Going Green Archives

Save your trash and Compost instead

January 30, 2011Going Green

Did you know that food is the #1 least recycled of all waste materials? Food will decompose by itself, however it’s one of the largest components in our landfills today, resulting of nearly 50% of all solid waste. These landfills produce methane which is 21 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Eventually these toxic chemicals make their way into our air and our drinking water.

Eco York would like to propose a challenge to our readers. Eliminate an extra can of trash that you throw away a week. We’re here to tell you a couple of ways to eliminate some of the items you may be putting in your trash cans each week, and turn them into a useful product (mulch for your garden).

Composting is an excellent way to eliminate some of the trash you throw away each week, and create a fertilizer that will help you grow vegetables in the spring. By composting you will not only be creating an excellent source of nutrients for your garden / yard, but you’ll be eliminating unnecessary items from making it to the landfills.

There are a number of items you can compost.
Here’s a brief listing of them:

Kleanex Tissues
Paper Towels
Paper napkins
Lint from behind refrigerator (or pocket lint)
Grass clippings
Hair clippings
Tea bags and grounds
Shredded newspapers
Egg shells
Q-tips (cotton swabs: cardboard, not plastic sticks)
Stale potato chips
Old leather gardening gloves
Nut shells
Apple cores
Banana peels
Brown paper bags
Vacuum cleaner bag contents
Ivory soap scraps
Spoiled canned fruits and vegetables
Produce trimmings from grocery store
Cardboard cereal boxes (shredded)
Grocery receipts

As you can see there is a huge list of items that normally may make it into your garbage can. I’m sure even half of these items would help you eliminate one can a week. So instead of throwing these away, compost and breathe easier knowing you’re helping the environment and living a greener life.

Your partner in living a greener life,

Mark Lane
President Eco York, LLC

Wind Vs Solar | Which would you choose?

January 8, 2011Going Green

Everyone is trying to save money and energy lately, which is a good thing! We all need to figure out ways we can save energy and get energy out of the natural resources that we have available to us. This is where Wind & Solar come in. It’s the truth that Wind is never going to stop, and as long as we’re still a planet the Sun will keep emmiting Solar Rays for us to capture for energy.

The question becomes, should i install a Solar Panel, or rely on wind power? Why not both?

You might think that a WInd Turbine in your backyard isn’t going to work. This would be true for a normal sized wind turbine, but a company called Urban Green Energy has developed a wind turbine that can be manufacturered small enough to be mounted on the roof of your home . The Empire State Building is actually converting to 100% wind power.

Solar Panels have been making huge strides in technology as well. Solar Energy is Clean, Affordable, and Sustainable energy that we should all embrace. First Solar is one of the Solar manufacturers that has actually been nominated as one of six finalists for the 2011 Zayed Future Energy Prize recognizing outstanding work in renewable energy and sustainability.

Both Solar & Wind might be outside of your financial budgets, but with Energy Tax Rebates available, these costs can make turning your home into an energy efficient home affordable. There are tax rebates available for both Residential Wind Turbines, as well as Solar Energy Systems.

Solar Panels and Wind Turbines can also talk to each other so you won’t have to rely on just one. If however you do decide to go one way or another, either way you are helping the environment and that’s what Going Green is all about.

Your partner in living a greener life,

Mark Lane
President Eco York, LLC

Go Green | Buy Local

October 10, 2010Going Green

We all know how easy it is to go to the grocery store and just buy everything in one location. But do we ever take a minute to think about what buying from the grocery store might be doing to our environment?

Think for a minute about the amount of pollution it takes to get your food to the supermarket and then back to your kitchen table. Your food was most likely either trucked in or flown in, which produces a lot of Green House Gases. By buying from local farms you are not only doing a small part to help the environment, but you are also helping your local community. Whenever you can, buy from your local farmers markets and farms. By doing this you will help reduce the amount of green house gasses and help support your local economy.

Not only would you be helping the environment by supporting your local farms, but the food quality is typically better than if you’d purchase your items form a supermarket as well. For instance if the food you purchase from the supermarket is shipped in from another state, it most likely will lose the quality as opposed to if it were picked the previous day from a local farm.

So next time you’re at the store and about to put food in your cart, THINK LOCAL!

You can buy local from the following locations in York

Eastern Market

Central Market

Your partner in living a greener life,

Mark Lane

President, Eco York, LLC