many things..
The Greenhous
9 Air Pollution
..........................................................10
Hazardous Waste
.................................................................... 12Acid
Rain
................................................................................
13 Ozone Depletion
..................................................................... 11
Vanishing Wildlife
................................................................. 14
Groundwater Pollution
........................................................... 15 All That Garbage
................................................................... 16 Saving
Energy and Water. Saving the Earth
................................................................ 17 50 THINGS
TO DO SIMPLE THINGS 1 . Stop Junk Mail
.................................................................. 20 3 . Use a
Clean Detergent ....................................................... 22 5
New Ingredients
................................................................ 24 6 . Tanks.
But No Tanks ......................................................... 25 8 .
Brush Up on Paint .............................................................
27 9 . Time to Re-Tire?
............................................................... 28 11 . Don’t
Go with the Flow .................................................. 32 2 . Snip
Six-pack Rings .......................................................... 21 4
. Aerate Your Faucet
............................................................ 23 7 . Make a
Phone Call ............................................................. 26 18
. Home on the Range .........................................................
30 12 . Gas Station Ecology
......................................................... 33 13 . The Twilight
Ozone ........................................................ 34 14 . Your Gas
Is as Good as Mine .......................................... 36 16 . Attention
Shoppers! ........................................................ 39 15 .
Recharge Your Batteries ................................................... 38
17 . Find the Hidden Toxics ..................................................
40 18 . Leave It A Lawn
.............................................................. 42 19 . Stamp
Out Styrofoam ...................................................... 44 20 .
It’s a Beach ........................................................................
45 2 1 . Buyer Beware
..................................................................... 46 22 .
Pests h Pets
....................................................................... 47 23 .
Make It a Royal Flush .......................................................
48 24 . Airepower Your Shower
................................................... 50 25 . Recycle Motor Oil
............................................................. 52 26 . Tune Up
the Heat ............................................................. 54 28 .
Don’t Let Go
..................................................................... 58 27 .
Light Right ........................................................................
56 IT TAKES SOME EFFORT 29 . Reuse Old News
................................................................ 60 30 .
Recycle Glass
.................................................................... 62 31 .
Don’t Can Your Aluminum ............................................. 64 3 2 .
Precycle
.............................................................................
66 33 . Use Cloth Diapers
............................................................. 68 34 . Put It To
Work ... At Work ............................................... 70 35 .
Recycle the Rest
............................................................... 72 38 . The
Great Escape .............................................................. 76
39 . Plant a Tree .......................................................................
78 40 . Prevent Pests Naturally
..................................................... 80 41 . What a Waste!
.................................................................. 82 42 .
Carpool to Work ...............................................................
84 36 . Build a Backyard Wildlife Refuge .....................................
73 37 . Help Protect the Rainforests
............................................. 74 FOR THE COMMIT’IXD 43 . Start
Composting .............................................................. 86 44
. Install a Graywater Tank ..................................................
88 45 . Drive Less
.......................................................................... 89
46 . Eat Low on the Food Chain ..............................................
90 47 . Start a Recycling Program
................................................ 92 48 . Xeriscape
........................................................................... 93
49 . Stay Involved
.................................................................... 94 50 .
Spread the Word ..............................................................
(. “The greenhouse effect, when functioning normally, keeps our planet warm. Nata
ural gases in the atmosphere form a blanket which allows sunlight to reach the
earth‘s surface, but prevents heat from escaping (much like the glass in a
greenhouse). This gas blanket traps heat close to the surface, and warms the
atmosphere.” --cjlobd Warming: The Qeenhouse Effect Friends of the Earth THE
BAD “For the first time in history, human activities are altering the climate
of our entire planet. In less than two centuries, humans have increased the
total amount of carbon dioxide in the atmos. phere by 25% from the burning of
fossil fuels and the destruction of forests . . .Unless we reduce emissions of
greenhouse gases, the stable, hospitable climate on which civilization is based
could become a thingof the past.” - Cooling the Cjreenhouse, NRDC THE UGLY The
Greenhouse Gases: Carbon Dioxide (C02). Responsible for about 71% of the
greenhouse effect. Every year, people add at least 6 billion tons of it to the
atmosphere (at least 1.5 billion from the U.S.). Main sources of C02: Burning
fossil fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas, and destruction of forestswhich
release C02 when they’re burned or cut down. Chbrofluorocarbons (CFCs) . Not
only responsible for 10% of the global warming, but also destroy the earth‘s
ozone layer. 0 Methane. 9% of the greenhouse effect. Produced by cattle, rice
fields, and by landfills. Nitrous Oxide. Responsible for 3%. Formed by
microbes, breaking down chemical fertilizers, and by burning wood and fossil
fuels. 9 Carbon Monoxide, Ozone, and other gases. Come from ground*based
pollution caused by motor vehicles, power plants, oil refineries. 9 The average
American family produces about 100 Ibs. of trash every week. Clean Air Act
passed, tens of millions of Americans still breathe dirty air. According to the
Environmental Protection Agency, over 76 million people live in areas where the
[clean air1 standard is exInstitute ? imary component of smog, is a gas formed
when nitrogen oxide and hydrocarbons combine in sunlight. In the atmosphere,
ozone occurs naturally as a thin layer that protects us from the sun’s
ultraviolet rays. But when it’s formed at “Cars, trucks, and buses ... are one
of the chief sources of ozone. In 1986, [an astonishingl6.5 million tons of
hydrocarbons and 8.5 million tons of nitrogen oxides were [spewed] into the air
by motor vehicles.. ..Utilities, oil, and chemical plants, are also a large
part of the problem, accounting for approximately half the hydrocarbon
emissions and half the nitrogen oxide emissions in the U.S.” -Exhausting Our
Future, The Public Interest Research Groups. SMOG ALERT “Lung damage from
ozone+ polluted air is a risk faced by roughly 3 out of 5 Americans.
-Exhausting Our Future, The Public Interest Research Groups. “Most people don’t
realize that smog harms other forms of life as well as people. Ozone smog is
responsible for extensive damage to pines in California and in the eastern
United Stat es.... It’s also to blame for crop losses in many agricultural
states.” -The Clean Air Project 10 Americans buy (and throw away) 500 million disposable
cigarette lighters every year. r oz LET UP, up... “High above our heads, a
fragile, invisible layer of ozone shields the earth’s surface against dangerous
solar ultraviolet radiation. The ozone layer has been there for eons.” -The
Natural Resources Defense Council ... AND AWAY “But now man is destroying this
protective shield. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), halons, and other manmade
chemicals are wafting up to the stratosphere, 6 to30 miles overhead. There they
break down, releasing . ..atoms that destroy ozone.” -The Natural Resources
Defense Council WHAT ARE CFCs? “CFCs are put to hundreds of uses because they
are relatively nontoxic, nonflammable, and do not decompose [easily] ...
.Because they are so stable, they will last for up to 150 years. The CFC gases
rise slowly to about 25 miles where the tremendous force of the sun’s
ultraviolet radiation shatters the CFC, freeing the chemical element chlorine.
Once freed, a single atom of chlorine destroys about 100,000 molecules of ozone
before settling to the Earth’s surface years later. Three percent, and perhaps
up to five percent, of the global ozone layer has already been destroyed by
CFCs.” -Curtis A. Moore, International Wildlife magazine WHAT NEXT? “As ozone
diminishes in the upper atmosphere, the earth receives more ultraviolet
radiation, which promotes skin cancers and cataracts, and depresses the human
immune system ... .As more ultraviolet radiation penetrates the atmosphere, it
will worsen these health effects, reduce crop yields and fish populations. It
will affect the wellbeing of every person on the planet.” -WorZdwatch Paper 87,
The Worldwatch Institute , 11 Natural alternatives: Mineral oil works well as a
lubricant on door hinges. HAZARDOUS WASTE GROWING CONCERN “The environmental
impact of the huge amounts of hazardous wastes produced each year has been of
increasing national concem .... In 1983, 266 million tons of hazardous waste
were generated-more than a ton for every person in the United States.” -Wrapped
in Plastics, Environmental Action Foundation WASTE NOT.. . “ Advanced nations
manufacture some 70,000 different chemicals, most of which have not been
thoroughly tested.. ..Careless use and disposal of these substances contaminate
our food, water, and air, and seriously threaten.. . the ecosystems on which we
depend.” -Citizen’s (3uide to Global Issues Coalition for a Global Tomorrow
HASTE MAKES WASTE “Chemicals have become an indispensable part of our daily
lives. We enjoy the con- -” venience of such chemicallyderived products as plastics,
detergents, and aerosols, and yet we are often unaware of the hidden price tag
associated with them. Eventually they find their way into water and / or the
ground via landfills, drains, or sewage sludge. --(iuide to Hazardous Household
Products, The Clean Water Action Project IT COMES BACK TO US “Although
consumers rarely make the connection between the everyday plastics products and
packaging they buy and the growing problem of toxic pollution, many of the
chemicals used in the production and processing of plastics are highly toxic..
.In an EPA ranking of the 20 chemicals whose production generates the most
total hazardous waste, five of the top six are chemicals commonly used by the
plastics industry.” -Wrapped in Plastics, Environmental Action Foundation \ 1L
3 million cars are abandoned in the U.S. every year. ACID RAIN HOW DO WE GET
IT? “Sulfur and nitrogen oxides, pollutants released by coalbuming
electric-power plants or motor vehicles, are spewed into the atmosphere. There
they are changed chemically ... and they fall back to Earth as acidified rain
or snow. This destroys plant and animal life in streams, damages forests, and
even erodes buildings.” -Cleaning Up the Outdoors DROPPING ACID The effect is
staggering. Along the Appalachian Mountain chain, rain is 10 times more acidic
than nearby lower elevations.. .and about 100 times greater than unpolluted
rain. The most acidic rain measured at several eastem mountains is 2,000 times
worse than unpolluted rain water. In fact, it is so acidic that it approximates
lemon juice. -Breathing Easier, The World Resources Institute DON’T JUST SIT
THERE “[we must take1 action.. . soon, for otherwise no forest-not even in the
wildernesses of North Americawill be safe in the future.. . .If we continue
this pollution at the present rate, there will be scarcely any trees left to
wore ry about in only a few decades.” -John Seymour and Herbert Girardet,
Blueprint jbr a eeen Planet HIGHLY CHARGED ARGUMENT “ Sulfur dioxide (SO,?) is
the primary [component of acid raid in most regions, and electric utilities are
responsible for approximately 65% of the total SO2 emissions in the U.S.
Therefore, large reductions in electric utility SO2 emissions [are necessary1
Electricity conservation is one [way to achieve this].” -American Council for
an EnergycEfficient Economy . 13 An estimated 14 billion Ibs. of trash are
dumped into the sea every year. .4 billion people on Earth. In 1990, there wilI
be 5.2 billion. Every day, some of these human beings move into places on the planet
where only plants and animals used to live. Forests are cut down. Wetlands,
oceans, ice caps, GOING, GOING... ‘*Extinctions are accelerating worldwide. Our
planet is now losing up to three species per day. That figure is predicted to
be three species per hour in scarcely a decade. By the year 2000,20% of all
Earth’s species could be lost forever.” -The ~a~~~ ~onse~anc y ... GONE ‘Nearly
all of Africa’s elephants will be gone in 20 years if the present killing rate
continuen“ -Defendem magazine 14 ~~CK~ ge by the dwindling population of North
American ducks, the continent’s wetlands-feeding and breeding grounds for many
waterfowl-must be under severe stress. The US. Fish and Wi~d~ife service
estimates that only 66 million ducks migrated south this past fall (1988), 8
million fewer than tch magazine, Feb. 1989 PROTECTION w popular and charismatic
mammals are receiving adequate concem and protection.. . .It is important to
fight also for less wellknown species.. .particularly insects, fish,
amphibians, reptiles, and plants. Otherwise, we will be allowing crucial pieces
of the fabric that holds ecosystems together to disappear.” Newsletter We throw
away enough iron and steel to supply all of America’s automakers continuously.
LOG “As a nation, we consume 450 billion gallons of water every day.
Ninety-seven percent of the Earth’s supply is contained in our oceans, and 2%
is frozen. We get our water from the 1% that is left, which comes from one of
two places: the Earth’s surface (rivers, lakes and streams) or from..
.groundwater.” --The National Coalition Against Pesticide Use PRECIOUS RESOURCE
“Today nearly 117 million citizens-over one-half of the U.S. population-rely on
groundwater for their source of drinking water .... It is no wonder that the
discovery of groundwater contamination in every state across the country has
generated great concern.” “Groundwater.. .is water that fills the cracks and
pore spates in rocks and sediments ... beneath the surface of the earth. Most
groundwater is naturally pure.. . .In many cases, groundwater remains
undisturbed for years, even centuries, before it is used.. . . More than 90% of
the world’s total supply of drinkable water is groundwater.. . . PROBLE
“Because we have not understood.. .groundwater-or how vulnerable it is-we have
been careless. Gasoline or other harmful liquids have been allowed to leak from
underground storage tanks into the groundwater supply. Pollutants seep.. .from
poorly constructed landfills or septic systems. Groundwater [is] polluted by
runoff from fertilized fields [and] industrial areas. Homeowners contribute to
groundwater contamination by dumping household chemicals down the drain or..
.on the ground.” -The Water Po~~tion Control Federation Using a broom, not a
hose, to clean driveways and steps saves hundreds of dons of water. L THAT
GARBAGE WHAT A DUMP “More than half the cities in America will exhaust their
current landfills by 1990. Already, rising mountains of trash overwhelm.. .town
dumps, and thousands of dumps have been closed for pollution problems.” --State
of the States, 1987, Renew America “America has for a long time taken the
cheapest option in waste disposal: 90% of its rubbish is simply dumped in
landfill sites and buried. But landfill sites are filling up; a third have
closed since 1980. More than half the cities on the east coast will run out of
room by 1990. In New York, 14 sites have closed in the past ten years. All of
Seattle’s sites will soon be full.” -The Economist EOATING GARBAGE “No one
really knows how much plastic is fouling the oceans. But a recent report ...
estimated that up to 350 million pounds of packaging and fishing gear alone may
be lost or dumped by fishermen and sailors each year. Millions of pounds more
may come from individuals, private boats, and factories” -Michael Bowker,
InternaW Wildlife magazine THE WRONG PACKAGE “The burgeoning solid waste
problem reflects a trend in lifestyles.. .that emphasize shopping convenience,
quick preparation and consumption, and easy disposal. Since 1960 the waste
generated by packaging has increased more than 200%.” -Renew America COMMON
SENSE “ Other industrial countries produce half as much trash per person as we
do, and recycle a major portion of it.... The cheapest and safest ways to deal
with trash are those that make common sense: producing less waste and recycling
more.” -1988-89 Annual Report, The Environmental Defense Fund 16 More than 200
million tons of pesticides are used annually in California alone. SAVING ENERGY
AND WATER, SAVING THE EARTH by Karina Lutz, Managing Editor of Home Energy
magazine “Energy efficiency is about getting the same, or better, services fim
less energy by substituting ingenuity for brute force.’’ -Christopher Flavin
and Alan B. Duming fter living through the 1970s, we’re all familiar with the A
sensible home economics and good foreign policy of saving energy. Take
insulation, for example. The argument goes: If we insulate our homes, we’ll
help keep OPEC at bay. Plus, we’ll save so much money on utility bills that
we’ll recoup our investments in a year or two.. .and pocket the change
thereafter. Not a bad argument. But it doesn’t take the environment into
account. As a tesult, many Americans have no idea whether saving energy-or
watermakes an ecological difference. Will a dab of caulk around your drafty
windows really have any effect on our shattered environment? The answer is a
resounding yes. If you bum less oil, coal, or wood, there will be less carbon
dioxide and other greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere, and global
warming will be slowed. If less coal needs to be burned at an electric power
plant, there will be less acid rain, less strip mining, and less air pollution.
If less electricity is needed, there will be less nuclear waste, less uranium
tailings left exposed at mines, less power plants to be built and irradiated,
and less chance of future Chemobyls. Less gasoline burned means less smog and
greenhouse gases. Less oil extracted from the earth means less disruption of
wildlife for drilling, less offshore oil drilling, and less chance for
disastrous oil spills. c 11 About 75% of the water we use in our homes is used
in the bathroom. Similarly, saving water isn’t just something to do in a
drought, when the resource is scarce. Every drop of water wasted is a drop less
of a wild and scenic river, a drop less of a salmon run, a drop more in a dam
filling a glorious valley. Mater conservation also reduces the amount of
chemicals and energy used in water treatment and sewage treatment. It reduces
the amount of energy needed to pump the water to your home or heat the water
once it’s there. And since water heating is generally the second largest energy
user in the home, that’s no small potatoes. That’s not to demean the smaller
potatoes. In terms of what you can do to save the earth, small savings are
certainly beautiful. The Herculean task of shifting our lifestyles back into
balance with the earth is no longer overwhelming when broken down into the
manageable pieces of influence each of us has in our personal lives. The
compact fluorescent light bulb, the low-flow shower head, the energy-efficient
appliance all represent conscious-and valuableefforts to reduce the impact that
human beings will have on the world. And, in fact, the small changes we have
made in the last 15 years have already had a considerable impact on the amount
of energy the United States consumes. When the first energy crisis struck in
1973, even the most ambitious predictions-that we might reduce growth to a 20%
increase in our national utility bill-assumed that we would have to completely
reorder society to accomplish that modest goal. By 1987, we were using 44% less
energy than we would have if we kept frittering it away at the rate we’d grown
accustomed to. And we did it without harsh measures-no frigid indoor temperatures,
abandonment of the automobile, switching off TVs. Conservation, it tu” out,
does not mean “freezing in the dark,” as Ronald Reagan once said. Conservation
can be accomplished by simple, cost-effective measures that require little
change in lifestyle. For people concemed with saving the Earth, that is good
news, indeed. For information about Home Energy magu$w, mate 21 24 Kitwedge
St., #95, Berkeley, CA 94704. That’s hot: The average annual energy bill for
America’s hot tubs is $200 million. 1, STOP UNWANTED TUNK MAIL The “junk mail”
Americans receive daily could produce enough energy to heat 250,000 homes for a
day. €3 ACKGROUND. We don’t usually think of unwanted mail as an environmental
hazard-just a nvisance. But if you saved up all the unwanted paper you’ll
receive in the mail this year, you could have the equivalent of 1-1/2 trees.
And so could each of your neighbors. That adds up to as much as 100 million
trees every year. DID YOU KNOW Americans receive almost 4 million tom of “junk
mail” every year. About 44% of that mail is never even opened or read.
According to recent research, the average American spends 8 months of his or
her life just opening “junk mail.” If only 100,000 families stopped their “junk
mail,” we could save up to 150,000 trees every year. If a million people did,
we could save up to 1.5 million trees. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO 0 Write to: Mail
Preference Service, Direct Marketing Association, 6 East 43rd St., New York, NY
10017. This is a service provided by the mail order industry to let firms know
you want your name removed from their mailing lists. They send out names every
6 months, so it may take a while. It could reduce your junk mail up to 75%; on
the other hand, it may not reduce the mail at all, since compliance is
voluntary. Write to the non-profit groups you contribute to. Ask them not to
rent or exchange your name with other organizations. Recycle the junk mail you
already get: If it’s printed on newsprint, toss it in with the newspapers. If
it’s quality paper, make a separate pile for it-many recycling centers accept
both white and + colored paper. 20 Packaging Mania: About 75% of America’s
glass is used for packaging. 2. SNIP SIX,PACK RINGS During a beach cleanup
along 300 miles of Texas shoreline in 1988, 15,600 plastic six-pack rings were
found in 3 hours. ACKGROUND. Plastic six-pack holders-the rings used for canned
beer, soft drinks, oil, etc.-have become an ocean hazard to birds and other
marine life. How do they get into the water? They’re left on the beach by
careless sunlovers and wash into the ocean; or they’re dumped into our
waterways along with tons of other garbage, and gradually make their way into
the oceans; or they’re dumped into seaside landfills and erosion or wind
propels them into the water. Once they’re floating in the sea, they’re hazards
to marine life. DID YOU KNOW Six-pack holders are virtually invisible
underwater, so marine animals can’t avoid them Gulls and tems-birds that
frequent recreational areas and dumps near the ocean-sometimes catch one loop around
their necks while fishing. Then they snag another loop on a stationary object.
Result: they drown or strangle themselves. Pelicans catch fish by plunging into
the water. Occasionally, one will dive straight into a six-pack ring. Result:
the bird ends up with the ring stuck around its bill; unable to open its mouth,
it starves to death. *Young seals and sea lions get the rings caught around
their necks. As they grow, the rings get tighter, and, the animals suffocate.
Some states now require six-pack rings to be photodegradablewhich means they
break down in sunlight after 30 days-but that doesn’t deal with the short-term
problems. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Before you toss six-pack holders into the
garbage, snip each circle with a pair of scissors. *When you’re on the beach,
pick up any six-pack rings you find and take them with you. Snip (or snap) them
before you throw them away The average U.S. home uses the energy equivalent of
1,253 gallons of oil every year. Over half the phosphates in our lakes and streams
comefim detergents. AC~~~OU~D. Phosphates, chemical compounds containing
phosphorus, are found in most detergents. Manufacturers use them because they
soften water and prevent Unfortunately, there are severe ecological
side-effects: As phosdirt particles from being redeposited on clothes. phates
empty into streams and lakes, they cause “algae bloom”- i.e., they fertilize
algae to the point where it grows out of control. When the algae dies (in its
natural cycle), the bacteria that cause it to decay-a process requiring huge
amounts of oxygen-use up the oxygen needed by other plants and marine life to
survive. The re. sult: Lakes and streams can die. 0 You may be using a
high-phosphate detergent without realizing it. Look on the side of your
detergent box. It will list the amount of phosphorus “in the form of
phosphates.” But that’s not the phosphate content; to get the actual amount,
multiply the percentage of orus by 3. For example: 8% phosphorus = 24%
phosphates. phates aren’t necessary. Many powdered detergents are made rent
formulas-less than 0.5% phosphates for areas where phosphate use is regulated,
and higher percentages where it isn’t. TH[INGS TO DO Use a little less
detergent. According to Conswner Reports magazine, manufacturers recommend more
detergent than necessary. Use a ~o~-phosp~te, or phosphate-free detergent.
Liquid detergents are generally phosphate-free. Use a substitute. If your water
is soft, soap powder will work as well as a detergent. If your water is hard,
you can try a combination of soap and washing soda. But don’t try it until you
get more details. 22 In the U.S., about 70% of all metal is used just
once...and is then discarded. According to stats in Home Energy magazine, we
would save over 250 million gallons of water every day if every American home
inadled faucet aerators ACKGROUND. There’s a simple device you can attach to
the water faucets in your home that will save an amazing amount of water. It’s
called a “low-flow faucet aerator.” FAUCET FACTS e The normal faucet flow is as
much as 3-5 gallons of water per minute (gpm). By attaching a low-flow faucet
aerator, you can reduce the flow by 50%. Incredibly, though the flow is
reduced, it’ll seem stronger because air is mixed into water leaving the tap. e
Installing low-flow aerators on kitchen and bathroom sink faucets will save hot
water. It will also cut water use by as much as 280 gallons per month for a
typical family of 4-over 3300 gallons a year for one family .... So if only
10,000 4-member families installed low-flow aerators, we could still save over
33 million gallons a year. 0 Don’t confuse low-flow faucet aerators with
standard screen aerators (which do not reduce faucet flow rate). Ask your store
clerk if you’re unsure. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Installing an aerator is easy-even
if you’re all thumbs. The ends of most modern faucets unscrew; and that’s where
the aerator attaches. If you have questions, ask a plumber or local hardware
store. They’ll help you. 0 Portable Dishwasher Alert: If you use a portable
dishwasher in your kitchen, don’t install a low-flow aerator on the kitchen
sink faucet; the reduced flow will affect the dishwasher’s performance. SOURCES
Low-flow faucet aerators sell for less than $4 at hardware and plumbing stores
everywhere. c 23 99.5% of all the fresh water on Earth is in icecaps and
glaciers. 5. NEW INGREDIENTS SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Use reusable containers to
store food in your refrigerator instead of habitually wrapping food in aluminum
foil or plastic wrap. Use unbleached coffee filters. They’re available in most
supermarkets. A better altemative: Reusable cotton coffee filters. Keep rags in
the kitchen to wipe up spills instead of using paper towels every time. Then
wash and reuse them. Use biodegradable wax paper to wrap sandwiches instead of
foil or plastic. Or, for sandwich and freezer bag addicts: Biodegmdable,
non-toxic bags made of 100% cellulose. Write to Earth Care Paper Co. Box 14140,
Madison, WI 53714. (608) 277-2920. Note: A variety of kitchen products are also
available by mail from Seventh Generation, Colchester, VT 05446. 1 \
Appliances, heating, and cooling cost the average 24 \ U.S. home over $1000 a
year in energy. If just 25% of American homes used 10 fewer phstic bags a
month, we’d save over 2.5 BILLION bags a year. B ACKGROUND, The kitchen is a
good place to start integrating an environmental consciousness into your every
day life. By substituting environmentally sound kitchen products and practices
for unsound ones, you can help conserve resources ,..and play a part in
changing America’s habits. Some altemative products may cost more, because-at
the moment, anyway-the demand is low. But as more of us buy them, prices will
drop. DID YOU KNOW Your coffee filters, paper towels, etc. are white because
they’re bleached. But this isn’t a benign aesthetic; the process of bleaching
paper is often responsible for creating dioxin, a deadly toxic which has been
dumped into American waterways. * In many cases, paper is bleached despite the
fact we rarely look at it. For example: Americans buy billions of bleached
coffee filters every year, and then throw them away after one use. To make
plastic wrap cling, manufacturers add “plasticizers,” potentially harmful
chemicals that can work their way into your food. 6. TANKS, BUT NO TANKS Water
heaters account for about 20% of all the energy we use in our homes ACKGROUND.
You probably don’t pay much attention B to your water heater; it just sits in a
dark comer gathering cobwebs. But maybe you should. After all, it’s the
secondlargest energy-user in the American home. DID YOU KNOW Many people keep
their water heaters at 140”-hotter than necessary. Not only does that waste
energy by overheating water, but adds to heat loss in the tank and shortens its
life. For every 10” you turn down your water heater, you save 6% of the energy
used. Some experts suggest keeping water heaters at 120”. Others say this may
be risky. Bacteria causing Legionnaire’s Disease can live in hot water heaters;
120” may not be hot enough to kill it. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Tum your water heater
down to 130”-hot enough to kill bacteria and still save energy. Or put it on an
“energy conservation” setting-most modem heaters have them. Note: If you have a
dishwasher without a backup heater, you may have to stay with 140”. Insulate
your water heater with a pre-fab “blanket” (available at most hardware stores),
making sure not to block off air vents (on gas heaters). This step’s important
if it’s in an unheated space, like a basement. You can save 7-8% of the energy
you’ve been using. Every 2 months, drain about 2 quarts of water from the valve
faucet located at the bottom of the tank. This helps prevent accumulation of
sediment and improves efficiency and life of the heater. SOURCES Larry
Weingarten, Elemental Enterprises, PO Box 928, Monterey, CA 93942.
(408)-394-7017. Possibly America’s #I authority on water heaters. He’ll share
his knowledge. A trigger nozzle on your hose will save at least 20 gallons when
you wash your car. Let your fingers do the wa~ng. e e This may be cheating a
little bit-it environment directly-but when you get t as important as this,
it’s good to know the head of one organization told excited about saving cans
and w where to take them?” oint, so we encourage you to do a little research on
your own. Familiarize yourself with some of the subjects we’ll be dealing with
in the book, and check them out locally. You may be surprised at the diversity
of services available. For example: 1 Yo lectric .s Check on availability of
energy audits. Ask about free information (conservation booklets, etc.). water
conservation devices (low-flow shower heads, faucet aerators, etc.), services,
or information they offer. the Yellow Pages; get the information from your
local city government; or call 1-800~CALL. EDF and ask the Environmental Defense
Fund for assistance in locating the nearest center. Ask what materials they
collect, whether they have curbside pickups (and what days), or whether you
need to bring the materials in, where the nearest drop-off centers are, etc.
(see pp. 60-65). ironmental agencies (or groups) Pool (or Van Pool) g /
Electrical Supplies, etc. + Americans use 3 million gallons of paint ewery day.
That’s over a billion gallons every yeur-enough to fill a lake 5 feet deep, 1
mile long, and 1 mile wide. . Everyone faces a painting decision sometime. The
decision should be more than just color, though-what kind of paint you use, and
what you do with it when you’re done, has a direct impact on the environment.
In fact, even cleaning your paintbrushes has an impact. DID YOU KNOW e According
to the San Francisco Household Hazardous Waste Facility, paint and paint
products account for 60% of the hazardous waste dumped by individuals. This
includes oil-based paint, thinners, solvents, stains, and finishes. Pigment in
oil-based paint is often made with heavy metals like cadmium. e Not only is
oil-based paint toxic, but the by-products of manufacturing it are also nasty
pollutants. ‘When a pigment called titanium dioxide is used, for example,
liquid waste containing sulfuric acid, heavy metals, and chlorinated
hydrocarbons is produced. 0 Disposing of any paint by pouring it onto the
ground is risking groundwater contamination. And letting any oil-based paint
products evaporate pollutes the atmosphere; keep the lids on tight. INGS TO e
Use latex paint instead of oil-based paint. e Dispose of excess paint properly.
For oil-based paint: See “Hazardous Waste” on p. 82. Latex paint: Let it
evaporate outdoors, then dispose of the remaining solid waste with normal
garbage. This isn’t a “quick fix”-evaporation could take up to a year. es
safely (latex paint). Don’t wash them outthreaten groundwater. If you’re on a
sewer systo a treatment facility. ange.” ‘Why let your tem, rinse them in a
sink; the waste will left-over paint go to waste, when someone else could use
it? Another alternative: Donate extra paint to a school. Participate in a co
for 1/3 of the raw materials used for aU purposes in the United States. IME TO
REHTIRE? Every two weeks, Americans wear almost 50 million pounds of rubber off
their tires. That’s enough to make 3-114 million new tires from scratch.
AGKGROUND. Tires have a bigger impact on the environment than you might think.
By maintaining them properly, you help conserve the energy and resources that
would go into making new ones, prevent the pollution generated by tire
production, save gasoline, and reduce the problems created when we throw them
away. (They’re bulky, don’t decompose, and provide places for mosquitoes to
breed.) TIRE TRIVIA 0 Some 240-260 million tires are discarded annually in the
U.S. In fact, right now there are billions of tires clogging landfill space all
over the country. 0 Some landfill operators don’t even accept scrap tires.. .or
they charge more because tires often don’t stay buried-they trap gas and float
to the top of landfills. 0 In New York state alone, tires take up an estimated
half-million cubic yards of landfill space each year. 0 It takes half a barrel
of crude oil to produce the rubber in one truck tire. THE COST OF INFLATION We
don’t normally think of tire inflation as an environmental issue, but it is.
Keeping tires properly inflated preserves the life of the tires (preventing
premature wear from “overflexing” and overheating), and saves gas. 0 Right now,
there are more than half a billion tires being used in the U.S. It is estimated
that an incredible 50% to 80% of them are underinflated. 0 Since underinflation
can waste up to 5% of a car’s fuel by increasing “‘rolling resistance,” this
means that more than 65 million car owners could substantially boost their
cars’ fuel efficiency by simply putting more air in their tires. How much gas
could we save with this simple step? Up to 2 billion gallons a year. 28 I
Annually, America produces the equivalent of 10 Ibs. of plastic for every
person on earth. THE RADIAL DIFFERENCE Radial tires really do improve gas
mileage. Steel-belted tires are generally the most efficient. If all cars in
the U.S. were equipped with the most efficient tires possible, the fuel savings
would equal 400,000 barrels of oil per day. RECYCLING TIRES Tire recycling is
still a fairly untapped area. But it’s a promising one. The energy used to
produce a pound of virgin rubber is 15,700 BTUs. Producing one pound of
recycled rubber requires only 4,600 BTUs-a savings of 7 1%. Recycled rubber can
be used for tires, adhesives, wire and pipe insulation, brake linings, conveyor
belts, carpet padding, lawn mower and tractor tires, hoses, sporting goods, and
many other products. Ground rubber “crumbs” can be added to asphalt for paving
roads, runways, playgrounds and running tracks. Rubber added to asphalt will
increase pavement life by 4 or 5 times, and reduce the amount of resurfacing
materials required. Most tires produced today contain less than 10% recycled
rubber, which could easily be increased to 30%. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Buy the
longest-lasting, most fuel-efficient tires possible. Ask your tire dealer about
the “rolling resistance” and the mileage performance of the tires you’re
considering buying. Make sure your tires are properly inflated, balanced, and
(every 6-8,000 miles) rotated. If you have a choice between tire dealers
offering roughly equal prices, and one recycles, patronize the recycler. At
least, ask what the dealer does with old tires; if they’re not recycled, see if
it’s possible in your area to take them to a tire recycling center. Support
local and regional efforts to recycle tires, to use more recycled rubber in
tires, and to convert discarded tires into energy. SOURCES Tire Industry Safety
Council, P.O. Box 1801, Washington, DC 20013. Offers a $4.00 “glove compartment
tire safety and mileage kit.” It includes an air pressure gauge, a treead-depth
gauge, four tire vdve caps, and a 1 2-page “Consumer Tire Guide. ” 29 At the
rate we’re generating garbage, we’ll need 500 new dumps every year. E RANGE
America’s refrigerators consume 7% of the nation’s total electricity- the
equivalent of more than 50% of the power generated by dl of our nuclear power
plants. ACKGROUND. Energy specialists repeatedly stress that we can have a significant
impact on the environment simply by properly maintaining major appliances like
refrigerators, stoves, air-conditioners, etc. That’s easy to say-but most of us
don’t know how. Here are a few examples of the simple ways you can save with
your appliances. But there’s lots more to learn. Write to the American Council
for an Energy-Efficient Economy (see Sources) for info. DID YOU KNOW 0 If all
consumers raised the settings of their air conditioners by 6 degrees, we could
save the energy equivalent of 190,000 barrels of oil every day. 0 More than 25%
of the average city apartment dweller’s electrical costs can go for
refrigerators. 0 Washing machines use about 14% of water consumed at home. 9
Microwave ovens use only 1/3 to 1/2 as much energy as conventional ovens.
Toaster ovens are more energy-efficient, too. STOVE / OVEN TIPS 0 If you’re
buying a gas stove: An electronic ignition system will use about 40% less gas
than a pilot light 0 The pilot light and burner should be burning with a blue
coneshaped flame. If it’s yellow, burners and ports are clogged or need
adjustment. Pipe-cleaners work well for unclogging the gas ports. ITIONING TIPS
0 Don’t switch your air conditioner to a colder setting when you turn it on. It
won’t cool the room any faster and will waste energy. 0 Clean or replace the
filters once a month. Otherwise the fan has to work harder and consumes more
electricity. 30 Packaging Mania: About 50% of paper in the U.S. is used solely
for packaging. REFRIGERATOR TIPS If your refrigerator and freezer are 10”
colder than necessary, your energy consumption will increase up to 25%. Check
the temperatures of yours: It should be between 38” and 42”; the freezer should
be 0” to 5”. For efficient operation: Clean the condenser coils on the back or
bottom of your refrigerator at least once a year. (There’s a special brush you
can buy, or you can just vacuum it.) Keep the door gasket clean to make sure
the seal isn’t being broken by dried-on food. WASHER & DRYER TIPS You’ll
save a lot of water if you wait till you’ve got a full load of wash. Washers
use 32 to 59 gallons of water for each cycle. Up to 90% of the energy used for
washing clothes goes to heating the water. A warm water wash and a cold rinse
will work just as well as a hot water wash and a warm rinse on nearly all
clothes. (The temperature of the rinse doesn’t affect cleaning.) e Clean your
dryer’s lint trap after every load to keep the air circue lating efficiently.
RESULTS The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy estimates that if each
of us increases the energy efficiency in our major appliances by 10 to 30%,
we’ll reduce the demand for electricity by the equivalent of 25 large power
plants! SOURCES Q As we mentioned earlier, your local electric utility is
probably a good source of information on energy conservation. Most utilities
have literature dealing with the tips listed kre-ofien in more detailand many
provide low-cost home energy audits. Q The American Council for an
Energy-Efficient Economy, 1001 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 535, Washington,
D.C. 20036. They have the most comprehensive information we’ve found on
appliance efficiency and purchasing new appliances. Recommended heartily:
Booklets entitled “The Most Energy-Efficient Appliances)’ and 2 “Saving Energy
and Money With Home Appliances.” Each is $3. 31 A pine cone stuffed with peanut
butter is a good way to feed birds during the winter. 11. DON’T GO WITH THE
FLOW You could take a shower every day with the water you might waste by
letting the tap run while you shave and hush your teeth. ACKGROUND. Even if you
don’t do it, you probably know someone who leaves the water running while
brushing I3 his /her teeth, shaving, or washing the dishes. As water
conservation goes, that’s not just a drop in the bucket. A household might save
up to 20,000 gallons of water each year by getting a grip on its faucets. DID
YOU KNOW: 0 A running faucet probably uses more water than you think-as much as
3-5 gallons of water every minute it’s on. You can use up to 5 gallons of
water-or more-if you leave the tap running while you brush your teeth. Washing
dishes with the tap running can use an average of 30 gallons of water. If you
shave with the water on, you use an estimated 5-10 gallons each time. If you
wash your car at home, using a hose, you can use up to 150 gallons of water.
SIMPLE THINGS TO DO: Brushing your teeth: If you just wet and rinse your brush,
you use only 112 gallon of water. Savings: Up to 9 gallons each time you brush.
Shaving: If you fill the basin, you use only 1 gallon of water. Savings: Up to
9 gallons each time you shave. Washing dishes (by hand): If you fill a basin,
you use about 5 gallons of water. Savings: Up to 25 gallons each time you wash
dishes. Washing your car: If you wash it at a self-service car wash, you use 5-10
gallons. If you use a sponge, a bucket, and a hose with a shutoff nozzle, you
use 15 gallons. Savings in each case: Over 100 gallons 32 c Astonishing water
fact: To produce one pat of butter, 100 gallons of water is required. 12. GAS
STATION ECOLOGY According to the Massachusetts Audubon Society, one gallon of
gasoline can contaminate 750,000 gallons of drinking water. ACKGROUND. Many
Americans don’t realize that the B type of gas we choose-and the way we pump
it-has an impact on the environment. IT’S A GAS Leaded gas is an environmental
hazard. Airborne lead from vehicle exhaust causes liver, kidney, and brain
damage in humans. And scientists suspect that it’s responsible for damaging
crops as well. According to one estimate, more than half the 450,000 tons of
lead released into the air every year comes from cars. So who uses leaded gas?
According to the EPA, about 20% of the drivers whose cars are made for unleaded
gas use leaded gas anyway. This not only renders the anti-smog equipment
ineffective-so more pollutants are poured into the air-but ruins their cars,
too. Owners of pre-1976 cars often believe their vehicles must use leaded gas.
The EPA says that’s a myth-it’s the octane rating, not the lead, that’s
important. The only exceptions, they note, are when the cars are carrying heavy
loads or traveling at high speeds. If your car was made to use leaded premium,
try a mix of half regular and half unleaded premium with a 92+ Octane rating.
DON’T FUME ABOUT IT Butane, a component of gasoline, helps create ozone smog
when it evaporates. So when you fill your gas tank, the escaping vapors are
polluting the atmosphere. The plastic hoods you see on many gas pump nozzles
are actually vapor controls. The special gas hose fits over the tank opening
and sucks fumes into the underground storage tank, preventing the vapors from
escaping. More and more states are requiring gas stations to install this
vapor-control equipment. So if there’s a vapor catcher, don’t pull if back, and
don’t pull out the gas nozzle to top off the tank. That’s what lets the gas
vapors into the atmosphere and creates smog \ 33 Don’t forget: You can wash out
plastic bags and reuse them. T According to the NRDC, “Leaky auto air
conditioners are the single largest source of CFC emissions to the atmosphere
in the U.S.” . Rectifying ozone depletion (see p. 11) is one of the greatest
challenges we will ever face. The problem is immediate and severe, but it’s not
out of control yet. The ozone layer is still there, and we can save it. causing
the depletion, and what each of us can do about it. Constructive action begins
with an understanding of what’s being depleted by manmade gases
(chlorofluorocarbons-also called CFCs-and halons) that are found in homes and
offices all over the world. 0 At one time, CFCs were considered harmless. So
manufacturers used them in many different products. 0 They’re still being used
today. Freon, used as a coolant in car and residential air conditioning and
refrigerators, is a CFC. 0 Some types of polystyrene foam (which people often
refer to as “styrofoam”) are still made with CFCs. Contrary to what you might
assume, CFCs aren’t just released in the manufacturing process; they’re also
released into the atmosphere as the foam breaks or crumbles. So the “styrofoam”
cooler you took to a picnic last week could be contributing to destruction of
the ozone layer right now. 0 For many years, CFCs were commonly used as
propellants in aerosol cans. However, in 1978, the Federal government passed a
law banning most of them from aerosol cans. 0 Nonetheless, 10% of aerosols
still use CFCs as propellants. For example: asthma medication sprays and
cleaning sprays for VCRs and sewing machines. And according to NRDC, “the
world’s silliest use of CFCs” is canned confetti. Some fire extinguishers sold
for the home use halons as propellants. Unfortunately, these halons will
eventually attack the ozone layer, even if the fire extinguishers are never
used. Why? The LA residents drive 142 million miles-the distance from Earth to
Mars- every single day. ozone-depleting gases gradually leak into the
atmosphere. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Don’t buy halsn fire extinguishers. e Avoid
polystyrene foam (see p. 44). This includes form-fitting packing materials
(like the materials that protect electronics in boxes during shipping),
coolers, and foam “peanuts.” If you can’t tell whether the foam was made with
CFCs, ask. Eventually, retailers will pass on your concern to manufacturers. 0
If you’re planning to use hard foam insulation, make sure there are no CFCs in
it. Non-CFC foam insulation is available. It’s nearly as effective, and won’t
make a hole in the sky. Check out fiberglass and cellulose insulation, too. Be
careful with car air-conditioners. If you feel you must have a/c, the NRDC
suggests: “When your aireconditioner breaks, don’t just refill it; get it fixed
properly .... If you don’t fix the leak, the CFCs put in today just go into the
air next week.” The NRDC also suggests that you only patronize repair shops
that use CFC recycling equipment. Otherwise, the CFCs removed from your air
conditioner are allowed to evaporate into the atmosphere. Don’t buy aerosol
cans containing CFCs (see list below). Better yet: don’t use aerosols at all.
Even with substitute gases, aerosol sprays aren’t benign; propane and butane,
the hydrocarbons used as propellants in most aerosols today, help create smog
when they interact with sunlight. Lots of products come with non-aerosol vacuum
pumps. They don’t need gases, and they’re just as easy to use. SAY IT DON’T
SPRAY IT! If you’re still buying aerosols, always try to check the labels.
Don’t buy anything if the following CFCs or halons are listed: CFC-11
(Trichlorofluoromethane), CFC-12 (Dichlorodifluoromethane), CFC-113
(Trichlorotrifluoroethane), CFC-114 (Dichlorotetrafluoroethane), CFC-115
(Monochloropentafluoroethane). SOURCES Natural Resources Defense Council, 40 W.
20th St., New York, NY 10011. Write for their inoraldk pamphlet, “Saving the
Ozone layer: A Citizen Action Guide.” It includes a hundy “Stratospheric m
Distress Card” to carry in YOUT wdlet for checking labels in stores. 35
Earthesaving tip: When you buy new appliances, go for the most energyefficient
models. 14. YOUR GAS IS AS GOOD AS MINE There are over 140 million cars in the
US. According to the DOT, each is driven an average of 10,000 miles annually
-u~hich means that Americans drive more than a trillion miles every year.
ACKGROUND. We all know that cars have a serious im- B pact on the
environmentbut because we depend on them in our daily lives, it’s unrealistic
to suggest that people stop driving altogether. (See p. 89 for suggestions on
driving less) Don’t despair. Even if you drive every day, there’s something
simple you can do to help the earth: Make sure your car is running as
efficiently as possible. Getting good gas mileage isn’t just a matter of
economics; a fuel-efficient vehicle is actually less destructive to our planet
than a gas hog. DID YOU KNOW Autos and light trucks emit 20% of this country’s
fossil fuel carbon dioxide (C02)- the key ingredient in the “greenhouse
effect.” The amount of C02 a car emits is directly related to the amount of gas
it uses. Cars give off 20 lbs. of C02 for every gallon of gas consumed. So a
car that gets 18 mpg will emit a ton of C02 every 1800 miles. By comparison, a
car that gets 27 mpg will emit 2/3 of a ton-33% less-in the same distance. Cars
also cause acid rain by emitting 34% of the nitrogen oxide spewed out in the
US. That’s more than 7 million tons every year-a figure that can be reduced by
burning less gasoline. And cars emit 27% of the hydrocarbons that cause
tree-killing, lung-damaging ozone smog. Again, this is directly related to the
amount of fuel consumed. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Keep Your Car Tuned Up. It’s the
easiest way to make your car more fuel efficient. A well-tuned car uses up to
9% less gasoline than a poorly tuned car. That means 9% fewer toxic emissions.
Keep track of your gas mileage. So if there’s a sudden drop, you can catch it
and get the problem fixed quickly. \ 36 To keep your drain clean: put a handful
of baking soda and 1/2 cup of vinegar SIMPLE GAS SAVERS Don’t let your car idle
unnecessarily. It takes less gas to start a car than it takes to let it idle.
Idling become less efficient than restarting your car after about a minute.
Keep fuel filters clean. Clogged filters use more gas. Stay light. Check to see
whether you’re hauling around unnecessary weight (we mean in your car).
Surprisingly, an extra 100 pounds will decrease your fuel economy by more than
1%. IF YOU’RE BUYING A NEW CAR: e Check the specs. Get the latest EPA Gas
Mileage Guide to check the fuel economy figures and compare specifications. 0
Keep fuel efficiency in mind. Remember: a car that gets 28.5 mpg (the standard
for 1989 cars) will emit 15-20 tons less C02 in its lifetime than the average
car on the road today. You can now buy cars (e.g., the Geo Metro) that get
almost 55 mpg-and some prototypes (the Toyota AXV) have gotten up to 100 mpg.
Is an air conditioner really necessary? It’s an ecological disaster. In
addition to directly contributing to the greenhouse effect, and to ozone
depletion by leaking CFCs, an air conditioner adds to the weight of a car-so it
uses extra gas even when it’s not running. 0 Weigh options carefully. Optional
equipment like power steering and automatic transmissions need a lot of energy
to run. Other extras like electric motor-driven windows or power brakes don’t
use as much, but still add to a car’s weight and reduce fuel economy. RESULTS
Little things help: For example, if only 100,000 car owners who’d neglected
tuneups started getting their cars tuned up regularly, some 90 million lbs. of
C02 could be kept out of the atmosphere every year. A million car owners
(that’s less than 1 %-remember, there are 140 million cars in the US. alone)
could eliminate nearly a billion lbs. of C02. SOURCES Gas Mileage Guide.
Consumer Information Center, Pueblo, CO 81009. This free, annual Degt. of
Energy / EPA publication will tell you the gas mikage you can expect from each
make and model of car. It even estimutes what your gas bill will be. down the
drain and cover tightly for one minute. Rinse with hot water. Americas use 2
bi~lion disposable batten‘es every yeur-enough to run close to a billion toys
with “Butteries Not Included.” e It’s hard to imagine that the little batteries
you use m your flashlight, radio, or camera could have any effect on the
environment at all. But household batteries contain heavy metals. The most
prevalent is mercury, a highly toxic substance that has become a major source
of contamination at some hazardous waste dumps. Another is cadmium. Batteries
that are thrown out with the garbage are taken to landfill sites, where they
corrode and break apart, releasing mercury or cadmium into the soil. And
batteries that are incinerated with garbage release dangerous mercury or
cadmium into the air. e to mercury can not only make people extremely sick, but
can even affect behavior. In the 1600’s hatmakers who used mercury to treat
felt and fur began acting strangely. Since no one knew that the hatters were
showing the effects of mercury poisoning, it was assumed they were just crazy.
Hence the expres- , “mad as a hatter.” And Alice’s Mad Hatter. About 50% of the
mercury and 25% of the cadmium used in the .S. goes into batteries. s used in
the U.S. are the alkae+ The average annual use of mercury in batteries exceeds
the federal limits on mercury allowed in garbage by 4 times. 0: atteries.
Although they do contain cadmium, much longer than alkaline batteries-thus they
contribute ss to our hazardous waste problem. If it’s possible in your area,
recycle alkaline batteries. Although not widely employed, the technology to
extract mercury and other metals from batteries for reuse does exist. Support
it by recycling. 38 About 40% of all battery sales are made during the
Christmas season. According to Save A Tree, it takes one IS-to-2O-year-old tree
to make enough paber for only 700 grocery bags. ACKGRQUND. We take it for
granted that every time we go shopping, a store clerk will put our purchases in
a bag. But do we really need the billions of bags we use annually? PAPER OR
PLASTIC? e Plastic shopping bags are often more convenient than paperbut
they’re not degradable (even the “biodegradable” plastic bags never completely
disappear-they just break up into little pieces), and all plastic is made from
petroleum, a nonrenewable resource. 0 Plastic bags often wind up in the ocean
and kill marine animals that get tangled up in them or swallow them. 0 The ink
used on plastic bags may contain cadmium, a toxic heavy metal. So when printed
plastic bags are incinerated, heavy metals may be spewed into the air. 0 Paper
Bags are reusable and biodegradable, but don’t come ecologically cheap, either.
Supermarket bags, for example, are often made from virgin paper because, manufacturers
say, heavy loads require the long fibers in virgin pulp. Check the printing on
a supermarket shopping bag-it might say “recyclable,” but it rarely says
“recycled.” ce before taking any bag if your purchase is small. If every
American shopper took just one less bag each month, we could save hundreds of
millions of bags every year. 0 Even better, bring a cloth bag when you shop.
For $9, you can order a large washable ca ing bag with ‘Save A Tree” on the
side. Save A Tree, 862, Berkeley, CA 94701. 0 For grocery shopping, use string
bags. They’re easy to carry and fold up conveniently. You get 4 grocery-sized
bags for $16.95, from Seventh Generation, Co~chester, 39 In 1987, America
produced over 50 billion pounds of plastic. 17. FINDTHE IDDEN TOXICS There are
more chemicals in the average American home today than there were in the
average chemical Iaboratoy 100 years ago. ACKGROUND. Just because you bought
something at a store doesn’t mean it’s safe. There are a surprising amount of
toxics in your home, hidden in everything from oven and drain cleaners to
personal care products. They are a hazard-not only to you and your family when
they’re used, but to the environment when they’re first manufactured.. .and
when they’re finally disposed of. What makes these products particularly
insidious is the fact that billions of dollars are spent every year to convince
us they’re necessary and will enhance our lives-when in fact they’re dangerous.
Happily, there are many inexpensive, easy-to-use, natural alternatives that you
can substitute for common commercial chemical products. It just takes a little
detective work to figure out which products YOU need to replace. ELEMENTARY, MY
DEAR CONSUMER 0 Don’t assume a product is toxic-free just because there are no
toxics listed on the label. The government doesn’t require manufacturers to
list every ingredient if it doesn’t violate “federal safety standards.” Baby
powder, for example, often contains asbestos. And traces of pesticides have
been found in sh.ampoos. 0 Labelling a product “nontoxic” can be misleading.
“Manufacturers may place the word ‘nontoxic’ on their label simply by meeting
the federal regulatory definition,” explains Making the Switch. “This can mean,
for example, that if less than 50% of lab animals die within two weeks when
being exposed to the product through ingestion or inhalation, the product can
be called ‘nontoxic.’ ’’ SWLE THINGS TO DO Find the Hidden Toxics: * The
easiest way is to refer to books like The Nontoxic Home or Making the Switch.
Be prepared for a shock; you’ll find it hard to believe there are so many toxic
chemicals in your home. 40 Coffee Alert: According to Debra Lynn Dadd,
pesticides banned in the U.S. are Buy or make alternative products If you use
altematives to toxics, you reduce the risk to your family and the environment.
Here are a few examples, just to whet your appetite. For more details, check
the sources below. Toxic: Permanent-press clothes and noeiron bed linens.
According to The Nontoxic Home, these are treated with formaldehyde resin,
“applied in such a way that it becomes a permanent part of the fiber.’’ The
result: toxic fumes. Alternative: Natural fibers whenever possible. Toxic: Oven
Cleaners. Contain lye. Alternative: Sprinkle water, followed by layers of
baking soda. Rub gently with very fine steel wool pads for tough spots. Toxic:
Air Fresheners. They don’t actually “freshen” air-rather, they deaden your
nasal passages or coat them with oil. May contain chemicals like xylene,
ethanol, naphthalene, etc. Alternative: Herbal mixtures or vinegar and lemon
juice. Toxic: Mothballs. “Made from 100% paradichlorobenzene,” which is harmhl
to your liver and kidneys. Alternative: Herbal products that act as repellents,
cedar chips or cedar oil. Toxic: Permanent-ink pens and markers. Contain harmhl
solvents like toluene, xylene, ethanol. Alternative: Water-based markers and
pens. SOURCES “Making the Switch: Alternatives to Using Toxic Chemicals in the
Home.” Send $6 to: Publication Dept., Local Govemment Commission, 909 12th St.,
Suite 205, Sacramento, CA 95814 Nontoxic and Natural, and The Nontoxic Home, By
Debra Lynn Dadd. Cost: $11.95. Available in bookstores, or directly from the
author at P.O. Box 1506, Mill Valley, CA 94942. She also puts out a
product-miented newsletter called “The Earthwise Consumer.” Write The Household
Hazardous Waste Project, Box 87,901 South National Ave., Springfield, MO 65804.
(417) 836-5777. Send $8 for their excellent book, The &ide to Hazardous
Pralucts Around the Home. The “recipes” for most alternative products in their
book have been tested by Southwest Missouri State University. for details. c 41
ihippd to coff eesrowing countries and used on coffee 1 that’s ‘sent back here.
Drink O@G e IT A LAWN An acre of lawn needs more than 27,000 gallons of water
every week. But Amen’cans use even more than that; we routinely owewater our
lawns by 20 to 40%. ACKGROUND. Lawn care isn’t something you normally associate
with saving the Earth. But when you consider that there are an estimated 20
million acres of lawn-and some 600 trillion grass plants-in the U.S., you can
see the impact that watering, fertilizing, and mowing them might have. ly sound
ways of taking care of it. If you have a lawn, it’s worthwhile to learn a few
environmentalMOW, MOW, MOW Some Mower Facts: e Set your mower blades high.
Don’t be a victim of “golf course syndrome.” Many Americans believe a healthy
lawn looks like a manicured golf course; but the opposite is true. For most
types of grass, the proper length is 2” to 3“ high. This encourages longer,
healthier roots, and provides natural shade for the ground around each
plant-which enables it to retain moisture in the soil. Keep mower blades sharp.
Dull blades tear grass (instead of clean+ ly cutting it), weakening the plants,
and making them more susceptible to weeds and disease. Grass Clippings: e “Cut
it high and let it lie.” During dry periods, leave grass cuttings on the lawn.
This works well if you keep grass long and cut small amounts each time.
Cuttings will serve as a moistureretentive mulch and a natural fertilizer. At
other times, use grass clippings and other lawn and garden waste to make a
compost pile. It will provide your garden with natural mulch and fertilizer
-and help reduce contributions to your local landfill. (See p. 86) FILL ’ER UP
0 Most established lawns need about 1” of water a week, applied slowly to
prevent runoff. This is considerably more effective than Artificial color is
added to the feed of co&ercial, egg-laying hens to color their yolks. c 42
shorter, more frequent sprinklings. 0 How can you tell if it’s an inch? Put 3
cans around the area you’re sprinkling, at varying distances from the
sprinkler. Check them every five minutes to see how long it takes for an inch
of water to accumulate in each. Add the 3 times together, and divide by 3 to
get an average. That’s how long to water. Watering Tips: Due to outdoor
watering, water use in America increases by as much as 30% in the summer
months. Water from sprinklers evaporates 4 -8 times faster during the heat of
the day than in the early moming. Watering at night is better than
midday-there’s no evaporation problem-but it can cause fungus in the grass
plants. Best choice: water in the moming. In a drought, don’t waste water on
grass beginning to turn brown, It’s dormant and will revive after normal
rainfall begins again. ABOUT PESTICIDES * Homeowners use up to 10 times more
toxic chemicals per acre than farmers. The average homeowner uses 5 to 10
pounds per lawn-for a national total of some 25 to 50 million pounds! Many
scientists believe these chemicals endanger the songbird population (by
contaminating the worms they eat), as well as polluting groundwater. A green,
healthy lawn is possible without chemical pesticides. (See Source below)
RESULTS * If every lawnowner composted grass clippings, we could cut the
landfill congestion by a whopping 18% during summer and spring. Avoiding
overwatering can save about 12% of a homeowner’s water use during the summer-an
average of over 50 gallons a week. If 100,000 lawnowners do it, 5 million
gallons are saved. If even 10% of lawnowners began using organic pesticides, it
would remove 2.5 to 5 million pounds of toxic chemicals from the environment
every year. SOURCE The ChemicacFree Lam, by Warren Schultz (Rodale Press,
1989). 113 of the paper ds in the U.S. use waste paper exclusively. 19STAMP OUT
“STYROFOAM” Americans produce enough “Styrofoam” cups every year to circle the
earth 436 times. ACKGROUND. What we think of as “styrofoam” is B actually
polystyrene foam. This material is made from benzene (a known carcinogen),
converted to styrene, and then injected with gases that make it a “foam”
product. The gases often used are CFCs-which “eat” ozone molecules, depleting
the Earth’s vital ozone layer. The alternatives to CFCs at present aren’t
wonderful. One is HCFC-95% less damaging than CFCs, but still a threat to the
ozone layer. Others are pentane and butane, hydrocarbons that contribute to
urban smog. So non-CFC foam merely trades one kind of environmental problem for
another. IT’S GARBAGE Polystyrene foam is completely non-biodegradable; it just
won’t go away. Even 500 years from now, that foam cup that held your coffee
this morning might be sitting on the Earth‘s surface. Because of its very
structure-containing large amounts of airall “styrofoam”-regardless of how it’s
made-takes up a lot of space for its weight. This means it wastes enormous
amounts of precious space at already-bulging landfills. Polystyrene foam is
deadly to marine life. It floats on ocean surfaces, breaks up into pellets
resembling food, and is consumed. When sea turtles, for example, eat
“Styrofoam,” its buoyancy keeps them from diving; it clogs their systems and
they starve to death. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO There is no such things as “safe”
polystyrene foam. Don’t use it. Avoid foam packaging in egg cartons, disposable
picnic goods, etc. If you eat at fast food restaurants, ask for paper cups and
plates. SOURCE Local Solutions to Global Pollution, 2121 Bonar St, Berkeley, CA
94702. For information, send a self-addressed, stamped enwelope. 44 d Don’t
leave puddles of antifreeze on your garage floor-pets like the sweet taste of
the toxic. . 20. IT’S A BEACH A US. Fish and Wildllfe survey of albatross
babies found 90% with plastic in their digestive systems. ACKGROUND. Our oceans
provide most of the planet’s B oxygen, moisture, and weather patterns. As the
Oceanic Society says, “Without healthy oceans, life as we know it would
end”-yet we’ve treated them as if they were expendable. help focus attention on
the problem, and clean up a little part of the planet that needs some loving
care. You can adopt a beach. You can’t save the ocean by yourself.. .but you
can get involved, DID YOU KNOW Every year on September 23, the Center for
Marine Conservation sponsors a nationwide 3-hour beach clean-up. It’s
remarkably effective. In 1987, in Texas alone, volunteers collected: 31,773
plastic bags, 30,295 plastic bottles, 15,631 plastic six-pack rings, 28,540
plastic lids, and 1,914 disposable diapers. Around the nation, the volunteer
clean-up crew picked up a total of 2 million pounds of debris.. .in 3 hours!
Taking plastic off the beach saves lives. Plastic fishing gear, bags, and other
plastic waste kill up to a million seabirds, 100,000 sea mammals, and countless
fish each year-and it’s getting worse. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Next time you go to
the beach, bring a trash bag. Then spend a few minutes picking up any litter
you find. Join the National Beach Clean-up. Call the Center for Marine
Conservation (below) for information on how to organize a group at your local
beach. They’ll provide standardized data cards and beach clean-up guides. You
have to provide the commitment. SOURCES Center for Marine Conservation, 1725
DeSales St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20036. (202) 429-5609. The Oceanic Society,
218 D St. SE,, Washington, DC, 20003. (202) 328-0098. . 45 I Americans spend $6
billion on their lawns every year. E 80% of all iwory is taken from elephants
that are illegally hunted and killed4 30% of it is bought by A”S. . This is a
short page on a huge subject. ring 10% of all species of life on Earth are
endangered. In the quest for more profits, we’re even threatening cherished
creatures like elephants and dolphins. As a consumer, your purchases are your
power. Use it to protect wildlife. ID YOU Q Ten years ago, there were 1.5
million elephants in Africa. Today-largely because they’re being slaughtered
for ivory-there are only 750,000. The elephant may become extinct by the year
2000. Q More than 6.5 million dolphins have needlessly been killed by tuna
fisherman. Using circular “purse seine’’ nets up to 3/4 miles long, some
fishermen have surrounded an entire school of tuna, drawn the net closed at the
bottom and pulled it aboard. Anything caught in the nets has died. Dolphins,
which travel with yellowfin tuna, have been hauled in and slaughtered en masse.
e Don’t buy ivory-not for any reason, under any circumstances; don’t buy
tortoiseshell, coral, reptile skins, cat pelts, or other products from
endangered animals or plants. 0 Check to make sure the tuna you buy is labelled
“dolphin-safe” -or don’t buy it. And write to Congress to support a bill that
will require tuna to be labeled “dolphin-safe,” or “dolphin-unsafe,” so
consumers will have a choice to ‘Gote” for protecting dolphins. roups to find
out what else you can do: Fund, 1250 24th St. NW, Washington, D.C. ne
Conservation, 1725 DeSales St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20036. Q Earth Island
Institute Dolphin Project, 300 Broadway #28, San Francisco, CA 94133. (415)
788-3666. h 46 Wow much garbage w you generate in your lifetime? About 600
times your adult weight 22. TS There are over 100 million dogs and cats in
America. ACKGROUND. Of course, you don’t want your dogs or cats to have fleas;
but you don’t want them to wear dangerous pesticides around their necks,
either-especially since manufacturing and disposing of these products can
threaten the environment, and create long term health risks for all of us.
Fortunately, there are effective alternatives. DID YOU KNOW 0 The sheer numbers
of flea collars used and thrown away every year-an estimated 50 million-make
them a potent force. 0 The pesticide on some flea collars finds its
effectiveness in permanent nerve damage. The pet absorbs the chemical into its
system until its tissue reeks of the toxin, and paralyzes the bugs. 0 Chemicals
found in pet collars include: Piperomylbutoxide (prolonged exposure can cause
liver damage), DDVP (dichlorvos, which, according to Harrowsmith magazine, “can
cause cancer, nerve damage and mutations in animals”), and carbaryl (which “may
cause birth defects in dogs”). FLEE, FLEAS Some flea-collar alternatives: You
can buy citrus-oil sprays at pet stores. Or if you’re really ambitious, make
your own: Run orange or grapefruit skins through a food blender or processor,
then simmer with some water. After the pulp is cooled, brush into your pet’s
fur with your hands. Remember to use only skins, as fruit juice will make the
fur too sticky. 0 Try adding brewer’s yeast and garlic to your pet’s food. In
some instances, the fleas seem to hate it. 0 Look far products containing
methoprene, a growth inhibitor “that interferes with flea larvae development.”
SOURCES The Bio-Integral Resource Center, P.O. Box 7414, Berkeley, CA 94707.
Check out their publications on “Least Toxic Pest Management for Fleas. ”
Dispose of smoke detectors carefully: Some have radioactive parts. 23. MAKE IT
A ROYAL FLUSH 40% of the pure water you use in your house is flushed heon the
toilet. ACKGROUND. Your toilet probably uses more water than necessary. But
with a one-time, ten-minute investment, you can save water every time you
flush. TOILET TALK Each time your toilet is flushed, it uses 5 to 7 gallons of
water. But if you’ve got a toilet tank, you can easily cut that amount by 15%
to 40% The cheapest and simplest way: install a “displacement device,” which
reduces the amount of water your tank will hold. A displacement device can cut
your annual water use by thousands of gallons-and you’ll never notice it’s
there. Don’t use a brick as a displacement device. Small pieces can break off
and damage your plumbing system. SIMPLE TJ3INGS TO DO Put a Plastic Bottle In
Your Toilet Tank: Small juice bottles, dishwashing soap bottles, or laundry
soap bottles work well. Soak off the label, fill the bottle with water, put on
the cap, and place it in the tank. To weight it down, you can put a few stones
in the bottom of the bottle. Be careful that the bottle doesn’t interfere with
the flushing mechanism. You may need to experiment with bottle sizes. Different
toilets need different amounts of water to maintain proper pressure for an
effective flush. Savings: 1-2 gaUons per flush. c 48 I Leaves alone can account
for 75% of the solid waste stream in the autumn. ... Or Put a Displacement Bag
in Your Tank: These bags are specifically designed to displace toilet tank
water. You just fill one with water and hang it on the inside of the tank. It
may take some experimenting to figure out how full to fill it. Again, the
amount of water you can displace without affecting performance depends on the
toilet. They’re available free from some utilities-r at plumbing supply and
hardware stores (they’re cheap). Savings: 1-2 gaUons per flush. ... Or Install
Toilet Dams: These devices artificially make your tank smaller. They’re
“plastic barriers that isolate part of the tank so that the water in this
section does not run out with the flush.” Each dam can hold back one gallon.
Two dams can be installed in one toilet. Installation is fairly simple; the
dams come with do-it-yourself instructions. They’re available at hardware and
plumbing stores. Savings: One gallon per toilet dam. RESULTS Even with a
plastic bottle, you save lots of water. If the average toilet is flushed about
8 times a day, that means a savings of 8-16 gallons every day.. S6.112 gallons
a week.. .2,9004,800 gallons a year. If only 10,000 people were to install the
simplest displacement device, that would equal a savings of 29 million to 58
million gallons a year! And if 100,000 people did it.. .well, use your
imagination. IF YOU ’RE BUYING A NEW TOILET According to Home Energy magazine:
“The newest development in human waste disposal is the ‘ultra low-flush’
toilet, which empties the bowl with 1/2-1/1/2 gallons of pressurized water and,
in some cases, compressed air, rather than a larger volume of water at
atmospheric pressure. It utilizes the water pressure in the house pipes. While
a conventional toilet lets water fill the tank and lose pressure, the ULF keeps
it trapped at the high-line pressure until it squirts into the bowl.” Check with
local plumbing supply stores 2 for info. Every 3 months, the U.S. throws away
enough 49 aluminum , to rebuild our commercial airfleet s S-~n~~ showers each
day, they will use ~a~~ of water ewq week --the e~uiv~n~ of ar supply o~~~~ing
water for one person. . For a lot of us, a long, hot shower is a guilty
pleasure-it feels great, but there’s a nagging suspicion we’re wasting precious
water. ere’s a simple, effective way to cut shower water use by about 50%; just
replace your conventional shower “low flow” model. It’s a good way to save
natural recash without having to do much. unt f0r.a whopping 32% of home water
use. A standard shower head uses about 5-7 gallons of water per mina 5-minute
shower can consume 35 gallons! r heads reduce water use by 50% or more. They
rate to just 3 gpm-or less. So installing one is the single most effective
water conservation step you can take inside your home. According to the Dept.
of Energy, heating water is “the 2ndlargest residential energy user.” With a
low-flow shower head, energy use (and costs) for heating hot water for showers
may drop as much as 50% r head: atch with a second hand and a bucket that holds
at least a gallon. water to the pressure you normally use. t just below your
showerhead and measure the ater to reach the “‘1 Gallon” line. If it’s less
than 20 seconds, your shower is a candidate for a low-flow model. 50 If you’re
an average American: 113 of your garbage is packaging you toss out immediately,
Next, Take a Look at There are two types of low-flow showerheads: 0 Aerated:
Mixes air with water to maintain a steady spray at pressures equal or higher
than a standard showerhead. The only draw. back: If you’re tall, you may notice
that the water’s cooled down a little by the time it gets to your feet. This is
by far the most popular type of low-flow showerhead. 0Nonae~~e~: No air is
mixed into the flow. It maintains heat and gets a good, forceful spray.. .but
the flow “pulses.” If you’re partial to massage showerheads, this one is for
you. at9s on the Marker: RESU~TS With a low-flow showerhead, a family of four
which normally takes 5-minute showers saves at least 14,000 gallons of water a
year. So if only 10,000 similar families were to install low-flow showerheads,
we could save around 140 million gallons. And-get this- 100,000 four-person
families with low-flow showerheads could save 1.4 billion gallons! * NDRC
estimates that a good low-flow showerhead will pay for itself with energy and
water savings in less than a year if your water heater uses natural gas and
less than six months if it’s electric. NOTE: Don’t buy “flow restrictors”
(disks that insert in your existing showerhead) or cheap, plastic showerheads.
Both deliver far less satisfying showers than a well-designed, low-flow model.
~ESOU~~ES Your local utility may have low-flow showerheads available for free.
If not, check a good hardware store. The following companies also sell a
variety of efficient showerhea ds... 0 Ecologica~ Water Products, Inc,, 106
Aldrich St., Providence, RI 02905. (401) 849-4004. * In~rbath, Inc., 427 N
Baldwin Park Blvd., City of Industry, CA e ~ander~u~ Enterprises, Inc., Box
138, Southport, CT 06490. (203) 853-4429. If you’re me interested in
nrmaerating sherheads, these hawe been reccnnd by SQ~ experts. 91746. (818)
369-1841. 51 Only 3% of the Earth’s water is fresh water. ECYCLE YOUR Americans
use approximately a billion gallom of motor oil every year-and 350 million
gallons of it winds up in the environment. ACKGRQUND. Auto manufacturers
recommend that we change the oil in our cars every 6,000 miles. But they don’t
tell us what to do with the old oil. It’s become an important issue; used motor
oil is perhaps the worst oil for the environment, because it’s not just
oil-while it’s flowing through your engine, it picks up all kinds of extra
toxins. DID YOU KNOW 0 Some experts estimate that 40% of the pollution in
America’s waterways is from used crankcase oil. About 2.1 million tom of the
stuff finds its way into our rivers and streams every year. 0 When used motor
oil is poured into the ground, it can seep into the groundwater and contaminate
drinking water supplies. A single quart of motor oil can pollute 250,000
gallons of drinking water. e Pouring oil into the sewer (or onto the street,
where it will eventually wash into the sewer) is like pouring it directly into
a stream or a river. And just one pint of used motor oil can create a poisonous
oil slick an acre in diameter. 0 Tossing oil into the trash is essentially the
same thing as pouring it out. The oil will be dumped in a landfill, where it
will eventually seep into the ground. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO If you get your oil
changed at a gas station: 0 Check first to make sure they plan to recycle it.
If not, take your car somewhere where they do. If you change oil yourself (and
about 50% of American drivers do), recycle it: 0 Most communities have gas
stations or oil-changing outlets that It takes 1/2 a gallon of water to cook a
pot of macaroni...and a gallon to wash the pot. recycle their oil and will
accept yours for a small fee, ranging from 25$ to $1 a quart. It costs, because
they have to pay someone to pick it up. Call around to find one close to you.
To make the whole process easier, you can invest in a do-ityourself oil
recycling kit. These come with containers that double as oil-draining
receptacles and carrying cases for transporting the oil to a recycling center.
We know of two of them on the market: the “Pac-Lube Oil Collector,” made by
Pacific Landings, Ltd., and the “Oil Change Recycling Kit,” by the Scott Paper
Co. If your local automotive store doesn’t have them, contact the companies
directly at the addresses listed below. 1 i oil for recycling. You an also Cau
your city recycling division to find places which accept RESULTS: Most recycled
oil is reprocessed and sold as fuel for ships and industrial boilers. The rest,
according to our source, is processed into lubricating and industrial oils.
Another source adds that there is a future in re-refining it into motor oil. A
new technology, created by Evergreen Oil of Newark, California, can turn a
gallon of used motor oil into 2.5 quarts of new oil. If America recycled the
billion gallons of motor oil we use every year, we would save 625 million
gallons of motor oil. RESOURCES: PaceLube Oil Collector, Gary Wilson, Pacific
Landings Ltd. 1208 SW 13th, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97205. (503) 222-2343.
Scott Oil Change Recycling Tub, Scott Paper Do-It-Yourself Busi. ness, Scott
Plaza, Philadelphia, PA 19113. (800) 321-2250. For info on oil recyling:
Evergreen Oil, 6880 Smith Ave., Newark, CA 94560. (415-795-4400). t 53 Just one
prt oil per million parts water will make drinking water smell and taste funny.
If each U.S. household lowered its average heating temperatures by 6 OF. over a
24-hour period, we’d save the energy equivalent of 500,000 barrels of oil every
day. ACKGRQUND. How important is it for you to heat your home efficiently? An
expert from the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy puts it this
way: “The single most important thing people can do to save energy in their
homes is to make sure their fumaces are running efficiently. More energy is
used for heating than for any other purpose in American apartments and houses.”
FURNACE FACTS .According to Worldwatch, home heating is responsible for spewing
350 million tons of carbon into the atmosphere every yearwhich means over a
billion tons of the most prevalent greenhouse gas, C02. About 12% of U.S.
emissions of sulfur oxide and nitrogen oxide-both key causes of acid rain-come
from home heating. * An estimated 40% of the energy you use in your home is for
heat. If your heating system is running inefficiently, 30-50% of the energy it
uses is wasted. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Get a Furnace Tune-up: * This means testing
it (for combustion efficiency and pollutants), cleaning it (e.g., dirt on the
nozzle, sediment in the boiler, soot in the combustion chamber), and adjusting
it (calibrating thermostats, etc.). be tuned up annually. * The easiest way to
get a tune-up is to call a heating technician. He or she should do the whole
job for around $40-$60. * If you want to do it yourself-or just want to know
more about Gas fumaces should be tuned every two years, oil furnaces should c
54 You can cut your heating bill by 2% for every degree you tum down your
thermostat. the process, write to the Massachusetts Aububon Society to order
the superb booklet listed below. It’s extremely informative. RESULTS 6 A simple
tune-up can increase a furnace’s heating efficiency by 5%-with a corresponding
reduction in destructive emissions. 6 In a gas fumace, a 5% rise in efficiency
means an annual savings of 8,000 cubic feet of gas. So if 100,000 families-only
a tenth of a percent of US. households-get tune-ups, we’ll save over half a
billion cubic feet a year. 6 For an oil fumace: the annual savings is about 60
gallons of oil per tune-up. If only 100,000 families get tune-ups, it’s a
savings of about 6 million gallons. A FEW HEATING TIPS If You Nave a Forced4.h
System: Insulate ducts wherever they pass through unheated spaces. 0 During
heating season, change your air filters once a month. Your heater uses more
energy when the filters get full of dust. 6 Common myth: Many people believe
it’s better to keep the furnace running at an even temperature than to lower it
drastically when no one’s around. Not true. Even if you go out of a room for a
little while, it’s better to turn down the heat. If You Have an Electric
Resistance Heating System: Consider installing a heat pump, which “uses thermal
energy from outside air for both heating and cooling.” Initial cost may seem
high (as much as $2,000 for a whole-house unit, about $400 for a single room),
but it can cut your heating bill by 60% a year. If You Have a Hot Water / Steam
System: Put a reflector behind your radiator (you can buy one or make it by taping
aluminum foil on cardboard). This saves energy and cash by throwing back heat
you’d normally lose through the wall. SOURCES 0 The best booklet we’ve found is
called “Heating Systems.” It’s available from: Educational Resources,
Massachusetts Audubon Society, Lincoln, MA 01773. Write for info on ordering
it. L 55 An open fireplace damper can let 8% of your heat escape through the
chimney! 27. LIGHT RIGHT Compact fluorescents are big energy-savers. They last
longer and use about 114 of the energy of an incandescent bulb. For example: A
60-watt incandescent bulb lasts about 750 hours; a fluorescent bulb with 1/3
the wattage will generate the same light and bum for 7,500 to 10,000 hours in
five to ten years of normal use. 0 Substituting a compact fluorescent light for
a traditional bulb will keep a half-ton of C02 out of the atmosphere over the
life of the bulb. Money talk: Compact fluorescents are considerably more
expensive than traditional incandescents.. .initially (about $20). But Every
year, Americans buy over a billion incandescent lightbulbs. That’s three acres
of bulbs every day. ACKGROUND. Flip a light switch on and off.. .and consider
that you’re affecting the environment. It may seem €3 strange, because we’re
used to thinking of lighting as a domestic matter; it happens in our homes, not
outside them. Yet according to the World Resources Institute, lighting accounts
for l/5 of all the electricity consumed in the U.S.-which means that our
lighting habits and choices have a significant impact on the Earth. The more
electricity we use, for example, the more industrial emissions we generate,
contributing heavily to problems like the “greenhouse effect” and acid rain.
There are several simple ways to “light right.” The most obvious is
conservation-diligently turning lights off when they’re not in use. But a less
obvious-and more effective-method is to choose and use your lightbulbs with
energy conservation in mind. don’t compare that to the cost of one incandescent
bulb. You will need 13 incandescents to last for the same 10,000 hours. Over
its lifetime, a compact fluorescent uses about $10 worth of electricity; during
the same period, equivalent incandescents gobble about $45 of electricity. So
you save $35 per bulb-which is like earning 25% to 50% interest on your
investment. Compact fluorescents aren’t suitable for every type of lighting
situation. One factor is size; they won’t work, for example, in small lamps or
certain covered fixtures. Another factor is frequency of use. They make the
most sense if they’re used in places where they’re left on for at least 2 hours
a day. 0 You can’t get compact fluorescents everywhere; you may have to look
around a bit. Check hardware and home stores. RESULTS There are 100 million
households in America. If a single compact fluorescent was installed in each of
them, the energy saved would be equivalent to all the energy generated by one
nuclear power plant running full-time for a year. BRIGHT IDEAS Interestingly,
one large incandescent bulb is more efficient than two small ones in a
multi-bulb fixture. A 100-watt bulb, for example, puts out as much light as two
60s.. .and it saves energy. In light fixtures that take three bulbs, try using
only two. But for safety’s sake, put a burned-out bulb in the last socket. Try
more efficient incandescents such as krypton-filled, tungsten-halogen, or
infrared-reflective coated. SOURCES Home Energy magazine, 2124 Kittredge St.
#95, Berkeley, CA 94704. The best magazine in America on home energy. Write for
subscription info; send $2 for their exceknt ’Consumer Guide to EnergySapling
Lights,” u highly recommended first resource. Rising Sun Enterprises, PO Box
586, Snowmass, CO 81654. Mail orders energy-saving lightbulbs, including some
compact fluores- 1 cents. Send $5 for their consumer guide I catalog. 57
Eneqpsaving tip: Keep lightbulbs clean; dirt absorbs light and wastes more
energy. 4 Balloon releases are a popular way to celebrate special et”. In one
recent promotion, for example 1.2 milion helium-filled baUoons were released
into the air. . In 1985, an emaciated 17-foot female sperm whale died on the
New Jersey coast. When marine scientists examined it, they found a balloon-with
3 feet of ribbon still attached-blocking the valve that connected the whale’s
stomach to its intestines. Because the whale had swallowed the balloon, it was
unable to digest food; it was starving. Since then, similar incidents have been
recorded-notably with sea turtles that died after swallowing partly-deflated
latex balloons. Balloons released in the Midwest can wind up in the ocean.
Recently, a test balloon released in Ohio reached the South Carolina coast in
only two days. %en balloons land in the water, they quickly lose their color.
With ribbons or strings trailing behind them, they look uncannily like jellyfish-which
are among turtles’ favorite foods. For some reason, schools of squid-the sperm
whale’s favorite food-congregate around pieces of plastic in the water. When
they surround a latex balloon, whales will swallow that, too. e Addi~Q~~
hazard: As Mylar (metallic) balloons float into the air, they can get caught in
power lines and cause power outages. e If you buy helium-filled balloons, hold
onto them-don’t release them into the atmosphere when you’re through with them.
e If your group plans a balloon release, inform people of the potential
hazards. Most of us aren’t aware that balloons pose a risk. SOURCES Balloon
Alert Project, 12 Pine Fork Dr., Tom’s River, NJ 08755. A sd group dedicated to
stopping mass balloon releases. Publishes a newsletter. Manufacturers’ secret:
Paper towels and toilet paper are often made from recycled paper. - 29, REUSE
OLD NEWS It takes an entire forest-over 500,000 trees-to supply Americans with
their Sunday newspapers every week ACKGROUND. The entire American paper industry
was B actually built on recycling. Beginning in 1690-when the first U.S. paper
mill was established neat Philadelphiapaper was made exclusively of fiber taken
from cotton and linen rags. It wasn’t until the 1860s’ when the growing demand
for paper products created shortages, that techniques were developed to use
wood fiber in papermaking. Then the composition of paper began to change
rapidly. By 1904,60% of American paper was made with wood pulp (although 40%
was still recycled rags and waste paper). But by the 1930s, paper was made
primarily with virgin materials. Even during the recycling drives of World War
11, the highest level of recycled material used in paper manufacturing was just
35%. In 1988, Americans recycled about 24 million tons of paper-a 29% recovery
rate. Not bad, but we can still do a lot better. EXTRA! EXTRA! Americans use 80
million tons of paper annually-which means that the average American uses about
640 pounds of paper each year. Making new paper from “old” paper uses 30% to
55% less energy than making paper from trees; and it reduces related air
pollution by 95%. Recycled paper could easily be substituted for virgin paper
in many products without any loss of quality-but because the demand for it has
been low, recycled paper prices tend to be higher than virgin stock.. .which,
in tum, makes it harder to get. The result: Manufacturers that could use
recycled paper don’t bother. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Newspapers are probably the
easiest material to recycle, since they L 60 The U.S. uses 450 billion gallons
of water every day. lie around the house anyway. Recycling them is a simple way
to get into the recycling habit. 1. Save them Don’t throw newspapers out with
the garbage anymore. Sort them. Magazines, with their slick paper and coated covers,
are not easily recyclable. Stack them. The key to a personal recycling program
is to have a place in your home where the newspapers always go. 2. Recycle
them. Find a recycling program near you. There are lots of options: Curbside
recycling. (Call your local city government to find out if this service is
available in your community.) Note: You’ll probably have to bundle and tie
them. Drop them off in designated receptacles at supermarkets, shopping
centers, etc. Take them to commercial recycling centers. (Look in the yellow
pages.) If the market is right, they’ll pay for the papers. So if you’re part
of an organization, consider a fundraising newspaper drive. More than $100
million is earned annually by recycling news. RESULTS According to the American
Paper Institute, the average American consumes about 120 lbs. of newsprint
annually-the equivalent of one tree. So if everyone in the U.S. recycled even
1/10 of their newspapers, we would save about 25 million trees every year.
SOURCES Paper Recycling Committee, American Paper Institute, 260 Madison Ave.,
New York, NY 10016. (212) 340-0600. Fascinating pamphlets on recycling paper,
available free. Earth Care Paper Company, PO Box 14140, Madison, WI 53714.
(608) 277-2920. Send for their recycled paper catalog to order everything from
gift wrap to postcards. They also provide free handouts OT will refer you to
sources on organizing newspaper drives, recycling terminob gy , dioxin in
papermaking, and packaging. Plus Earth Care donates < 10% of its profits to
environmental organizations. 61 Recyclers: Robins, chickadees, and orioles like
to use small lengths of string in their nests. Each year we throw away 28
billion glass bottles and jars-enough to fill the twin towers of New York‘s
World Trade Center every two weeks. . People have been making glass for
approximately 3,500 years. Most glass is made of three basic ingredients: white
sand, soda, and lime. materials are heated to around 2,500 degrees F-until
they’re completely dissolved and transparent. Then the mixture is cooled to
around 1,800 degrees F. The whole process takes about 7,600 BTUs of energy to
produce a single pound of glass. SO it will take up less volume. This broken
glass is called “cullet.” en it arrives at the factory, cullet is run through a
device designed to remove metal rings from bottles. A vacuum process removes
plastic coatings and paper labels; then the cullet is ready to be added into
the mixture. Because cullet lowers the melting temperature of the mixture in
manufacturing glass, up to 32% less energy is required. That’s a huge
amount-especially when you consider how much glass we produce every year.
Before recycled glass is shipped to the manufacturers, it is broken e energy
saved from recycling one glass bottle could light a 60-watt bulb for four
hours. All glass bottles and jars can be recycled. But other types of glass,
such as window panes, Pyrex, and light bulbs, are made by different processes
and can’t be combined with the cullet from which glass containers are made.
Glass produced from recycled glass instead of raw material reduces related air
pollution by 20%, water pollution by 50%. 0 Disposable or “throwaway” bottles
consume three times as much energy as reusable, returnable containers. *
Because glass takes so long to decompose, the bottle you throw away today might
still be littering the landscape in the year 3,000. 62 Doesn’t matter if a
refrigerator door’s open for 15 seconds or 3kold air’s escaped alreadv. glass
at home is to set up your garbage so you can separate and save bottles in a
convenient way, either indoors or outdoors. 0 For example: Keep a box for glass
in a closet, or buy a plastic garbage pail to keep outside and store the glass
in as you use it. 0 Sort bottles according to color: clear, green, and brown. 0
Remove any lead collars, corks, or metal caps which can’t be removed
magnetically. But don’t worry about paper labels. 0 Rinsing is sometimes
suggested, but isn’t absolutely necessary. (Check with your local recycling
center.) Once you’ve got a place to put the bottles as you use them, it only
takes about 15 minutes a week to keep up the recycling. If you’re more
ambi~o~$: Start a glass recycling fundraising drive for your favorite
institution. There are recycling plants that pay for glass. Support “bottle bills,”
which require consumers to pay deposits on bottles, and then refund the
deposits when bottles are returned. In the nine states which already have
bottle bills, a 90% compliance rate reduces solid waste by 8% and reduces
litter by 50%. ass that you tum in for recycling is actually used to make new
glass. Using recycled glass means using up fewer natural resources. Although
sand is plentiful, it still must be mined and transported, as must the lime and
soda. These processes require energy and produce about 385 lbs. of mining waste
for each ton of glass produced. is can be reduced by almost 80% when 50%
recycled glass is used in the process. ging ~~s~~te, 1801 K St. NW, Washington,
20006. (202) 887-4850. Offers free pam~~~~ on ghs recyc age magazine, P.O. Box
56519, Boulder, CO 80322. Ac~~y, this superb full-color “~r~tica~3ou~f~ the
Environment” covers everything in practical ecology. Highly recommended! c 63
Contrary to popular belief: Smdl appliances don’t add much EO your electric bi
1. DON’T CAN UR ALUMINUM When you toss out one aluminum can you waste as much
energy as if you‘d filled the same can halffull of gasoline and poured it onto
the ground. ACKGROUND. Aluminum is the most abundant metal on earth, but it was
only discovered in the 1820s. At that time it was worth $1,200 a kilogram, more
than gold. Ace cording to Worldwatch Institute: “Since its first use as a toy
rattle for Napoleon’s son, aluminum’s use has escalated. The first allaluminum
beverage can appeared in 1963, and today accounts for the largest single use of
aluminum .... In 1985 more than 70 billion beverage cans were used, of which
almost 66 billion--or 94%- were aluminum.” YES YOU CAN-CAN 0 If you throw an
aluminum can out of your car window, it will still litter the Earth up to 500 years
later. e If you throw away 2 aluminum cans, you waste more energy than is used
daily by each of a billion human beings in poorer lands. 0 According to the
Aluminum Association, Americans recycled 42.5 billion aluminum cans in 1988. e
In 1988 alone, aluminum can recycling saved more than 11 bilc lion kilowatt
hours of electricity, enough to supply the residential electric needs of New
York City for six months. The energy saved from one recycled aluminum can will
operate a television set for three hours. 0 Recycling aluminum cuts related air
pollution by 95%. 0 Making aluminum from recycled aluminum uses 90% less energy
than making aluminum from scratch. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Because recycling
aluminum is so profitable for manufacturing Where does aluminum bauxite come
from? 64 Most is imported from Guinea, Australia, Brazil. companies (they make
$2 million every day from recycling), there probably are more different ways to
recycle aluminum than any other material. Check to see which programs exist in
your area: Multi-material drop-off centers with separate bins for aluminum. 0
Buy-back operations with scales to weigh recycled aluminum and pay consumers
accordingly. Large, igloo-like containers for aluminum only, often found in
supermarket parking lots. Curbside pickup. Reverse vending machines. These
machines accept aluminum cans, reject ferrous cans, glass, or other unwanted
objects. They weigh or count the aluminum deposited and dispense money or
tokens in payment. Before You Recycle Your Aluminum: Remove food, rinse, crush,
and bag or box cans. Remember: a lot more than cans can be recycled, including
aluminum foil, pie plates, frozen food trays, window frames, and siding.
RESULTS According to Recycle America’s statistics: If only 250 people
(including you, of course) each recycled one can a day, we would save the
energy equivalent of 1,750-3,500 gallons of gasoline every year. Now try that
calculation with 250,000 people; just one can a day could save the energy
equivalent of between 1.75 and 3.5 million gallons of gas. And that’s only .l%
of the U.S. population, with a single can apiece. If we recycle, we mine less
raw materials. To produce one ton of aluminum from raw materials, it takes a
phenomenal 8,760 pounds of bauxite and 1,020 pounds of petroleum coke. But
according to Aluminum Association estimates, this figure is cut down by 95%
when recycled aluminum is used. SOURCES The Aluminum Association, 900 19th St.
N.W., Washington, D.C. 20006. They’ve got lots of info on hoe0 to recycle, how
to set up fundraisingevents, stats, etc. Most of it’sfiee. 65 The largest
single source of waste paper coIIected for recycling is corrugated boxes. CYCLE
One out of every $1 1 that Americans spend on food goes for packaging. In fact,
we spent more on the packaging for our food last year than American farmers
receiwed in net income. ACKGROUND. In 1989, the city government of Berkeley,
California initiated a campaign to encourage consumers to buy food packaged in
biodegradable or recyclable materials. They called it “precycling.” “We recycle
items after we’ve bought them,” they explained. “We can precycle while we
shop.. . .This may be the easiest way to help save the Earth. Simply by making
the correct buying choices, by precycling, we can prevent excessive and unsound
materials from getting into our waste stream.” tice; just follow the simple,
sensible slogan, “Reduce waste before you buy!” “Precycling” is a wonderful
term for something we can all pracDID YOU KNOW * Each American uses about 190
pounds of plastic per year-and about 60 pounds of it is packaging which we
discard as soon as the package is opened. About 30% of all plastics produced
are used for packaging. 0 Americans go through 2.5 million plastic bottles
every hour. 0 Packaging waste accounts for approximately 1/3 of all the garbage
Americans send to landfills. * Roughly 5 million tons-more than half of all
plastics we throw away each year-are packaging. SWLE THINGS TO DO Keep your
eyes open when you shop. Everything you buy has an effect on the environment-try
to make it a positive one. Some examples of simple “precycling”: 0 Buy eggs in
cardboard-not styrofoam---cartons. 0 Most cereal boxes are made of recycled
cardboard. It’s easy to tell-the boxes are gray on the inside. The packaging
for many 1 1 66 A leaky faucet that fills a coffee cup in 10 minutes can waste
over 3,000 gallons a year. varieties of cookies, crackers, dry goods etc. are
also recycled. Look for the “recycled” logo, or send for the “Environmental
Product Shopping List” listed below. Buy in bulk: It’s cheaper, and uses
minimal packaging (in some places, you can even bring your own container). Buy
carrots, onions, potatoes, etc. loose, and not in plastic bags. Buy beverages
in glass or aluminum containers, which are easy to recycle. You can also choose
sauces, condiments, baby foods, spreads, etc. that are packed in glass instead
of plastic. Avoid plastic containers, especially “squeezable” ones, which are
made up of different types of plastic in several layers, and are dramatically
non-biodegradable. If you want to do more: Teach your children to precycle.
Children are particularly SUP cep tible to loud, colorful packaging, especially
on products they’ve seen on TV. But they’re also quick learners, and have a
special fondness for nature. Teach them that they can help save their Earth by
using one kind of product instead of another, by caring for their toys so they
won’t need replacing, by getting involved, as you are, in “doing it right, from
the start.” 0 Urge your community to adopt “precycling” measures to promote
precycling awareness. (See Source below for assistance.) RESULTS If 10% of
Americans purchased products with less plastic packaging just 10% of the time,
we could eliminate some 144 million pounds of plastic from our landfills, reduce
industrial pollution, and send a message to manufacturers that we’re serious
about alternatives. SOURCES Become un Environmental Shopper (u hrmdbook wd
recycled I recyciubk products list for $3.50. For $5, you do get a button,
poster, and shopping updates). Pennsylvania Resources Council, PO Box 88,
Media, PA 19063. Or call 1-800-GO TO PRC. For community information: Call the
city of Berkeley, Califomia at 415-644-863 1. They’ll puss on information about
rheir precycling urmpaign that my helg you put one together in your urea 67 A
recycled aluminum can is typically re-melted and back in the store within 6
weeks. 33. USE CLOTH DIAPERS Americans throw away 18 billion disposable diapers
a year -enough to stretch to the moon and back seven times. B ACKGROUND. In
1961, Proctor and Gamble introduced the first affordable disposable diaper,
Pampers. To most parents, it seemed like a triumph of modern technology-a
clean, convenient way to deal with an unpleasant, messy problem. It was an
instant financial bonanza for PGrG, too. Other brands soon appeared, and today
there are dozens of varieties to choose from. But along with them comes
indisputable evidence that disposable diapers are taking a serious toll on the
environment. DIAPER DATA About 1% of all of America’s landfill space is
occupied by disposable diapers. They can take up to 500 years to decompose in a
landfill. Cotton diapers, which can be reused up to 100 times, decompose in 1
to 6 months. Disposable diapers consume an incredible amount of resources annually
in America-l,265,000 metric tons of wood pulp and 75,000 metric tons of
plastic. Manufacturers recommend that people wash out disposable diapers before
discarding them, but only about 5% of us do. This means that every year,
millions of tons of soiled, potentially disease-infected diapers are dumped
into “sanitary” landfills. Environmental Action estimates that because of
disposable diapers, “3 million tons of untreated feces and urine end up in
landfills rather than in the sewage system every year.” The biggest potential
problem: contamination of groundwater by viruses. E. A. points out: “More than
100 different intestinal viruses are known to be excreted in human feces,
including polio and hepatitis.” Fortunately, no groundwater contamination of
this nature has been discovered. But with the build-up growing geometrically,
it may be just a matter of time. Degradable disposable diapers don’t seem to be
the answer. They do decompose faster than standard disposables (they have a
comstarch base, so the plastic breaks into little pieces)-but they take up the
same space in landfills, and the health risks are the same. . 68 The world’s
shipping industry dumps over 450,000 plastic containers into the sea every day.
DIAPER-DOS This is a tough one-not because there’s any question about what we
ought to do, but because it’s hard to give up disposable diapers. A recent
poll, for example, showed 87% of Americans prefer them. If You’re Ready for
Cloth Diapers: Diaper services pick up and deliver cloth diapers. Find them in
the Yellow Pages, or contact the National Assn. of Diaper Services, 2017 Walnut
St., Philadelphia, PA 19103. (215) 569-3650. Cloth diapers are ecologically
sound-waste disposal is monitored by municipal health boards, and worn-out
diapers are recycled into rags for industry. Prices are competitive with
disposables-in fact, they may be cheaper, depending on whose statistics you
believe. Some indicate that diaper services can be half as expensive as
disposable diapers. If You Have a Hard Time Switching to Cloth Diapers:
Remember, it doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Better to alternate between
cloth and disposables than to use disposables exclusively. One possibility: Use
a diaper service at home, and disposable diapers when you’re away. And if your
child goes to a day-care center, he or she might need disposables there, too.
If You’re Using Cloth Diapers, You’ll Need Diaper Covers: Cloth diapers don’t
absorb moisture the way disposable diapers do, so you’ll need diaper covers to
act as a shield between the diaper and the rest of the world. Natural fibers
are best, and 100% wool felt seems to be the top of the line because it offers
“complete breathability,” and doesn’t irritate babies. SOURCES Mothering
magazine, PO Box 1690, Santa Fe, NM 87504. Best phce to hrn about natudfiber
diapering products. For diaper covers and related products: Bio-Bottoms, PO Box
6009,3820 Bodega Ave., Petaluma, CA 94953. Wool and other natural fiber
products. Send $1 for catalog. Baby Bum and Company, PO Box 1717, Sebastopl, CA
95473. Another natural fiber company. Send $1 for catalog. Diaperaps, PO Box
3050, Granada Hills, CA 91394. (800)-251-4321. Cotton and nylon &er covers.
69 4 Over a billion trees are used to make disposable diapers every year. Every
year, Am’cans throw away enough ofice and writing paper to build a wall 12 feet
high, smetchingfim Los Angeles to New York City. AC . Most of the things you’ve
been working on at home apply to work, too. It’s not always easy to implement
them, but it’s worth it-an enormous amount of the Earth’s, resources are
consumed at businesses, and an enormous amount can be saved. Added incentive:
you may wind up a hero because recycling can save your company big bucks. .The
average office worker throws away about 180 pounds of highgrade recyclable
paper every year. 0 Each ton of recycled paper saves more than three cubic
yards of landfill space. 0 Every ton of recycled office paper saves 380 gallons
of oil. 0 Almost 3 million tons of paper is collected from office buildings and
industrial plants for recycling. 0 The Electric Power Research Institute
estimates that American businesses could easily save 50% of the electricity
they use every year. For example: By removing 2 lamps in a 4-lamp fixture and
installing reflectors instead, most businesses could cut their electric bills
and never notice the difference in brightness. y yourself: It’s okay to do some
little things just for your own satisfaction. They might not save the world,
but they will make you feel better and help keep you focused on conservation.
For example: 0 Bring a coffee cup to work instead of using disposable cups. 0
Reuse manila envelopes by putting gummed labels over the old addresses. Any
stationary store should have them. 70 c A layer of mulch around trees will slow
the evaporation of moisture. Projects to work on with co-workers: Set up glass
and aluminum recycling programs. This usually means putting containers for
saving bottles and cans in a prominent place in the lunchroom, or next to soda
machines. Set up a special environmental bulletin board and post notices with
interesting tidbits and statistics about conservation. Include photos when
appropriate. * Substitute paper cups (which are biodegradable) for Styrofoam
cups (which aren’t). * Set up a paper recycling program. There’s a simple
procedure: Each employee saves paper at his or her desk. The trick is to sort
paper into recyclable groups as it’s discarded, by using desktop containers.
Then the custodian can collect it and deposit it in large containers outdoors,
with little or no extra time required. For a detailed plan, write to the San
Francisco Recycling Program (below). Save water at work by lobbying for faucet
aerators, low-flow shower heads, toilet water displacement gadgets-anything
you’ve tried at home that would be applicable at work. 0 See if you can get a
twocsided copy machine. You’ll save thousands of pages when copying lengthy
reports. 0 Have an energy audit to assess your use of electricity, etc. It can
make a big difference: In 1989, for example, one small business in Emeryville,
California saved $2,000 in energy costs by making a simple change in their
lighting configuration-a trick they learned through an energy audit. SOURCES:
San Francisco Recycling Program, 271 City Hall, S. F., CA 94102. Offers a wcin&qfd
booklet urlled “Your office Paper Recycling Guide” for $5.00. Make checks out
to the City and County of Sun Francisco. Conservatree, 10 Lombard St., San
Francisco, CA 941 11, (415) 433-1000. For buuc quantities ofrecycled cobred and
white bond paper, con@uterpaper, mime0 paw, copier paper, envelopes, etc. Your
local electric utility. 7hey’U help with an energy audit, and help you contact
specidty companies that can help replace lighting. ”. Plywood emits
formaldehyde-it’s one of the home’s biwt indoor polluter& 35. RECYCLE THE
REST Americans produce 154 million tons of garbage every year-enough to fill
the New Orleans Superdome from top to bottom, twice a day, every day. 50% of
this trash is recyclable! ACKGROUND. Although newspaper, glass, and alumi- B
num are the most commonly recycled items, they aren’t the only ones you can
recycle. Tin cans (which are actually 99% steel), plastic soda bottles and milk
cartons, telephone books and corrugated cardboard are all recyclable. DID YOU
KNOW *We’ll repeat it: In the U.S., we throw away 2.5 million plastic bottles
every hour-and only a small percentage of are recycled.‘ Recycled plastic can
be used to make a number of products, such as plastic lumber and fiberfill
sleeping bag insulation. Bonus value: 26 recyclable plastic soda bottles can
make one polyester suit. Recycling and reusing the material in “tin” cans
reduces related energy use by 74%; air pollution by 85%; solid waste by 95%;
and water pollution by 76% ... .Yet only 5% of tin cans are recycled. SIMPLE
THINGS TO DO Recycle “other” materials the way you’d handle glass, etc. First,
check to see exactly what your local center accepts. If it takes plastic:
Recycle plastic soda bottles, water bottles, and clean milk bottles. If it
accepts tin cans: Rinse, remove paper labels and both ends, and flatten. (This
reduces the volume, and cuts shipping costs.) If it accepts corrugated paper,
kraft paper, and stationery: They’ll probably tell you to flatten cardboard and
paper, separate white from colored paper, and bag or box it. If they don’t
accept corrugated, see if you can locate a waste paper dealer near you by
looking in the yellow pages under “waste paper” or “recycling.” SOURCES Call
the Environmental Defense Fund Hotline, 1-800-CALL EDF. They’ll provide information
on recycling programs in your area. \ 72 Don’t forget: Your old car battery is
worth money when you trade it in on a new one. 36. BUILD A BACKYARD WILDLIFE
REFUGE The American Holly Cree bears fruit in the winter, providing ma&-
needed food for over 40 different species of birds. B ACKGKOUND. Helping to
save and care for animals can begin in your own backyard. By landscaping and
planting with wildlife in mind, you can make up for the loss of much of their
natural habitat. Simply by choosing the right plants, you can provide them with
natural food and shelter.. .and yourself with a window-literally-into the
natural world. DID YOU KNOW You can attract specific animals to your garden
with certain plants. Hummingbirds, for example, like red morning glories;
butterflies are attracted to brightly colored flowers in full sunlight. Animals
that are active in the daytime (e.g., chipmunks, and rabbits) will visit yards
if shelter such as walls and shrubs is provided. Birds are often desperate for
water in winter, when the ground is frozen. A heated birdbath can help hundreds
of birds to survive. You can set up a bird feeder on a city balcony as well as
a country garden. Even if you have cats, there are safe ways to put up feeders.
SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Consult a nursery or your local chapter of the Audubon
Society to find out what flowers and trees will attract the wildlife you’d like
to invite into your backyard. Create a Plan: Sketch out your yard and decide
where to plant, provide water, and provide shelter. Then send your plan (along
with $5) to the National Federation of Wildlife. They’ll look it over, make
recommendations and certify your yard as an official Backyard Wildlife Habitat.
It’s a great way to involve kids. SOURCE National Wildlife Federation Backyard
Wildlife Habitat Program. 1412 16th Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036-2266.
Send for info on the propam, and their list of recommended books. c 73 Orioles
love to eat oranges. Each year, 27 million acres of tropical rainforests are
destroyed. That's an area the size of Ohio, and translutes to 74,000 acres per
day.. .3,000 mes per hour.. .SO mes per minute. A~~~ the world's rainforests
the most frightening of all recent ecological developments, because it's
something they can measure. The tropical rainforests, located in a narrow
region near the equator in Africa, South and Central America, and Asia, are
disappearing so fast that by the year 2000,80% of them may be gone. A tropical
rainforest is technically defined as a forest in the trop ics which receives 4
to 8 meters of rain per year. Beyond that, it is nature's laboratory for all
kinds of plant, animal, and insect life. The world's tropical rainforests are
critical links in the ecological chain of life that makes up the planet's
biosphere. . Some people consider the destruction of sts make up only 2% of the
earth's surface, over half the world's wild plant, animal and insect species
live there. In a typical four-mile-square patch of tropical rainforest you
would find: over 750 species of trees, over 1500 different kinds of flowering
plants, 125 different mammals, 400 kinds of birds, 100 reptiles, 60 amphibians,
and countless insects-including 150 types of butterflies, And only 1% of these
species has ever been studied! 80% of all Amazonian deforestation has taken
place since 1980. One in four pharmaceuticals comes from a plant in a tropical
rainforest. About 70% of plants identified by the National Cancer Institute as
being useful in cancer treatment are found only in rainrests; 1,400 rainforest
plants are believed to offer cures for cancer. One third of the world's
remaining rainforests are in Amazonia. Latin America and Southeast Asia have
already lost 40% of their tropical rainforests. Deforestation contributes
between 10 and 30% of worldwide 602 emissions. In 1987, rainforest fires (one
method of clearing) 74 Every year, Americans generate about 1,200 Ibs. of solid
waste per person. CO2 emissions. In 1987, rainforest fires (one method of
clearing) pumped about 518 million tons of carbon into the air, roughly 1/10 of
the total world fossil fuel combustion for that year. s TO STS @ The world's
rainforests are being depleted as a result of several developments agriculture
and population resettlement; beef cattle ranching; major power projects like dams,
hydroelectric plants, and the roads that go with them; and logging. 0 The soil
in rainforests is not rich; only about a two-inch layer contains any nutrients.
Most of a rainforest's nutrients are stored in the vegetation. When a
rainforest is converted to, say, cattle grazing, the soil is grazed out withii
two years. The cattle operation must move on, but it leaves behind a desert.
tical cause; it's a fight to save a precious piece of the world. Who knows what
may be discovered in the rainforests-an unknown plant that provides a cure for
cancer? A new crop that can feed starving children? Unfortunately, the only
real influence you may have is on the people who provide financial support to
countries with rainforests. So we suggest you write letters expressing your
concem. The Rainforest Action Network (listed below) will supply names and
addresses.Write, also, to your elected representatives about the issue. @
Support organizations involved in rainforest conservation. Indians in the
Amazon are trying to foster their own sustainable rainforest-based economy;
their Center needs your support. The Rainforest Action Network has information
on the Center. 0 Consider alternatives to tropical hardwoods in fumiture,
lumber, and plywood. To stop importing tropical hardwoods, the US. would have
to reduce its consumption of timber by only 2%. Write to the Rainforest Action
Network for a list of woods you can sub. stitute for tropical hardwoods. rest
Action Network, 301 Broadway, Suite A, San Francisco, CA 94133. (415) 398-4404.
An agunizution dewoted exclusiwely to preserving the rainfaest. They will
supply more infor" about the rainforests and what you can do. It takes
1,630,000 gallons of water to feed an American for a year. E GREAT ESCAPE Every
winter, the energy equivalent ofdl che oil that flows through the Alaskan
pipeline in a year leaks through American windoevs . ACKGRQUND, Since the
energy crisis of the ’70s’ experts have been telling us regularly that
insulating is one of the best ways to save energy. We don’t want to bore you by
saying it one more time, but frankly, you can’t take energy conservation
seriously without making sure your home is properly insulated. It isn’t always
simple-it can take both time and money. But the savings in energy and cash will
make it worthwhile. INSULATION FACTS 0 If every gas-heated home was properly
caulked and weatherstripped, the natural gas saved annually would be enough to
heat about 4 million homes. 0 Nearly half of all the energy used in our homes
is wasted. It goes “out the window,” or through the attic, cracks or other
leaks, in the form of heat-or, in summer, air conditioning-lost to the outside.
0 Attic insulation can save 5% or more on heating costs-15% on air conditioning
costs (it depends on the climate). In some climates, new insulation can pay for
itself in a single season! In most climates, it takes only one or two years.
INGS TO DO Insulate: 0 If there9s no insulation in your home, you’re costing
yourself and the environment a fortune. If you do have insulation, check to see
if you have enough. Even add-on insulation pays itself back in about 2 years. e
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in Washington, D.C.
has a publication on insulation called “In the Bank.. .Or Up the Chimney.” Have
an “energy audit” to find the heat leaks in your house or apartmenl: * This can
range from simply going around the window frames and 76 Dishwashing detergent
is generally just detergent with dye and artificial fragrance. sashes of your
house with a lighted candle (if the flame flickers, you need caulking and
weatherstripping) to calling your local utility or an energy-conservation
contractor (see “Energy” in the yellow pages) and having the energy audit done
professionally. Many utilities will do this at no charge. Or, if you’re going
to do it yourself, they’ll often provide guidebooks or checklists to help. If
You’re Doing Your Own Energy Audit: Worldevatch magazine suggests: “Pick.. .a
cold, windy day, when secret drafts and leaks reveal themselves readily to the
flame of a hand-held candle. An inspection should include more than just outer
walls, since chances are the innards of your house are like Swiss cheese.” Be
sure to check everywhere for energy leaks-fireplace dampers, cracks or holes in
walls and ceilings, sites where plumbing or wiring penetrate walls, floors and
ceilings, attic doors, etc. Windows also deserve special attention. Options
range from high-tech windows, to simple caulking. Check Out Blower Doors: A
recent experiment by a New England electric utility, reported in Home Energy
magazine, revealed that contractors using a device called a “blower door” were
able to reduce leaks 7 to 8 times as well as residents who tried to find the
leaks themselves. So it may be worth it to find a contractor who uses one in
his energy audits. RESULTS According to Worldwatch Institute, an average
furnace uses the energy equivalent of 500 gallons of oil in a year. If, by
insulating, you save a mere 5% of the energy used to heat your home (a
reasonable amount), you’ll save the equivalent of 25 gallons a year; 10,000
conservation-minded families will save 250,000 gallons’- worth; 100,000
families will save 2.5 million gallons ... and so on. SOURCE Educational
Resources, Massachusetts Audubon Society, Lincoln, MA 01773. Write for info on
how to order their booklets, “How to Weatherize Your Home OT Apartment,” “All
About insulation," and “’Superinsulation. ’’ 77 I Steel is America’s
most-recycled material. The awerage American uses the equiwdm of 7 trees ewq
year. That’s over 1-1 12 billion trees used annually in the U . S. ACKGROUND.
Trees can, over time, remove large quantities of carbon dioxide (the main
“greenhouse gas”) from the atmosphere. This makes planting a tree an effective
way to fight the greenhouse effect. And it’s easier than you might think. TREE
TALK * 10,000 years ago, before agriculture, more than 15 billion acres
worldwide were covered by forest. Today barely 10 bill’ ion acres are forested.
Between mid-century and 1980, the forested surface of the earth was reduced by
roughly 25%. 0 In some places deforestation is proceeding at a runaway rate. In
Califomia, urban trees are dying or being removed at four times the replacement
rate. Each year, 28 million acres of tropical forest are destroyed; mme countries,
like Nigeria, which once were large lumber exporters, have become net
importers. 8 The interdependence between trees and human and animal life
couldn’t be more fundamental: We require oxygen and produce carbon dioxide
(COZ) ; trees and other plants require COZ and produce oxygen. Any significant
loss in forested land directly affects the Earth’s atmosphere for other forms
of life. * By consuming COZ, trees mitigate the “greenhouse effect.” It’s
estimated that each mature tree consumes, on average, about 13 lbs. of COZ per
year. 9 when trees in a forest die naturally or are responsibly harvested, the
trees are replaced and there is no net loss of COZ to the atmosphere. But when
a forest is bumed or clearcut, much of the COZ is lost and not recaptured. So on
balance, the forests we lose (net loss) account for about 25% of global C02
emissions. * By providing shade and evaporative cooling, trees also affect
local temperature-again, urban trees even more than rural ones. Clusters of
urban trees shading a home can cool ambient air temperature by lo”, reducing
local energy demand (for air conditioning) by 10 to 50%. Moreover, the energy
saved reduces global 78 How can you find a leak in your toilet? Put some dye in
the tank-if the warming by about 15 times the amount of C02 absorbed by those
trees. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO e If you’d like to plant a tree, but don’t know how
to begin: Call or visit a local nursery, horticultural society, arboretum or
botanical garden. Tree-planting is a lot easier than you think, and many people
will be not only helpful, but enthusiastic. Consider talking with neighbors to
see if you can begin a neighborhood- or community-wide planting effort. You’ll
be surprised at how much “native intelligence’’ you can uncover. e Don’t just
stick a tree in the ground and ignore it. Like other growing plants, trees need
a little care for the first two yearsincluding water, vertical support, and
mulch. RESULTS Planting 75 million urban trees would reduce C02 emissions in
the US. by 18 million tons, and energy consumption by 25 billion kilowatt-hours
(worth $2 billion), annually, after 10 years. Planting trees has a cumulative
effect; each tree you plant will provide benefits for years to come. For
example: If only 100,000 people each plant a tree this year, the trees will
still be absorbing over a million pounds of C02 annually in the year 2010. But
if the same people plant a tree every year from now until 2010, the trees will
absorb over 20 million pounds of C02 in that year. SOURCES Treepeople, 12601 Mulholland
Dr., Beverly Hills, CA 90210 (213) 769-2663. A private nonprofit that got a
million trees planted in Los Angeles before the 1984 Olympics. Send $12.95 plus
$5 shipping for their book, “The Simple Act ofplclnting a Tree.” Worldwatch
Institute, 1776 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20036. Their Worldwatch
Paper #83, entitled “Reforesting the Earth,” is an excellent overview of the
challenge. Cost: $4. American Forestry Association, Global Releaf Program,P.O.
Box 2000, Washington, D.C. 20013. (202) 667-3300. Has aprogam to help plant 100
million trees by 1992. 79 color shows up in the bowl without a flush, you’ve
got a leak. 40. PREVENT PESTS NATURALLY Many pesticides are used for cosmetic
purposes only. ACKGROUND. When DDT was introduced in the OS, it B was regarded
as a miracle; after thousands of years of Aghting agricultural pests, human
beings had finally devised a “safe” and “effective” way to keep them at bay.
With DDT, scientists believed, agricultural land would become more productive
and the world’s hungry could be fed. But that’s not what happened. DDT proved
to be toxic not only to insects, but to all life. As Worldwatch puts it, DDT
“contaminated the food chain, pushed bald eagles and other predatory birds
toward extinction, and accumulated in fish, wildlife, and people.” The DDT
story is an apt metaphor for all chemical pesticides. Once they seemed ideal;
now the evidence is mounting that they are an ecological disaster. Although
they’re designed to eliminate specific “target” pests, they often poison birds
and other wildlife instead. They are seeping into groundwater and contaminating
drinking water. They are even destroying the soil itself by killing essential
organisms, from microbes to earthworms. And they are harmful to humans-especially
children. Yet, pesticide use grows. We dump an estimated 2.7 billion pounds in
the American environment every year. Homeowners spend $1 billion a year on
them. Some 300 million pounds of pesticide poisons are used right around the
house, often in the kitchen or bedroom. Fortunately, there are effective
natural altematives to chemical pesticides. As consumers, we should encourage
farmers to use them. And we should leam to use them around our homes. DID YOU
KNOW Ironically, pesticides don’t seem to be improving agricultural yield;
before their use, farmers lost about 33% of their crops to pests. Today,
farmers still lose the same 33%. According to the EPA, at least 74 pesticides
have been found in the groundwater of 38 states. \ 80 If you have mice in your
house-a mousetrap is still the best way to catch them. Over 100 active
pesticide ingredients are suspected to cause birth defects, cancer, and gene
mutation. Fact of life: Sooner or later, targeted pests develop resistance to
specific pesticides, rendering the chemicals worthless. More than 440 species
of insects and mites, and 70 types of fungus are now resistant to pesticides.
Home pesticides are just as lethal as agricultural ones. According to
Ha~rowsmith magazine, for example: “Just five tiny granules of diazinon, among
the most widely used chemicals in consumer pesticides, are enough to kill a
house sparrow or a redwing blackbird.” SWLE THINGS YOU CAN DO Learn about
alternatives They work. In 1982, for example, the city of Berkeley, California,
officially banned the use of herbicides and pesticides on its property. Since
that time the city has successfully managed its extensive parks and gardens
without toxic chemicals. You can do it, too. The best technique seems to be
IPMIntegrated Pest Management, which focuses on using natural pest controls,
such as natural predators. See source below for details. Buy organically grown
produce and grains. If you can’t find a local store that carries organically
grown food, make a special request. You’re not the only one who’ll be asking.
Demanding organic food bears fruit: In California, for example, organic food
production has gone from a $20 million business to a $100 million business in
only 4 years-and it’s still growing. SOURCES National Coalition Against the Misuse
of Pesticides, 530 7th St. SE, Washington, D.C. 20003. The vanguard in the
fight uguinst pesticides use. Has numerous pamphlets and articles, most for a
small cost. Also publishes a newsletter entitled Pesticides and You. The
Bio-Integral Resource Center, P.O. Box 7242, Berkeley, CA 94707. Publishes IPM
Practitioner, a maguzine about Integral Pest Management. Mothers and Others. 40
West 20th St., New York, NY 10011. A project of NRDC Publishes a newsletter
called tlc.” Also available: a fine book called For Our Kids’ Sake ($7.95). \
81 Styrofoam is a registered trademark of the Dow Chemical Corporation. TE! In
1982 officials m Albuquerque, New Mexico determined that Io. cal residents were
generating 1.6 million pounds of ktzardow wte-and were ~~ing 90% of it into
sewer systems, garbage, or the ground. . Most Americans don’t know how to
dispose of household hazardous wastes properly. Some of us, for example,
innocently dump toxics down the drain or into the sewer system-which might be
the worst possible way to get rid of them, since wastewater treatment plants
aren’t designed to handle hazardous materials, and the result can be serious
water contamination. Disposing of them in landfills doesn’t work, either;
hazardous wastes dumped into a landfill can seep into the groundwater, run off
into surface water, or pollute the air. Since there are so many hazardous
products in use-and since they can have such a lethal impact on the
environment-it’s important for us to feam what products we have, how to store them,
and what to do when we’re done with them. often found around homes include:
Paints and paint thinners, car batteries, oven and drain cleaners, mothballs,
floor and furniture polish, brake or transmission fluid, antifreeze, rug and
upholstery cleaners, pesticides, and furniture strippers. Even products used to
clean toilets are considered hazardous. 9 People seem to have little idea when
they’re dealing with hazardQUS wastes. According to Environmental Hazards
Management: “It has been estimated that in an average city of 100,000
residents, 3.75 tons of toilet bowl cleaner, 13.75 tons of liquid household
cleaners, and 3.44 tons of motor oil are discharged into city drains each
month.” 8 How do you figure out wha3s a hazardous waste and what isn’t? Use available
reference materials. Recommended: Huzardous 4.25 from Enterprise for Education,
1320A 3rd St., Suite 202, Santa Monica, CA 90401. 82 Waste Wheel,” send $3.75
to Environmental SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Store hazardous materials properly: 0 Keep
them in their original containers. Don’t take the chance that someone might
mistake and misuse them. 0 Make sure labels are securely fixed to containers.
Keep them in a cool, dry place-out of the reach of children. 0 If the original
container leaks, put the whole thing in a larger container. ..and don’t forger
to mark it. Try to reduce the amount of hazardous products you use: 0 Buy
exactly what you need. Remember: the more you buy, the more you have to dispose
of. If you’ve got extra (e.g., paint), share it with neighbors, friends and
family. Try to use it up. e Use safer substitutes whenever possible Dispose of
it properly: 0 Recycle whenever possible. Used motor oil, car batteries, paint
thinners, and some solvents can be refined and reused. Local civic groups can help
you identify recycling programs. 0 Municipal incineration is a way of dealing
with some hazardous wastes. Check with local authorities to see what they
accept. Never use incinerators in your home; they don’t work. 0 Find a licensed
contractor or recycling agency. (Look in the yellow pages.) If there’s none in
your area: call the local wastewater treatment plant for info on disposing of
liquid waste, the local sanitation department for info on disposing of solid
wastes. 0 Participate in a local professional collection program. Many
communities do not yet provide this kind of service. If there’s none in your
community, contact local civic leaders and officials with suggestions for a
program. Many of the best collection programs in the country today began with
one concerned citizen. RESOURCES; Water Pollution Control Federation, 601 Wythe
Street, Alexandria, VA 22314-1994, (703) 684-2438. CuEl or write for their
Household Hazurdous Waste Chare. Call the EPA ho&ne-(800)-424-9346-t0 find
out who to contact in your state about household hazardous waste pick-up. c 83
rds Management Institute, 10 Newmarket Road, P.O. Box 932, Durham, N.H. 03824
42. CARPOOL TO WORK In one year, traffic congestion alone wasted 3 billion
gallons of gasoline4out 5% of the amount US. cars use annually. ACKGROUND. The
growing number of cars on the road B pose an enormous threat to the
environment. Yet there are few alternatives to driving; in most areas of the
U.S., mass transit is woefully inadequate. So if you’re interested in cutting back
your driving, you may have to take matters into your own hands. Thus far, the
best solution is carpooling. Carpooling is especially practical if you commute
to an urban area. But you can share a ride to work no matter where you live.
Even carpooling 8 miles from, say, rural East Calais to Montpelier, Vermont,
will save about 4,000 auto miles per person every year. DID YOU KNOW One-third
of all private auto mileage is racked up commuting to and from work. * The
average commuter car carries only 1.3 riders. If each commuter car carried just
one more person, we’d save more than 600,000 gallons of gas a day and prevent
more than 12 million pounds of carbon dioxide from polluting the atmosphere.
The federal govemment has cut funding for mass transit by 32Okwhich makes
carpooling even more important. SIMPLE THINGS TO DO Find out how to connect
with other commuters. There’s no national clearinghouse for carpool
information, but many local govemments are pushing carpools and can help direct
you to the right sources. In some places, informal but systematic carpooling
arrangements have sprung up near bus or train stops. People line up and
commuters stop to fill up their cars, taking advantage of special fullpassenger
lanes on toll bridges and freeways. Advertise carpooling on community bulletin
boards (radio and TV stations have them as public services), or in weekly
“shoppers.” L 84 Packaging Mania: About 8% of America’s steel is used for
packaging. tter ~~wiron~nt,bet~een 1520% of am is organic material. AU of these
are wery bulky, ~~c~~y using up va~~~ ~~~~~ space. is . Composting is the
process of turning ore ganic mate~~a~ you normally throw away-from gmss clip
pings to apple cor-into a rich fertilizer. doesn’t mean that you just rectly
onto the soil: You toss your constructed receptacle, and then soil, ~mproving
its texture and increasing its ability to hold air and water. Besides being a
source of natural fertilizer, composting helps cut own the amount of solid
waste being dumped in crowded landfills. away 24 million tons of leaves and
grass. e average A~er~can family produces more than 1,200 pounds ericans create
is compostable, inIt costs at least $65 per ton to dump solid waste in
landfill; the average cost of mu~~c~~~~ composting is Q~Y $35 per ton. des: Composting,
combined with curbside collection ed towns like Davis, California to cut their
Jersey, state-sponsored economic incentives have spurred 80 towns to develop
composting programs. implest way is to just pile a corner of your garden. on’t
forget: A~~~ foil is recyclable. This isn’t ideal as composting goes, and it
takes up a lot of room.. . . But the clippings will decompose, and won’t use
landfill space. A more sop~isticated compost pile involves more effort. You’ll
ur garbage to separate the organics from the rest. * Build or buy a small
enclosure in which to create the compost. e Learn how to stack and layer the
compost. Turn it occasionally to avoid odors and allow the air to circulate.
It’s a lot simpler than it might sound. But since we haven’t got space to
explain it in detail, a good way to start is to send a selfaddressed envelope
to The Berkeley Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo he., Berkeley, CA 94702, and ask
them for their “Composting’j fact sheet. It has the right info to get you
going, and answers basic questions. If you have a yard but no garden: *
Gomposting is still worthwhile. Donate your compost to friends who garden;
they’ll appreciate it. e If you want to recycle your organic garbage without
bothering to keep a compost pile, you can participate in community composting
projects. These usually involve leaf collection, either curbside or at a
centralized composting facility. Call your city govemment to find out if you’ve
got a composting program in your community. Over 500 communities do, and more
are in the planning stages. 0 Look for a commercial composter in the yellow
pages. “Home Composting,” a small how-to brochure, is available for $3.50 plus
a self-addressed, stamped envelope (50$ postage) from Seattle Tilth
Association, 4649 Sunnyside Ave. N, Seattle, WA 98103. 9 try: osting, by J.
Minnich (Rodale Press, 1979). @Worms Eat My Garbage, by M. Appelhoff (mower
Press, 1982). 87 d Astonishing water fact: ab produce one steak, 2,607 gallons
of water is needed. INSTALL A ATER TANK Graywater reuse can cut water
consumption 30% for the average family of four. ACKGROUND. Wouldn’t it be nice
if you could save and reuse the water that goes down the drain in your shower
or sink? You can, but it isn’t easy. It can be collected in a tank under your house,
then siphoned off and used to water your lawn and garden. The water is called
“graywater” (for obvious reasons). A graywater tank isn’t for everybody; but it
if you live in a climate that’s constantly plagued by drought and you’re an
avid gardener, this may be a viable option-you can still have your garden
without using more than your share of water. DID YOU KNOW tion in an average
American home. * Not all graywater is suitable for reuse-kitchen grease, for
instance, needs to be kept out of any graywater recycling system-but much of it
is not only as good for plants as clear water, but actually helps some plants
thrive. * Graywater reuse is technically illegal in many states. However, in
times of drought, many localities have the latitude to authorize “appropriate”
conservation methods; graywater reuse is among them.. * Graywater systems are
not for the uncommitted. Setting up a system requires some work and some
expense4200-400 for a basic system built with new parts; $100-200 more if you
need a sump pump; labor costs if you hire someone to install it. SOURCES Edible
Publications, P.O. Box 1841, Santa Rosa, CA 95402 Their excellent booklet,
“Graywater Use in the Landscape,” provides a concise yet comprehensive
discussion of the value and practical considerations of installing and
operating a graywater system. Read it before you seriously consider altering
your existing plumbing for a graywater tu&. Cost: $6 ppd. (CA residents add
$0.36 tax). Graywater makes up 60.65% of the total indoor water consump- 88 a
It takes 100 times more water to produce a pound of meat than a pound of wheat.
45. DRIVE LESS “Cars are multiplying faster than people. They’re outbreathing
us, too. They’re using up our land area. They’re using up OUT economic
strength. ”-Ernest Caknbach, author of Ecotopia. ACKGROUND. Our entire society
is built around having- B and driving-cars.. . .So it probably seems like we’re
suggesting the impossible when we propose a cutback in driving. But other
societies have done it: In the Netherlands, for example, 80% of train commuters
get to the station on a bicycle; in Denmark, about 30% of all trips are taken
on bikes; and Japan even has bicycle parking garages in urban areas. Whenever
Americans complain about the shoddy environmental practices of other cultures
(e.g., Brazil rainforest policies), people point out that we own most of the
world’s vehicles, and we’re doing little to control them. They’re right. So for
the truly committed, this is a priority. DID YOU KNOW On an average, the 140
million cars in America are estimated to travel almost 4 billion miles a day
... and according to the DOT, they use over 200 million gallons of gas doing
it. The ecological effects are staggering. One result of buming 200 million
gallons of gas, for example, is the emission of about 4 billion pounds of
carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. And that’s just one day’s worth. SIMPLE
THINGS TO DO For starters, we could try using an a1temati.de means of
transportation-buses, subways, trains, bicycle, or walking-just one day a week.
Even that may be tough-but it’s worth the effort. RESULTS If only 1 % of the
car owners in America left their cars idle for one day a week, it would save an
estimated 96 million gallons of gas a year. Destructive emissions would be cut
down cqmmensurately; we’d keep some 2 billion pounds of C02 out of the
atmosphere, for instance. 89 Every year in the U.S. we lose 7 billion tons of
topsoil-an area the size of Connecticut. According to Diet for a New America,
over a billion people could be fed by the grain and soybeans eaten by U.S.
livestock every year. ACKGROUND. We don’t think anyone should tell you what to
eat-that’s too personal. But we do think you should know some facts about how
your diet affects the environment. A lot of Americans probably never consider
the resources that it takes to put-for example-hamburgers on their dinner
tables. We’ve been blessed with a plentiful food supply; perhaps it’s time we
tried to conserve the natural resources that support it. DID YOU KNOW 0
According to Diet for u New America: If Americans reduced their meat intake by
just lo%, the savings in grains and soybeans could adequately feed 60 million
people-the number of people who starve to death, worldwide, each year. 0 To
produce 1 Ib. of beef, we need 16 lbs. of grain and soybeans, 2500 gallons of
water, and the energy equivalent of one gallon of gasoline. 0 Livestock
production accounts for more than half of all the water consumed (for all
purposes) in the U.S. 0 Believe it or not, cows may be contributing to the greenhouse
effect. According to one estimate, the world’s 1.3 billion cows annually
produce nearly 100 million tons of methane-a powerful “greenhouse gas” which,
molecule for molecule, traps 25 times as much solar heat as C02. e 220 million
acres of land in the U.S. have been deforested for livestock production. 25
million acres (an area the size of Austria) in Brazil, and half the forests in
Central America, have been cleared for beef production. A third of the surface
of North America is devoted to grazing. b Half of American croplands grow
livestock feed (mostly for cattle). 90 The hamburgers that McDonald’s serves in
a week equal more than 16,000 head of cattle. 20 pure vegetarians can be fed on
the land needed to feed one person who eats meat. Growing grains, vegetables
and fruits uses less than 5% as much raw materials as dGes meat production.
SIMPLE THINGS TO DO The simplest thing-even if you’re a confirmed meat-eater-is
to cut down on the amount of beef you eat. Experiment with occasional
vegetarian meals. There are lots of excellent vegetarian-cuisine cookbooks
available. Have you tried your hand at edible gardening? Gardening is the #1
recreational pursuit in America. You’ll be amazed at how much you can grow in
even a tiny plot. Herbs, lea@ greens, fruits and even corn can be grown quite
handily in most urban settings. Support local “farmers’ markets.” Locally-grown
produce is typically fresher, cheaper, and less laden with pesticide residues
than produce shipped long distances. SOURCES: *Diet for u New America, by John
Robbins (Stillpoint). An exhaustive study of the perils of “our addiction to
meat,” fiom the waste of naturd resources to the health hazards of the American
diet to the cruelty to animals. Diet for u Small Planet, Frances Moore Lappe’(Ba1lantine
Books). A rewolutionury vegetarian cookbook. 0 The Moosewood Cookbook, by
Mollie Katzen (Ten Speed Press). One of the most popular vegetarian cookbooks
ever published. AND AS LONG AS WE‘VE GOT S A new kids’ magazine debuted in
March. It’s called P-3 (which stands for “Planet 3”-Earth, the third planet
from the sun), and it’s great. Subscriptions are $14.00 a year. Write to: P3,
the Earth. based Magazine for Kids, PO Box 52, Montgomery, VT 05470. And check
out your local book store for 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth. c
91 4stonishing water fact: To produce one sewing of chicken, 408 gallons of
water is required. 47. START A RECYCLING PROGRAM Connecticut, Rho& Island,
New Jersey, and Oregon have all passed legislation that either encourages or
requires recycling by residents. ACKGROUND. We hope, by now, you’re excited
about B recycling. But what happens if you look around your area and discover
that there’s no recycling program in which to participate. After talking with
professionals who specialize in recycling, our recommendation is that you
contact communities where recycling has been tried.. .and has worked. RECYCLING
SUCCESS STORIES “In Rockford, Illinois, residents can win more than $1000 for
just taking out the trash. In one of the country’s most innovative programs for
recyclin2Rockford’s ‘trash lottery’ rewards randomly selected households for
separating the recyclable materials from their garbage, and pays them from the
city’s savings in landfill costs.” “In King County, Washington strong support
for recycling brought a postponement of plans to incinerate waste.” 0 “The
metropolitan Portland (Oregon) area has set an ambitious goal. Although the 1.2
million residents already recycle 22% of their wastes, one of the highest rates
in the United States, the regional government thinks they can do better. By
1989, Portland must cut its waste by 52%.” “In Philadelphia, where waste
disposal costs increased by 20%, or $1 1 million, during a one-year period,
Mayor Wilson Goode signed curbside recycling legislation into effect in June,
1987.” SOURCES The Recycler’s Handbook, a 132 page how-to book by the
Earthworks Group. Available at bookstores, or send $5.95 (includes postage and
handling) to the EarthWorks Group, 1400 Shattuck Ave., #25, Berkeley, CA 94709.
\ 92 48. XERISCAPE Native plants need only about halfas much water as imported
varieties. ACKGROUND. Xeriscape (from the Greek word Xeros, B meaning dry) is a
modem approach to landscaping which has become popular due to water shortages. Some
years ago, experts realized that much of the water used in residential planting
went to plants that were not suited for the regions in which they were being
grown. Tests done with equally attractive native varieties showed that it was
possible to save as much as 54% of the water, keep plants healthier, and
improve soil conditions. Xeriscape is not only practical, it’s eminently
satisfying-because you’ll wind up with an aesthetically pleasing yard that’s
also ecologically sound. DID YOU KNOW Drought-resistant plants aren’t just
limited to cacti and succulants. They include hundreds of species of colorful
flowers, flowering shrubs, vines and ground covers that provide beautiful
alterria. tives to traditional landscapes. For instance, jasmine, bougainvillea,
wisteria, sweet alyssum and daffodil are all low-water use plants. There are
many low-maintainance grasses, too. In Texas, for in. stance, where water can
be scarce, the standard Bluegrass needs to be watered every four days.
Buffalograss, better adapted to the climate, requires water only every 2 0 3
weeks. SIh4PLE THINGS TO DO We’re not suggesting you go out, rip up your front
lawn, and instantly replace it with cactus. We are suggesting you take a new
look at landscaping your home. Some of the principles of Xeriscape -drip
irrigation, heavy mulching of planting beds, organic soil improvements to allow
for better water absorption and retention-are applicable to any garden design.
Contact a local horticulture society or nursery to leam more. SOURCES The Texas
Water Development Board, P.O. Box 13231, Capitol Station, Austin, TX 78711.
Write for Xeriscape brochures. L 93 Growing wildflowers and herbs will provide
food for beneficial insects. I). Some activists worry that books like this le
into believing that a doing a few positive isn’t. As we said at the beginning
of this book, our “50 Simple gs” are just a start. By making them simple and
accessible, things for the environment is enough. we’re trying to make it
easier for you to get involved. Now it’s up to you to stay involved. There are
many ways to do it; one is to work with existing organizations. Here’s a list
of some we’ve worked with. Pick a few, and write to them for more information
about what you can do. e Conservation, 1725 DeSales St. NW, se for Hazardous
Waste, P.O. Box 926, Citizens for a Better Environment, 33 East Congress, Suite
523, Chicago, IL 60605 ~nstitute, 300 Broadway, Suite 28, San Francisco, CA
tion. 1525 New Hampshire NW, Washington, D.C. 20036. ~n~ron~en~l Defense Fund,
1616 P St. NW, Suite 150, Washington, D.C. 20036 Policy Institute, 218 D St.
SE, Washington, D.C. 20003 Greenhouse Crisis ~oun~ation, 1130 17th St. NW,
Suite 630, Washington D.C. 20036 Greenpeace, 1436 U St. NW, Washington, D.C.
20009 c 94 Packaging Mania: About 40% of America’s aluminum is used for
packaging. Izaak Walton League of America, 1401 Wilson Blvd., Level B
Arlington, VA 22209 National Audubon Society, 801 Pennsylvania Ave SE, Suite
301, Washington D.C. 20003 National Coalition Against the Msuse of Pesticides,
530 7th St. SE, Washington, D.C. 20003 National Wildlife Federation, 1412 16th
St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20036 Natural Resources Defense Council, 40 West 20th
St., New York, NY 1001 1 The Nature Conservancy, 1815 North Lynn St.,
Arlington, VA 22209 Oceanic Society, 218 D St. SE, Washington, D.C. 20003
Rainforest Action Network, 300 Broadway, Suite 28, San Francisco, CA 94133
Renew America, 1400 16th St. NW, Suite 710, Washington, D.C. 20036 Rocky
Mountain Institute, 1739, Snowmass Creek Road, Snowmass, Colorado 81654 Sierra
Club, 730 Polk St., San Francisco, CA 94009 Wilderness Society, 1400 I St. NW,
Washington, D.C. 20005 World Resources Institute, 1735 New York Ave. NW,
Washington, D.C, 20006 World Wildlife Fund, 1250 24th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20037
Worldwatch Institute, 1776 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20036 c 95
“When the well is dry, we know the worth of water.” -Poor Richard’s Almanack
50+ SPREAD THE WORD ow that you’ve invested time reading this book and experi-
N menting with the projects in it, you’re aware of some of the ways that one
person can make a difference. Here’s another one: Pass the book on to other
people.. .or just pass on what you’ve leamed. The 1990s should be a very
exciting time, with people joining together to protect the most important asset
we have-our environment. But in a powerful way, the ability to make this happen
begins with you. Friends and family who see that you take environmental
problems-and your role in solving them-seriously will show respect.. .and curiosity.
Then they’ll listen as you pass on your knowledge and commitment. It has a
cumulative effect. As you inspire them, they’ll inspire others. Our ability to
have a positive impact will grow proportionately. We owe it to ourselves and
our children to do whatever we can. Keep it going. We need you. WRITE TO US If
you’ve got some ideas you’d like to pass on, we’d like to hear them. We’ll pass
them on, too. Write to: THE EARTHWORKS GROUP 1400 Shattuck Avenue, #25
Berkeley, CA 94709 f 96
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