…more than switching to a hybrid car

…more than switching to mercury free lightbulbs

…more than recycling

Here are the facts. Raising food for human consumption creates 18% of greenhouse gas emissions, more than 130 times the total of human generated greenhouse gas emissions. The amount of pollution created just to grow and deliver animal food to our tables is extraordinarily high.

And water used to raise animals for human food is equally high. Here are some of the worst offenders:

• 4500 liters of water for one steak.
• 1000 liters of water for one liter of milk.
• 1170 liters of water for one chicken breast.
• 1440 liters of water for one serving of pork.
• 840 liters of water for one pot of coffee.
• 2500 liters of water for one piece of cheese.

Compare that to 70 liters of water used to deliver one apple.

And production of animal foods, especially meat, has been growing… and is projected to double over the next 40 years.

Reducing the percentage of animal foods in your diet is one of the most effective ways to help our environment. It’s also one of the best things you can do for your health at the same time. Two benefits in one!

Eating a diet of mainly raw fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds and living grains is also:

• waste free
• better than driving a hybrid
• healthy
• sustainable
• eco friendly

I was amazed at the amount of garbage I reduced when shifting my diet. By not buying packaged and prepared foods, I went from 2 garbage bags a week, to one garbage bag every 2 weeks. And most of that is from fruit and vegetable scraps. My next project is to turn those scraps into compost and reduce my waste even further.

Imagine if just 1 in 100 people did this. Imagine the millions of pounds of garbage we’d save alone each week, not counting the reduction of greenhouse gases, fuel and other energy used by eating predominantly animal based foods.

Something to consider.

Keep it green!

Related resources:

• Healthy Living Talk
• Vegan Raw Diet
• The Raw Food Diet
• Free Weight Loss Tips

Additionally there’s the fax machine paper usage. Did you know that:

• 210 billion sheets of paper are consumed by faxing in US companies every year.
• 12,500 sheets of paper can be made from 1 tree
• 10,000 sheets of paper per year are used by a single US office worker
• 95% of this paper will eventually be thrown away, not recycled.
• 4 trees per year are cut down to meet the fax requirements of an average US company.
• 17 million trees per year are cut down to supply fax paper for the US as a whole

So what’s the solution?

Email to fax service.

An online fax service makes it easy to send a fax to email as well as receive a fax by email. You can send a fax online using online fax software, print any document from your computer directly to a fax or send a fax by email, attaching it from any number of document types including MS Word, PDF, Excel and many others.

Online fax service is available from many vendors. You can compare the costs, features and benefits of email fax services here to see which fax to email solution makes the most sense for your situation.

In addition to the energy and cost savings of using an fax to email service is the convenience of receiving all your fax documents by email. If you travel or aren’t at the office, you can still get your fax by email at any computer with an internet connection.

By using online fax software, you not only save energy, but you also save paper by handling all the communication electronically. With most fax to email software, you can modify or annotate the incoming faxes you receive and send them right out again without needing to print, scan and fax again. Most services send your faxes in PDF format and can be stored efficiently on your hard drive or backed up on CD/DVD’s if you require archives. No paper needed!

And there’s the time savings. No more running back and forth from the fax machine, waiting for paper jams or other faxes to be received, waiting in line and then waiting for faxes to be delivered to your desk. How much time to do you waste with the office fax machine?

I liberated myself from my fax machine over 6 years ago and have found using an email to fax service easy, convenient, cost and energy efficient and just plain cool. To find a place to recycle your old fax machines, visit the EPA web site for organizations in your area.

Here’s to turning your office green!

This is interesting.

Did you know that even when you turn off most of your electronic devices like a television, stereo, computer, dvd player still use energy?

In fact, the US Department of Energy notes that over 75% of the energy used by these devices, the “phantom load”, in a typical home is consumed while the devices are turned off. You may notice that most of the electronic devices have a standby setting and a light is usually on when you turn it off.

Since electronic devices normally average about 20% of a normal home electrical bill, that can account for a good amount of wasted energy use. You don’t use these devices, but still get billed for the energy use plus contribute to global warming, pollution and other environmental issues.

How can we avoid these “phantom loads”?

The best was is to unplug all electronic devices after they’re turned off. Unplugging each device can be cumbersome, so the easiest way is to get an energy saving power strip, plug all the devices into it and turn it off when they’re not in use with one flip of a switch. Some of the newer strips like the energy saving Smart Strip have autosensing built-in to switch off power automatically.

Another way to save is to look for Energy Star rated products when you purchase. These products are more energy efficient and will save you money in energy costs over the long term.

Here are a couple more strategies:

• instead of leaving your computer on overnight with a screen saver, turn the computer on ’sleep’ mode
• opt for a laptop instead of desktop. They are more energy efficient.
• opt for rechargeable batteries to power your portable equipment
• unplug battery chargers when they are finished charging. The adapter still pulls energy after they are charged.
• turn off your computer and unplug it if you plan to be away for more than 2 hours.

Another resource in your quest to reduce energy use and leave a smaller footprint is ‘The Home Energy Diet‘ from Mother Earth News. It helps by making you a more informed consumer, learning about your energy use, quantifying it and then finding ways to reduce it. It comes well reviewed and recommended by readers.

How do you save energy around the house? Share your comments and tips!

I often get asked what’s the best thing to do to help the environment. Recycle, drive less, eat locally grown food, take public transportation? It was often a toss up to what I may suggest since each one is helpful although none really stood out as the best.

Now I have the answer.

The United Nations (UN) recently released a report that stated the single best way to help the environment is to stop eating meat. The amount of pollution created in raising animals for human consumption is staggering, more than 130 times of human generated pollution. The amount of water used for animal raising is staggering as well.

Watch the video below from the Glenn Beck show that details more. Now Glenn is no vegetarian, but he makes a valid point that those who want to help the environment ought to be a good example and show others what they can do to make a difference.

Not only is skipping meat good for the environment, it’s also been proven to reduce your chances for disease, extend your life and increase the quality of your life considerably.

If you’d like to help the environment (and yourself) take the first step and reduce or eliminate meat from your and your family’s diet. Look at resources that help with adding convenient and delicious foods to your diet, vegetarian and vegan options as well as vegan raw options.

Go green!

Related resources:

• Healthy Living Talk
• Vegan Raw Diet
• The Raw Food Diet