In my opinion, the most important issue that we have discussed in our environmental science class this semester is sustainability and reducing our “footprint” on the earth. I believe that sustainable living is the key to so many issues facing us today – air pollution, water pollution, global warming, even waste reduction.  Generally, our fuel sources create many of these problems. Coal burning produces harmful chemicals and particulate matter that contaminates our air and contributes to global warming. By using alternate sources to generate electricity and fuel our cars, we could significantly improve our air quality over the next 20 years. Waste reduction is also a crucial part of reducing our footprint on the earth. We continuously dump non-biodegradable waste into landfills which eventually leach harmful chemicals into our ground water supplies. If waste is not buried in the landfill, it is burned, which releases even more toxins into our air. Chemicals are also produced as a byproduct of many manufacturing processes; much of this waste is dumped into the water, further contaminating our water supplies. Water is a necessity for life. We need to do everything in our power to protect our water supply for future generations.

To help solve these issues, we as a society, need to reduce our consumption of unnecessary items that exist merely to end up in the landfills. Even though recycling helps with the issue of waste, it is not a permanent solution.  We need to change our way of life so that we can reduce the demand for things such as plastics and we need to find ways to fuel our lifestyles that do not involve the pollution of the very air that we breathe.  Personally, my plans are already in action to help reduce my impact. Because I live so close to work, I frequently walk to my office. (Truthfully, the occasional co-worker will stop and pick me up, but I’m still carpooling, right?!) I have been using my own shopping bags for the past few years and make an effort to reuse the shopping bags that I am given at the stores. I now compost my organic kitchen waste and reuse it in my veggie garden. I have purchased energy efficient appliances, including the pool pump, and have future plans to go solar for all of my electricity needs. Also going forward, my car is over 10 years old and I plan to invest in a more efficient vehicle when it dies, possibly electric, or even hydrogen.

The most interesting thing that I have learned in this class is how truly wasteful Americans are. I was shocked to learn how much food is thrown away in this country while people in other countries are struggling for survival. Not only was I shocked at the food waste, but the waste in general! We take these materialistic possessions for granted, when in actuality, we don’t “NEED” any of it! And when we are done with our stuff, we simply discard it and purchase the next new thing! It is truly upsetting to me. The amount of waste in this country has made me more aware of the things that I purchase and the things that I choose to dispose of. Not only that, but I have become more aware of things that my friends are throwing away and have even tried to intervene! I would really like to find a way to make my friends and family understand that the little bit of recycling that they do isn’t enough! But how do you make them understand without sounding like you have lost your mind?? That’s the part that I have yet to figure out. People don’t want to hear how their materialistic ways are destroying the planet. They are constantly out to impress the next person with their possessions. We have become an out of touch, unrealistic society, but I fear that its going to take some sort of catastrophe before people understand the damage that we are inflicting on our planet and how it will affect the future generations. Sounds grim, I know, but I really think that the key to change is government intervention. I believe that it is up to our government to lead by example and to demonstrate the importance of our global impact as Americans.

This week in my environmental science class, we were asked to track our trash production. Here are my results:

Days 1-3:

Trash:
1 box of old tea
Old leftovers from the fridge
Old veggies
Egg shells
Takeout food containers
Paper towels/napkins
Styrofoam meat tray (nasty)
40lb dog food bag
Plastic sandwich bags
Coffee grinds

Recycled:

Junk mail/Catalogues
Plastic shopping bags
Milk carton
Empty Windex bottle
Chlorine bottles (pool)
Egg Carton

Days 4-6:

Trash:
Takeout food containers

Recycled:

Junk mail
Glass bottles

Compost:

Old veggies
Egg shells
Coffee grinds

My kitchen trash is divided into two cans, I keep one for trash can for recyclable items and one trash can for actual trash. During the first 3 days of tracking what I throw away, I found that the items which actually went to the trash took up about ½ of the space in my trash can. The thing that took up most of the space in my trash can was from take out food containers. The recyclable items filled my other trash can, mostly because of the larger plastic bottles.

Some waste reduction strategies which I researched are buying in bulk, reusing products, buying products with less packaging, refillable products, reusable shopping bags and composting. I think buying in bulk is a great idea, and judging by the long lines at the warehouse stores, I think there are a lot of people out there that feel the same way. I’ve been buying in bulk for years, and to be honest, I don’t find the savings to be that great, but I do find satisfaction in knowing that I am not throwing away as much useless packaging.

After the first three days, I decided to start a composting bin outside of my kitchen door. I relocated the old veggies that I had thrown away the day before and have started throwing my eggshells and coffee grinds, almost on a daily basis. Composting my biodegradable waste actually makes me feel a little bit better about letting my veggies go bad. My second strategy for producing less trash is going to be eating out less. The Styrofoam containers are bad for the environment and can’t be recycled. Maybe next time we go out to eat, we will just eat in the restaurant. I could take it a step further by taking my own container for leftovers, rather than asking for a Styrofoam to-go box. Carrying around an empty container in my purse may not sound like an ideal situation, but I think it might actually work out – my current purse is actually too small for this use, so this would require me to purchase a larger, NEW purse!! Sounds like a win-win situation to me! The last strategy I employed in order to produce less trash was to recycle my zip-lock sandwich bags. I use them almost every day to take fruit with me to work. During the last 3 days, when my fruit bag was empty, I stashed it in my (small) purse and used it the following day.

The items which will be difficult to eliminate waste will be the dog food that I buy. I will consider finding an alternate source for dog food though, it would be nice to be able to find a whole sale pet food provider that would let me skip the bag and buy by weight. Something to think about going forward. Using the chlorine bottles for my pool feels wasteful to me as well, and even though they are recyclable, I would rather just cut them out all together. Going forward, I will try to purchase a different form of chlorine – granular rather than liquid. Granular chlorine is a bit more expensive than the liquid chlorine, but this is mostly because it is sold in bulk and it lasts a long time. The initial investment is difficult, but the long-term benefits make it worth it.

I would like to implement all of the above strategies into my daily life and intend to do my best to change my bad habits. This blog has forced me to think about how much I throw away and it has made me realize that there are changes that I can make that really don’t involve much effort on my part. There’s no reason why I can’t reduce my household trash production.

This week for our Environmental Science class, we were asked to investigate climate change and the effects that it has on the world around us, and what role we play in the process of global warming.

 According to information found on www.epa.gov/climatechange.com, the climate is changing all around us. Temperatures are rising, ice burgs are melting, oceans are rising, snow is melting sooner, flowers and plants are blooming earlier and birds aren’t flying as far south for the winter.

Humans play a role in climate change by emitting excessive CO2 via burning coal and fossil fuels to generate electricity and fuel our cars.

Global warming can lead to the spread of diseases, more wild fires and food and water shortage. Many plants and animals could also become extinct.

According to the article titled “Global Warming: Not a Crisis,” found on the Heartland Institute website, most scientists believe the Earth experienced a small rise in temperatures during the second half of the twentieth century, but they are unsure how large of a role human activities may have played. Scientists concede that global warming is a problem, but at the same time, they don’t believe that it is a crisis, but rather that it is a natural occurrence, and they remain unsure about the effect of human activity. For this reason, skepticism seems to center around the magnitude of human impact on global warming. I believe this skepticism still exists because of conflicting information presented in various environmental reports and studies. One analyst publishes a report that says humans have a huge impact, and the next analyst’s report says humans do not have a huge impact on the climate change.

I know that we have made progress in our air quality since the 1980’s, information from air quality monitoring stations proves this. It has taken 30 years to achieve the air quality of today. This improvement has largely been in part to stricter air quality regulations. It is my opinion that we are at a point in time where great strides are being made to improve the quality of our air for future generations. To say that we will continue on our current path and do nothing, is an unfair statement. In my opinion, continuing on our current path means continuing to advance and find alternate sources of energy so that we can stretch our natural resources to the limit. To me, continuing on our current path means that, with current air quality policies that are in place, we will achieve a 20% reduction in air pollution (from 1980’s levels) by the year 2020. That is only 8 years away. In 50 years, I envision pristine air quality conditions. Maybe I am a bit of an optimist, but I know that the knowledge of our impact on the environment is spreading and the upcoming generations are learning about the importance of conserving our natural resources. Through education, we are instilling a sense of responsibility in those generations, and I believe that it is possible to set a higher standard for air quality in the years to come.

I just finished reading the article "Regulating toxic chemicals: Do we know enough about chemical risks?” and I believe I have an answer to this question...NO! "We" as consumers are guided by marketing schemes that steer us into purchasing a product. Very rarely, if ever, do we research products to find out what they are made of, or what chemicals were involved in the process of making that product. It is truly frightening to think that the products that I am using in my every day life may be contributing to the demise of my health and I may not even know it! What does the future hold for me, and how could a potential illness be prevented?? If I had a better idea of what was in the products that I am cleaning my house with, or really knew what poisons are leaching into my food and water supplies from their containers, maybe I would assess my purchases a little more deeply.

While it seems that green chemistry is on an uptrend, I am still skeptical because every time we think we have a solution to a problem, another problem is presented. I suppose though that innovation is always surrounded by controversy.

The topic that scares me the most are food additives...what are these chemicals that are being put into our food, and what are the pesticides really doing to us?  We as American's are so obsessed with the "quick fix", we tent to disregard things that are really important to our health. For example, what is really IN that diet food that you ate for dinner? Are sugar substitutes really good for you...and why do people continue to use the pink packet when it states right on the package that it is "known to cause cancer in labartory animals"??

Now a days, there are plenty of "green" options available, it is up to us to educate ourselves on the pros and cons of each product and to know what we are consuming.

For a little more information on food additives, check out the FDA's webpage at:
http://www.fda.gov/food/foodingredientspackaging/foodadditives/

Or, the Center for Science in the Public Interest's site at:
http://www.cspinet.org/reports/chemcuisine.htm

I feel that my energy consumption is pretty low by comparison to a lot of people. There are days when my tv doesn’t get turned on, and that I enjoy taking the time to walk to work or other places. So, the other day, these things became part of my strategy for minimizing my energy usage for the day.

In the morning, I woke up to the alarm on my cell phone (I do not have an alarm clock, and I do not have a home phone, so turning off my cell phone isn’t really an option for me). I timed myself for a 5 minute shower, which I went over by 1 minute. The sun was already coming up outside, so I left the bathroom light off and skipped the hair dryer that morning and walked to work. Luckily, work is only 1.25 miles from my house and I usually try to reserve this walk for casual Fridays. I find the walk to be more relaxing than the short drive. It takes about 20 minutes and gives me some time to collect my thoughts from the previous week, or to daydream about upcoming events.

The energy consumption at work is mostly out of my control. However, when I left for the day, I made sure that I turned off my computer that it didn’t continue to waste electricity when I was not using it.

When I returned home for the evening, I had had my walk for the day, but my dogs had been stuck inside the house all afternoon! So, I took them on another walk to my neighborhood Subway where we grabbed sandwiches for dinner. The rest of the evening was spent catching up on homework and reading a magazine.

In all, this day was not bad at all. I will consider walking to work more often, weather (and circumstances) permitting. I do feel that I can reduce my shower time down to about 5 minutes, however I don’t know that I am entirely ready to give up my hair dryer.  Giving up tv might be out of the question, unless the prices become more ridiculous than they already are. There is a maximum price that I am willing to pay my cable provider, anything above $75/month for cable and internet and I will turn them both off without blinking an eye. There are a few additional energy uses in my house that don’t necessarily affect my everyday life, but I have plans to change over time to help reduce energy consumption in my house. The most immediate that I can think of is turning up the temperature on my refrigerator and freezer. This will still keep the contents cold, but will not make the refrigerator work so hard to keep the inside temperature at unnecessary levels. I also have a fish tank with one lonely fish in it. The filter uses energy on a constant basis, but this is necessary for the fish’s survival. As soon as the fish dies, I intend to retire the tank.

I have saved the biggest energy hog in my entire house for last. That would be the pool. To cut energy consumption on the pool, we have recently purchased an energy efficient pump which allows us to control how many rpm’s the pump is operating at and set the timing for off-peak energy usage. The long term plan for the house (and pool) is to install solar panels. This is not something that I intend to do over the next week, but is a possibility over the next 5-10 years.

In this particular experiment, I did not use my washer/dryer or the heat/air conditioning. The weather is perfect right now, so we are not finding the need for heat or ac. I like to open the doors and windows to let cool/warm air into the house as needed. During other times of the year, we have a programmable thermostat so that we are able to adjust the temperature automatically as we sleep and we do not keep the heat/ac on when no one is home. I used to be diligent about hanging towels, jeans and sweatshirts outside to dry most of the way. This is something that I intend to start doing again this year as the weather gets better.