Go green!!

How can we help the environment?

1. Reduce: Buy environmentally safe cleaners, biodegradable containers and concentrated products such as detergents and cleaners. Use less Styrofoam.

2. Reuse: I use old containers with lids to store left overs. I use the metal containers (oatmeal/hot cocoa) for musical instruments with my son (fill them with beans, glue the top on, paint/decorate and BAM toy)

3. RECYCLE: Everything, paper, newspaper, glass, plastic, bottles, jars etc etc etc.

4. Turn off lights you're not using.

5. Unplug appliances that aren't being used.

6. Use fluorescent lights. (CFL Compact fluorescent lights)

7. Buy pumps and not aerosol. Most cans no longer use CFC (chlorofluorocarbons) but aerosol cans are bad for your breathing.

8. Bike or walk when possible, if not car pool.

9. Exchange your gas hog for a more fuel efficient model or go hybrid.

10. There is an amazing thing out there called "Freecyle" where people "get rid" of things they no longer need or use. This keeps them out of the landfills. I give and receive on a fairly routine basis.

11. Buy organic foods from your local farmer's market. These farmers rarely use pesticides and you're putting money into your community and not the big corporations.

12. Turn off the faucet when brushing your teeth and washing your hands. If you're not using it, don't have it running.

13. Buy clothing made of organic cotton, and other alternative fabrics like hemp, flax or bamboo.

14. Take your own bags to the grocery store. (This goes back to reuse)

15. Buy energy efficient appliances. There are even energy efficient televisions available.


Now that we know some way to go green, why should we bother?

For one, global warming. Scientists are still up in the air about whether or not this is happening but look at your weather and your environment. There are more tropical storms/hurricanes than ever before. I'm not a meteorologist, but to my understanding these storms are fueled by warm waters. The oceans are warmer and warmer every year. Glaciers that are thousands maybe millions of years old are melting causing the oceans to rise. Seasons are becoming unseasonably warm or cold. Our planet is in a shift right now, and if we don't take steps to correct it now, what are we leaving our children?

The greenhouse effect is a rise of temperature on Earth. It's caused by the greenhouse gasses absorb infrared light instead of radiating into space as they should. This is mostly absorbed by CO2. The more CO2 in the environment, the hotter the environment will be. If we get too much CO2 then animals will have to seek other habitats or they will die. This can cause normally wild animals to encroach on our environments.
The most common greenhouse gasses are:
CO2
water vapor
methane
nitrous oxide
CFC's

The percentage in our environment:
water vapor, which contributes 36–72%
carbon dioxide, which contributes 9–26%
methane, which contributes 4–9%
ozone, which contributes 3–7%

El Nino is another phenomenon caused by the warming weather. It's an irregular warming in the ocean surface. This causes many many storms to form killing hundreds to thousands of people. It usually lasts about 18 months.


What is the ozone and why should we take steps to protect it?

The ozone is a blanket if you will, that lays across the Earth. It's job is to keep harmful radiation and heat from penetrating the Earth and killing the inhabitants, namely us.
It is made of O3, 3 oxygen molecules. We must take steps to protect it so our planet will have a future. if the harmful UV rays start penetrating in, we risk losing our lives to harmful radiation.

My thoughts? Our home is something special. We only get one chance to live on it, so lets keep it clean for our children. Let's face it, we do things to spoil our children so that they will have a better life than we did at their age. Why not start by saving our planet?