Fwd: FW: Simple Steps at Work on How to Save the Planet

Simple Steps at Work on How to Save the Planet

 

Maybe it's because we don't think of our office as our home, or we believe that if someone else is responsible for taking care of our paychecks, then they are responsible for our trash, too.  Currently, business offices have become major contributors to waste.

 

An average worker uses 10,000 sheets of paper each year.  It is a fact that a lot of office electricity is used to light offices even when they are vacant or when there is sufficient natural light to go without overhead lighting.  In addition to this, office buildings are responsible for more than 10 percent of all the water used.  Food waste is another problem.  But the office supply room contributes the most to the office waste problem, with tons of paper, pens, paper clips, and rubber bands being needlessly tossed out.

 

Keeping all that in mind, here are some things we can do individually to help work for the environment at the office.

 

Getting To Work

 

• Keeping your tires fully inflated could improve your gas mileage by around three (3) percent.  It also makes your tires last longer.
• Try to take public transportation.  Fewer cars on the road significantly reduce commuting time.  People spend an average of 36 hours – nearly five full workdays – in traffic delays per year.
• Better yet, try carpooling.  This will save time and money.

 

Having A Break

 

• Don't use disposable stirrers.  Just pour in your sugar and milk first then add coffee.
• Use silverware and plates, not plasticware, in the cafeteria if you have a choice.
• Choose glass or ceramic containers that can be reused in storing food.  They're healthier than plastic, and you'll reduce the waste generated.
• Bring your lunch from home if you can.  A disposable lunch creates between four and eight ounces of garbage everyday.
• Try to use fewer paper napkins.
• Request less packaging when you order your food to go.

 

In The Workplace

 

• Try using a correction pen as opposed to bottled correction fluid.  It won't dry out as fast, and you'll likely use less.
• Use postconsumer recycled envelopes.
• When transmitting a fax message, avoid a cover page when possible.  You'll save paper on both ends of the transmission.
• Reuse your paper clips.
• Try to use refillable pens, pencils, and markers.  Disposable plastic pens aren't recyclable, nor are they biodegradable.  Throw one away, and it will still be in a landfill fifty thousand years from now.
• Print double-sided pages, and use an inkjet if you can.  Laser printers use 300 watts of electricity, while inkjets use only ten.
• Avoid using rubber bands if you can.  About three-quarters of rubber bands are synthetic, made from crude oil.
• Activate the power management function, or sleep mode, on your monitors and CPU boxes.
• Turn off your office lights if natural light from the sun is available.  You'll get less eye fatigue due to glare.

 

(Source: www.readthegreenbook.com)

 

Always remember, "Conserving Energy is in Our Hands."

 

Coming up next… Simple steps outside of work on how to save the planet.

 

AGILA Information and Awareness Committee 2008 - 2009

Re: Published

      My Nature's Way

      Vic B. Valido

 

 

 

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