This year marks the 40th anniversary of Earth Day - an annual celebration to promote awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s environment. It was founded by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson (D-Wisconsin) as an environmental teach-in in 1970 and is celebrated in many countries every year. Senator Nelson hoped that a grassroots outcry about environmental issues might prove to Washington, D.C. just how distressed Americans were in every constituency. That same year, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established to consolidate in one agency a variety of federal research, monitoring, standard-setting and enforcement activities to ensure environmental protection. EPA’s mission is to protect human health and to safeguard the natural environment—air, water, and land—upon which life depends.

Since that first Earth Day in 1970, schools,community organizations and governments have all participated in a variety of awareness programs to inform about and encourage good stewardship of our planet. First Community Bank and Trust has been increasing their efforts as well by switching to recycled paper for much of their stationery - including this newsletter, encouraging the use of electronic banking to reduce paper consumption, and, for the past two years, offering “eco-challenges” in each issue of our newsletter for our employees and customers to try both at work and at home. These challenges have included changing to CFL bulbs, using natural alternatives to chemical-laden cleaners, recycling outdated electronics, gardening more organically, amping up your home’s insulation to conserve heat and energy, and many more. By incorporating eco-friendly habits into our everyday lives, we can reduce our carbon footprint - the sum of all emissions of CO2 (carbon dioxide) induced by everyday activities in a given time frame.

This Eco-Challenge invites you to celebrate Earth Day by first finding out your carbon footprint (www.footprint.org or www.carbonfootprint.com) and then looking for ways you can reduce it. Either quiz takes approximately 5-10 minutes and will compare your footprint to that of the U.S. average. It also offers suggestions on how to reduce your impact on our planet.

According to the EPA, shower heads and bathroom faucets account for approximately 32 percent of residential indoor water use in the U.S. Installing Low-Flow shower heads and faucet aerators is the single most effective water conservation savings you can do for your home. Inexpensive and simple to install, low-flow shower heads and faucet aerators can reduce your home water consumption as much as 50%, and reduce your energy cost of heating the water also by as much as 50%. At $5-$10 for faucet aerators, and $8-$50 for shower head aerators, the savings in your utility bills will pay for the cost of the aerators within a few months.

Low flow shower heads help reduce water waste, but don’t lower shower head pressure. The term “low flow” is generally defined as a shower head with a water consumption rate of 0.5 to 2 gallons per minute (gpm). There are two types of low-flow shower heads: Aerating, which mixes air into the water stream and maintains steady pressure so the flow has an even, full shower spray; and non-aerating, which does not mix air into the stream and gives more of a massaging-shower head effect. For more information about water-efficient products, visit www.epa.gov/watersense.

If you are one of the many holiday purists who insist on the fragrant tradition of a real tree, then you know that once the holidays are over, it means taking off the decorations and lugging it to the curb to be hauled off to a landfill with the rest of the trash. Why not return the tree to nature, where it came from? The Forest Preserve District of Will County operates a seasonal recycling program especially for Christmas trees.

Appropriately named “Recycling The Holiday Spirit”, the program starts on Sunday, December 27th and will run daily through Saturday, January 9th. There will be four drop off locations in Will County that will take unadorned Christmas trees and turn them into mulch. The mulch will then be spread on the various hiking trails in the Forest Preserve District. This is a very eco-friendly solution that returns the trees to nature, keeping them out of landfills.

According to Bruce Hodgdon from the Forest Preserve’s Public Affairs Department, over 200 trees were collected last year and mulched. “This program has been in place for many years - even before I came here over 15 years ago”, he said. He hopes that people will make the effort to bring their trees to one of the locations as it not only saves precious space in landfills, but also helps to maintain the hiking trails.

The four drop off locations are:

• Monee Reservoir, 27341 Ridgeland Avenue, Monee, IL
• Plum Creek Nature Center, 27064 S. Dutton Road, Beecher, IL
• Sugar Creek Admin. Center, 17540 West Laraway Road, Joliet, IL
• Isle a la Cache Museum, 501 E. 135th St., Romeoville, IL
  

For more information about “Recycling the Holiday Spirit” or for hours of operation, call 815.727.8700. Directions to each location can be found on the Forest Preserve District’s website, www.fpdwc.org.

Avoid the Draft and Win the “Cold War”

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, drafts, not the military kind, but rather the ones that involve air flow, can waste 5 to 30% of your energy use. Keep your house warmer this winter and save energy and money at the same time by winterizing your home with a few simple steps:

1) Call Out The Dogs! Remember door draft stoppers, those tubular rolls that were found in front of almost every door during the winter when you were a kid? Draft doggies, draft snakes, or simply a rolled up towel are back in style and can prevent cold air from coming in and warm air for going out. Visit www.thedailygreen.com for cute ways to make your own from scraps, old neckties, worn denim, dried beans, sand or other materials you can recycle from around the house. Get the kids involved and decorate with googly eyes, felt tongues and so on, so they can learn about saving energy too.

2) Lose the Screens. The simple act of installing a storm door can increase energy efficiency by 45 percent, by sealing drafts and reducing air flow. Likewise, digging the storm windows out of the basement and putting them up will also greatly reduce heat loss this winter.

3) Put It In Reverse. Ceiling fans are all but forgotten once it gets a little cooler, but they can actually help a room feel warmer in the winter if you flip the switch to make the blades rotate in the opposite direction. Doing so creates an updraft that sends the warmer air pooled near the ceiling back into the living space. This can cut your heating costs as much as 10 percent.

4) Seal the Deal. Simple leaks can sap home energy efficiency by 5 to 30% a year, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. That means it pays to seal up gaps with caulking and weatherstripping. Take a close look at places where two different building materials meet, such as corners, around chimneys, where pipes or wires exit and along the foundation.

5) Add Insulation to Subtract Heat Loss. You don’t need to be a math whiz to figure out this equation. Adding insulation is one of the best ways to save energy and money at home. It can make a big difference to add more insulation between walls. Make sure your attic floor and basement ceiling are well covered, too.
For more ways to winterize your home, go to www.thedailygreen.com, the consumer’s guide to the green revolution.

Here’s The Dirt on Doing Laundry the Green Way!

Although a great improvement over the manual washboard, washing machines and automatic dryers have a few drawbacks as well, namely high energy and water consumption combined with inefficiency. However, armed with a little information and a willingness to make few changes, you can still get fresh clean laundry while conserving natural resources.

Turn down the heat
Nearly 90% of the energy used to wash clothes is used to heat the water, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Washing your clothes in warm or cold water, instead of hot, can cut your energy use by 50% per load and save $63 a year! Worried about cleaning efficiency? Use a detergent formulated for cold-water use.

Hang ‘em out to dry
Just like grandma used to do, string a line outside and take advantage of the fresh air. Clothes dyers are the third-largest energy users in the home, behind the refrigerator and washing machine, costing more than $100 a year to operate, according to Project Laundry List.

Size does matter
Select the right setting for the load size you are washing. Also, don’t be tempted to cram it too full as it won’t clean as well, will create excessive wrinkling and will cause wear and tear on the machine.

Oops, too late - it’s already worn and torn
Know when it’s time to replace your appliances. Washers and dryers purchased before 1994 are not as efficient as the new models. Replacing your pre-1994 washing machine with a new Energy Star model would save you about $110 a year. Also, front-loading models use a third less water, heat energy and detergent than standard top-loading designs. n

Water and Feed Your Garden the Natural Way

Now that summer is here and the growing season is well underway, here are a few ideas on how to keep your garden green the way Mother Nature intended.
Water without getting soaked: Rain water is better than tap water for gardens, experts say, because it’s free of chlorine and fluoride and it’s slightly acidic to help plants access nutrients in the soil. And, with a rainwater collection system, that precious resource can be available even during the dry, hot summer months. A house with a sloped roof, gutters, and downspouts is well on its way to harvesting rainwater for landscape irrigation. Simply attach a collection tank to an existing downspout. Gardening stores sell 55– to 75–gallon plastic rain barrels, complete with leaf screens and spouts, for $50 to $250. Wooden barrels have a nostalgic charm, but they’re hard to come by and expensive.

To prevent mosquitoes from breeding in tanks, make sure the tanks are covered or screened. Also, during winter months, barrels should be kept only three quarters full to allow freezing water to expand.

There are several varieties of barrels available, including a flat-back model that allows the unit to sit flush against a building. Check out local home improvement stores to see what is available. Also, a quick Internet search of “rainwater collection barrels” will provide thousands of links on the subject, including links on how to make your own.

Compost: “Black Gold” You Make from Yard and Kitchen Waste: According to the Environmental Protection Agency, yard trimmings and food residuals together constitute 24 percent of the U.S. municipal solid waste stream. Instead of sending this organic matter to a landfill, why not transform it through composting into a nutrient-rich soil additive. Composting is an easy process that requires very little set up, can be done indoors or outdoors and needs minimal maintenance. In return, precious landfill space is saved and nutrients are returned to the soil. Compost can also suppress plant diseases and pests, reduce or eliminate the need for chemical fertilizers and promote higher yields in your flower or vegetable garden.

Any organic matter, such as leaves, grass clippings, vegetable peelings and scraps, coffee grounds and filters, dryer lint, hair or fur, eggshells and sawdust can be added to a compost pile or bin. An easy way collect appropriate food waste in the kitchen is to keep a covered container near the sink or garbage can and empty it at the end of the day into the compost bin A properly maintained compost pile will not have an offensive odor or attract unwanted pests.

Items that should not be added include any dairy, meat or bone matter, fats such as grease, lard or oil, or animal waste as these could create odor problems and attract rodents or flies. Also, because they may harm the compost’s beneficial organisms, yard trimmings that have been chemically treated with pesticides should not be added to a compost pile.

As with the rain barrels, compost bins can be purchased from almost any home improvement center or even online, or can be made at home. There are also several websites with helpful information about starting your own compost, including www.epa.gov/composting.

The benefits of using Mother Nature to nourish your garden are a greener, more productive garden and a two-fold positive impact on the environment - first by re- ducing landfill contributions, and second, by returning the nutrient-rich organic matter back where it belongs.

Re-energize Outdated Electronics by Recycling

Let’s face it - the majority of us are junkies when it comes to technology. We want the latest and greatest gadget with the fastest speed and niftiest applications. But what about all of yesterday’s toys? What should be done with our outdated equipment? Recycle it!

Nearly 60% of all electronics can be reused and the other 40% can be fully recycled back to its original raw state. Electronic products are made up of valuable resources, including precious and other metals, engineered plastics, glass, and other materials, all of which require energy to source and manufacture. By recycling we’re reducing the need to access virgin materials and manufacture new products.Following are some recycling options for your old electronics:

Computers: Consider donating your unwanted CPU, monitor or peripherals to an organization that will re-sell them or put them in the hands of students and other people who would otherwise have no access to the technology. Even if the computer cannot be used as-is, it may contain valuable parts that can be re-used. These recyclers will typically wipe the hard drive clean to erase all personal data from the previous owner, install necessary drivers, upgrades or peripherals, and then either sell it or donate it to a local school or organization. Search “computer recycling” on the Internet to find organizations in your area. Washington Township residents can bring virtually anything electronic to the recycling center on Tuesday and Thursdays between the hours of 9 AM – 3 PM and on Saturday from 8 AM – 12 PM. Visit the township’s website at www.washingtontownshipil.com for additional information about recycling your electronics.

Cell Phones: According to the website collectivegood.com, there are more than 1 billion mobile phones waiting to be recycled in the US; either in drawers, or already in the waste stream. Another 160+ million will be added this year and even more next year. One option is to donate your phone to one of many non-profit groups that will use it to raise funds. Visit www.collectivegood.com for a list of charities that can benefit from your donation. Cell Phones For Soldiers (www.cellphonesforsoldiers.com) also collects used cell phones, sells them to a recycler, and then uses those funds to purchase phone cards for soldiers overseas.

Also, because any working mobile phone can dial a 911 call center (an FCC requirement) donated cell phones can be used as emergency lifelines by senior citizens living alone or other individuals in need. Check with local social service agencies for organizations that accept cell phone donations to distribute to.

Finally, the United States Postal Service has partnered with Clover Technologies for its “Mail Back” program for small electronic products, including inkjet cartridges, PDAs, cell phones, digital cameras and MP3 players. Simply stop by the post office and pick up a postage-paid envelope, drop in your item and send it off. If an item cannot be refurbished Clover Technologies Group has a “zero waste to landfill” policy: it does everything it can to avoid contributing any materials to the nation’s landfills.

Clean the Green Away

While the recent cold blast might suggest that Spring is still a long way off, that doesn’t mean you can’t get a head start on Spring cleaning. Start with the closet or cabinet that contains your cleaning supplies. Instead of spending lots of money on fancy cleaners that promise much but deliver little, look to some everyday household items you may already have and discover economic, natural alternatives to expensive, chemical-laden cleaners.

Furniture Polish: The purpose of furniture polish is to oil the wood, which protects and lubricates finished wood. Commercial products contain petroleum distillates and solvents that can be neurotoxic. Homemade alternatives work just as well: Try mixing 1 cup of olive oil and 1/2 cup of lemon juice in a clean spray bottle. Shake well and spray sparingly on a clean, soft cloth. Spread evenly over furniture and use another clean cloth to buff dry. Another good choice would be liquid wax jojoba, found in most health food stores.

All-purpose Cleaner: Add one teaspoon liquid soap or borax per quart of warm water in a clean spray bottle. To cut kitchen grease, a splash of lemon juice or vinegar may be added.

Oven Cleaner: Even self-cleaning ovens need a little help now and then. Combine two tablespoons liquid soap and two teaspoons borax in a spray bottle and top off with warm water. Spray the mixture directly on the caked oven matter and let it soak for about 20 minutes. Scour the oven bottom with steel wool, and the caked-on food should come right off.

Glass Cleaner: Mix 1 cup of rubbing alcohol, 1 cup of water and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar in a spray bottle. This will make a quickly-evaporating glass and mirror cleaner that works as well as commercial brands. It will also give a nice shine to hard tile, chrome and other non-porous surfaces.

Make it a Green Christmas This Year

Dreaming of a white Christmas is soooo last year – Think green, instead! The holidays are a time of extravagance and generosity, however, it is possible to make the most of the holidays with less – less waste that is. This giving season consider ways to minimize the amount of waste produced as you celebrate:
Switch to LED Tree Lights.

LED lights look the same as traditional incandescent lights, use up to 90% less energy, and they burn a lot cooler, making it safer in your home. LED lights are comparably priced and are available wherever traditional lights are sold. As for the old lights, pack them up and send them off to a recycling facility. (Visit http://www.holidayleds.com/holidayledscom_christmas_light_recycling_program for more information.)

Be Creative With Gift Wrapping

Look for recycled gift wrap or, better yet, make your own with various materials already in your house, such as posters, decorated grocery-store bags, the colored Sunday comics, or pages from glossy fashion magazines. Another suggestion is to make the wrapping part of the present. For instance, wrap Mom’s gift in a beautiful scarf she can wear this winter.

Give Gifts of Your Talents or Time

Do you have a list of people to buy for who already seem to have everything? Consider spending some of your time, rather than your money, to give them something that won’t end up in a landfill. If you know how to work a hammer or screwdriver, an elderly relative can always use a handyman for a day to tackle simple home maintenance projects. Cooking and freezing a few nights’ worth of dinner would be a welcome gift for someone with a busy schedule. Let your computer-whiz kids create a great keepsake for family members with all of those digital photos or videos that are still sitting in your camera. For the small price of a few cd’s or DVD’s and a little time, this gift will keep on giving forever! Just think about what you enjoy doing and turn that talent into a great gift for someone.

Of course, there will always be some shopping required for the holidays, but look to local merchants to fulfill many of your needs. You will save time, gas and you will be putting your hard-earned dollars back into the local economy, where it will benefit the community. And don’t forget to bring your reusable shopping bags with you!

BYOB (Bring Your Own Bags) When Shopping

The next time the cashier asks paper or plastic? reply with “neither - I brought my own!” Bringing reusable bags made from earth-friendly materials can bring value to both consumers and the environment.

Buyer Beware!
In the United States alone, the EPA estimates that over 380 billion plastic bags, sacks and wraps are used annually. Of those, approximately 100 billion are plastic shopping bags, which cost retailers about $4 billion. That cost is passed on to consumers through increased prices.

They’re Everywhere!
Worldwide, experts estimate that 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are consumed and discarded annually—more than a million per minute. Where do all these bags go? Unfortunately, the majority end up in landfills and because they are not biodegradable, go through a process called photo degradation - breaking down into smaller and smaller toxic particles that contaminate both soil and water. They then end up entering the food chain when animals accidentally ingest them. Plastic bags also end up littering the landscape and waters, killing thousands of marine mammals that mistake the floating bags for food.

While paper may seem to be a good alternative, consider this: it takes about 14 million trees to make the estimated 10 billion paper grocery bags used each year in the U.S.; it uses significantly more resources, like water and electricity, to manufacture the familiar brown paper bags; and the manufacturing process produces much more air and water pollution than the manufacture of plastic. Paper, contrary to popular belief, doesn’t break down much faster than plastic in landfills, either, due to the lack of light, water and oxygen necessary for the decomposition process.

Some governments are recognizing the severity of the problem and are implementing measures to counteract the harmful effects. Ireland, for instance, in 2002 enacted the “PlasTax”, a plastic bag consumption tax whereby consumers pay a fixed price for each bag consumed when they purchase their goods. This measure has reduced consumption by 90 percent. Other benefits include reduced litter, millions of liters of oil saved which would have been used to produce the bags, and a hefty sum collected in tax money that has been earmarked for environmental causes. Japan has also enacted legislation to encourage merchants to use fewer bags.

Many stores have jumped on the environmental band wagon and are now selling their own reusable bags, often for less than $2 each. A wide selection of reusable bags is also available online at sites such as reusablebags.com. An added bonus: many of these bags are made from environmentally-friendly materials!
Before heading out to do the grocery shopping next week, stash a supply of reusable bags in your car. You will be helping to save valuable resources and money.

Information Sources:
Paper, Plastic, or Something Better, by Larry West; About.com;
Bags by the Numbers, www.myownbag.com
Reusablebags.com

Tap into the faucet to quench your thirst and save $$$ too

In 2006, Americans drank over 167 bottles of water, but only recycled approximately 23 percent of those bottles. That translates to 38 billion bottles taking up space in landfills. And, it takes over 700 years for those plastic bottles to even begin decomposing. When the amount of the fossil fuel it takes to make the bottles and to transport the end product to stores is
added in, it greatly increases the impact on our environment.
A better choice, ecologically and economically, would be to switch to tap water. Studies have shown that tap water is every bit as healthy as bottled water at a fraction of the cost. Municipal water systems are subject to the Safe Drinking Water Act, which requires constant and thorough testing for harmful substances. The bottled water industry is not subject to such strict standards. Additionally, unlike it’s bottled counterpart, tap water usually contains fluoride which helps prevent tooth decay. Economically speaking, the average cost of bottled water can range anywhere from $3 to $10 per gallon as compared to less than one penny per gallon for tap water. For what some Americans spend on bottled water in a year, they could buy a refrigerator with a filtered-water dispenser.
Convenience is often cited as a primary reason for reaching for the bottle. However what could be more convenient than turning on your faucet? It certainly beats lugging cases of bottled water home from the store. Take two minutes each night to fill a pitcher with water and place it in the refrigerator. Then fill up a reusable bottle each time you need to hydrate.
It’s time to wean yourself from the bottle and tap into the fresh, safe, economical choice of tap water.

Reduce the number of catalogs and junk mail you receive

In 2001, over 17 billion catalogs were distributed in the United States. That’s over 64 for every man, woman and child. Paper production is the fourth most energy-intensive of all manufacturing industries and one of the most polluting. Two simple ways to cut back on the number you receive are:

1. Get your name removed from mailing lists. Take a few minutes each week and contact the senders of unwanted catalogs to have your name removed from their mailing lists. Use the Internet for mail-order shopping. If the number of catalogs produced in this country were reduced by 30%, we would preserve over 16 billion gallons of water, conserve over 100 barrels of oil and keep 3.5 million tons of CO2 out of the atmosphere.
2. Have your name removed from the national database. Most junk mail is sent using names and addresses gleaned from a national database. By contacting DMA Mail Preference Service, P.O. Box 643, Carmel, NY 10512, you can request that your name be removed from this database. The request lasts for five years. For more information, contact DMA at 212.768.7277 or DMAConsumers.org.