Earth Keepers
(This
page is made from 100% Recycled Electrons.
No laboratory animals were harmed
during testing of this page.)Mission
Statement:
We are people of faith called to
be stewards
of creation through education, advocacy, and actions
which protect, restore
and celebrate
the earth and its resources through ministry in our homes,congregations,
and world. |  |
Trinity
Green Team: The Trinity Green Team will meet on Sunday, August 10th after
the second service for a lunch meeting. We will update everyone on completed work
and talk about our future goals. Earthkeepers – August Meeting:
The Earthkeepers committee – members of Trinity and of St. John’s Lutheran – will
have an important meeting at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, August 11th, at Trinity. The
agenda will include making plans for the fall conference. Other members interested
in stewardship of our environment are welcome to join this committee.
COOL
IT (from the August, 2008 Trinity Visitor) Last month in this
column, Shirley wrote about a proposed cap-in-trade bill to encourage reduction
of industrial CO2 emissions by 70% by 2050. This month, we'd like to introduce
the relatively new concept of carbon offsets as a way for individuals to reduce
their personal CO2 emissions.
Carbon offsets allow individuals and businesses
to offset their carbon dioxide emissions by investing in green technologies to
reduce, avoid, or capture greenhouse gases. You essentially pay someone to reduce
or remove climate-changing pollution in your name. For example, when you buy 10
tons of carbon offsets, the seller guarantees that 10 fewer tons of greenhouse
gas (GHG) emissions go into the atmosphere. While the pollution you produce yourself
is the same, you get the credit for that 10-ton reduction. Critics of carbon offsets
argue that they are just a way to assuage our 'emission guilt' without actually
changing our lifestyles. But offsetting energy isn't an excuse to pollute. It's
a way to take responsibility for the pollution that can't be avoided. Sellers
of offsets encourage you to increase energy efficiency and reduce waste production
as much as possible, and then offset the rest of the energy you use by investing
in clean and sustainable sources of energy.
Sounds simple, right? Not
really. Buying and selling carbon offsets is in its infancy - a sort of Wild West
right now - so it's best to be informed and do your research thoroughly before
buying. Shopping for offsets can be confusing. If you're not an expert, it can
be hard to tell how much pollution is really being reduced or removed.
So how does one go about finding a reputable company from which to buy reliable
carbon offsets? As I started researching offsets, I had a lot of questions. I'll
try to answer some of them here and in next month's column.
How do I know
how much carbon I need to offset? Most of the websites I visited that are selling
carbon offsets have a 'carbon calculator'. For example, I logged on to www.terrapass.com
(one of many companies selling offsets) and clicked on 'calculate your footprint'
(your carbon footprint is the impact you have on the environment measured in CO2
emissions). I decided I wanted to offset my car emissions for a full year so I
entered the year, make, model of my car and the average number of miles I drive
in a year. The 'calculator' calculated that I use 10,207 lbs of CO2 per year to
drive my car and they charged me $65.45 to offset my emissions. You can do the
same for your air travel or your home energy use, as well
.
How much do
carbon offsets cost? I found a wide range of prices for carbon offsets - $4.50
to $425.00 with most offsets costing between $8.00 and $16.00 per metric ton of
CO2.
What types of projects am I investing in? The most common carbon
offset projects include renewable energy projects (wind and solar power), energy
efficiency projects (reducing tailpipe emissions from semi trucks), landfill and
livestock gas capture (methane destruction), and forestry projects.
Where
are these projects? There are projects available both in the U.S. and overseas
in developed as well as developing countries. Countries who have signed on to
the Kyoto Protocol generally have higher standards of regulation. The U.S. is
a voluntary market at this time. Companies can be for profit or not for profit.
Where do I find projects that sell carbon offsets? On the internet! www.ourcarbonnation.com
is a great place to start (plus it has a great glossary of terms). Simply decide
what you want to offset (e.g. home, car, air travel), what you want to invest
in (renewable energy, energy efficiency, forestry) and where (in North America
or overseas). They will show you all of the websites selling offsets in their
database that match your criteria along with a profile of each. It's a great place
to start!
Next month, we will continue our discussion of offsets focusing
the certification process and what to look for in a reputable company. Stay tuned! Our
next Earthkeeper meeting will be Monday, August 11th at 7:00 at Trinity. Join
us!
Recycle
Computer Equipment, TVs and other Electronics
The Electronic
Demanufacturing Facility at 59th & Tremont in Davenport recycles your electronic
devices, no charge for Rock Island County residents, 20 cents per pound for residents
of other counties. More information at http://www.wastecom.com/
and click on the Electronic Demanufacturing Facility link.
Do
you have a drinking problem?
A disposable water bottle drinking
problem, that is! There is no question that drinking bottled water is harmful
to our Earth. Here are some bottled water facts to help you make earth-friendly
decisions about your drinking habits:
Bottled water is no safer, cleaner
or healthier than tap water.
A bottle that holds 1 liter requires 5 liters
of water in its manufacturing process.
It takes more than 47 million gallons
of oil to produce plastic water bottles for Americans every year. Eliminating
those bottles would be like taking 100,000 cars off the road and 1 billion pounds
of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.
Plastic water bottles are recyclable
but almost 90% of them are NOT recycled - that's BILLIONS of bottles annually!
Bottled water can cost $7.50 to $11.00 per gallon but tap water costs most
customers one-tenth of one cent per gallon.
Although most disposable
plastic bottles are safe for single use, some plastics can leach harmful chemicals
into your drinks (especially #3, #6 and possibly #7 plastics).
So…what
can we do to reduce waste, save money and stay healthy?
Filter your tap water
and drink it from rigid, reusable containers made of #1 or #2 plastic. Then recycle
them when they are obviously worn - worn plastics leach more unwanted chemicals.
Stainless steel bottles are also a good option.
Research how to support implementing
or improving bottle deposit bills in your state. Iowa has one but it does not
include water bottles - Illinois does not have one yet. Check out www.bottlebill.org.
Make your own informed decisions. Here are some websites to get you started:
www.thegreenguide.com or www.containerrecycling.org,
or www.plasticsinfo.org.
And if
you MUST drink bottled water, RECYCLE the bottles. And so are we.
-- Shirley Trevor, Karen Neder and Barb Steigman | 