The turkey is gone, and you’re working the stuffing off at the gym. So while you are in that righteous resolving mood, why not set a few green intentions while you’re at it?
1. Go for the short-term pain / long-term gain of rechargeable batteries
The price looks steeper at the till, but get out the calculator and rechargeables win every time.
Until January 31 2011, Energizer rechargeables are on sale at London Drugs for $14.99 / 4-pack. Compare this to 8 single-use batteries at say, $13.99. According to my C+ high-school math, that means each rechargeable costs $3.75 and each single-use is about $1.75. So if you recharge them just 3 times you are ahead of the game. Recharge them 10 times and your per-battery-use cost is reduced by over 400%.
2. Set up a Recycling Zone at home.
Choose a drawer, cupboard or part of a closet and print out & post the London Drugs list of recyclables somewhere nearby. Then store up your recyclables, from batteries to compact fluorescent bulbs to cel phones, and bring them in on your next visit to London Drugs. And remember, if you buy electronics or small appliances at London Drugs, you can bring back your old ones for free recycling with your receipt.
3. Bring Back the Pack
You can bring back packaging on everything you buy at London Drugs. So do it! Put the packaging, (including the dreaded Styrofoam!) with your receipt in your Recycling Zone and drop it off at Customer Service next time you visit the store.
4. Compost your organic waste
In my region (Metro Vancouver), a recent study showed organics, such as food scraps, accounted for 40% of residential waste. As this organic waste degrades in landfills, it generates methane – a powerful greenhouse gas which traps
about 20 times more heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide. But if this same waste is put into a backyard or kitchen composter, it can easily be turned into rich fertilizer. It does take a little more effort to keep uncooked food scraps separate and feed them to your pet worms, but products like the Sure-Close food scrap container help a lot. Contact your local municipality and see if they offer organic waste pickup or have deals on composters for homeowners.
5. Learn a bit about the Supply Chain for products you buy.
The Supply Chain is a system of organizations, technology, activities and resources involved in moving a product from supplier to customer. And the choices made here can have a huge impact. For instance, the Restriction of Hazardous Substances directive (RoHS) is a European standard that restricts the use of six chemicals in the manufacture of electronics: Lead, Mercury, Cadmium, Hexavalent chromium, Polybrominated biphenyls and Polybrominated diphenyl ether. London Drugs’ electronics buyers work very hard to make sure as many of the electronics they sell as possible are RoHS compliant. So look for ingredients. Surf the web. Ask at the store. You don’t need to go for a PhD, but the Supply Chain can be important to your health as well as that of the planet.
Above all, remember that sustainability is a journey. Every little bit you do helps, so take the steps you can, feel good about them, and make each year a little greener than the last.
That’s the real Green Deal!
