COMPOSTING
Why Compost?
http://www.epa.gov/osw/conserve/rrr/composting/questions.htm
Composting makes sense. Instead of sending organic matter to a landfill, it can be transformed into a useful additive which can even be sold. See Environmental Benefits.
What Can Compost Be Used For?
* Farmers use compost for enhancing crops and for sod farms.
* Landscapers use compost as a soil amendment and for decorative purposes at properties, golf courses, and athletic fields.
* Landfill operators use compost to cover landfills and carry out reclamation projects.
* Nurseries use compost for enhancing plant and forest seedling crops in reforestation projects and to prevent certain plant diseases such as root rot.
* Public agencies use compost for landscaping highway median strips, parks, recreational areas, and other public property and remediating contaminated or eroded sites.
* Homeowners use mature compost to enrich gardens, improve the soil around trees and shrubs, use as soil additive for house plants and planter boxes and as a protective mulch for trees and shrubs.
How Do I Compost?
Composting is easy. Common materials like chicken wire, bricks, and buckets are all it takes to begin composting, which can be done either indoors or outdoors. Maintenance is not difficult either: regular mixing or turning and a little water can ensure success. Learn how to create your own compost pile.
Compost:
Why Not Burn Leaves and Other Yard Wastes?
Burning leaves and other yard wastes pollutes the air and can lead to uncontrolled fires. Leaf smoke can make breathing difficult for people who suffer from asthma, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, or allergies. A number of states currently ban leaf burning, and some communities either ban leaf burning or restrict when and where it can take place. For more information, visit EPA's Backyard Burning site.
CAR POLUTION
http://www.fightglobalwarming.com/page.cfm?tagID=263
Car pollution adds up and sticks around
We might not picture creating pounds of global warming pollution when we drive, but the exhaust coming out of our car has actual weight—an average household with two medium-sized sedans emits more than 20,000 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2) a year. That's 10 tons of pollution adding to the greenhouse effect. SUVs tend to emit more global warming pollution than smaller cars—as much as 40 percent more exhaust.
Here's how it adds up: A gallon of gasoline weighs just over 6 pounds. When burned, the carbon in it combines with oxygen to produce about 19 pounds of CO2. Adding in the energy that went into making and distributing the fuel, the total global warming pollution is about 25 pounds of CO2 per gallon. An average car that gets 21 mpg and is driven about 30 miles a day uses 1.4 gallons daily and emits 35.7 pounds of CO2 every day. That's a lot of pounds when multiplied by the millions of cars across the country.
Heat-trapping pollution, like that from cars and trucks, can stay in the atmosphere for several decades to about a century. For instance, some emissions from Ford's 1912 Model Ts are still up in the atmosphere today, thickening the blanket of greenhouse gases that are heating up the planet.
Population growth has helped put more cars on the road, and a strong economy has led to more cars per driver. These trends combined with poor gas mileage mean we're facing a dangerous situation.
The Annual Cost of Lower Fuel Efficiency
Average gas mileage Average fuel used (based on 12,000 miles per year)
Approximate greenhouse gas pollution Approximate Cost (based on $2.30/gallon)
50 mpg 240 gallons 2.7 tons/year $552
40 mpg 300 gallons 3.4 tons/year $690
30 mpg 400 gallons 4.5 tons/year $920
25 mpg 480 gallons 5.4 tons/year $1,104
20 mpg 600 gallons 6.8 tons/year $1,380
15 mpg 800 gallons 9 tons/year $1,840
10 mpg 1,200 gallons 13.6 tons/year $2,760
TIP: Did you know that idling for more than ten seconds uses more gas and creates more pollution than simply restarting your engine? If you are stopping for more than ten seconds—except in traffic—turn off your engine.
Travel light and pack smart. Extra weight decreases fuel economy. Hauling an extra 100 pounds in your vehicle reduces fuel economy by up to 2 percent. Place luggage inside rather than on the roof or trunk to minimize drag and increase mileage.
Drive less aggressively. Aggressive driving—rapid acceleration and braking—can lower gas mileage by as much as 33 percent on the highway and 5 percent in town. Aggressive drivers are using an extra 125 gallons of gas and spending over $250 more than average drivers each year.
Slow down. In highway travel, exceeding the speed limit by a mere 5 mph results in an average fuel economy loss of 6 percent.
Know when to use the air. Air conditioning can decrease your fuel efficiency by as much as 12 percent in stop-and-go traffic, so consider cracking the windows. But at high speeds, driving with the windows open can decrease the overall efficiency of the vehicle.
Don't idle. If you are stopping for more than ten seconds—except in traffic—turn off your engine. Idling for more than ten seconds uses more gas and creates more global warming pollution than simply restarting your engine.
Maintain your car
Keep your vehicle operating in peak performance by following these recommendations.
Keep your engine tuned properly. Checking spark plugs, oxygen sensors, air filters, hoses and belts are a few examples of maintenance that can save a vehicle owner up to 165 gallons of gas per year, resulting in potential savings of $380.
Check the tires. Have your wheels aligned and keep your tires properly inflated. Low tire pressure wastes over two million gallons of gasoline in the United States—every day. For every pound of pressure below recommended levels, fuel economy drops 1 percent. Keeping your tires properly inflated means saving about a tank of gas a year.
Drive less
No matter how smart you drive, leaving the car parked always saves more gas and pollution.
Combine trips. Consider running all your errands in the same area at once, rather than making separate trips. Cutting a 20 mile trip out of your schedule each week can reduce your global warming pollution by more than 1,200 pounds a year and save you over $100 in gas expenses.
Telecommute once a week. Americans traveled 614.5 billion miles to and from work in 2001. If all commuters worked from home just one day a week, we could save 5.85 billion gallons of oil and cut over 65 million metric tons (roughly 143 billion pounds) of carbon dioxide each year.
Carpool and use public transportation when possible. An average 2005 passenger car costs about 31 cents per mile in fuel, maintainance and depreciation to drive. If you share rides and use other means to get to work, you'll save yourself money, reduce congestion on the roads and cut your global warming pollution.
Ethanol and other biofuels
Cars don't run on gas alone—at least not all of them. Ironically, sometimes looking ahead means looking backward. Ford's Model Ts were designed to run on either gas or ethanol, an alternative fuel made from grains and from plant or animal waste.
There are many potential benefits to biofuels such as ethanol, which is currently made mostly from corn. For one, they can reduce dependence on foreign oil: one consortium of growers, the Agricultural Working Group, has called on farmers to meet 25 percent of America's energy needs by 2025. Today, nearly every car can run on E10, gasoline blended with 10 percent ethanol. About one in forty cars can run on E85, a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline. Find out if your car can run on ethanol.
Now, ethanol wasn't developed to solve global warming, and greenhouse emissions savings from biofuels can vary substantially (e.g., Do farmers forgo plowing to trap more gases in the soil? Do they cut back on nitrogen fertilizers, which release a potent global warming pollutant? Is the fuel made from the grain or, more efficiently, from "stover"—the stalks and leaves?). But some biofuels can help reduce emissions that contribute to global warming. Farmers and refiners are continuing to work on new approaches and processes that can produce low-carbon fuels that yield much greater global warming benefits over time. Consumers should stay tuned.
When it comes to global warming, how and what we drive are two of our most powerful choices. Transportation is the biggest source of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions, more than factories or homes.
* Save fuel: Use less gas with your current car
* Choose green: Buy a clean, efficient car
Global Warming
What You Can Do
http://www.fightglobalwarming.com/page.cfm?tagID=135
Burning fossil fuels to power our homes and run our cars creates global warming pollution. Big and small changes can add up and make a real difference in the fight against global warming.
At Home: Use Less Energy
Home energy accounts for 21 percent of America's global warming pollution. If we make smart choices, we can cut more pollution than the entire emissions of over 100 countries!
* Change a bulb: Better energy-saving lights
* Greener power: Re-thinking home energy
* Full list of tips: How to cut pollution at home
Neutralize Your Pollution
http://www.fightglobalwarming.com/page.cfm?tagID=270
How does it work?
Even if you have already reduced your driving and electricity use, there's more you can do. You can neutralize the rest of your pollution—through offsets. When you buy offsets, you essentially pay someone to reduce or remove global warming pollution in your name.
For example, when you buy 10 tons of carbon offsets, the seller guarantees that 10 fewer tons of global warming pollution go into the atmosphere. While the pollution you produce yourself is the same, you get the credit for that 10-ton reduction.
Where can you buy offsets?
Shopping for offsets can be confusing. If you're not an expert, it can be hard to tell how much pollution is really being reduced or removed.
Calculator for C02
http://www.fightglobalwarming.com/content.cfm?contentid=5043
