Going Green

Written by Amber Whitman-Currier

Going green refers to different ways you can choose to be more environmentally friendly over those things that aren’t environmentally friendly. Everyone can take baby steps and start slow by replacing a few things at a time. In your own house there are plenty of ways you can start to go green. You can replace incandescent light bulbs with fluorescent ones to save energy. You can recycle cans, papers and bottles. You can try planting some drought resistant plants or using the heat and air conditioning less will make a huge difference.

Then of course we have all heard of the “spare the air days”. This is when you can walk or ride your bike instead of taking the car. You could also save on gas by carpooling, investing in a hybrid or electric vehicle. There are those people who even reconstruct their homes to try and go more green and natural. Building more airtight homes with green materials that rely on the sun’s rays is a one way to go. In San Francisco the Academy of Sciences reopened in 2008. Builder there recycled 90% of the previous building creating a completely new structure.

It had a living roof to provide better insulation. They also put in heating and cooling and light systems that used the least amount of electricity. Some of the power was from solar panels and the materials came from denim and fibreglass. We can’t all go big scale like that but we can do the little things like turning off the lights and power when we leave the house. One thing you can do is to turn off the water when you’re brushing your teeth. Purchase biodegradable cleaning products and locally grown produce. All these things will have a positive effect on our planet and the surroundings we live in.