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– Jones’n To Be Green
April 17, 2009
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Despite what Kermit said, it IS easy being green — but what does being green really mean? Green means preserving the environment and Heartland takes this responsibility seriously!
Heartland is kicking off "Jones'n to be green", a monthly series hosted by Service Leader David Jones, highlighting steps we take to reduce electricity, conserve water, recycle and so much more! Understanding how these choices impact our environment is key to ensure a healthy environment for present and future generations.
Here are "green" tips for you to practice:
- Take a shorter shower. You will save water and energy!
- Open up those curtains. Natural light can lower energy. Artificial light adds up to almost 15 percent of your home's total electricity!
- Go BIG! Individual servings at grocery stores use more packaging. If possible, purchase the family size.
- Turn off the lights when you're leaving any room for 15 minutes or more and utilize natural light when you can.
- Turn off your computer and the power strip it's plugged into when you leave for the day. Otherwise, you're still burning energy even if you're not burning the midnight oil.
- Print on both sides or use the back side of old documents for faxes, scrap paper, or drafts. Avoid color printing and print in draft mode whenever feasible.
- Think before you print: could this be read or stored online instead? When you receive unwanted catalogs, newsletters, magazines, or junk mail, request to be removed from the mailing list
- Bring your own mug and dishware for those meals you eat at the office.
- Make it a policy to provide reusable dishes, silverware, and glasses.
- Wash clothes in cold water whenever possible. As much as 85 percent of the energy used to machine-wash clothes goes to heating the water.
- Use a drying rack or clothesline to save the energy otherwise used during machine drying. If you must use a dryer, consider adding dryer balls to cut drying time.
- Use a water filter to purify tap water instead of buying bottled water. Not only is bottled water expensive, but it generates large amounts of container waste.
- Keep your cell phones, computers, and other electronics as long as possible. Donate or recycle them responsibly when the time comes. E-waste contains mercury and other toxics and is a growing environmental problem.
- Make your own household cleaning products. Here are a few tips from Worldwatch Institute:
- Stock up on a few safe, simple ingredients that can be used in most cleaning situations. Soap, water, baking soda, vinegar, lemon juice, borax, and a coarse scrubbing sponge can take care of most household cleaning needs.
- Instead of using a standard drain cleaner, which likely contains lye, hydrochloric acid, and sulfuric acid, try pouring a quarter cup of baking soda down the clogged drain, followed by a half cup of vinegar. Close the drain tightly until fizzing stops, then flush with boiling water.
- For an effective glass cleaner, use a mixture of half white vinegar and half water.
- Baking soda and cornstarch are both good carpet deodorizers.
- To clean up mildew and mold, use a mixture of lemon juice or white vinegar and salt.
- A paste of baking soda, salt, and hot water makes a great oven cleaner.
- In the rare instance you need to use a hazardous product, use as little as possible and dispose of it in a way that will cause minimum harm — or example, by bringing it to a hazardous waste recycling or treatment center.
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