Green Scene

Local Recycling

Sophia Henrich — Wed, 17 Aug 2022 00:50:33 GMT

Nowadays pretty much anywhere there is a trash bin, there is a recycle bin right beside it. Recycling is a familiar concept to most and the main purpose of it is understood. However, although it is commonplace, many people still don’t know how to fully take advantage of it. So, in this article I will lay out what you should and should not recycle.

I would also like to point out that recycling can get confusing because there is not a universal rule on what you can and cannot recycle. Some places allow you to recycle items that other places do not. Therefore, I encourage you to do a quick online search to educate yourself on what your particular city allows.

Do Recycle:

plastic jugs and bottles (see exceptions below)
paper
cardboard
aluminum and steel cans

Do Not Recycle:

plastic bags
batteries (cannot place single-use or rechargeable batteries in a curbside recycling bin for collection, must go to a special recycling facility)
polystyrene foam cups
clothes
hangers
car parts
food
electronics
scrap metal

One example of the different recycle rules in different places is which types of plastic you can recycle. On plastic items usually the number inside of the little recycle triangle will tell you whether or not you can recycle it. However, for a long time I wasn’t aware which number meant you could recycle it and which number meant you couldn’t. So, I will explain that below. (Once again, these do vary based on where you live).

1 (water bottles, salad dressing, many cleaning products, etc): one of the most widely accepted, may be tossed into standard recycling bins

2 (milk and juice jugs, shampoo, etc): one of the most widely accepted, may be tossed into standard recycling bins

3 (plastic wraps, flooring, kids toys, etc): most centers do not recycle this type of plastic, it is either difficult or not feasible

4 (grocery store bags, bread bags, etc.): some centers can recycle this type of plastic, they are becoming more accepted as technology improves

5 (yogurt containers, straws, etc) : some centers can recycle this type of plastic, they are becoming more accepted as technology improves

6 (styrofoam): most centers do not recycle this type of plastic

7 (any plastic that doesn’t fit into the other categories): most centers do not recycle this type of plastic

Sources:

https://greenopedia.com/plastic-recycling-codes/

https://millerrecycling.com/plastics-recycling-numbers/

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220525-what-can-and-cant-be-recycled

August 2022 Cleanups in Northeast Ohio

Sophia Henrich — Tue, 09 Aug 2022 23:51:10 GMT

Monthly update on the cleanups:

Often the issue of pollution in our world seems overbearing. Some might think that there is so much pollution, nothing can be done about it. This is false. Although pollution is a serious issue, anyone can help reduce it. Every little bit is a step forward in the right direction. Volunteering your time to help make a cleaner habitat where you and others live, whether it be for a few hours, or only a few minutes, is beneficial. Below I have attached a list of websites, for your convenience, so you can visit them in order to sign up for cleanups going on in August in northeast Ohio. Feel free to sign up out of the goodness of your heart or feel free to sign up if you happen to be in need of volunteer hours (*cough cough* lazy NHS members I’m talking to you *cough cough*). Either way, the reason is not as important as the result. In addition, do not be afraid to start your own cleanup! There are a lot of areas in need of some help and it is a good way to easily visualize the difference you are making. Thank you for your help!

Rocky River Chamber: August 11th and August 25th

https://www.rockyriverchamber.com/events/details/park-clean-up-8-11-2022-604

https://www.rockyriverchamber.com/events/details/park-clean-up-8-25-2022-605

Adopt-A-Beach: August 13th

https://adopt.greatlakes.org/s/cleanup/a2o8X000001B80S/aab20360

City of Stow: August 27th

https://stowohio.recdesk.com/Community/Program/Detail?programId=1435

Also, I would like to point out that you don’t have to register for a cleanup in order to improve your surroundings. If you pick up trash whenever you see it on the ground, even if it is only one wrapper, you are contributing to a better environment and living space. Think about making this a priority in your life.

Climate Change Rears Its Ugly Head Yet Again

Sophia Henrich — Wed, 03 Aug 2022 01:04:49 GMT

Originally, this article was meant to explain that elephants are now evolving without tusks as a result of ivory poachers. I intended to explain that tusks are important to elephants because they are used for things like digging, lifting objects, gathering food, etc. Therefore, elephants are at a disadvantage without them. However, although all of that is true, while I was researching about the topic I came across something even more harmful to elephants: climate change. Due to the extreme droughts in Kenya, 179 elephants have died. According to discovery.com, “Najib Balala, Kenya’s cabinet secretary for wildlife and tourism, spoke with the BBC saying that climate change is killing 20 times as many elephants as poaching.” The droughts have also affected giraffes and warthogs who have been found dead near dried-up watering holes.

It is frustrating that the harmful effects of climate change are so widespread that while researching an unrelated topic, it still shows up. Until today, I thought the biggest threat to elephants was ivory poachers. Learning that climate change is a substantially bigger threat was eye-opening. It is crazy to me that poachers are fairly insignificant in comparison. The consequences of climate change keep popping up in almost everything I see. It is so upsetting because ivory poaching is useless to talk about if nothing is done about climate change. More and more species will become endangered. All of nature will continue to suffer due to climate change that humans caused and continue to ignore. The environment and everything in it is suffering as a result of our mistakes. We need to do what we can to correct this. Overall, I urge everyone to become more educated on the real consequences of climate change and to advocate and spread awareness for more measures to be taken to combat this frightening force.

Sources:

https://www.discovery.com/nature/elephants-climate-change

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/07/28/kenya-elephants-drought-climate-change/

Take Advantage of Refill Shops

Sophia Henrich — Wed, 27 Jul 2022 01:25:14 GMT

In the past few years, refill shops have become more and more common. They are a great way to lessen the amount of plastic you use in your daily life. Most of the shops have many personal-care items in stock like shampoo, laundry detergent, dish soap, and more. They are usually small stores where you can bring your own container to be filled or some stores have containers that you can buy. The goal of these stores is to help you be sustainable. If everyone refilled all of their products that would be great, but that’s not always realistic. So, I would like to encourage just using refillable containers for whatever you can. Maybe there is a shampoo that you like from the refill shop or a laundry detergent that works well. Another benefit of refill shops is that you can get as much or as little of the product as you would like so you can feel free to try things out. The amount of plastic produced for single-use bottles is ridiculous considering the product that you actually want is what’s inside. “A bathroom plastic study by Johnson & Johnson estimated that 552 million 15-ounce shampoo bottles end up in landfills each year,” so even making the change to refill your shampoo would be helpful to reduce this statistic.

The refill stores are usually small and independently owned, so along with helping the environment you could be supporting a local business. Also, since they have become more common there is a pretty good chance that there may be one near you. To find these stores, a simple Google search should most likely get the job done, but this website is another helpful tool to find zero waste/bulk grocery stores near you. Simply click on your state and options on where to shop will show up. All in all, next time you run out of shampoo or are in need of more laundry detergent, instead of going to your usual grocery store, consider going to the nearest refill shop to try out the options there instead.

Sources:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/home/refill-shops-make-reducing-plastic-use-easier/2021/06/07/28a714c2-c2fe-11eb-8c18-fd53a628b992_story.html

What Is Going On In the Amazon Rainforest

Sophia Henrich — Tue, 19 Jul 2022 22:33:19 GMT

The Amazon Rainforest is the largest rainforest in the world and what is being done to it right now is unacceptable. The Amazon Rainforest is not only beautiful, it is vital to Earth’s ecosystem. It plays an extremely important role absorbing greenhouse gases and regulating weather patterns in certain areas of the world. Yet, in the Amazon, deforestation is at an all time high. It begs the question, are people unaware of the detrimental effects this will cause or are they simply too ignorant to care?

I am both scared about the long-term effects to the planet if something isn’t done to preserve the Amazon Rainforest and scared because I didn’t even know it was a problem until a week ago. Furthermore, I would like to point out that on the majority of websites I looked at, the phrase “turning point” was mentioned, which clearly indicates that things are headed in the wrong direction and if they keep going that way, there may be no turning back.

Now, although I could do my best to summarize the main points of what is happening and put it into my own words, since this is such a critical situation, I think the most beneficial thing I could do is leave it up to the professionals and just direct you to some informational and helpful websites so you can be truly knowledgable about the current state of affairs. I have linked a few websites that talk about the situation as it stands right now and why what is going on is so harmful. The articles are not very long so they should be a fairly quick and easy read. Also, some of the websites show interactive images so you can fully see the extent of the damage. Please take a few minutes out of your day to learn about the Amazon Rainforest and to become knowledgeable about the current concerns.

Links:

The first link will take you to an interactive page filled with information and images about the Amazon Rainforest. The second link is a short article explaining the harmful effects of the deforestation and other occurrences. The third link explains the threats to the rainforest. The fourth link is a short article with more about the ongoing deforestation.

https://www.cfr.org/interactives/amazon-deforestation/#/en/section3

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/07/08/amazon-rainforest-deforestation-record-climate/

https://www.amazonconservation.org/the-challenge/threats/

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-62103336

Red Meat = Major Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Sophia Henrich — Tue, 12 Jul 2022 23:39:47 GMT

We all know that meat kills animals, but since that often fails to tug on people’s heartstrings enough, let’s talk about how it will end up killing people too. I’m not talking about negative health effects, I’m talking about the catastrophic effects on the environment. Global warming is happening and it’s not slowing down. This is not something that has been creeping up on us, one day popping up out of nowhere. We know this is happening. Overwhelming amounts of scientific evidence tell us that it is happening. This evidence also tell us that global warming will result in an increased number of droughts, wildfires, high temperatures, etc. People won’t be doing well when there’s not enough food due to dry land and so many places become unbearably hot. We need to make some changes. With that being the case, it is good to be informed on what is a contributor to this destructive aspect of climate change. Therefore, this post will be about industrial red meat. Industrial red meat is a contributor to global warming not only because of the greenhouse gases it adds to the environment, but also because the deforestation resulting from it. According to the United Nations, “more than a third of all human-caused greenhouse gas emissions is linked to food.” One of the foods that produces the highest greenhouse gas emissions is red meat. Red meat is a huge contributor to these emissions for a number of reasons.

Cows produce methane as a by-product from their digestive process.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency:
- “Researchers have found that 37% of methane emissions from human activities are the direct result of our livestock and agricultural practices.”
- “A single cow produces between 154 to 264 pounds of methane gas per year.”
- “Methane is 28-times more powerful than CO2 on a 100-year timescale and 80-times more powerful over 20 years.”
Meat production involves cutting down trees and clearing farmland which releases carbon dioxide into the environment.
Cattle’s waste releases greenhouse gases as well.
Rainforests in the Amazon are being converted into areas for cattle to keep up with the demand for beef (stay tuned for next week’s post about more things that are happening in the Amazon Rainforest).

So, as can be seen, red meat has a MAJOR impact on global warming. Cutting red meat from your diet is a simple, straightforward way to support a decrease in greenhouse gas emissions. Even just reducing the amount you eat by half would be helping the environment. Although it may seem small, in time the reduction you make really could help reduce the demand of red meat. Likewise, if you start to reduce your red meat intake, others could follow in your footsteps. I stopped eating red meat about 4 years ago and making that decision has significantly reduced my entire family’s overall consumption. Besides the occasional snarky comment from my brother, it’s been great. Overall, the next time you’re at the grocery store, think about buying more plant protein (nuts, grains, beans, etc) instead of the environmentally unfriendly red meat.

Sources:

https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/science/climate-issues/food

https://www.epa.gov/snep/agriculture-and-aquaculture-food-thought

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/eating-less-red-meat-is-something-individuals-can-do-to-help-the-climate-crisis/

Start Composting!

Sophia Henrich — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 03:06:28 GMT

According to the United Nations, 17 percent of total global food production is wasted. Millions of tons of food are sent to landfills each year when instead they could be converted into compost. Diverting waste from landfills to compost turns that waste into a productive product. Compost has a number of beneficial impacts on the environment including improving soil health, suppressing plant disease, helping reduce soil erosion, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and recycling nutrients. Composting is a natural way of recycling organic matter. Essentially what it does is speed up the process of decomposition that is done by bacteria, fungi, and decomposing organisms by creating an ideal environment for them. It is full of nutrients and other elements that are ideal for plants. Compost is a great alternative to synthetic fertilizers containing harmful chemicals.

Along with the positive impact it has on soil and plant health, it is also helpful in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This is because when waste goes to landfills it usually ends up buried underneath piles and piles of trash which cuts off oxygen to the decomposers. As a result, the waste gets decomposed by organisms that do not require free-flowing oxygen to live. This means it undergoes anaerobic decomposition. This type of decomposition creates biogas which is about 50 percent methane and 50 percent carbon dioxide. Both of these are heat-trapping greenhouse gases that are major contributors to global warming. Making compost from your waste instead of sending it to these landfills would help decrease these emissions.

Implementing compost into your life can be as easy or as difficult as you make it. If you do not want to deal with your compost every day and instead just want to let Mother Nature take her course, anything organic will decompose eventually, so you would not need to be too involved. If you want to get more into it and take it a bit more seriously, you could use a faster compost process that would involve you monitoring the ratio of carbon to nitrogen and maintaining the ideal amounts of air and water. There are many different methods of composting. Below are a few websites explaining some of these methods and instructions on ways you can compost at home.

Sources:

https://www.nrdc.org/stories/composting-101

https://www.compostingcouncil.org/page/CompostBenefits

Those Plastic Detergent Bottles In Your Laundry Room Are More Damaging Than You Think

Sophia Henrich — Wed, 29 Jun 2022 02:17:44 GMT

You may not realize it, but in one of the routines you complete every day, you are using an item that is a significant contributor to the growing number of harmful plastics in the environment. This routine, which is probably a frequent annoyance, is doing your laundry, and the harmful item, is your laundry detergent. Similar to most people, you probably use the well-known liquid detergent that comes in that big plastic jug. When buying that big jug at the store you most likely do not give it a second thought. However, you should start. Even though you are used to the detergent and have most likely been buying it for years, please reconsider your decision. Not only is the plastic bottle harmful to the environment, but so are some of the chemicals in the detergent. Unnecessary chemicals have been added to detergent to make it more appealing to buyers. Many of these chemicals are toxic and have been linked to skin irritation, respiratory issues, cancers, and more. To clearly show you the real impact this common household item has on the environment, I will lay out some facts.

Each year, in the US alone, around 700 million plastic jugs of detergent are thrown away
It is estimated that only 30% of the plastic jugs ever end up being recycled
In non-concentrated form, liquid detergents are made up of 60 to 90 percent water
Due to all the excess water, the jugs of detergent end up being very heavy which makes the process of shipping them around the country one that produces a considerable amount of carbon emissions
The jugs are made of high-density polyethylene (an especially bad plastic)
The plastic jugs that are not recycled end up in landfills and take hundreds of years to break down

Alternatives:

While you may think powdered detergent is the better option, that is often a misconception. A lot of the time, while the powdered detergent may not come in a plastic container, the cardboard boxes it frequently comes in are lined with plastic. Also, there are usually contents inside like handles or scoops which are plastic as well. Consequently, some powdered detergents are also contributors to the quantity of plastic in the world.

With that said, here are some plastic-free substitutions to create a greener household.

The Brand Tru Earth has Eco-Strips that are plastic-free and don’t have any harsh chemicals or damaging additives
Link to buy: https://www.tru.earth
Simply Living Eco has laundry detergent sheets that are plastic-free, made with plant-based ingredients, and don’t have any optical brighteners or dyes
Link to buy: https://simplelivingeco.com/products/natural-laundry-detergent-sheets
Net Zero Strips are ultra-concentrated, hypoallergenic, and free of harmful chemicals
Link to buy: https://www.netzerocompany.com/products/net-zero-laundry-detergent-strips?_pos=2&_sid=9183022e5&_ss=r
https://www.vera-bee.com/blogs/news/laundry-detergents-are-bad-for-the-environment-and-for-you-here-s-why-and-the-5-best-eco-friendly-alternatives#best_detergents
This link takes you to a website that displays 4 plastic-free powdered detergents

Sources:

https://lochtree.com/blogs/blog/zero-waste-laundry

https://www.vera-bee.com/blogs/news/laundry-detergents-are-bad-for-the-environment-and-for-you-here-s-why-and-the-5-best-eco-friendly-alternatives#best_detergents

https://www.netzerocompany.com/?gclid=CjwKCAjwzeqVBhAoEiwAOrEmzYnh1LnrJYKLP1kGlb-lOLkIMz0BPWIAFfNzweDM8s1LM7emDGe02RoCWesQAvD_BwE

June/July 2022 Cleanups in Northeast Ohio

Sophia Henrich — Wed, 22 Jun 2022 01:41:27 GMT

Often the issue of pollution in our world seems overbearing. Some might think that there is so much pollution, nothing can be done about it. This is false. Although pollution is a serious issue, anyone can help reduce it. Every little bit is a step forward in the right direction. Volunteering your time to help make a cleaner habitat where you and others live, whether it be for a few hours, or only a few minutes, is beneficial. Below I have attached a list of websites, for your convenience, so you can visit them in order to sign up for cleanups going on in late June and July in northeast Ohio. Feel free to sign up out of the goodness of your heart or feel free to sign up if you happen to be in need of volunteer hours (*cough cough* lazy NHS members I’m talking to you *cough cough*). Either way, the reason is not as important as the result. In addition, do not be afraid to start your own cleanup! Areas get especially polluted around the Fourth of July, so there would be a lot of pick up opportunities and you could easily visualize the difference you are making. Thank you for your help!

CityOfStow

https://stowohio.org/event/team-up-2-clean-up-stow-7-2022-06-25/

Adopt-A-Beach

https://adopt.greatlakes.org/s/cleanup/a2o8X000003vkHw/aab20651

DrinkLocalDrinkTap

https://drinklocaldrinktap.org/engagement/beach-cleanups/

RockyRiverChamber

https://www.rockyriverchamber.com/events/details/park-clean-up-7-14-2022-602

(I will continue to update this article periodically throughout the month of July to include more cleanups as they become available).

Ways to Minimize Gasoline Consumption

Sophia Henrich — Mon, 13 Jun 2022 18:27:04 GMT

Gas prices are higher than ever, and nobody is happy about it. 90% of conversations these days seem to include some comment about how people are outraged over how much they have to pay to fill up their tank. We get it, gas prices are ridiculous right now. The strain on your bank account is real. It’s completely understandable that people are upset… a considerable portion of your hard earned money is just going towards means of transportation. AND, not only that, but driving around for fun, just to listen to music, is a thing of the past unless you’re prepared to sacrifice a good chunk of your savings. Regardless, there’s not much we can do about the actual amount we have to pay. However, we can choose to look at this unfortunate issue in a new light and — as an annoyingly optimistic friend might say — “look on the bright side.” The bright side that comes to my mind whenever I’m close to screaming because only two gallons have been pumped and the cost is already in the double digits, is that this will cause people to be more environmentally friendly. I imagine that most of you know that gas cars are not the most favorable for the environment. The usage of gas cars involves the burning of fossil fuels. Burning fossil fuels emits greenhouse gases and those greenhouse gases end up trapping heat in the atmosphere. The amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere keeps increasing and the effects are widespread. I could play on your emotions here and start mentioning how your great grandchildren might not be able to experience snow because of the excess amount of greenhouse gases, or how species will continue to go endangered due to climate change. However, since this article is about gasoline, I’ll spare you the so-called “dramatics” (which I’d like to point out are in fact not dramatic at all, as they are extremely likely to happen sooner than you’d probably expect). Nevertheless, minimizing your gas consumption will be helpful in multiple ways. So, in my effort to help you budget your money, and more importantly help you support the environment, here are 10 ways to easily decrease your gas consumption.

Maintain your speed
- constantly slowing down then speeding up is not fuel efficient
Gently accelerate
Don’t excessively break
Remove any wind resistance (car racks, carriers)
- drag increases fuel consumption
Turn off the AC
Drive slower
- driving faster increases drag
Make sure your tires are properly inflated
- under-inflated tires tend to waste gas
Buy gas early or late in the day
- as temperatures rise, gas gets less dense causing you to get less of it when you pump, so go early or late in the day when temperatures are cooler
Choose the most fuel-efficient route
- the shortest route isn’t always the most fuel efficient, so you should choose the route with the least stop signs and stop lights
Tune the engine

Sources:

Save Gas