Plastics are not good for us. They have filled up our landfills. The EPA estimates that over 12% of our current waste stream is made up of plastics and of that the largest category of materials is food containers and packaging. Plastics are now in our ocean  and have created their own island called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. And the health studies coming out about plastics, especially those that come into contact with food or beverage, have indicated initially they might be cancer-causing according to a Scientific America article.  Although the plastics industry denies such reports it is understandable given that over 50% of industry’s revenues make up plastic packaging, according to  the report, The Future of Plastics of Packaging.

A new trend is emerging to go plastic free. Essentially that means no product or good purchases that are made from or come in plastic packaging. If it sounds like this might be difficult, it is!

Here are a few resources that provide some tips and tricks on kicking the plastic habit!

• My Plastic Free: A blogger who is blogging about how she is going plastic free. She is in the process of publishing a book called ‘Plastic Free’.

• 11 Ways to Kick the Plastic Habit: An article by Green America on how to reduce your use of plastic.

• How We Tried to be Plastic Free: Rodale publishing did a blog in 2011 on attempts by their staff to be plastic free. A great idea for a company try to educate staff on plastic use.

• Plastic-free Living Guide: Another blogger, Beth Terry, who also writes about her plastic free life.

• Life Without Plastic: A site that provides products that are all plastic free to help those who want to rid plastic from their lives.

• Life Less Plastic: A blogger, Jeanne Haegele who has been plastic free since 2007 and has her own journey described in her blog.

Chemical fertilizers and pesticides are known carcinogens and have also been linked to asthma, birth defects and neurological disorders. (for more citations on health, visit the Kids for Saving the Earth). These chemicals are also affecting our wildlife too. Particularly our bee population which chemical pesticides have been proven to be one of the primary reasons we have had such decline in our bee populations. (To learn more visit E-Magazine’s article on Pesticide Linked to Honey Bee Deaths)

Here are some resources for natural pesticide and fertilizer use;

• OrganoLawn is a Colorado based lawn care service that only uses natural and organic pesticide and fertilizer products.
• Natural Pesticide Recipes Provides a list of ingredients to make your own green pesticide products.
• Plant Talk Colorado: A robust site on garden and lawn care by the Colorado State University. Click here for their page on natural pesticide product recommendations.
• Clean Air Gardening: Provides a comprehensive list of all the environmentally friendly lawn care products including organic fertilizers and pest control products.

Here are some resources that provide more detailed information on the tax incentives and rebates available with energy efficiency;

• Alliance to Save Energy
• American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy
• Database of State Incentives for Renewables
• National Association of State Energy Officials
• Tax Incentives Assistance Project

With your spring cleaning, try to use natural cleaners for your home. There are some great natural home cleaning products such as Method, Seventh Generation, Mrs. Meyers found at your local natural food or hardware stores. The EPA also has a great guide on purchasing green cleaning products.

You can also try to make your own cleaners, and here are a few websites and articles that have some good information;

• In Natural Home and Garden, they had a great article, Naturally Clean Home,  that provided receipts and ingredients to create your own natural cleaners. Good, clear and simple directions.

• Earth Easy, Non Toxic Home Cleaning offers a recipe for almost every cleaner you would ever need.

Dyson, the maker of air dryers actually commissioned a study by MIT called Life Cycle Assessment of Hand Drying Systems. The study claimed that Dyson’s own hand dryer produce70% less carbon emissions than the conventional hand dryers or paper towels (obviously 100% recycled paper was better than virgin paper).  Greenbiz.com did a nice article review on the Life Cycle reports findings.

Overall, most studies find that hand dryers will be the greener choice in about 95 percent of circumstances. It is the option that is lowest in carbon emissions and waste. However probably the greenest option of all is to carry your own handkerchief and dry your own hands. This is a custom in Japan and some parts of Asia and has worked well.  No worries on paper towel dispensers being empty or dealing with hand dryers that don’t seem to work anymore. You take your own drying into your own hands!

• Reducing meat production by 10% in the US would free enough grain to feed 60 million people. (Harvard Nutritionist, Jean Mayer)
• According to the USDA, growing crops for animal feed requires 80% of U.S. agricultural land and nearly half of the water supply. (USDA)
• More than 80 pounds of CO2 are released for every 2.2 lbs of meat consumed.
• Factory farms are responsible for 18% of green house gases worldwide. They are also the cause of 64% of ammonia emissions, the primary cause of acid rain.(Natural Home Magazine)

Although eating less meat overall will reduce CO2 emissions and help the environment, it is also important to know which meat or protein is better than others. E Magazine published an article, The Best Meat to Eat, which identifies chicken and turkey as two of the meats lower in GHG emissions. Lamb, beef and pork were rated higher in their environmental footprint.

If you would like to learn more about vegetarian and meat free diets, here are some good resources;

Vegetarian Times: They produce a monthly publication and a great source of vegetarian recipes.

Food Revolution: John Robbins, the heir to the Baskin Robbins empire is also a vegetarian and author of Diet for A New America.

Becoming a Vegetarian: A blog for those individuals and families who want to start transitioning off of meat-based diets.

These quizzes are 10 questions each and do a good job to see if you really know your stuff. Don’t worry if you get the answer wrong, it will give the correct information so you can get 100% the second time around. Topics range from various rooms and mechanical aspects in your home to topics such as organic gardening, plastics, water, travel and energy.

These quizzes are fun and easy to take. Consider using them before sustainability trainings or integrate them into your green team meetings.

A small but growing trend is to downsize into smaller living spaces. There have been architects who have designed not only efficient small spaces but very eco-friendly as well.

Check out these small pre-fab houses;

Tumbleweed Tiny House Company: These very charming little houses were particular designed for remote areas.

Texas Tiny Houses- they use 99% recycled materials for their homes

Clayton Homes- These homes are slightly larger at 720 square feet

DGE Homes- they sell the design plans for you to build your own

L41 Homes- designed by a well known architect, these 250 square feet homes are truly an art in efficiency

• Plastics production produces 14 percent of toxic air emissions in the U.S., and each plant emits an average of 300-500 gallons of contaminated wastewater per minute. (It’s Easy Being Green book)
• 100 million plastic bottles dumped in US every year. Each bottle will take over 1,000 years to biodegrade.  (SIGG)
• BPA (a plastic hardening agent prevalent in bottles, cups and lined tin cans) is so prevalent in food packaging and other consumer items that prior research has detected its presence in at least 90% of Americans. A group of 20 San Francisco residents had 66% less BPA in their urine after three days on a diet of fresh, organic and unpackaged food, scientists found. (Silent Spring Institute)
• 500 billion plastic bags or wraps are thrown away in America each year and are created with 12 million barrels of oil. (DropthePlasticBag.org)

Find out the facts about plastic for yourself with these resources;

Plastic Disclosure is a great website that offers facts and information about the harmful effects of plastic.

GreenBiz released this article a few weeks ago about the plastic use in corporations.

New York Times released this article on the issue of plastic and waste

If you want a more lighthearted approach, view the movie Bag It, that was released early in 2011. It discusses all the issues with plastic. For a review, go to this blog entry.

All electric Prius conversions are becoming more popular especially in Colorado with aggressive tax rebates. The State of Colorado is now offering an incentive to convert your Prius to plug-in through a refundable tax credit of 85% of the cost with a maximum credit of $6,000.  This is only good through the end of 2011 and might be extended through 2012.

Recommended Prius Conversion Vendors in Colorado:

For Denver residents try Green Gears.

For Boulder residents try Boulder Hybrid Conversions.