Starting Young

Have you ever wondered how to tech you children the importance of taking care of the environment?   There are a number of wonderful books and movies on the subject that are wonderful.  I am going to give you a list of some of my favorites:

1) WALL-E

This is a Disney movie that takes place in the future.  It is the story of a little robot that was left on earth to clean up the mess that humans had made.  I recommend this movie for kids of all ages.

2) If You Were A Panda Bear by Wendell and Florence Minor

This book introduces young children to various kinds of bears, their personality, their habitat, what they eat and what they can do to help the bears.  It is a great book, especially for younger children ages 3-7.

The Authors of this book also wrote a book called If You Were a Penguin.  I have not had a chance to check this book out but I would bet that it is just as good.

3) What If Everybody Did That by Ellen Javernick

This is a wonderful book that illustrates the damage that can be done to the environment is everyone disregarded the environment and littered.  It demonstrated the consequences of such carelessness. I recommend this book for children ages 5-8.

4) What Happens to Our Trash by D.J. Ward

This book introduced children to the to the idea of recycling and not wasting.  It also teaches you how to make a compost pile, with adult supervision and assistance of course.  This book is best for ages 4-8. 

5) Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr

This is the true story of a girl living in Japan during and after WWII.  It goes over the devastation that one atomic weapon can cause.  I recommend this book for children 8-13.  

6) Earth

This is another wonderful Disney movie that depicts just how beautiful this planet really is and really gives children a sense of responsibility and ownership for the planet.  The great thing about this movie is that it is for children and adults of all ages. 

I hope that the above books and movies help you instill an appreciation in your children for this amazing, beautiful planet.

Easy Ways to Help the Environment

Do you have the idea that it is hard to be environmentally conscientious? Here are some ways that you can help the planet that will take little to no effort on your part. 

1) Skip rinsing your dishes.  

You can save up to 20 gallons of water by just throwing your dished in the dishwasher.  So next time you are feeling lazy and don't want to rinse your dishes off, it is totally okay!

2) Have a vegetarian meal once a week.  

It takes 2500 gallons of water to produce one pound of ground beef.  If once a week you have a nice dish that is vegetarian this will help out a lot. 

3) Don't forget the back side of your paper!

A lot of businesses in America throw away paper just because they print their documents on one side.  There is a setting on most printers that is called duplex printing.  This allows printing on both sides.  You can also recycle paper that you don't need anymore. 

4) Use your  cruise control. 

By using cruise control you can get up to %15 better gas mileage.  This is good news for the environment and your checking account.  Imagine what you could buy with that extra money!

5) Buy second hand. 

With the use of the internet you can get almost anything you need second hand.  A lot of people use eBay and craigslist to obtain expensive items for a lower cost.  This cuts back on the amount of energy needed to produce more items that just eventually wind up in the garbage.

6) Give unwanted items to another

Before you throw something in the garbage think if there is anyone you know who might want it.  There are many things that you may not want that someone else might desperately need.  If you do't know of anyone who might want the item you can always donate it.  

7) Get your own coffee cup. 

By cutting back on paper coffee cups you can make quite a considerable impact in the way of helping the environment. You can find a nice coffee cup with a design you like and use it for your morning coffee.  Most places will even refill your coffee cup each morning for less than it costs you if you use a paper cup. 

 8) Fire the post office. 

 You can set your bills and banking up to go to your email address.  A lot of times your utilities, bank and even auto insurance will give you a discount for doing this.  My mom decided to go paperless when she could not get a key to the mail box.  This has worked out very nicely for her for the last 8 years or so. It is also good to know that you are getting all of your important documents no matter where you are.

  

9) Stop the junk mail.

The average American receives about 40 pounds of junk mail every year.  This is insane considering all that paper typically winds up in the trash. Many places will stop sending you all those ads.  All you have to do is tell them to stop. 

See doing all these things is easy!!!  I really hope that you start doing these simple actions today.  

Damages Caused by Fracking

One of the main areas being fracked right now is the Marcellus Shale.   The Marcellus Shale is located in the north east region of the United States, write under the states of New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky and even down into Tennessee.     

Residents in these areas were interviewed and it was noted that they had some serious medical complaints that started date coincident with fracking starting in their neighborhood. 

One of the issues has been problems with the reproductive system.  This applies to both males and females.   There are 12 chemicals that have a damaging effect on the endocrine system. It is speculated that fracking may cause infertility, cancer and birth defects in children born to those by frack plants.

There have also been reports of breathing difficulties and chronic conditions like COPD and asthma are prevalent. This is the is because it is impossible to ingest or breath in some of the toxic air or water fracking causes. 


Other issues and complaints are burning eyes, metallic taste, headaches, rashes and nose bleeds.  

The list could include other adverse effects but the above is enough to illustrate the point that we should not be fracking, particularly in the vicinity of where people and families are living.  

Renaissance Power and Gas does offer a solution to the problem.  In the New York area, we get the power and gas you need without fracking.  Then we sell it to you.  If everyone in our service area took advantage of this, it would make quite an impact!!!

Inquire below.  


 

Two Kinds of Pollution.

Air Pollution - 

This is particularly an issue in big cities around the world.  I know that every time I go to Los Angeles I wind up with a runny nose for several days until I get used to the kind of pollution. One of the biggest air pollutants is fossil fuel.  This is the fuel that you burn when driving your car.  

What you may not think about is it is not only driving your car but there are refineries that have to purify the make the oil usable for your car. The oil refineries can give off toxic air that can cause cancer, birth defects and many chronic conditions like asthma.

You can personally help minimize the amount of pollution in the air by carpooling, using public transportation or riding a bike provided the distance is not too great.   

Marine Polution - 

There are a lot things that wind up in the ocean that shouldn't.  Plastic is by far the most common and dangerous.  I cannot stress enough that recycling is so easy and would reduce debris marine pollution.  Plastic is not really bio-degradable.  It does not break down easily. 

 It is not just plastic and debris that pollutes our oceans.  There are oil leaks and other toxic chemicals that get leaked into the oceans and kill fish and other marine life. Over a million sea birds and one hundred thousand sea mammals die each year due to marine pollution.

So what action causes both air and marine pollution?  That is right.  Fracking!!! How can you help? inquire below. 

 

     

5 Energy Efficient Ideas

I decided to compose a list of the top ways to make your home more energy efficient.  Here is goes:


1) With your air conditioner:

• Make sure that you change the air filters regularly.  
• Make sure that your thermostat is an adjustable one.  
• If your A/C is old and you needs to be replaced consider an energy efficient unit. 
• Install ceiling fans to cut down on the use of your A/C

2) With your household appliances:

• Replace any old appliances with energy efficient appliances.  
• Set your water heater at 120 degrees and consider a tankless water heater.  
• Clean out your lint tray in the dryer with each use.
• Wash your clothes in warm water and rinse them in cold. 
• When doing a load of dishes or clothes, make sure that it is a full load, not a partial one 

  

3) With your light bulbs:

• Replace all incandescent light bulbs with florescent light bulbs
• Obviously, turn off any lights that are not needed

(I did write a whole article on the topic of light bulbs.  Click here to see it)

4) On the roof:

• Install solar panels
• When selecting roofing tiles, think with lighter colors
• Choose "cool" shingles when possible

5) Be water smart:

• Fix any dripping faucets or sprinklers outside 
• Install low-flow shower heads
• Install a water softener (this will also increase the life of you water heater) 

I hope that these tips help you.  Goodbye until next time. 

Save the Animals

I have mentioned before that fracking has killed fish in fresh bodies of fresh water in Pennsylvania.  This got me thinking about just how many animals are harmed by fracking so I did some research and here are some of the facts that I found: 

New report suggest that fracking is causing illness, death and reproductive issues in cows, horses, goats, llamas, chickens, dogs, cats, fish and other wildlife.  People report these issues occurring in their household pets.  I cannot even imagine what that must be like,  especially when you can't do anything about it. 

In California fracking was found to have a negative impact on several endangered species including: condors, kit foxes and blunt-nosed leopard lizards.   These guys cannot thrive with their homes being destroyed. 

See, this guy is too cute to kill.

Farmers and veterinarians in  Colorado, Louisiana, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas complain that the space being taken up by all of the frack plants in their area has adversely affected their live stock.  In one instance toxic chemicals being leaked from a nearby plant resulted in 17 dead cows.  There have also been reports of livestock developing reproductive problems date coincident with fracking starting in the area. 

Happy cow with no problems induced by fracking.

We still do not know the full impact fracking has on wildlife.  Experiments are still being conducted.  What we do know is that it is not good. In Ohio the Environmental Council expects to see quite a harmful impacts to the wildlife as fracking expands.  

This is something that needs to be stopped.  You can do your part by using the services of Renaissance Power and Gas if you are in the New York area.  We hope to be able to expand our program to include other areas and I will keep you posted as this happens.  Please inquire below if you have any questions.   

Denton Texas Bans Fracking

The city of Denton, TX is home to 125 thousand residents.  It is located atop the Barnett shale and has about 275 fracked wells.  It is one the most fracked towns in the US.  It also happens to be the birthplace of fracking. 

The residents of Denton were not happy about the fact that they could not even allow their children to play outside due to the pollution being caused by the fracking in the neighborhood so they decided to do something about it.  

In the recent election 59% decided to ban fracking in Denton, TX .  They became the first city in Texas to do so.  Other cities (Austin and Dallas among them ) have tried to get similar bans passed to no avail.  

Unfortunately, the ban that was passed did not really do anything about the wells already in operation but at least no more wells will be created and that is a start. 

 

As expected, oil companies immediately filed an injunction against the ban, saying that this may be inconsistent with state laws.  We will keep you informed on what exactly happens with this. 

    

Below is a list of States that have cities that have banned fracking: 

Texas 

California

Hawaii

Pennsylvania

Colorado

New Mexico

Ohio

We hope that many other cities follow in the brave footsteps of Denton and get fracking banned there too.  Here's to hoping that your city is next!!!