To Be Green Or Not To Be
To be green or not to be. That’s an important decision and J&R joins the GREEN movement with our new Green Boutique.
The popular Kermit the frog once intoned:
It’s not that easy being green.
Having to spend each day the color of the leaves.
When I think it could be nicer being red, or yellow or gold,
Or something much more colorful like that.
It’s not easy being green.
It seems you blend in with so many other ordinary things.
And people tend to pass you over ’cause you’re
Not standing out like flashy sparkles in the water
Or stars in the sky
But green’s the color of spring
And green can be cool and friendly-like
And green can be big like an ocean, or important
Like a mountain, or tall like a tree.
There’s a green consciousness spreading around the globe. People are realizing that energy is a limited resource. People are recognizing that the overuse of synthetic materials, manufacturing byproducts, and non-recyclable materials are damaging the balance of our ecosystems.
The concept of being “Green” and environmentally conscious is making its way into our everyday vocabulary. It’s a trend that is here to stay. For the 40th anniversary of Earth Day in 2010, the world is in greater peril than ever, but there is also unprecedented opportunity to build a new future. Earth Day has the power to bring about historic advances in climate policy, renewable energy and green jobs and catalyze millions who make personal commitments to sustainability – A Billion Acts of Green – mobilizing the power of people to create change by taking small steps in our homes, our schools and our businesses that add up to an enormous collective action.
Words, however, speak louder than action. Following a daily discipline of environmental responsibility is difficult. Old wasteful habits are difficult to break. Yet there are little ways to contribute to change.
Most of the energy we use now is not a renewable resource. Over the past century, societies have used nearly 90% of the oil that the world has stored for millions of years. Environmentalists and geologists theorize that, based on current consumption, there’s less than a 50-year supply of oil remaining, from known supplies. After that, gas and shale remain as natural sources. Without any technological advances in safe energy production, many of the technology-based convenience we currently enjoy may be more costly to operate – if at all. The most horrific endgame is returning to 19th century living.
Rather than face monsters of the future, United States and many other countries are focusing efforts to increase product energy efficiencies and many new ways of conserving energy.
One way is to seek out electric and electronic appliances that comply with Energy Star codes. “Change the World, Start with ENERGY STAR” is a national campaign encouraging all Americans to join with millions of others and take small, individual steps that make a big difference in the fight against global warming. Making your home more energy efficient with ENERGY STAR can help to reduce high energy bills, improve comfort and help to protect the environment. Many air conditioners, refrigerators, washers and stoves label their products to show cost of energy and how much energy is required to produce.
ENERGY STAR is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy helping us all save money and protect the environment through energy efficient products and practices. Americans, with the help of ENERGY STAR, saved enough energy in 2008 alone to avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 29 million cars — all while saving $19 billion on their utility bills. In 2009, ENERGY STAR Leaders together prevented more than 220 thousand metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent and saved more than $48 million across their commercial building portfolios. These savings are more than 4 times larger than the savings achieved in 2008 and represent the single greatest year of savings since EPA recognized the first ENERGY STAR Leaders in 2004. The complete list of ENERGY STAR leaders has grown to over 100 organizations.
Products can earn the ENERGY STAR label by meeting the energy efficiency requirements set forth in ENERGY STAR product specifications. EPA establishes these specifications based on the following set of key guiding principles: Product categories must contribute significant energy savings nationwide. Qualified products must deliver the features and performance demanded by consumers, in addition to increased energy efficiency. If the qualified product costs more than a conventional, less-efficient counterpart, purchasers will recover their investment in increased energy efficiency through utility bill savings, within a reasonable period of time.
Using products derived from natural or recyclable materials help reduce the astronomic costs involved with disposal.
Homes and businesses are cooperating in achieving a more GREEN reality. J&R www.jr.com has added a Green Boutique store to their website to help consumers make knowledgeable decisions about the products they buy.
Toward the end of 2009, The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced new requirements for audio/video (AV) products to earn the Energy Star label. AV products meeting EPA’s new, more stringent specification will help protect the environment and reduce energy costs because they will be up to 60 percent more efficient than conventional models.
Proponents of these guideline believe that if AV products sold in the United States met the new Energy Star requirements, Americans would save more than $1 billion in energy costs annually while reducing greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those of more than 1 million vehicles every year.
The new requirements for audio/video equipment cover a wider range of products including home-theater-in-a-box, audio amplifiers, AV receivers, shelf systems, DVD players, Blu Ray players, and docking stations that offer audio amplification or optical disc drive functions.
Some products became more energy efficient from development of new technologies. Computer monitors and televisions use less energy after converting from old tubes to flat-screen formats.
Light bulbs use more efficient and longer lasting LED technology like the P2K LED12 , a unique new camera video light for shooting in dark areas.
To earn the Energy Star label, AV products must consume less power when they are on and must power down automatically after a period of inactivity, using only small amounts of power to maintain settings and other features. The new requirements for audio/video products previously eligible for the Energy Star will be effective July 30, 2010.
Earth is our home and, for now, there are no other worlds nearby that we can move to. Earth Day is a celebration of our symbiosis with our environment. It’s a day to remind us that our commitment is ongoing. We are responsible for maintaining our planet and governments around the globe are reaching out to promote GREEN efforts.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is launching a new Web site giving the public additional opportunity to participate in the agency’s rulemaking process, demonstrating President Obama’s commitment to more transparent and open government. The online Rulemaking Gateway serves as a portal to EPA’s priority rules, providing citizens with earlier and more concise information about agency regulations. It also allows users to search for EPA rules that relate to specific interests, including impacts on small business; children’s health; environmental justice; and state, local and tribal government.
Rulemaking Gateway provides information as soon as work begins and provides updates on a monthly basis as new information becomes available. Time-sensitive information, such as notice of public meetings, is updated on a daily basis. More information on Rulemaking Gateway and the discussion forum may be found at this website.
Unless we can create stargates to launch us to other friendly habitats throughout the universe, a serious drive must be made to assure Earth’s survival. J&R is going to promote the GREEN effort with their new boutique. It may not be easy to be green but we can try to make it simpler.
Update: 3/15/10 – Here’s an interesting video from HP about their amazing recycling program. See how it works, how much it helps the planet, and how you can get involved:
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