DATE: 22 Feb 2007, 7:46 pm / MOOD: Mellow

Time to Go Green 

I just watched Al Gore's, An Inconvienent Truth.  I have taken the initiative to go green.  The environment is one of my serious passions of late! I think the movie is one that everyone should see.  It might be slightly off putting to some of the right wingers out there, but they need to hear the message that Gore is sending.  Our planet is in serious trouble.  All of the scientists are on board, with the exceptions of the one's who are paid to disagree with global warming. I will now get off my high horse and let you discover the movie for yourself.  Here is a link to the site that is tied to the movie so that you can learn how to go green.  Ps, my personal Co2 contribution is 4.7 in the winter and 3.5 in the summer,  per year which is smaller than the national average of over 6 whats yours?

http://www.climatecrisis.net/

Now---How to Go Green

What You Can Do at Home

*****Replace a regular incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb (cfl)
CFLs use 60% less energy than a regular bulb. This simple switch will save about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. If every family in the ..:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags">U.S. made the switch, we'd reduce carbon dioxide by more than 90 billion pounds!

Move your thermostat down 2° in winter and up 2° in summer
Heating/cooling accounts for  half of the energy we use in our homes. You could save about 2,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year with this simple adjustment.

Clean or replace filters on your furnace and air conditioner

Install a programmable thermostat  It will save you money too

Choose energy efficient appliances when making new purchases
Look for the Energy Star

Wrap your water heater in an insulation blanket
You'll save 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year with this simple action.

Use less hot waterIt takes a lot of energy to heat water. Install a low flow showerhead (350 pounds of carbon dioxide saved per year) and washing your clothes in cold or warm water (500 pounds saved per year) instead of hot.

Use a clothesline instead of a dryer whenever possible
You save 700 lbs of carbon dioxide if you air dry your clothes for 6 months
Turn off electronic devices you're not using

Unplug electronics from the wall when you're not using them
Even when turned off, use energy. In fact, the energy used to keep display clocks lit  alone accounts for 5 percent of total domestic energy consumption and spews 18 million tons of carbon into the atmosphere every year!

Only run your dishwasher when there's a full load and use the energy-saving setting
You can save 100 pounds of carbon dioxide per year.

Insulate and weatherize your home

Be sure you're recycling at home
You can save 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide a year by recycling half of your waste
Buy recycled paper products
It takes less 70 to 90% less energy to make recycled paper

Plant a tree
A single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime.

Switch to green power
The Green Power Network is a good place to start to figure out what's available in your area.

Buy locally grown and produced foods
The average meal in the United States travels 1,200 miles from the farm to your plate.

Buy fresh foods instead of frozen
Frozen food uses 10 times more energy to produce.

Seek out and support local farmers markets
They reduce the amount of energy required to grow and transport the food to you by one fifth. You can find a farmer's market in your area at the USDA website.

Buy organic foods as much as possible
Organic soils capture and store carbon dioxide at much higher levels than soils from conventional farms.

Avoid heavily packaged products
You can save 1,200 pounds of carbon dioxide if you cut down your garbage by 10%.

Eat less meat
Methane is the second most significant greenhouse gas and cows are one of the greatest methane emitters.

REDUCE YOUR IMPACT WHILE ON THE MOVE

Reduce the number of miles you drive by walking, biking, carpooling or taking mass transit wherever possible
Avoiding just 10 miles of driving a wk would eliminate about 500 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions a year!
Keep your car tuned up
When just 1% of car owners properly maintain their cars, nearly a billion pounds of carbon dioxide are kept out of the atmosphere.

Check your tires weekly to make sure they're properly inflated

When it is time for a new car, choose a more fuel efficient vehicle
Fly less
Air travel produces large amounts of emissions so reducing how much you fly by even one or two trips a year can reduce your emissions significantly. You can also offset your air travel by investing in renewable energy projects.

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