Green Your Pet
The biggest choice you can make to Green your pet is to buy high quality American made pet food. Most pet food is made overseas and needs to travel a long way to reach your local pet store. These foreign foods are also very low quality and can even be harmful to your pet. Next time you buy pet food, read the packaging or ask to make sure the food you’re buying is American made or better yet local. Look for food containing all natural ingredients, not meat by products or fillers. It might be a little more expensive but its locality is better for the environment and means better nutrition for your pet.
PET TOYS
One way to offset the costs of high quality food is to stop buying plastic pet toys. Not only do they take their toll on the environment while being produced, but they are also mass produced with harmful ingredients. There is nothing my dog loves more than a plain old tennis ball, which only cost $1 for three pack. Look for more Green pet toys at www.greatgreenpet.com.
THE FACTS
Americans spent over $38.4 billion on our pets in 2007.
Pay For Your Garbage
The United States is responsible for a third of the world’s garbage, 75 to 95 percent of which could be recycled. Even things that are too big to be collected on the street, like electronics or furniture, are still recyclable at local drop off areas. Our garbage is taken to landfills and buried, but out of sight out of mind is not always the best solution. Landfills emit methane gas, one of the many causes of global warming. They also leak toxic materials into the surrounding soil and water, which eventually make their way back to us. Solution? Recycle everything you can - and one way your city can help ensure that people do that is to make people pay for their garbage. A controversial topic of course, but it’s one you should support.
PAY AS YOU THROW
PAYT, or pay-as-you-throw, is a growing trend in our country. PAYT programs make people pay a certain amount, usually $1, for every bag of garbage or garbage can collected on the street. This encourages people to recycle everything they can so they create the least amount of garbage. Having your recyclables picked up, of course… is free.
THE FACTS
The average American produces 4.5 pounds of garbage every day.
Green Parties
Show your guests you are environmentally conscious by making your next celebration a green one. Below are a few ideas that can create a memorable green event:
VENUE
Choose an eco-friendly venue. Outdoor venues are favorable, as you don’t need added décor or flowers with nature’s beauty surrounding you. Also try to select a venue close to home. Guests will have to travel less, using less energy and fuel. The easiest choice would be your own home!
INVITATIONS
Almost all of your guests use the internet these days, even grandparents! www.evite.com is a great way to invite guests, track RSVPs, and even let guests communicate with each other. If you opt for paper invitations, find some made with recycled paper.
LIGHTING
Opt for a candlelit (palm or beeswax) dinner to conserve energy. Another option would be too have an afternoon get-together, where you are taking advantage of natural light from the sun.
CATERING
Hire a gourmet caterer who uses organic & local products. Have them prepare only what will be needed for the event. If there are leftovers, ask the caterer if the food can be donated to a local shelter, or at least composted. Another option would be to cook the food yourself. Research some local vendors, and visit farmer’s markets to find out what foods are best during the month of your event.
REUSABLE DECOR
Use eco-friendly, reusable products, such as linen napkins, dinner plates, utensils & glassware. If available, use locally grown flowers. Display your food using chafing dishes, platters & bowls instead of disposable serving pieces. Guests will be impressed by the elegance of your buffet!
RECYCLE
Get your recycling bins in order before the event, and clearly mark the containers so guests can “pitch in” with the recycling. If you hire a caterer, have them ask their staff to recycle anything possible. If you are lucky enough to live in a state like Michigan, you can even cash in on all those empty cans & bottles for 10c a piece!
PASS ON THE BALLOONS
Balloons are not biodegradable, making them a choking hazard for birds, fish, squirrels, and even kids!
Good website for links:
Sustainable Living
http://www.sustainabletable.org/�
Gift Giving/Registry
http://www.changingthepresent.org/registries
http://www.alternativegiftregistry.org/
THE FACTS
Americans spend over $2.5 billion dollars every year on wrapping paper. In lieu of a gift, ask guests to donate to their favorite charity in your name.
Green Packaging
The internet has changed the way we shop. People are spending more time buying products online and less time in the retail stores. The packaging used to ship these items usually consists of a cardboard box with foam “peanuts” that are used to cushion the product and prevent damage. These peanuts are useful because they lightweight, but strong enough protect whatever is inside. The problem is traditional peanuts are made of foam which takes a very long time to break down. The good news is that traditional foam peanuts are becoming a thing of the past. Most large retailers, like Bloomingdales, use peanuts made from pure corn and potato starch. These new kind of peanuts break down in water within 9 minutes!
So next time you’re buying online look to see if there is an option to have your purchase shipped using biodegradable packaging. Biodegradable packaging consists of recycled cardboard and biodegradable bubble wrap that decomposes into oxygen, water and food for microbes as soon as left outdoors in the elements. Boxes are composed of 70% post-consumer recycled materials so be sure to ask next time you shop.
THE FACTS
Packaging “peanuts” made from pure corn and potato starch break down in water within 9 minutes.
Outdoor Solar Lights
Outdoor solar lighting systems use solar cells, which convert sunlight into electricity. The electricity is stored in batteries for use at night. Solar lights are more functional than they used to be just a few years ago. At that time, they were available only in limited shapes, and it wasn’t easy to find good quality products. Solar products were rare and quite expensive. Today you can find them at almost any garden shop or supermarket. Solar powered lights are available in numerous designs for home use as well as professional landscapers’ use. They can enhance the look of your garden at night, provide lighting for parking, light airports runways, flag poles or even street signs.
The best thing about outdoor solar lights is they save you money and help the environment at the same time. Instead of installing expensive electric lights on your home, use solar lights to light your home and garden. You’ll save money doing it, and feel good about helping reduce CO2 emissions.
THE FACTS
Outdoor solar lights are easy to install and virtually maintenance free. Best of all, they provide free electricity.
Join an Online Community
Joining an online community is a great way to learn more about living Green, as well as educate those who are just getting started. They are informative, fun and can help you connect with other people who care about the environment the same way you do. Its no all about turning off lights and picking up garbage either. Many concerts, events, and parties are planned via online communities which are fun ways to raise money for Green charities.
Green571 is an online community in itself, so hopefully you’ve already signed up for our free daily newsletter. Our newsletter is full of tips and trends to help you live a Green lifestyle. It also has links about environmentally friendly products to help you change the way you live. If you haven’t signed up yet, be sure to sign up today to receive our free daily email.
THE FACTS
Many concerts, events, and parties are planned via online communities which are fun ways to raise money for Green charities.
How to Green Your Christmas Tree
Christmas Trees…. real or fake? The highly debated environmentally Christmas topic. the truth, or at least our opinion, might surprise you. A single tree can absorb over one ton of CO2 in its lifetime. Taking into consideration CO2 is responsible for global warming, its heard to justify cutting down a real tree over a fake tree. The truth is… fake trees are worse. Fake christmas trees are made from non renewable plastics and contain a very high of level of toxic PVC and can be a potential source of hazardous lead. According to the Children’s Health Environmental Coalition, the manufacture of PVC creates and disperses dioxins, which include the most toxic man-made chemical known. Released into air or water, dioxins enter the food chain, where they accumulate in fatty tissues of animals and humans, a potential risk for causing cancer, damaging immune functions and impairing children’s development.
The way they are manufactured isn’t much better either. As noted in the Washington Post, “On the concrete floors of Zhang’s Shuitou Company factory, migrant workers, most earning about $100 a month, squat in front of hissing machinery as they melt chips into moildable plastic…”
Solution? The solution is opt for real Christmas tree, but there’s more than one to do it. First of all, many farmer’s markets are tree farms are offering potted pine trees that can be used over the holidays and then planted after Christmas weather permitted. if you live in a cold environment, you can even water they plant until spring and then plant it when the weather begins to warm up. If that’s not an option for you and you have to cut down a real tree, at least consider this… buy a potted pine tree in the spring and plant it somewhere to replace the one you cut down. Plant it somewhere where it can grow in beauty and soak up all the CO2 it wants!
WHAT TO DO WITH YOUR TREE AFTER THE HOLIDAYS
If you cut down a tree, there are more options that just throwing it away. You can chop it up for a firewood to heat your home or chop it into mulch for landscaping or garden. Then at least its not a total waste. Actually, what you could do it use it to much around the new tree your going to plan in the spring to replace the one you cut down in December… remember?
THE FACTS
A single tree can absorb over one ton of CO2 in its lifetime.
Environmental Lawn Care
There is nothing better than a beautiful green lawn in the summer. Landscaping is a great way to improve the environment as well add beauty and value to your home. Although they can be easily avoided, there are two main environmental issues involving lawns:
LEARN TO WATER RESPONSIBLY
Every year Americans use 7 billion gallons of water maintaining their lawns, that’s one third of all residential usage. Grass only needs about one inch of rain a week to grow correctly. Keep an eye on your weekly rainfall, if you get more than an inch of rain a week then you don’t need to water your lawn. If you do need to water, here are two easy tips to help conserve water. Always water your lawn early in the morning or at night so the sun doesn’t speed up evaporation. Leave your grass 3 to 4 inches long because it helps decrease run off and evaporation before you lawn has a chance to absorb the water.
REFRAIN FROM USING CHEMICAL PESTICIDES
Americans spend $38 billion every year in chemical pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides keeping their lawns looking great. This can turn your lawn from a beautiful asset to a toxic battlefield. Not only are the chemical pesticides toxic, they are made from non-renewable fossil fuels which are the leading of global warming. So what should you do? Use Organic pesticides instead. They are just as effective but are made from animal, plant, and mineral sources instead of fossil fuels. Better yet, perform your own soil test and see exactly what your lawn needs. You might find it needs no pesticides at all! A soil test kit is available at any Home Depot or Lowe’s.
THE FACTS
Every year Americans use 7 billion gallons of water maintaining their lawns, that’s one third of all residential usage.
Home for the Holidays
Everyone loves to give and receive gifts, but wrapping paper is not environmentally friendly. Americans spend over $2.5 billion dollars every year on wrapping paper. Stop buying non recyclable wrapping paper printed with petroleum based inks and dyes. There are many options for wrapping paper made from recycled paper free of petroleum based inks. Better yet, wrap your gifts in newspaper or use reusable gifts bags.
Greeting cards are another environmental killer. Over 300,000 trees are harvested each year just to make greeting cards. Send an eCard instead, they’re free and don’t harm the environment. Visit www.hallmark.com to learn more about sending free eCards.
REUSABLE GIFT BAGS
Gift bags are a great way reuse paper and save money. Look for gift bags made from recycled paper, they are cheaper and can be used over and over again. If someone gives you a gift in a gift bag, keep it and use it next time you give someone a gift.
THE FACTS
Americans spend over $2.5 billion dollars every year on wrapping paper.
Grow A Garden
There are few things more rewarding than consuming home grown vegetables from your own garden. Starting your own garden is fun, inexpensive, and can provide more food than you probably realize. Why would it be good for the environment? Normally food travels an average of 1,500 to 2,500 miles before it reaches your plate. That’s a lot of CO2 released into the atmosphere, not to mention the fossil fuel consumption on pesticides, farming, processing, cold storage, and packaging.
Having your own garden can save you a lot of money on food as well. A pack of tomato seeds costs around $3, the same as a pound of tomatoes at the grocery store. The difference is the seeds will provide you with tomatoes all summer long. Sure it might not be possible to grow all your own produce year round, but even if its just for the summer then every little bit of that will help.
THE FACTS
On average, produce travels 1,500 to 2,500 miles before it reaches your plate.
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