Protecting the environment can be a step that you can take outside your home as well as in the workplace. You should start by examining every part of your working environment and make sure that it is not harm to you or the planet you live on. There many small actions you can take everyday to try and help keep your surroundings environmentally safe. Here are a few suggestions to help get a start on making the world a "green" place:
Paper:
Many of our forests are being stripped away due to the use of disposable paper products that you can find at home or work such as toliet paper, phone books, newsprint and writing paper. Here are a few things you can do to save the paper and trees:
- Photocopy or print on both sides of the page and reuse paper until both sides are used up
- Try to reduce the number of copies of any document
- Buy recycled, chlorine- free paper and also recycle office paper when you are done with it
- Reuse envelopes
- Buy a permanent cloth or mesh coffee filter instead of disposable paper ones
- Buy one copy of the newspaper and leave it in the break- room for everyone to read
- Make sure your office is not using Kimberly clark products (www.kleercut.net/en)
Supplies
- Keep track of companies you buy supplies from and their own environmental policies
- Alternative cleaning materials
- Use paper clips, staples, string or non- toxic glue instead of adhesive tape when it's possible
- Use glue sticks or basic white glue. Aviod glues and cements that emit the smell of solvents
- Use crayons, wax pencils, or colored pencils instead of solvent based markers
- Use correction tape instead of the use of solvents
- Use refillable pens and pencils rather than disposable ones
Computers and IT
- Buy a laptop instead of a desktop. Consumes five times less electricity
- Enable the power management function on your computer, the screensaver does not save energy
- Switching off a computer extends its lifetime. Leaving a computer running the whole yeah will cost almost as much of the total electricity consumption of a high- efficiency household.
- Use one large power strip for your computer, modem, scanner, printer, monitor and speakers. Switch it off when equipment is not in use.
- Minimize printing. Laser printers use more electricity than ink- jet printers
Quick tips
- Bring your own mug or coffee cup to work
- Bring your lunch in a reusable container
- Take time to educate your co- workers about the environment
- Lobby for faucet aerators at work to save water
- Set up a recycling program
- Encourage company not to invest in other companies that harm the environment
Quick facts
There is often a feeling of little or no control in the workplace over how much energy is used in the building, since workers are unsure how their actions can contribute to cutting greenhouse gases. But there really is a point in making even the smallest of changes. For example if 20 employees turned off their PC's during lunch hour, your company would save 3700 watts of electricity.Thats enough energy to keep an energy efficient lightbulb running for eight and a half days! Statistics show that one office worker can use up to a quarter of a ton of materials in a year- which includes 10,000 pieces of copier paper. Heating, cooling and powering an office space are responsible for almost 40% of carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S and use more than 70% of total electricity usage. Computers spew 1.3 billion tons of carbon dioxide a year and burn about one billion dollars worth of electricity annually. All the unecessary waste that companies produce adds up to wasted company cash.
As shown by statistics, workplaces tend to use a large percentage of energy throughout the world. This is not only costing many companies more money, but also hurting the environment in which we live. It only takes a few simple recognitions each day to make a change and make your workplace more environmental friendly. In order to preserve the world for future generations, we must take action now and think for the future!
Reference: www.biggreenswitch.co.uk/green_projects/green-at-work
