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the-south-asian.com November 2003 |
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November
2003
Art Environment Alpana
Singh - the World's
Nuclear
Lehngas - a limited collection Books
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Page 1 of 2
Guide to Greener Living (cntd.)
Save Resources at Work The Problem The average workplace uses thousands of supplies on a daily basis - and accounts for a lot of what we use and throw away. What you can do Buy energy-efficient office equipment - Energy Star-rated equipment is an option at work as well as at home. Energy Star equipment has power management features that allow it to reduce its power use or turn itself off when not in use. According to the EPA, Energy Star-labeled equipment can save up to 75 percent of total electricity use. Recycle - If your office doesn't have a recycling program, work with your office manager and custodial staff to set one up. Paper, aluminum cans, and plastic bottles are easy to start with, and additional materials can be added as the staff gets used to recycling. Set up bins in convenient areas to collect each type of material your office recycles, and make sure everyone knows they are there. Commit to environmentally friendly purchasing practices - Encourage your company to make a commitment to purchasing paper and plastic materials made with post-consumer recycled content. Companies should avoid paper products made from 100 percent virgin fiber content, and switch to paper that is 30 percent post-consumer content at minimum. Also look for plastic and metal products made with recycled or scrap material. Be thrifty with paper - Don't print out each memo or email you receive. Read and delete the ones you don't need to save and electronically file others you might refer to later. Make sure your office copier can make two-sided copies, and badger everyone to get into the habit of doing so. If people don't take the hint, arrange to have your copier's default set to the two-sided rather than one-sided option. High-speed copiers that are set to automatically make two-sided copies reduce paper costs by $60 per month -- and, of course, save paper. Save even more paper by using the blank sides of used sheets of paper for note-taking and printing drafts. Use reusable utensils for office parties - If you work in one of those offices where there's no excuse too small for a mid-afternoon get-together, encourage the office manager to invest in a set of dishes, cups, and utensils that can be used each time, rather than breaking out plastic utensils and paper plates. Bring a waste-free lunch - Store your food in reusable containers rather than wrapping it in foil or plastic. Keep a knife, fork, spoon, and cloth napkins at work to avoid the need for plastic utensils and paper napkins. Bring your hot or cold drinks in a thermos, and drink them from a mug you keep at your desk or in your work area.
Conserve Water The Problem What you can do Install a low-flow showerhead - Showers account for 32 percent of home water use. Low-flow showerheads deliver no more than 2.5 gallons per minute compared to standard showerheads that release 4.5 gallons per minute. A family of four using low-flow showerheads can save about 20,000 gallons of water per year. Install an ultra-low-flush toilet or a toilet displacement device - Toilets are water hogs. About 40 percent of the water you use in your home gets flushed down the toilet. That amounts to more than 4 billion gallons of water in the U.S. each day. Conventional toilets generally use 3.5 to 5 gallons (sometimes more) of water per flush, while low-flush toilets use 1.6 gallons of water or less. If you're not building a new home, you can still benefit by installing one of these toilets. Still have an old toilet? You can save more than 1 gallon of water per flush with a displacement device -- a brick or plastic milk jug filled with water or pebbles placed in the toilet tank to reduce the amount of water used per flush. Install flow restrictor aerators - Placing these inside faucets saves 3 to 4 gallons per minute when you turn on the tap. Of course, you can also help out by doing simple things such as not running water in the sink while soaping your face or brushing your teeth. Repair leaks - Fix those leaking and dripping faucets as soon as possible. A dripping faucet can waste up to 20 gallons of water per day. A leaking toilet can waste up to 200 gallons every day. Landscape in tune with the natural environment - If you're landscaping, use plants that are native to your area. Growing native plants can save more than half the water normally used to care for outdoor plants. Raising thirsty plants in arid areas means having to drown them almost daily in gallons of sprinkler or irrigation water. In dry areas, xeriscape landscaping uses plants that need little water, thereby not only saving water and labor, but also preventing pollution from the use of fertilizers. If you must water your lawn, water early or late in the day or on cooler days to reduce evaporation. Allow your grass to grow a bit taller to reduce water loss by providing more ground shade for roots and promoting soil water retention. Use water wisely in everyday activities - Water is wasted more quickly than you might think. An open faucet lets about 5 gallons of water flow every 2 minutes. In the kitchen, you can save between 10 and 20 gallons of water a day by running the dishwasher only when it's full. You can save even more by washing dishes by hand in a sink or dishpan containing water, rather than running the tap continuously as you scrub. Run the clothes washer only when full as well. Taking a shorter shower (turn off the showerhead while soaping) will also save a lot of water. Sweep sidewalks and driveways instead of hosing them down -- washing a sidewalk or driveway with a hose uses about 50 gallons of water every 5 minutes.
Support Organic & Sustainable Farming The Problem Pesticide use -- which has increased 50 percent over the last 30 years -- has been linked to cancer, birth defects, and reproductive problems. NRDC's own studies show that pesticides are among the five worst environmental threats to children's health. In addition, pesticides contaminate water and often poison wildlife. Non-sustainable farming has also been shown to lead to topsoil erosion, toxic runoff from farmland into rivers, lakes, and streams, and decreased biodiversity. What you can do Ask for organic produce - Often, organic produce costs more and is more difficult to get, but many supermarkets and greengrocers are willing to stock organic food if they know customers will buy it regularly. Talk to your friends and neighbors about their willingness to buy organic and then let your produce manager know that many customers are interested. Deal directly with organic food growers and suppliers - If you can't find a local grocer who will stock organic food, contact organic growers and suppliers directly.
Invest Responsibly The Problem Many people want to consider more than just the rate of financial return when investing but don't have the necessary information. Socially responsible investing lets you know that the companies your funds support are not champion polluters, makers of harmful products, or bad corporate citizens.
What you can do
Investigate investment portfolios with a conscience - Socially responsible portfolios have more than tripled since 1995, with more than one in ten dollars invested in the U.S. estimated to be part of such portfolios (some resources to check out include Calvert Group, Pax World Fund and the Coop America Guide). Insist on entrusting your funds to companies that use your personal and social values as a measure when making decisions about where to invest your money.
Act for the Environment The Problem Millions of us feel strongly about a host of issues, but fail to get involved and make our views known to decisionmakers. What you can do Contact your elected representatives - Whether it's on the local, state, or national level, let the people who represent you in government know what you think -- and what you expect -- concerning issues that are important to you. Write, phone, and email your mayor, governor, and state and national legislative representatives to let them know you're watching -- and that you vote. Report the polluters in your community - Do your part to make sure that local industries comply with regulations on discharging waste into air or water, or onto land. Join a local clean water or environmental group that monitors industries and sewage treatment plants that are discharging wastes in your water or air. Familiarize yourself with the procedures for reporting violations to the local and county environmental and health authorities. *****
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