As North Americans, we are constantly reminded to take care of the Earth

As North Americans, we are constantly reminded to take care of the Earth. Children are taught not to waste water and electricity at school, encouraged to recycle and bring waste-free lunches. Newspapers and newscasts remind us of the effects of global warming. However, it is often difficult to see how exactly we are harming the environment. If the tap is not running and the heat is not terribly high, it often seems like we must be using resources wisely, but is it so? Energy is wasted in most homes on a daily basis. It may be something as unnoticeable as a cell phone charger and television being plugged in when they are not being used, or something as obvious as leaving all the lights on when we go out. Even something as simple as the bags we carry our lunches in can wreak havoc on the environment. It often seems easier to leave a carefree life than an environmentally friendly one. After all, if we cannot feel immediate negative effects of our actions are clearly see how they will detrimentally effect us in the future, what incentive to we have to change our harmful behavior?
A compact fluorescent light bulb uses one-sixth of the energy that a regular one uses.1 However, the regular light bulbs are usually cheaper, and therefore are purchased on a daily basis by North Americans who see them as an evil necessary to savings. Oftentimes, long-term costs are simply overlooked. Switching to all CFC light bulbs saves so much energy that almost one-hundred-and-five-dollars could be saved in one year. The average refrigerator that is over ten years old often accounts for eight percent of the energy bill in a home. Refrigerators that are a decade or older use between two and three times the energy that a newer Energy Star model does, and replacing your old shower head with a low-flow one could reduce flow by sixty percent. Although these changes will cost money in the short run, one will see the monetary gain in the long run. If one home replaced their old light bulbs, refrigerator, and shower head with new, energy efficient devices, they could shave a whopping two-hundred-and-forty-four-dollars and fourteen-cents off their utility bills each year. If they also made a conscious effort to do something as simple as turn the lights off when they leave the room or when there is ample natural light, their annual savings could total two-hundred-and-thirty-three-dollars and fifty-six cents.2*

In the year 2002, factories throughout the world made 4.5 trillion plastic bags for a world population of 6.2 billion. A staggering eighty percent of these bags were used in North America alone. Although the production of plastic bags uses less energy and water and creates less pollution, it is still better for the environment to use reusable cloth bags whenever possible. Most of the time, cloth bags are reused multiple times whereas less than one half of plastic bags produced are recycled. Plastic bags fill landfills, but cause more harm when they are scattered randomly throughout the environment. Unguarded, they plug sewers, and trap and choke animals.3
The differences made from changes in one household may not seem to amount to much, but cumulatively, the benefits to the Earth would be enormous. For instance, if every home in the United States of America replaced only one of their regular light bulbs with Energy Star CFL’s, the CO2 prevented from entering the atmosphere would be the equivalent of removing seven millions cars from the road. Further education not only for children, but also for adults is not just important, but necessary. Regardless of whether or not our actions negatively affect us, we must examine if they are harming or will harm others. When people are given financial figures that show how much money they can save, it becomes easier for them to visualize how helping the environment is in their self-interest.

Bibliography:

1 United States of America. Lose Your Excuse. , Web. 30 November 2010. .

2 “Energy Tips that save Money and Energy.” Green 3D Home. Green 3D Home, 2010. Web. 22 Nov 2010. .
3 World Watch Institute. , Web. 30 November 2010. .

*based on a 24002ft home built in 1994 in British Columbia with four occupants.

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