Going Green

Growing Green

Growing Green with God

5 favorite excuses as to why not recycle!

By Lori Johnson (taken from the Internet)

  1. It’s too expensive.
  2. I can’t make a difference.
  3. It doesn’t fit my lifestyle.
  4. Green products don’t work.
  5. I don’t know where to start.

Surveys show most Americans recognize the environmental crisis and they’re concerned about global warming. But to actually do something about it? Excuses abound.

Going green is a lot like losing weight. Many of us talk about doing it but when it comes right down to it we come up with myriad excuses.

Excuse No. 1: ‘It’s too expensive.’

Some people think greening their home means installing “fancy-schmancy” things like solar panels, but it’s simpler than that, says Jenny Powers, spokeswoman for the Natural Resources Defense Council. For example, compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs cost more upfront (an estimated $2 to $15, for specialty bulbs), but they last 10 times longer than standard incandescent bulbs, she notes. CFL bulbs use 75 percent less energy, resulting in savings of $30 or more in electricity costs during the life of each bulb, according to data from the federal government’s Energy Star program. “So you’ll be paying a lot less on your energy bill, and over time you’ll more than make up for your cost,” Powers says.
Seeing the potential savings in the long run is a way to get beyond this excuse, says Edwin Stafford, associate professor of marketing at Utah State University in Logan, Utah, who studies green marketing. Powers says you can look for products with the Energy Star seal because they are more energy-efficient and will result in savings on your electric bill. “It doesn’t mean switching to solar power or putting up a wind turbine in your yard,” she says. “Those are great things to do, but it’s not necessary.” Thomas Kostigen, co-author of “The Green Book: The Everyday Guide to Saving the Planet One Simple Step at a Time,” notes that even turning down the thermostat a degree lower for the heat and a degree higher for air conditioning can save approximately $100 a year on your utility bill.

Excuse No. 2: ‘My individual effort won’t make a difference.’

Just look at the statistics. Americans saved enough energy in 2006 to avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 25 million cars, according to Energy Star data. These efforts also saved $14 billion on their utility bills.
It may be tough to understand what it means when statistics refer to taking 25 million cars off the road, Kostigen1 says. But he advises looking at it like this: You’re saving energy and also helping save the planet because you’re not emitting as much carbon, which relates to car pollution.
“There are very simple things we can do that seriously add up to a great, great impact,” Kostigen says.
Note 1 Thomas Kostigen, co-author of “The Green Book: The Everyday Guide to Saving the Planet One Simple Step at a Time.”

Excuse No. 3 – ‘It doesn’t fit into my lifestyle.’

It’s a misconception to think you have to live out in the country to be eco-friendly, says Powers, who lives in New York City. She says urban living can be great for the environment, if you take steps such as using public transit or shopping at local farmer’s markets.
“You can be green whether you are living in a concrete jungle, like I am, or you’re living out in nature,” she says.
Maybe you think the problem isn’t where you live, but the stage of your life. She says parents can buy organic food for their kids. Suburbanites can use a rail system instead of driving to work. Tech-savvy folks can use eco-friendly gadgets, such as those with solar-powered features or batteries that can be recharged.
“It fits into all types of lifestyles,” Powers says. “It’s about energy use and transportation, choices at a supermarket or the mall.”

Excuse No. 4: ‘Green products don’t work as well.’

Green products often carry negative baggage, Stafford admits. When they started being sold in the 1970s, people believed they were using “some mix of twigs and things to unclog their sinks.”
“That, I think, has changed,” he says. “You have a lot of green products that I think actually work better than nongreen products.”
Front-load washing machines clean clothes better, use less detergent and are energy- and water-efficient. They’re also gentler on your clothes, due to the technology of tumbling clothes rather than having them sit in a big pool of water and trying to shake the clothes clean, Stafford says.
Other products he identifies as being successful in offering a consumer benefit include compact fluorescent bulbs, Tide Coldwater detergent and solar-powered items. He notes that users of Tide Coldwater can also save $63 a year — the company claims users can save up to 80 percent of the energy normally required per load.
When Stafford recently remodeled a bathroom in his home, he tried to use nontoxic and energy-efficient items.
“I found all of these things at Home Depot and Lowe’s,” he says.
“The greenness almost became secondary,” he says. “Most consumers don’t buy products to save the planet. They buy products because it’s going to clean their carpets, it’s going to nourish them, it’s going to provide them warmth.”

The Executive Council has committed to making VGUCC greener and invites you to be green too. Here are some local recycling sites:

    1. Waste Management Recycle America
      633-0426
      Public Drop off- 602 E. 4th St. (Off Fillmore, between Stone and El Paso)
      Mon.-Fri., 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
      Recyclable items include: aluminum, steel, tin food cans, clean glass, plastic (1 & 2), carpet padding, files and records, obsolete forms, all grades of paper including newspaper, cardboard, office paper, printer waste, junk mail, phone books, magazines and catalogs, electronic scrap (for a fee) They will pay $.60 per 100 lbs. of cardboard and $.70 per 100 lbs. of newspaper. Everything is recycled, nothing goes into landfills. It’s all shipped to their center in Denver.
    2. U.S. Waste Industries
      www.uswaste.com
      591-5000
      Public Drop off-3650 Bradley Rd.
      Pick up is provided every other week for $3.95 per month with a $10 deposit on the bin if you already are a customer of theirs.
      Recyclable items include: plastic (1 & 2), aluminum, paper, cardboard – no glass
    3. RWise Recycling LLC
      471-0042
      1531 N. Union Blvd.
      Mon. – Sat. 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
      They pay cash for aluminum, insulated copper, copper wire, radiators, brass and stainless steel.
    4. Household Chemical Waste Recycling
      3255 Akers Dr.
      520-7878
      Mon. – Thurs. 7 a.m. – 5 p.m.
    5. Various collection bins around town: the old Albertsons/Long’s Drug parking lot at Dublin & Academy (also includes a place to drop off clothes and shoes), Wal-Mart shopping centers, the King Soopers at Woodman & Academy
    6. Car Batteries
      On Saturday, April 19th several contractors will be collecting used car batteries for proper disposal and recycling. The location in our area is:
      Auto Towing
      50 Cascade Ct.
      635-4288

For more information see the websites consulted for this list: Tree Hugger and Consumer Reports