Shocking Facts

Everyone is “going green” these days. It’s not just a fad or the new cool thing to do; this is the way of the future. We all know that right? Still, just about everyone is not “pure green” meaning you still will use Styrofoam, or you might throw away a can or two if taking it home isn’t convenient. The question is do you really know why we are going green? Sure you know about climate change, and greenhouse gasses, but let me share with you a list of facts that will make you think next time you throw away that soda can or take separate cars to parties.

Recycling one aluminum can saves an amount of energy equivalent to half that can filled with gasoline.

Every Sunday, more than 500,000 trees are used to produce the 88% of newspapers that are never recycled.

North Americans throw away 2.5 million plastic bottles every hour.

Every year some 45,000 tons of plastic waste are dumped into the world's oceans. One of the results of this is that up to one million seabirds and one hundred thousand marine mammals are killed each year by plastic trash such as fishing gear, six-pack yokes, sandwich bags, and Styrofoam cups.

Food waste includes leftover portions of meals and trimmings from food preparation activities in kitchens, restaurants and fast food chains, and cafeteria. Food waste is the third largest component of generated waste (after yard waste and corrugated boxes) and second largest component of discarded waste, after yard waste. The amount of food waste generated in the waste stream has increased by 1.2 million tons in the last 25 years; this is one of the lowest increases on a percentage basis of any component of the waste stream.

The United States generates approximately 208 million tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) a year. That's 4.3 pounds per person per day.

This information courtesy of your friends at http://www.green-networld.com
How about that for putting things in perspective? I know you all do your part when it comes to being green and no one is perfect, but the next time you think it’s a pain in the neck to take that soda can with you or you're going to get a Styrofoam box for your leftovers, think about this blog and think again.

Go above and beyond… Sound off on the creative things you do that might be a little out of the box to be green. I am always looking for that neat new tip to save energy, money and our planet.


http://nickvalentino.blogspot.com