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Posts Tagged “

Environment

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Stupid Shipping Gang

Hewlett-Packard Crowned Head Of The Stupid Shipping Gang After Packing 32 Sheets Of Paper In 17 Boxes

Leading the stupid shipping gang takes creative incompetence, and Hewlett-Packard is clearly up to the task. Other companies might have turned to email when faced with the challenge of shipping sixteen software licenses. Not Hewlett-Packard! HP went looking for a box. A really big box, which they filled with sixteen smaller boxes, each containing two precious pieces of paper ensconced in a layer of protective foam. More »

1:45 AM on Sat Jul 19 2008
By Carey
589 views, 12 comments

Latest by UNDERSTAR: Maybe they ran out of envelopes??? more »

square milk jugs

Will New Square Milk Jugs At Wal-Mart, Costco Save The Planet? Or Spill Your Milk?

Wal-Mart and Costco have something new they'd like you to try— a square milk jug. The NYT says the new square jugs "are cheaper to ship and better for the environment, the milk is fresher when it arrives in stores, and it costs less." So what's the catch? Apparently, while the new jugs are helping cut costs, they kind of suck at pouring milk. More »

12:49 PM on Mon Jun 30 2008
By Meg Marco
18,212 views, 171 comments

Home Depot has started a nationwide compact flourescent light bulb recycling program. "At each The Home Depot store, customers can simply bring in any expired, unbroken CFL bulbs, and give them to the store associate behind the returns desk." CFL bulbs contain mercury and can be damaging to the environment if thrown into regular landfills. [New York Times]

60 comments

retail

OfficeMax Calls You A Thief For Trying To Recycle

OfficeMax called Chris a thief for recycling empty printer cartridges. OfficeMax's MaxPerks program gives customers $3 for each empty cartridge they recycle, with a limit of 5 cartridges per customer per day. Chris runs a computer repair business that leaves him flush with empty cartridges. According to one cashier, this makes Chris a thief. More »

4:48 PM on Sun May 4 2008
By Carey
28,392 views, 125 comments

stupid shipping gang

Canon Uses Comically Oversized Box To Send You Something They Could Have Taped To A Postcard

Earlier this week I ordered a part from Canon USA Service for one of my Canon cameras and it arrived today. I am impressed for the fast shipping but not so much by the efficiency of the packaging.
Additional photo inside. More »

1:00 PM on Tue Apr 29 2008
By Alex Chasick
7,301 views, 30 comments

Latest by n/a: @sn: Wow, you are a special little bitch with a strange obsession with my ass. Since when is it exceptional to receive something you order from a multinational corporation in a timely fashion? You better watch yourself or your mother will more »

stupid shipping gang

Dell Still Ships Tiny Items In Massive Boxes

From the looks of David's package, Dell isn't close to honoring its promise to switch to alternative packaging within the next two months. This obscenely large box contained nothing more than a 2GB flash drive. David's son snapped a few pictures, which appear as an eerie slideshow after the jump. More »

1:23 PM on Sun Apr 20 2008
By Carey
14,641 views, 42 comments

Latest by n/a: Wow. Nobody read the original story, or my comment about why I bought a ridiculously cheap thumb drive from Dell in the first place. As for "complaining", I wasn't, I was pointing out how absurd it was. And, for those of you more »

corporate crime

Nestle Paying $230 To Suck Millions Of Gallons Of Water From Florida Until 2018

Despite fierce opposition from the local water management district staff, and concerns that it would deplete an already scarce natural resource from the people who live there, Nestle managed to secure a deal to pump nearly 1.5 million gallons of water a day into their Deer Park bottling plant for the next ten years. Nestle pays no other fees for the water beyond the $230 license—in fact, "Nestle has received two [tax] refunds totaling $196,000 and requested a third tax refund." To make the matter even more offensive, the plant hasn't delivered on its commitment to employ 300 workers, and it so far has failed to bring in the estimated $12 million-a-year to the local economy. The St. Petersburg Times has a rich, infuriating history of the Nestle fiasco and how they've conned Floridians out of their own water with the help of state politicians. More »

12:46 PM on Mon Mar 31 2008
By Chris Walters
9,149 views, 56 comments

Latest by taka2k7: They never should have given the promises, but then the plant and jobs would have gone elsewhere (which might be a good thing). The 'government' is incompentent only because we let it be. There is no accountability for the most part. Still, more »

polls

Should American Airlines Have Flown Five Overbooked Passengers Across The Atlantic In An Empty Plane?

American Airlines managed to rebook all but five passengers after canceling one of its four daily flights from Chicago to London. The five still needed to get to London, so American rustled up an empty plane and invited everyone up to business class. Seems nice, but Friends of the Earth is outraged that American burned 22,000 gallons of fuel for five passengers. Great customer service or eco-scandal? Vote in our poll, after the jump. More »

4:42 PM on Sat Mar 15 2008
By Carey
22,558 views, 97 comments

junk mail

"Do Not Mail" Junk Mail Registry Called For By Green Group

ForestEthics has started a petition to enact a Do Not Mail registry, similar to the one that's sort of in effect (when marketers choose to abide by it) for telemarketing. Their reasoning: junk mail is enormously wasteful and damaging to the environment. We agree, but we're in favor of the registry for the simple reason that less junk mail means fewer uninvited distractions, ID theft risks, and trash we'd have to deal with every day. More »

11:54 AM on Thu Mar 13 2008
By Chris Walters
2,446 views, 40 comments

milk

Save The Planet: Buy Big Bags Of Milk

Other countries cut down on the amount of plastic used to package milk by buying it in big plastic bags and storing it in a reusable milk pitcher in the fridge. More »

3:29 PM on Thu Feb 7 2008
By Meg Marco
7,350 views, 103 comments

stupid shipping gang

Amazon: Let's Ship The Flat Wrist Rest In A Giant Box

"I wonder if other readers have experienced the wasteful excessive packaging used by Amazon.com. I recently ordered a Gel Wrist Rest and a hardcover book (to qualify for free shipping). The two items were shipped to me separately, probably because they were coming from different warehouses. Though that itself is wasteful, I can understand why it may be necessary. But when the Wrist Rest arrived, it came in a GIANT box filled with paper stuffing (see photo). The box measured 24" x 12" x 18". The wrist rest is about 20" long, but flat. Is it possible that a company that sells all of its various products by mail doesn't have a long flat box that could have been used instead?" More »

11:25 AM on Sat Jan 26 2008
By Carey
3,331 views, 48 comments

Latest by Balisong: @KogeLiz: Anyone who needs boxes for moving can get them easy if they just take an hour or two to look around. I once got a huge pile of never used boxes from Borders. Just had to go in and more »

environment

Whole Foods Will Eliminate Plastic Bags, Says "Bring Your Own"

Whole Foods says that by Earth Day 2008 they will be eliminating plastic bags and instead offer only paper bags or reusable bags made from recycled plastic bottles for $0.99. More »

11:37 AM on Tue Jan 22 2008
By Meg Marco
5,438 views, 130 comments

stupid shipping gang

Dell: Let's Ship Tiny CDs In Massive Boxes!

Dell has promised to stop shipping individual CDs in 10x19x10 boxes after Christian over at Technologist for Hire posted a rant about Dell's growing love for wasteful packaging. More »

12:03 PM on Sat Jan 19 2008
By Carey
9,178 views, 23 comments

If you live in Texas, have a car that's over 10 years old or has failed an emissions test, and you don't make much money, you could qualify for a $3,500 voucher to be used towards the purchase of a new car. [TCEQ]

24 comments

environment

"Green" Walmart Has Decorative Moldings Made From "The Leg Holes In Disposable Diapers"

The Chicago Tribune is reporting that the first of Walmart's new "high efficiency" stores is slated to open Jan 23, in Romeoville, IL. It's part of Walmart's super awesome PR-tastic, yet characteristically stingy plan to make its stores 25 to 30 percent more energy efficient by 2009. More »

8:41 AM on Wed Jan 16 2008
By Meg Marco
10,868 views, 44 comments

manufacturing

Poison: The High Cost Of Cheap Batteries

Cadmium batteries are cheap and safe to use, but hazardous to manufacture. They'll save you money—about $1.50 for the average cadmium-powered toy, says the Wall Street Journal. More »

1:19 PM on Tue Jan 15 2008
By Meg Marco
3,243 views, 24 comments

waste

How Much Packing Material Is Needed For A Headphone Adapter?


Hey Consumerist!
More »
environment

China Bans Flimsy Plastic Shopping Bags

The AP says that China has banned thin flimsy shopping bags:
The measure, effective June 1, eliminates the flimsiest bags and forces stores to charge for more durable bags, making China the latest nation to target plastic bags in a bid to cut waste and conserve resources.
More »

5:14 PM on Wed Jan 9 2008
By Meg Marco
2,475 views, 43 comments

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