GO Greener With Tracey ODonnell

April 26, 2011 South Carolina eCycles Day set for April 30 COLUMBIA – Three recycling events targeting residential electronics will be held across the state on South Carolina eCycles Day April 30, the state Department of Health and Environmental Control announced today. “These events on South Carolina E-cycles Day will provide residents with free, convenient and secure opportunities to recycle their household electronics,” said Kent Coleman, director of DHEC’s Division of Mining and Solid Waste Management. Events will be held in the Midlands at the S.C. State Farmers Market in West Columbia, in the Upstate at Greenville Municipal Stadium in Greenville, and in the Lowcountry at the Heritage Square Shopping Center in Summerville. All of the events are

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What is tin foil made of?  Tin? Actually, tin foil is made of aluminum.  When recycling, this is important to know to ensure you recycle appropriately.  If you are unsure as to the proper recycling direction for aluminum or any products in your tin, Contact your town recycling center who can provide you with more than enough info on what and how to recycle your home products.

  http://www.linkedin.com/news?viewArticle=&articleID=483506320&gid=129152&type=member&item=51170710&articleURL=http%3A%2F%2Fcontaminatednation.blogspot.com%2F2011%2F04%2Fpower-plant-pollution-serves-as-example.html&urlhash=7kK2&goback=.gde_129152_member_51170710   by Duane Craig of Contaminated Nation In what may only be called an amazing yet puzzling development, the nation’s largest source of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions is about to be muzzled, using a 54-year old technology . The Four Corners Power Plant has five electrical generation units turning out more than 2,000 megawatts of power, and has been doing so since 1970 . It also has been churning out 45,000 tons of nitrous oxide , sulphur dioxide (SO2), almost 1,500 pounds of mercury , and particulate matter each year. According to one source , the power plant costs an estimated $341 million annually from its contributions to premature deaths, asthma attacks and emergency room visi...

I've finally "almost finished" my CV on this website, check it out, it's a great resource and it's free. http://www.visualcv.com/q06k1u1  

Grocery store bags taking over your pantry?  Can't find anything to do with those bags?  Click the link to see where you can drop off all your bags and know they will be recycled appropriately. http://www.plasticbagrecycling.org/plasticbag/s01_consumers.html

The average American throws out about 1,000 pounds of garbage every year, according to the U.S. EPA . The Johnson family in California has created only one handful of trash in six months. This family of four aims to reach zero waste – producing no trash going to landfill – or as close to it as possible. And they’re already pretty close. SEE: Slideshow of Zero Waste Family The Johnsons, who live just north of San Francisco in Mill Valley, aren’t just simply recycling their way to reach zero waste. “Recycling is a last resort,” says Béa Johnson, who led her family’s waste reduction efforts and chronicles her experience in the blog, The Zero Waste Home . Johnson is referring to the fact that while recycling is better for the environment than extracting and manufacturing raw materials, it still uses energy and creates pollution. To make her home zero waste, Johnson relied on the three Rs of the recycling hierarchy in their order: reduce, reuse and recycle. Johnson even add...

1.  Turn down/up thermostat.  Turning down your heat saves 3 percent of heating costs, while each degree you raise the temperature of your air conditioner saves 3-4 percent of cooling costs. By changing the temperature by 2 degrees all year, you can save about 2,000 pounds of C02 a year. 2. Cook with a slow cooker or a toaster oven (or even a solar oven!) to reduce electrical use from kitchen appliances. For a meal that requires one hour to cook in an electric oven, and which uses 2.7 pounds of C02, a crockpot uses 0.9 pounds of C02 for seven hours, a toaster oven takes 1.3 pounds of C02 for 50 minutes, and a microwave only 0.5 pounds of C02 for 15 minutes of cooking. A solar cooker requires NO C02! 3.  Switch to a laptop instead of using a desktop computer and cut three-quarters off your electrical use. Turn off the laptop at the end of the day.

I can't forget to talk about Earth Day; what - with the topic of my blogger.  For anyone who hasn't heard of, or who knows very little about Earth Day, it's ok, you're not alone. Earth Day began in 1970 and was inducted by the then - US Democratic Senator, Gaylord Nelson. Senator Nelson's endeavor was for folks to be more aware of things like; how our living things interact with - and need their environment, how those same living things interact with other living things within their environment, areas of pollution and pollution potential and to encourage others to appreciate the environment and "do their part" in reducing pollution.   Earth Day is recognized in the US, as well as over 180 other countries, and serves the same purpose today as it did when our fine US politician introduced it. So, "how does one celebrate Earth Day", you ask....

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Here are some ideas for using/reusing certain food items most people keep in their kitchen all year around. LEMONS: 1. Straight lemon juice can be used as a general degreaser. 2.  Glass & Mirror Cleaner : put 4 tablespoons of lemon juice mixed with half a gallon of water and it will yield an effective window cleaner. (don't forget to reuse your dryer sheets & newspaper instead of paper towels). 3.  Chopping boards:  Rub lemon juice into your wooden chopping board, leave overnight and then rinse. The lemon will help kill off any remaining nasties and neutralize odors. 4.  Drains:  Hot lemon juice and baking soda is a good drain cleaner that is safe to use in septic systems. BANANA PEELS: 1.  De-string the inside of the peel and use the remaining peel for shining leather or silverware

Earth Day (Month) is here and Eco-Office Gals wants to get as many people as possible on board to grow a little greener.   If you’ve been wanting to, trying to, thinking about growing a little greener there’s no better time to do it then now! We don’t want to make you go it alone either. We have once again reached out to our great green cyberspace friends to bring you green products to Green Your World! Click on the title to link to the site.

Dont throw out your old:  buttons and pantyhose. The old button that no longer serves it's purpose can be great for keeping earrings paired up and easy to access.  So often I lose the backs to my earrings, just clamping each earring to each hole in the button, you will be sure to keep the set from walking away.  In a pinch, just rip the top of a pencil eraser off and it serves as a great temporary earring back. Pantyhose can work out great in your garden.  They can tie up your staked plants, hang potted plants and can also be used to scrub dirt spots off most items.  They have a great natural abrasive to them (depending on the brand and style) that can scrub off tough spots on numerous surfaces. Are you stuck and need a nail file?  Grab a matchbook and utilize the "striking patch" as the file, it will serve your immediate need. Stop by again for more recycling and reuse tips...

the national recycling rate is 30%, if we in the U.S. increase our recycling rate to 60% - we will save the equivalent of 315 million barrels of oil per year... according to the EPA.

I recommend printing this list for reference later. This list is an amazing compilation of everyday items that we can make an effort to do the right thing, recycle or trash the right way.  This list was found on the ABC news website, I posted it 6 years ago  so i gave it a once over to ensure all the links are still working and feel the information is worthy of a re-post.

                                                     

Now that spring is just around the corner, its time to start to think about the garden.  This is a great place for recycling items.  Old tires laying around the yard or garage:  perfect place for a planter.  You can paint the tire to your desire and tier more than one with the flowers and plants of your choice.  Dont throw out old plastic storage containers or kitchenware - these often are suitable for small plants or flowers.  Just add your creative flare to decorate and there you go.  Great project to do with the kids too...

Toilet paper rolls and paper towel rolls-don't throw them away.  Just take the tubes and cut them into smaller disc shapes (no specific size is needed- I make mine approximately 1/4" in width).  Whenever I have something to ship that requires packing material, my cardboard tubes serve the purpose well.  Stop by for more recycling tips I use at home.

\   With the proliferation of household as well as personal consumer electronics, there’s a serious need for electronics recycling .   At one time, the average American household had one television, a couple of radios and maybe a walkman. And these items were used for years, if not decades.   But those days are long gone. In 2007, an estimated 3 million tons of consumer electronics, including televisions, DVD players and stereos, were discarded, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Of that amount, only 410,000 tons were recycled.   Recycling in general has increased in recent years. In 2008, 33 percent of the trash generated in the U.S., or 83 million tons, was recycled, according to the EPA . By comparison, only 6.4 percent, or 5.6 million tons, was recycled in 1960.   Some cities have established permanent collection sites for items that need to be recycled. Other cities hold special collection days one or mor...

Price is definitely a drawback but even small purchases can help. We don't have to replace our whole wardrobes. Add something from time to time. The next time you're shopping look for organic cotton or tencel. Watch for sales. Many of the shops listed on this site offer them periodically. Buying and supporting eco clothing encourages everyone in this field to move forward with better styles and greater options that fit the mainstream shopper and eventually the prices will come down when we create more demand. It's up to us to support positive environmental or social changes being made in the fashion industry. Hopefully, as these fabrics become more accessible we will begin to see more eco friendly fashion in big name stores. Already large companies like Nike, Patagonia and American Apparel are adding organic cotton to their clothing lines and that's just a start.