strong, just really believe we should use what we have while we have it, because in the end it's out of our hands.......

 

Nobody likes to use inferior shit. Everybody will use green products when they can compare or are better than what we have now at a competitive price.

I'd use LED's tomorrow for my whole grow if someone would actually get it right, instead of the joke they are now. I use CFL's to veg, even tried to use them in flower to lessen my power consumption, not a good idea.

 

My good mate just installed $30,000 worth of solar panels on his roof and he's only going to save 25% at most in power, not even enough to return to the grid. Thats shit! Thats not an advancement at all.

 

Big Corporations run the world, these corporations have interests in things like oil, mining, industry, Pharma. If you think for one second that any of these wankers give a shit about the enviroment , they may make a token Gesture every now and again, comply with the bare minimium of standards when they should be striving for excellence, make it seem like they care about the world so we all think they are not the evil earth raping and greed driven companies that they are.

 

The actual reality is they own the governments maybe not directly but they do. No pure Hydrogen car will ever be put into mass production with back up and service stations that only sell hydrogen(I mean real production, replacing current technology, not some dinky prius offering at twice the price of a normal car) because oil companies and car manufacturers say when it's time to change, and they haven't finished milking the planet yet. They are just stalling up until they control the future technologies to make them richer. Ever wonder why it's so hard to legalize cannabis? Pharma companies is why, they have a lot to lose. Simple.

I mean look at the worlds carbon targets for countries, everyone is dodging it, because everyone knows the price on their economy from reducing carbon in an industrialised/ mining driven country. It's a joke.

 

It's like we have some of the windiest most sunbaked country in the world , why isn't Australia completely wind and solar powered? Because Mining companies and Big players have the balls of the government in hand and whenever they step out of line and someone gets all enviromental and suggests positive change to renewable energy they get a little squeeze to remind them of their place.

 

If the human race is ever going to evolve into a race that uses it's technologies for the good of the people and progresses based on the will to be a better society and not to have progress as a tool for greed and wealth, I'll believe in it again. The monitary system needs to be abandoned altogether. there will never be signifigant change as long as money is the key factor and the major motivation of progress, or barrier to new technologies based on economic reasoning.

 

but thats a whole other story......................The funny thing is we think we have to save the planet, but it's us that needs saving, we are the parasite that resides on the earth, bit like a tape worm. We cannot continue to live as we do, it is unsustainable. The earth will be here long after we are gone and forgotten and nature always finds a way to repair herself. The earth is also in a state of constant change and who are we who have inhabited it's surface for a few piddly thousand years compared to it's hundreds of millions of years to say anything about it's ability to self heal.

Yes, we are the cause of major carbon emissions on earth but without a change in society and the world finding an Identity as a global entity, were pushing uphill. Gh72

 

 

Edited November 13, 2010 by Grasshopper72