Let your friends know that PVC heat shrink labeled packaging is not environmentally friendly. If you must purchase an item that is heat shrink labeled, please remove the label before your recycle the bottle or container. You will be helping to ensure the item you are recycling actually gets recycled. -R.G.

Since the first official Earth Day on April 22, 1970, both the world and the celebration of Earth Day have seen a lot of changes. Read the rest of this entry »

Plan to make your next Earth Day experience an active one. Be involved and involve your friends. The Earth will be a better place because of your efforts. -R.G.

Support industry in its effort to provide greener products through green chemsitry solutions. Purchase green cleaning agents (citrus-based cleaners are an example), non-volatile water-based paints, and foods packaged smartly in recyclable packaging. Our buying power does make a difference. -R.G.

While the word, RECYCLING may bring “green thoughts” to mind, for many of us the word, CHEMISTRY, conjures up thoughts of bad chemicals, mad scientists, and incomprehensible concepts. Even the definition of chemistry, “the science that deals with the composition and properties of substances and various elementary forms of matter,” is enough to make most of us either yawn or not want to learn more. But, let’s put all of our preconceived ideas about chemistry behind us and take a look at where chemistry is heading; it is in the early stages of going green. And, let’s take one step further and see how this new green chemistry can even make recycling greener. Read the rest of this entry »

Let your friends and neighbors know that there is a crucial Bill in the House of Represtatives, H.R. 54 The Gulf Restoration Act. Please convey that everyone needs to let their representatives know that America wants this Bill to be passed. Without this legislation, the Gulf Coast region will not receive any of the many billions of U.S. dollars the government will collect from fines imposed under the Clean Water Act for the deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster. The Gulf Coast region needs help; our support is crucial. -R.G.

Punxsutawney Phil came out of his ground hog burrow and did not see his shadow, so up North spring will come early this year. Meanwhile, down South in the Gulf of Mexico, the advent of spring is not predicted by a famous ground hog, but announced by the great bird migrations. Each spring over 250 bird species (some travelling from as far south as Patagonia to as far north as the Arctic circle) travel across the Gulf of Mexico and up the Mississippi Flyway.

Because last year’s Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill wreaked havoc on avian stopover sites in the Gulf, February 2011 was established as the target date for Gulf clean-up completion (just before migratory check-in). Sadly, a clean Gulf Coast is nowhere in sight; oil rings still linger around marshland plants and tar balls still wash up on beaches. Read the rest of this entry »

Take a moment to think about how many books you read monthly. If you are the type of person who has two or three books going at a time, you may want to consider purchasing an E Book. Not only are E Books very portable, they are paperless. Using less paper is good, green living. -R.G.

Recently, I received one of those gifts many people do not buy for themselves, an electronic book. Having well learned the art of bending book spines to open up a paperback and creasing paper pages to make bookmarks, the idea of an electronic book seemed too “plasticiky”, too “unintimate” for entering the world of a novel. Like many others, I kept telling myself, “I just like the feel of a real book”. After all, isn’t the tactile splendor of paper beneath your fingers an essential part of pleasurable reading? Read the rest of this entry »

Be curious and inquire about how the merchandise you purchase gets to market. Do the retail outlets where you purchase goods have green supply chain management (SCM) practices? Managing pallets via a pallet pooling program can greatly lower the impact that pallets have on the environment. While pallets are often put to work behind store front activities, we consumers can best see pallets in action at big warehouse outlets. Next time you are in such a retail establishment, take a look at the pallets underneath the stacked goods for sale. Look to see if the pallet wood is stamped or painted. If yes, the pallets are probably part of a pallet pooling program. For example, the CHEP program paints its pallets blue for easy identification. If you see a blue pallet, take a closer look, it will probably be stamped with the CHEP logo. Support retailers with green SCM initiatives.