“I’ll give you my tuna fish sandwich if you give me your fruit roll-up.” Sound familiar? The old cafeteria game of swapperoo enters the virtual realm on a host of new swap websites where one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. Websites such as Swap Tree,Swap Ace and Swap Bot help eco-minded people looking to give their things another chance at life while simultaneously reducing their own footprint by not buying new items. Reducing consumption is an great way to cut down on the use of raw materials and the energy used to manufacture them…not to mention lightening the load on landfills.
Most food travels more than 1500 miles to get to you plate. That means a typical three–course meal, with each course containing at least one ingredient—plus cooking oils, herbs and spices—travels almost half way around the world before it ends up in your mouth. The ships, trucks, trains and planes that transport our food burn tremendous amounts of fossil fuels all along the way. The typical American meal contains, on average, ingredients from five or more countries outside the United States. Asparagus makes it’s way to your plate all the way from Peru. Bell peppers often come from The Netherlands, Clementines from Spain, and blueberries hail from as far way as Chile, Argentina and New Zealand!
Green Challenge: Become a localvore and eat locally
When you go to the supermarket, check the label to see where your food comes from. If it says that it comes from your state or a state that borders yours, that’s a great first step. But if you really want to make a difference, shop at a farmer’s market, where you will find fresh, healthy, locally grown food. And, chances are, you’ll get to meet the farmer who grew the food and have the added satisfaction of knowing you are supporting the families and farms in your community.
Green Tip: You can really eat locally by growing a garden right at home. All you need is a little plot of land, a terrace, or even a windowsill will do.
Know somebody who deserves recognition for their efforts to take green to the mainstream? The Daily Green’s Heart of Green Awards honors celebrities and stalwarts of the environmental movement. Like in years past, they are looking to the public for nominations for a Local Hero. Nominating your friend, teacher or child is a great way to show your appreciation for all of their efforts in making their communities green. Best of luck!
America Recycles Day (ARD), November 15th, is a day dedicated to educating and encouraging Americans to recycle and buy recycled products. Now in its 12th year, ARD has grown to include millions of supporters who have pledged to increase their recycling habits and to buy products made with recycled materials. Volunteer coordinators across America are organizing events in their schools and communities to educate and inspire others to recycle.
To become better informed about recycling, to take the recycling pledge, or to sign up to create your own ARD event, visit www.americarecyclesday.org.
Did you know that last week was Arbor Day? On Arbor Day, people all around the country plant trees in their communities. If you haven’t planted a tree, it’s not too late! Trees do many wonderful things for the planet, like filtering carbon dioxide from the air and giving us oxygen to breath. When planted near a house, trees provide shade that cools the home in the summer, helping to save energy. Planting trees native to your area is a good idea. They require little maintenance and provide homes and food for the creatures in their ecosystem. To learn more about how you can get started planting trees visit the Arbor Day Foundation.
I heard that batteries are bad for the environment and shouldn’t be thrown out with the regular trash. How do I get rid of them so that they don’t cause any harm?
Recycle your used batteries
Resident Expert Answer:
You are right, batteries do contain chemicals like mercury, lead, cadmium and nickel that can harm you and the environment when they are thrown out with the trash. Batteries can release toxic substances into the ground as well as into the air when burned in garbage incinerators. Luckily, today’s batteries contain far less toxic materials then they did way back when your parents were kids. Many towns are even advising their residents to simply throw batteries out with the trash. But until batteries are made out of soybeans, there is still some risk of hazardous materials contaminating our soil, water and air. And like all other garbage, when recycling is an option, that’s your best choice. Recycling saves resources like recovered plastic and metals that can be made into new batteries.
There are two good options for recycling your batteries. You can visit earth911.com to search for places in your area that will recycle your batteries. Some stores like Whole Foods Market and Radio Shack are starting to accept them.
If you can’t find a place in your area that will accept them, you can order a battery recycling kit, like the iRecycle Kit from Battery Solutions and start collecting them right at home. Once you have enough batteries to fill the box, ship it pre-paid to their recycling center. This is a great community service project that you can set up at your school, club or church. You will make a lot of people, who just like you are bewildered with how dispose of their batteries, very grateful!
