Strategies for Going Green

Sustainable paper

Using 100% recycled paper is great and the benefits for the environment are obvious. However another good way to ensure sustainability and to reduce the impact upon the environment is to use sustainable paper sources.

By using paper from sustainable plantations you ensure that timber is being regrown and that your footprint upon the earth is not increasing. Some cheap paper sources come from non sustainable sources such as logging of rainforests which have a devastating impact upon the environment.

Energy efficient lights

The amount of energy used by lighting in Australian households is increasing, mainly due to larger house sizes and the proliferation of halogen downlights.

It is possible to decrease the amount of energy used by your lights by up to 80% without affecting your light levels or quality. In fact many energy efficient lights provide better light coverage and quality than traditional lights and last much longer. Better for your wallet and the environment all round.

Car pool & public transport

Car pooling saves you from the drudgery of sitting alone in traffic, helps save the planet by reducing fuel, emissions and cars on the road and of course saves you a lot of money. Plus as an added benefit you can use transit lanes for a quicker trip in to work.

Don't just car pool to work, think about other times you can car pool and save money and become more eco friendly at the same time.

Not able to car pool? Try catching public transport which can reduce your travel to work carbon footprint by up to 60%.

Run a paperless office or home

With the advent of personal computers, PDF files, email and virtual faxes there are many times when you can store information on your computer rather than print it out. Bills can be sent to you via Bpayview or email and now faxes can be delivered directly into your email box.

Offices and homes can become nearly paper free, and if you are concerned about security or backing up, you can keep a copy of files on portable media at other locations. Remember fire can burn your important files just as easily as a computer crash can burn you. Backup and go paperless and save paper, money and the environment while you're at it!

Ideas at home

Hang your washing out rather than use a dryer. Not only will it give you a workout, it will save a lot of energy, reduce heat in the home and also save you money. Remember, look after the pennies and the dollars will look after themselves. Raining outside, use a clothes horse.

Recycle everything you can

Reuse boxes, use the back of paper for kids or note taking, reuse packaging, clothes or give them to charity or friends and when possible reduce your waste and refuse

Compost your waste and use it on your garden to grow vegetables and fruits

Don't fill your kettle every time you want a cup of tea or coffee. If you're only going to make one or two cups, just put enough water in for one or two cups. Kettles and boiling water is one of the most energy intensive (albeit short) things you do in your home. The less water to boil, the quicker the kettle heats and the less energy used. It will also save you money!

Install solar power, gray water systems, extra insulation, glaze windows and plant trees for additional shade (not to close to the house that roots or branches will be a problem)

Try to avoid buying products with excess packaging

Ideas at work

Use hardware which consumes less power, has auto shut down or standby and can be turned off when you leave the office

Inkjet printers use 95% less power than laser printers

Laptops use around 80% to 90% less power than desktop PCs

Flat screen monitors use around 50% less power than old style CRT monitors

Recycle where you can and reuse paper, boxes and packaging if possible

Turn off lights in offices at night when there is no one there to use them. If you are concerned about security then reduce the number of lights you leave on, every bit helps

Consider installing motion activated lighting in toilets and kitchens which are vacant most of the day

Go paperless as much as possible, consider switching to virtual fax services which deliver faxes to your email rather than printing them on paper (think about all the spam faxes you get that you didn't need to print). You can also send faxes from your email without having to print them off

Don't use or upgrade to a physical phone system. They use a lot of energy and spend a large portion of the time drawing power when there isn't even anyone in the office. Consider a virtual phone system. eBubs uses theQ, an Australian Virtual Call Centre and Phone System supplier who runs on green energy

Create a green business philosophy because this can often carry over to the home life of employees and creates a happier working environment

Switch to green energy supply, there are options for using a portion of green energy (25%, 50%, 75% or 100% green energy) the extra cost may be less than you expect

Reusable and recharable batteries

Many people don’t realize that batteries are actually very bad for the environment and shouldn't be thrown in the trash. When they thrown out they end up in landfill where battery acid and other toxic components can leach into and contaminate the soil.

There are battery recycling programs but not every council or location has them, so a great way to reduce this problem is to use reusable batteries.

With multiple uses you'll save money and also trips to the shops, again reducing your fuel emissions, waste produced and the amount of toxic substances filling up our already overflowing landfill areas.

Avoid standby mode

Around 30% of all household energy consumption is used by devices in standby. Think about it, the microwave, television, video or DVD, washing machine, dish washer, alarm clock, security alarm, mobile phone recharger and just about every other imaginable device is sitting connected to live power 24 hours a day 365 days a year.

Start turning your television and other devices off at the wall when you've finished using them and you will reduce your energy bill by nearly one third saving a lot of money but more importantly, reducing your power consumption and environmental footprint.

Use cloth nappies

Australians currently use over 1 billion disposable nappies per year!

Babies need an average of 6-8 changes per day from birth to toilet training

Disposable nappies cost from 30-60 cents per nappy (not counting the new bedwetting or "pant" pull-up nappies that can cost up to $1.40 each)

The average child is in nappies for 3 years

Based on the above it will cost you a minimum of $2700 for just one child using disposable nappies full-time

Cloth nappies are no longer just terry towelling squares held together with pins. Fitted cloth nappies are a modern alternative that are easy to use, don't leak and provide a comfortable experience for your baby.

A full time system of modern cloth nappies can last for more than one child (not only do you save money for the first child, the savings continue!)

Washing modern cloth nappies is very simple and quick. There is no longer any need for expensive bleaches or nappy sanitizing liquid with the modern cloth nappies (please see article regarding washing instructions for further details)

No chemical/gel residue when using cloth nappies (Some gel crystals were left on my baby's bot when I used a popular disposable brand while in hospital, eww!)

Disposable nappies not only cost you a lot more money, they cost the environment through bleaches and chemicals (including petrochemicals) used during the manufacturing processes, they lead to a disposable society and end in landfill which takes years and years to break down

A common misconception is that cloth nappies require bleach, lots of detergent, soaking in buckets, all of which impact upon the environment. The truth is modern cloth nappies have changed from their dated predecessors. You don't need to soak modern cloth nappies, there's no need to hand wash dirty, soiled cloth nappies and you don't need to use harsh bleaches. In fact you only need about about half the detergent you'd use on a regular wash! They really are a MUCH better choice finanicially and environmentally

Disposable nappies require more water, more energy, more raw materials and more land to produce than do cloth nappies

Cloth nappies are more comfortable. Natural cotton, bamboo and wool allow your baby's skin to breathe, preventing irritation. And because there are many different types and combinations of reusable nappies, you are more likely to find one best suited to your own baby's individual body shape and preference.

It's a myth that reusable nappies leak. In fact, a well-fitting reusable will give even better protection than a disposable nappy.

Nappy pins have been replaced with Velcro and poppers.

Disposable nappies contain super-absorbent gel, the effects of which on baby's skin and genitalia have yet to be researched.

Disposable nappies contain up to 200 chemicals. It is still unknown how many are absorbed through a baby's skin.

A study in 2000 found that disposable nappies keep babies' testicles at higher than normal temperatures, which may affect future fertility.

The average baby will go through 5,000 disposable nappies.

Disposable nappies use three and a half times more energy than real nappies to produce, eight times more non-renewable materials and 90 times more renewable resources.

For night-time or babies that are heavy wetters you can add booster pads to modern cloth nappies for extra absorbency.