2018 Green Tips

Green Tip - Support Species Survival

Donors to Seneca Park Zoo's Annual Appeal support the preservation of endangered species because our zoo participates in many Species Survival Plans as an affiliate of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. To get to know the particular species and the specific zoo residents covered by these plans, visit the Seneca Park Zoo web site.

Click on "Animals" and any of the following species:

African Elephant
African Penguin
Amur Tiger
Bali Mynah
Black and White Ruffed Lemur
Bornean Orangutan
Golden Lion Tamarin
Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake
Ocelot
Panamanian Golden Frog
Polar Bear
Radiated Tortoise
Spider Monkey
White-handed Gibbon
White Rhino 

Jennifer Markham
Biology

Green Tip - The Geography of Food - Food Miles

Where does your food come from? How many miles does your food have to travel before it hits your dinner plate?

Not so long ago, for most of humanity, the majority of our food came from areas we could walk to or at least from within our own countries. These days our food is increasingly from many thousands of miles away. We can express this distance as food miles which refers to the distance food is transported from the time of its production until it reaches the consumer.

It's amazing that we can enjoy many foods out of season and at relatively low cost, but the price paid in terms of environmental damage can be very high.

The environmental impact is mainly related to freight and shipping - more trucks, more planes, more ships, more consumption of oil and more greenhouse gas emissions. Produce in the U.S. travels, on average, 1300 - 2000 miles from farm to consumer. Since 1970, truck shipping has dramatically increased, replacing more energy efficient transportation by rail and water (National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service). Also, food imported from some countries may have been grown in very unsustainable ways. For example, rainforests may have been cleared, and toxic effluent released into the environment from processing and inappropriate use of pesticides and herbicides applied to crops.

A brand of coffee I drink is grown in Brazil. That's a distance of over 3,000 miles (over 5,000 kilometers) as the crow flies. I then switched to buying a fair trade brand from Guatemala - under 2,000 miles - around 3,200 kilometers. Just to illustrate the difference, take a look at the map in the link below showing the distance comparison between the origins of my usual brand of coffee (Brazil) and new brand of fair trade coffee (Guatemala).

You can take action on your next shopping trip. Try to buy local where you can - even if it's just one or two more products that you regularly use. Read labels on cans and learn more about what foods are in season within your country and try to utilize those more as there will be less chance of you accidentally purchasing imported foods. Better yet, consider starting a vegetable garden for your back yard (next spring). It will greatly reduce your food mile impact from thousands of miles to a few feet - plus saving you money!

"Where does your food come from?" by Michael Bloch (modified)
Green Living Tips

Resources:

Jonathon Little
Chemistry and Geosciences

Green Tip - Green Blogs

Going green? Stay informed with blogs. Blogs are an ideal vehicle for journalists, scientists and other experts to share news about environmental issues with like-minded readers.

Here are four green blogs that get this librarian's stamp of approval:

Dot Earth
NY Times reporter Andrew Revkin tracks the latest environmental news. Visit the comments section of each post for lively discussion with readers and experts.

Apartment Therapy
Go to this blog to learn how to green your living space.

TreeHugger
The folks at TreeHugger are dedicated to making sustainability mainstream.

Yale Environment 360
Despite its Ivy League pedigree, this blog is surprisingly accessible to the layperson. Entries are written by scientists, journalists, environmentalists, academics, policy makers, and business people.

Alice Wilson
MCC Libraries

Green Tip - A Simple Start

All the glory and grace that comes with each new school year is always accompanied by the age-old question: How am I going to keep up with all of my work AND become a cutting-edge, go green, sustainability guru? Well, my advice is to dream big but start small. Here are a few green tips to start saving energy right away that won't take more than an extra thought:

Turn off the lights when you leave a room. When I was younger, my family had a fishbowl that we had to put a quarter in every time anyone left a light on in an unoccupied room. Needless to say I spent those years of my life penniless, but I learned my lesson. Also, if you have a dimmer switch on your household lights, use it! I like to think of it as turning down the lights and turning up the ambiance.

Turn down the heat in the winter. We all know Rochester can get frigid pretty quickly, but that doesn't mean you have to keep the inside of your house at a tropical temperature. Keep things reasonably comfortable but don't be afraid to wear a sweater and slippers around the house. Also, setting your household heating on a timer is a great way to save energy and money. I've heard that you turn the heat down 1 degree for every hour you will be out of the house. You can also put an extra blanket on your bed and turn the heat down a bit at night.


Carpool to work. Carpooling to work has always been a great way to help save the environment, save on parking, and make new friends. And if you're close enough, you should consider dusting off your bicycle. A great way to get to work AND get some exercise!

Get a reusable grocery bag. At Wegmans they are only 99 cents, and they last a really long time. Plastic grocery bags take about 100 years to degrade.

Don't leave the water running. When you're doing the dishes or brushing your teeth, don't just leave the water running - only turn it on when you really need it!

Pat Joram
Service-Learning

Green Tip - Unplug "Vampires"

Electronics like computers, televisions and cell phone chargers continue to draw power even when you're not using them so kill these "vampires" at the source. Power outlets in New Zealand have handy on/off switches, and residents are encouraged to keep their switches in the off position. We're hoping that trend will migrate to the United States, but until then you can save power by plugging your desktop, printer, and fax machine into a "smart" power strip. Smart strips can sense when electronics are idle and cut off the power flow to vampires. Devices like the Wattstopper and the Smart Strip Power Strip can be ordered online. While you're awaiting the arrival of your new smart strip, you can accomplish the "smart" part by simply unplugging unused appliances yourself.

Dick Stewart
Mathematics

Green is the Color of Love

Some tips for making your Valentine’s Day more eco-friendly:

  1. Flowers: Did you know that non-organic flowers can contain up to 50 times the amount of pesticides that are federally allowed for food? Try organically grown flowers to avoid the pesticides, or better yet, choose a potted plant which lasts longer!
  2. Chocolate: Did you know that of all crops, cocoa demands the second highest use of pesticides? Try organic and fair trade chocolates instead and you will find that you don’t have to sacrifice flavor by giving up the pesticides. There are many yummy brands that are locally available. Some of my favorites include Endangered Species Chocolates and Equal Exchange Chocolates.
  3. Wine: Try an organic wine or champagne this year. Many local wine stores have a nice selection of eco-friendly wines and the selections are growing in quantity and improving in quality as the demand increases.
  4. Dinner: There are many ways to incorporate a more eco-friendly approach to dinner. Try a vegetarian restaurant, one that uses local produce and products in their cooking, select sustainably harvested fish, or simply cut back on your intake of meat and try a delicious dish of pasta instead. (It worked for Lady & the Tramp!)
  5. And finally, remember that homemade valentines are the most eco-friendly and most romantic way to go. Recycle some old gift wrap or construction paper, get out the glue & scissors, brush up on your poetry skills and make your valentine a special gift from the heart.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Bethany Gizzi
Sociology

Green Tip - Let Your Fingers Do the Driving for Research

You can save gas and paper and keep up with sustainability issues by doing research in the MCC Libraries’ online databases.

You can do your searching online from any computer with an Internet connection. You’ll only need to go to the library to pick up physical items such as MCC Libraries books, or items obtained from other libraries through interlibrary loan.

You can access the MCC Libraries’ 50 online article, reference, and e-book databases, as well as the MCC Libraries’ book and media catalog, from on- or off-campus from any computer with an Internet connection. 

The EBSCO GreenFILE database (funded by SUNYConnect) indexes offer some full text of articles about all aspects of human impact to the environment from scholarly, government, and general-interest journals and magazines. GreenFILE is an easy way to keep up with developments in areas such as global warming, green building, pollution, sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, recycling, and more. The database provides indexing and abstracts for more than 384,000 records, as well as full text for more than 4,700 records, and covers such titles as Agriculture & Environment  (04/01/1981 to present), the Journal of Ecology (03/01/1913 to present), and the Journal of Environment & Development (03/01/1996 to present).

Debbie Mohr
Library

Green Tip - Recycling Works

When one sees a classroom recycling bin filled with an assortment of unrecyclable garbage, it is easy to form the perception that MCC is utterly hopeless at recycling. This perception, however, is false. According to a waste audit study conducted in April of 2008, MCC diverts 41% of its waste stream to recycling facilities. Much of this is paper, but an increasing number of containers are also being recycled, thanks in part to those recycling bins with round holes that one sees in some of the public areas on campus. A 41% diversion rate is quite good, but we can certainly improve even further if we encourage each other to deposit containers in the appropriate bins, and to put only paper in the open-topped, classroom bins.

Matt Fox
Transitional Studies

Green Tip - The Number 350

Please take 90 seconds to view a video that explains why 350 is such an important number:

If you are still not convinced or want more information about 350, check out the additional links under "About". Are you convinced now? Why not see what you can do under the "Get Involved" tab? Want to do even more? How about clicking on the "Donate" tab and giving...even $5 will make a difference. Lastly, use the icons in the upper right corner to add your name to the email list or to share this website through Facebook or Twitter.

Only with your help can we address the greatest crisis human civilization faces.

Jennifer Hill
Biology Department

Green Tip - E-Waste - Know Where Your Garbage is Going

Before you drop off your old computer, cell phone, BlackBerry or any other e-waste you may have, make sure you know where your waste is going. Companies all over the country are taking consumer e-waste and unethically and illegally shipping it overseas to towns such as Guiyu, China, where the individuals living in this community are being poisoned each day!

60 Minutes did a story on American e-waste and the companies who collect it and the communities that live with it.

Who Was Following Whom? 60 Minutes' Solly Granatstein On Being Tailed On the Toxic Trail in China

"E-waste is junked old computers, TVs, cell phones, printers, most of it toxic, and much coming to this shabby corner of China from wealthier environs like America." Our best intentions to be green have ended up poisoning children in Guiyu, China, to where their lead levels and other dangerous materials in these products have and continue to cause permanent brain damage and birth defects, where the air quality is at poisonous levels, and where the precious metal mine workers show up at work each day because the pay is better. "The place was a hell on earth of acrid smoke and noxious smells. The pungent air scorched the back of our throats."

Americans throw out 130,000 computers each day and 100 million cell phones each year – not to mention the TVs and other electronic equipment tossed. We have developed a culture where our electronics are disposable as soon as the next best thing comes out on the market. This lifestyle has not come without a huge cost to human life. E-recycling companies all across America claim to recycle our e-waste responsibly. As discovered in the 60 Minutes story, on too many occasions this does not happen. Companies will tell you that they are disposing of the waste in non-hazardous ways, but will then ship the items overseas to communities who burn the components and pollute the air. This waste is illegally exported to poor, remote towns and villages where community members are more willing to accept the waste.

Why? With the waste comes employment opportunities and money to feed themselves and their families. How can this possibly happen? Taken from the website:

GAO Releases New Report on Toxic E-Waste Export: EPA unable to enforce rules, holds "little concern for the environment in other countries" 17 September 2008 – The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a new report on electronic waste today during a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific and the Global Environment. The Electronics TakeBack Coalition, a national coalition of environmental and consumer groups promoting responsible recycling and green design in the electronics industry, applauded the report, hailing it as the U.S. government's first comprehensive look at the magnitude of the problem of exporting toxic e-waste to developing nations. The report finds that few regulations exist to control this problem, and that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) fails to enforce those that do exist, which only cover old cathode ray tube TVs and monitors. To test compliance with the regulations, the GAO posed as foreign buyers of broken cathode ray tubes (CRTs) and found 43 U.S. companies willing to ignore the EPA CRT rule and export nonworking CRT monitors to foreign countries in direct opposition to U.S. regulations. Some of these are companies who promote themselves publicly as environmentally responsible companies, with at least 3 of them holding Earth Day electronics recycling events in 2008.

The GAO's findings include: "US regulatory controls do little to stem the export of potentially hazardous used electronics." "US Exports of potentially harmful used electronics flow virtually unrestricted." Existing regulations focus only on CRTs, but companies easily circumvent the CRT regulations, because they are confident that they will not get caught. "EPA has done little to enforce the CRT rule" which went into effect in January 2007. Only one company has been fined so far, and that July 2008 penalty resulted from a problem the GAO identified. The EPA does not plan to enforce the CRT regulations. "They have no plans, and no timetable for developing the basic components of an enforcement strategy…"

So, how can you make sure that your e-waste recycling company is not illegally shipping waste overseas? The Basel Action Network certifies ethical recyclers right here in the U.S. You can check out the company you plan on recycling with to make sure that they are ethical re-cyclers.

Susan Bender
Service Learning

Green Tip - Green Your Holidays

Did you know that Americans throw away 25% more trash during the Thanksgiving to New Year's holiday season than any other time of year? This extra garbage amounts to 25 million tons of trash, or about one million extra tons of garbage per week. (Bob Lilienfeld/The Use Less Stuff Report)

Here are some thoughts for a sustainable holiday season:

  1. November is harvest season in our area. All kinds of food are available from local farmers, such as squash, onions, potatoes, brussel sprouts, kale, apples, pumpkins, and much more. Check out MCC's own Agriculture and Life Sciences Institute's "Buy Local" page for more information.
  2. If your holiday traditions include gift-giving, discuss with your family some alternative gift ideas. Gifts of time or services, such as babysitting, cleaning, or dog-walking, are often appreciated as much as material objects. You could also consider giving a charitable donation on behalf of one of your gift recipients. Another option is to give consumable goods, such as home-baked cookies, specialty jams, or Finger Lakes wine, which have less impact on the environment and bring pleasure to the senses. If you do give material objects, consider any of the following options for gift wrapping: buying recycled gift wrap, re-using gift wrap from previous years, or wrapping in a re-usable scarf or cloth bag.
  3. Consider natural decorations and homemade ornaments to decorate your home. The internet is full of craft sites with ideas, such as Make:.

Several local business and organizations offer workshops and/or products to help you out, such as Hurd Orchards), and the Rochester Civic Garden Center.

Julie White
Student Services

Green Tip - Pick Ugly Veggies

Choose ugly veggies. Odd shapes and unusual pigments generally have no impact on the flavor of produce but, by insisting on strict uniformity, supermarkets force farmers to waste huge amounts of food and limit the variety sold. This also cuts the farmers' profit margins, driving them to more intensive methods. Let retailers know you'd be delighted to eat varied veggies and funny fruit, and enjoy the diversity in shape, color, and size that nature intended.

From "1001 Ways to Save the World" by Joanna Yarrow

Glenda McPherson
Psychology

Green Tip - Wintertime Savings!

Imagine all the little leaky spots where the cold gets into your house. Imagine your heating dollars slipping away!

Here is your annual reminder before winter gets a grip:

Insulate your attic. It is relatively easy, yet very cost-effective, to add insulation to your attic. The Department of Energy (DOE) suggests a minimum attic insulation level of R-38 (R-value is a measure of resistance to heat flow), equivalent to 12 to 15 inches of insulation. The DOE provides a map on its website that lists recommended insulation levels for U.S. climates.

Seal air leaks. Weather stripping, door sweeps, window shrink wrap, and other materials can be purchased at your local hardware store for $50 or less, and can save you as much as 10 percent in energy costs. If you have an old fireplace, consider installing glass doors (which can cost a couple hundred dollars or more) to help prevent heat from escaping out the chimney when not in use.

Seal heating ducts. Leaky ducts from forced-air or heat pump systems can allow up to 20 percent of the warm air to escape. While most ductwork is hidden in walls and floors, you can seal duct leaks on your own in attics, basements, or garages, and in areas where ducts meet floor or wall vents. The DOE estimates that sealing leaky ducts can save you up to $140 annually.

Install a programmable thermostat. An Energy Star-qualified programmable thermostat can cost as little as $30 but save you $100 or more each year on heating costs by automatically turning the heat down when you are asleep or away (so you don't have to remember to do it yourself).

Upgrade your furnace. If your heating system is more than 10 years old, consider replacing it with an Energy Star-rated model to cut your energy costs by up to 30 percent. Before you buy, make your home as efficient as possible first (following the tips above) so you can purchase the smallest system to fit your heating needs.

Source: Union of Concerned Scientists

Brian Managan
Visual and Performing Arts (VaPA)