Earth Saving Tips from Earth Share

Spring 1999

ENERGIZE EARTH DAY
Thursday, April 22, is Earth Day - an event many people will celebrate by focusing on energy efficiency and conservation. Consider these ideas if you'd like to participate in Earth Day at home or work:

At Work

Bike to work, car pool, use mass transit, or walk.

Encourage your company to sign up for the Green Lights and Energy Star energy-saving programs offered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Contact EPA at 888.STAR.YES (888.782.7937).

Assemble a team of co-workers to conduct an energy audit at your workplace. Look for lights and equipment needlessly left on, drafty windows and doors you could insulate, inefficient thermostat settings, and other energy-wasters. Make recommendations for improvements that will save energy and money.

Put up an Earth Day bulletin board during April that offers employees new energy-saving tips each week.

Link your company's Web page to those that offer energy-saving and environment friendly tips. Here are just a few: Earth Share at www.earthshare.org; the official Earth Day site at www.earthday.net; EPA's Green Lights and Energy Star Web pages at www.epa.gov/greenlights/ and www.epa.gov/energystar/; and the energy efficiency and renewable energy network page of the U.S. Department of Energy at www.eren.doe.gov.

At Home

"Tune up" your home: caulk around windows and doors; clean your heating and air conditioning system to improve operating efficiency; insulate attics and crawl spaces.

Substitute burned out light bulbs with energy-saving compact fluorescent fixtures.

Replace aging appliances with energy-efficient ones.

Turn off computers, televisions, CD players, and other electronic devices when they won't be used for at least half an hour.

BELIEVE IT OR NOT!
More than 5 percent of California's air pollution comes from the fumes released from paint and similar products. (Source: Green Seal.)

PAINT A PRETTIER PICTURE
If you're thinking of painting your home or office this spring, you may want to choose your paint based on more than just its color. Many paints contain chemicals that can contribute to air and water pollution, and the fumes generated by some paints can cause eye, lung, and skin irritation, as well as headaches, nausea, respiratory problems, and even muscle weakness. To play it safe, try the following:

Choose latex paints and finishings. Because they are water-based, latex paints contain fewer hazardous chemicals than oil-based coverings. Also, latex paints don't require the use of dangerous solvents for thinning or cleaning. Latex paints perform as well as their oil-based counterparts for most jobs - even outdoors - and are often the superior choice.

Look for low VOC content. Many paints contain volatile organic compounds (VOC), which can produce ground-level ozone, a major component of smog. The alternative? "Odor-free" paints, which emit no VOCs. Paints that have a flat finish generally contain lower VOC levels than glossier paints.
Buy only what you need. To reduce disposal and storage problems, measure the area to be painted before you start. Buy the right quantity of paint for the job to minimize the amount you need to dispose of after the paint job is completed.

Don't throw paint into the trash or down the drain. If you must dispose of paint, participate in a community household hazardous waste cleanup day.

Recycle leftover paint. Small amounts of leftover paint can be mixed together to make a primer (but make sure not to mix latex and oil-based paints). Many communities sponsor paint swaps or similar recycling programs.

ENERGY FACT
Did You Know? Residents of Osage, Iowa, adopted a model energy conservation program that saved this town of 3,600 an estimated $1.2 million in energy costs - just by plugging leaky windows, replacing inefficient furnaces, and wrapping hot-water heaters in blanket insulation.

DON'T POLLUTE - TELECOMMUTE!
Increasing concerns about the impacts of sprawl and traffic congestion on air quality and overall environmental health are leading more employers and their workers to consider telecommuting as a productive and eco-friendly alternative. Telecommuting allows employees to work from home, a neighborhood work center, or a satellite office via phone, fax, and e-mail.

How to Launch A Telecommuting Program

Choose the right employees. Workers who are going to spend significant time out of the office must be self-motivated, organized, and productive.

Pick the right jobs. Researching and writing jobs can effectively be done via telecommuting; tasks requiring employees to spend most of their time in a central office or to meet frequently with co-workers or clients are less well-suited to telecommuting.

Make sure the employee's work space is adequate. Telecommuters must have appropriate office equipment, particularly a fax machine (or computer that sends and receives faxes), a printer, and a computer that's compatible with the office system.

Establish written telecommuting guidelines. Outline the specific expectations of the employer and the employee with respect to work hours, job duties, performance evaluation, and other criteria.

THE X-FILES
Xeriscaping is a way to garden using a minimum of water and energy. The following techniques are a must in dry-weather climes, but also provide useful guidelines for environmentally conscious gardeners everywhere.

Group plants by their water needs. When possible, put high-need plants in naturally wetter areas of your property.

Test your soil. Add organic matter when necessary - maybe from your own compost pile - to increase your soil's water-holding capacity.

Limit your lawn. Grass is a water hog, so limit the amount of lawn in your yard. For those plots that remain, try varieties that don't use much water.

Mulch. Cover plant beds with composted leaves or grass to help retain moisture.

Plant native species. Plants that have evolved in your area's climate are more naturally adapted to its water conditions.

SPRING CLEANING
Traditional cleansers based on natural products often clean just as effectively as commercial concoctions that contain fast-acting chemicals. Consider the following recipes for low-polluting alternatives:

For counter tops, cupboards, and walls: dip a cloth in warm water, add a little dish soap and baking soda (the baking soda acts as a soft abrasive to remove tough spots and light scratches).

Drain cleaners: Mix together 1 cup baking soda, 1 cup salt, and ¼ cup cream of tartar. Pour ¼ cup of this mixture into the drain, followed by a pot of boiling water. Reserve the rest of the mixture for future needs.

Air fresheners: First, get rid of the source of bad odors. Check refrigerators and trash cans for rotting foods; look under and around furniture for any items your pets may have unexpectedly left behind. Clear out cooking smells using the stove exhaust fan, then open windows and let fresh air in. Simmer a small amount of cinnamon, orange peel, and cloves on the stove to give your home a pleasant fragrance. Freshly cut flowers can also make a room smell like spring.

Glittering Glass
Hints for washing windows, wiping down mirrors, or cleaning other glass surfaces:

Don't wash windows when the sun is shining directly on them; the cleaning solution will dry too fast and streak.

Instead of paper towels, try a "squeegee," similar to that used in gas stations to clean windshields. Use washable towels to wipe the cleaner off the glass.

Make your own glass cleaning solution from 2 tablespoons borax or washing soda and 3 cups water. Spray onto the glass using a pump sprayer.

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Earth Share, a federation of America's leading non-profit environmental and conservation charities, promotes environmental education and charitable giving in employee workplace campaigns.

For more tips or to find out how your workplace can help the earth, visit the "Get Involved" section of our website, or call (800) 875-3863.