Ugh, gas prices are skyrocketing, Mother Nature is walloping baseball-sized hail balls, it’s too hot or rainy or cold or humid or dry, and if we don’t immediately act the sky might just fall in.  The planet is in upheaval, the politicians are talking politics and here we Americans sit, in our SUV’s, with the AC blasting and the DVD entertaining the kids in the backseat for a trek under 5 miles.  The United States represents 4% of the world population and yet we consume 25% of the world’s energy, ouch!  I hang my head in shame.  In 2005 the International Panel on Climate Change said man’s carbon emissions were reaching such a concentration that “immediate and very deep cuts in the pollution are needed if humanity is to survive”. 

Acting globally on such an enormous topic as Climate Armageddon may seem insurmountable but according to most environmental experts, if we do practice small acts of conservation and live with a sense of balance we might just muddle through.  MTV has launched a campaign to offer young people a voice about environmental issues; it is a 12-step, 12-month program to encourage small changes like recycling that amount to big earthly rewards.  

Johannes J. Feddema, an Associate Professor for the Department of Geography at KU, says, “We make the situation so black and white with such polarizing views, you are either a green guy or an oil guy.  We need to think about both sides of the issue and foster a balance between our standard of living and ways in which we could have a lesser impact.”  The old saying, ‘Think globally, act locally’ really might just be the best place to start, Feddema agrees, “If you clean up in your own neighborhood, what are you really doing?  You are making your immediate environment more pleasant therefore making your life more enjoyable, acting locally can be as noble as a broader scale of defense.”

Feddema is originally Dutch, where in the Netherlands around 50% of the people cycle to work, he has also lived in Kenya, Rwanda, Pakistan, Tunesia, Switzerland, and a handful of American cities.  In the United States only 2% of the adult population walk or cycle to work according to stopglobalwarming.org.  Feddema is an exception, “In Europe gas is 1.25 Euro per liter (about $6.00 a gallon).  I bike to KU as often as possible because it’s good for me, I don’t use gas that funds terrorism and I don’t pollute near as much that way.  But we need better planning here in Lawrence.  There is no consideration for walking; wouldn’t it be nice not to have to walk next to a busy road but meander through neighborhoods, through people’s yards between homes?  We should think about our children and the elderly and how they can best independently get around.  All the planning it seems in Lawrence has been geared toward the car.  How can a kid safely bike to Freestate High School, there is really no safe route.” 

So what are some actions that we can do?  How can Lawrencians become more environmentally aware and the inhabitants of our fair city make a dent in this global catastrophe?  (Statistics are from stopglobalwarming.org, earth911.org, energystar.gov, greenroofs.com, usda.gov/farmersmarkets, arborday.org, batconservation.org, greengrasscutters.com, and carbonfootprint.com)
 

• Light Bulbs Matter:  If every American household changed one regular light bulb to a compact fluorescent light (CFL) the pollution reduction would be the equivalent of removing 1 million cars from the roads and CFL bulbs can last 12 times longer than regular bulbs.
• Plastic Bags:  It is estimated that Americans use 84 billion plastic bags annually and 500 billion to a trillion are used worldwide.  The fragments of these bags are entering our waterways, reaching oceans and even changing the estrogen levels in some marine life.  Either recycle these bags or take a reusable cloth bag to the store.
• Pre-Rinse:  Don’t do it, the dishwasher will take care of the wash and you’ll save 20 gallons of water per dish load.
• Recycle Glass:  It takes more than a million years to decompose a glass bottle; Americans generate 13 million tons of glass waste a year.  Feddema has some interesting thoughts on the balance of recycling, “Aluminum is the classic case of recycling working, it is more expensive to make a new aluminum can than to reuse an existing one.  While glass and paper are more expensive to recycle than just create new, but the question then becomes, is it worth saving the trees or is the economic impact more important to you?”
• Energy Star Appliances & Electronics:  This line of products was started in 1992 by the E.P.A. to rate the efficiency of computers, now 40 product categories exist.  It is estimated that in 2004 enough energy was saved by the use of these products to power 24 million homes.
• Air Dry:  Cloths dryers consume copious amounts of energy, try the sunshine.
• Green Houses:  Build green using solar panels, insulating, caulking and having plenty of windows.  You may even opt for a green roof; they keep the home at a level temperature all year, feed the birds, and don’t get harmed in a hail storm.
• Window AC:  If you have a window unit, keep it away from lamps, computers and other items that produce heat.  They confuse the air conditioner and it will run longer.
• Eat Local & Seasonal:  Foods that are shipped, trucked or flown all consume fuel to get to your plate and add pollution to the air.
• Go Vegetarian One Day A Week:  One pound of beef requires 2,500 gallons of water- 40 times more than a pound of potatoes.  Bovine also expel a large amount of methane, which is the number two greenhouse gas, livestock is responsible for 20% of the methane in the atmosphere.
• Eggs:  Buy them in cardboard, not plastic or Styrofoam.
• Leaks: Fix those leaks in the toilets and sinks.  You should also shower instead of taking baths they use less water.
• Thermostat:  By turning down one degree you can decrease your heating costs by 3% also turn down the air at night when you are under the covers and invest in a programmable thermostat.
• Cut the Butts:  Cigarette butts are the most littered item; 4.5 trillion are discarded worldwide every year.  For goodness sakes, find a trashcan!
• Grow Your Own:  Empty out your change purse for a few packs of vegetable seeds, add a little sweat and you’ll have fresh, wholesome food all season.
• Turn it Off:  When you are not using the computer switch it off, same is true for all of your chargers, the cell phone charger, ipod charger, laptop, camera, cordless drill- even when these chargers are just plugged into the outlet they are sucking up a lot of energy, pull the plug.
• Catch the Rain:  Position a rain barrel under your down spouts to catch the flow.  Your plants prefer rainwater because it is void of chlorine.  Also by keeping your lawn longer and it will require less water.
• Newspapers:  63 million papers are printed each day and about 69% of those will be thrown away.  If we recycled just the Sunday paper it would save more than ½ million trees every week!
• Plant a Tree:  If 5% of the US population were to germinate one tree a year, we would have 15 million gorgeous trees, sucking up the carbon from our air.
• Bug Bitten:  Avoid ways to eliminate bugs that are unnatural, build a water feature with moving water to attract birds, bats, amphibians all of whom eat the bugs who like to feast on you.  A bat can eat 1,000 mosquitoes in a single evening.
• Walk or Bike:  Try giving yourself the guideline that if your journey is less than 2 miles from your home, you’ll hoof or peddle to get to that destination.  This will improve not only the air and your wallet from fat gas prices but your waist might slim down as an added incentive.
• Hybrids:  SUV’s are out, it is hip to be tiny and compact.  Try a hybrid that will give you 50 miles to the gallon while the typical SUV gets 15 miles to a gallon.
• Lawnmowers:  A gas lawn mower that runs for 1 hour is the equivalent of driving a car for 93 miles, next time you need a new mower opt for an electric one they are far less dirty and noisy.
• Grills:  Gas grills are much cleaner than charcoal, a gas grill avoids forest destruction and does not add to air pollution.  Feddema elaborates, “Africa is deforesting rapidly because of charcoal.”
• Big Screens:  Our mentality that if it is bigger it is better must stop and we should start with big screen televisions, these high-definition big boys consume two to three times more energy than an analog tube.
• Carbon Footprint:  Find out how you compare to others in your county and the world.  This online test aims to estimate your carbon emissions and how much resources are needed to maintain your lifestyle.  www.carbonfootprint.com

Certainly it is difficult to check off everything on this list, but we can all pick and choose a couple of selected items to spearhead in our households.  If we don’t start today we can only blame ourselves for not finding that delicate balance between having what we want and giving back to our provider.  Feddema states, “Try to determine how much time, space and energy do I consume compared to the rest of the world.  The Kyoto Protocol, which the Bush administration declined to participate in saying it, would make us as a country less strong. I think that actually the opposite is true.  The strength of America lies in her ability for invention, creation and innovative thought.  By challenging ourselves to live with some boundaries, Americans might be inventing the next source to solve the world’s environmental crises.”  And wouldn’t that be lovely to go from the most gluttonous country to the most enlightened?