To keep up our summer momentum, Green Gatherings were part of Canada Day celebrations in the community of Brookfield, at the Brookfield Train Station Museum. During the festivities,
The Green Song had a "world premiere". It brought many smiles and chuckles from the crowd, and drew them in to the Museum to view our display of poster-boards, to learn about global warming and what they can do to help. Various handouts were available, including the
Canadian Living Go Green Guide, a list of "things to do" from various organizations, and some material from Clean Nova Scotia, including the Drive Wiser program.
We asked people to tell us their "pet peeve" about the environment. Here is some of what they told us:
- People who do not compost at all
- People are not responding fast enough (e.g., to save the polar bear)
- People who litter
- Trucks idling needlessly
- Same as those mentioned!
- Lights left on in large buildings at night
- Styrofoam packaging
- Too much packaging
- Litter on the street
- Paper coffee cups on the road
- Snowbirds -- a waste of energy
- Junk mail
- Polluting the ocean
- Disposable mops
- Lack of regulations to enforce manufacturers to use environmental friendly packaging
People also shared with us what they are doing now -- and the good news is that they are doing quite a lot already; however, there's still more that can be done, especially in the area of well maintained, non-idling, fuel-efficient vehicles. On a CBC program recently, David Suzuki said that for people in rural areas, the best thing you can do is purchase a fuel-efficient vehicle, from a dealer as close as possible to your home.
Did you know that cuts of up to 70% are required to keep atmospheric CO2 at double pre-industrial levels? On a personal basis, you can achieve this by doing the things recommended by Tim Flannery in his book, The Weather Makers:
- Understand how you use electricity, and ask about a green power option. If your supplier doesn’t have a green power option, dump them and go to a competitor.
- In the developed world, about 1/3 of CO2 emissions result from domestic power, and 1/3 of that is for hot water. Install solar panels and let the sun do the heating.
- Choose energy-efficient appliances air conditioning, heating, and refrigeration. Turn off appliances when not being used.
- Generate your own electricity through solar panels.
- If you cannot buy a hybrid, buy the smallest, most fuel-efficient car possible.
- Ask your employer to have an energy audit done.
As Mr. Flannery says, "I have done my best to fashion a manual on the use of Earth’s thermostat. Now it’s over to you."
