Green Tips

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GREEN TIP 1. Try to eat foods in their most natural state. Prepared and packaged foods contribute a lot of trash to landfills.
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GREEN TIP 2. Buy fruits and vegetables at the farmers’ market. Produce sold locally costs less to transport.
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GREEN TIP 3. Wash and scrub all fresh fruits and vegetables under running water to reduce pesticides.
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GREEN TIP 4. Grow and eat your own fruits and vegetables without using pesticides.
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GREEN TIP 5. Try a new locally grown fruit or vegetable once a month. Maybe you can go to the market with your parent and help make the choice.
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GREEN TIP 6. Become a seed saver. Use seeds from foods you eat to plant in your garden during the next growing season.
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GREEN TIP 7. Try using a natural insect spray. Here is the recipe: Chop together 1 garlic bulb and one small onion. Add 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper and mix with 1 quart of water. Let stand for one hour and add 1 tablespoon liquid soap. This is good for us to one week in the refrigerator.
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GREEN TIP 8. The earth’s surface is 70% water. The human body is 70% water. We need to preserve water. A slow drip from a leaky faucet can waste 15-20 gallons of water a day.
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GREEN TIP 9. In the United States , each of us uses 150 gallons of water each day on average. Brushing your teeth with the water running uses 5 gallons of water. If you turn the water off, you may only use 1/4 of a gallon or less.
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GREEN TIP 10. In the United States , each of us uses 150 gallons of water each day on average. When you wash dishes with the water running you can use 30 gallons of water. When you wash and rinse in a tub, you may use only 5 gallons.
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GREEN TIP 11. In the United States, each of us uses 150 gallons of water each day on average. A two-minute shower uses 4-12 gallons of water. A ten-minute shower uses 20-60 gallons of water.
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GREEN TIP 12. Report leaking water fountains or water fountains that do not turn off to the office or janitor. Many gallons of water are wasted when water continues to run when it is not needed.
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GREEN TIP 13. Use florescent light bulbs when possible. They last 10 times longer and are four times more energy efficient. They are more expensive, but worth it.
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GREEN TIP 14. Use florescent light bulbs when possible. Four florescent light bulbs used six hours a day can save $48.00 per year compared to regular (incandescent) light bulbs.
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GREEN TIP 15. Americans use 50 million tons of paper each year - about 580 pounds per person. That is equal to about 7 trees per person per year. Don’t waste paper.
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GREEN TIP 16. Americans use 50 million tons of paper each year - about 580 pounds per person. That is equal to about 7 trees per person per year. Use both sides of the paper, use scrap paper and don’t use a huge sheet when a notepad works.
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GREEN TIP 17. Americans use 50 million tons of paper each year. Using one ton of recycled paper saves enough energy to power the average home 6 months.
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GREEN TIP 18. Plant a tree to save energy. Shade trees can reduce air conditioning use by 20 to 50% and they give us oxygen to breathe, too.
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GREEN TIP 19. Walk, ride your bike or take the bus to school. Driving to school uses a lot of energy because someone has to drive a round trip from home to school and back home two times a day.
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GREEN TIP 20. Americans produce more garbage than any other people on the planet. Try to buy products with little or no packaging to reduce waste.
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GREEN TIP 21. Americans produce more garbage than any other people on the planet. Buy food for your lunch in large packages and put them in reusable containers. Raisins, nuts, seeds, granola can all be bought in bulk and packaged in reusable containers for lunch at sc hool.
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GREEN TIP 22. In the United States we throw away 500,000 tons of garbage every day. That is enough to fill about 92 million school lunchboxes.
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GREEN TIP 23. Almost 1/3 of the waste Americans send to the landfill is packaging. It is better to buy products with little or no packaging.

GREEN TIP 24. Use reusable containers in your lunch box. Then wash them and use them again the next day. Water bottles are a good example of reusable containers. Recycle the container when it finally cracks.
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GREEN TIP 25. Make sure your parents have a reusable mug to use at work. Remind every teacher or administrator to bring a reusable mug to school for coffee, tea or other beverages.
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GREEN TIP 26. Use fewer plastic bags in your lunch. When you do use plastic sandwich and snack bags, wash them out and let them dry so you can use them again. Do not throw them away after a single use!
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GREEN TIP 27. Five of the six most toxic chemicals in hazardous waste come from the production of plastics. Try to use less plastic at school and home .
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GREEN TIP 28. Plastic products cannot be recycled to make the same products. Glass and aluminum can be made into the same product. Foods and products packaged in glass or aluminum are better choices for our environment.
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GREEN TIP 29. In Washington State, elementary school children recycled 733 pounds per school, or 1.41 pounds per child. Can we do better than that at Coeur d’Alene?
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GREEN TIP 30. A ton of 100% recycled paper saves:
.	-		17 trees
.	-		7,000 gallons of water
.	-		60 pounds of air pollutants
.	-		3 cubic yards of landfill
.	-		Enough energy to heat your house for 6 months
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GREEN TIP 31. In the US, 4 billion drink boxes are consumed each yea. If left out in a field, it would take about 300-400 years for a drink box to decompose.
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GREEN TIP 32. What’s in our trash?
.		40% paper products
.		9% metals
.		8% plastic
.		7% food waste
.		7% glass
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