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Results of FUSS Carbon Footprint Survey
If you go by a house with a lawn sprinkler going this summer, you can be almost certain that no one from FUSS lives there. According to the survey taken at church on April 27, many people in our congregation don’t water their lawns (some may not have a lawn). According to the lawn care workshop I went to, this is wise, because grass may go dormant, but will come back with rain.
Our car mileage survey followed a nice parabolic curve, with 17 out of 65 between 25 and 29 MPG. Only four got less than 20 MPG, and only five got better than 40. Those of us who have replaced our old light bulbs with new CFLs, outnumber those who haven’t by more than two to one, with several who haven’t noting that they are in the process. On the other hand, those of us who have taken advantage of the opportunity to purchase “green” energy through the grid are outnumbered by those who have not by 12. But compared with the general population, we’re doing very well.
We’re “getting it” with reusable bags. A solid majority either usually or always bring their own bags. A very small minority purchase bottled water to drink at home. On the other hand, only about a third of us hang our clothes out to dry in summer. Out of these, three indicated that they also hang their clothes to dry year-round, using basement or radiators.
We plan to do this survey again next year. We encourage you to choose one or more of these categories to improve your own personal part. Let’s all reach out and encourage others to join us. Each of us can make a small difference; when we join together, it begins to add up to substantial energy savings. (Nancy Peterson)
Organic Roses For Mother’s Day
The first time I heard of organic roses, my response was typical: Why organic? You don’t eat roses!
An article in the Jan.-Feb. issue of Audubon magazine gave a complete and cogent explanation. Growing roses the conventional way uses more pesticides than pretty much any other crop. Workers on these agri-business farms develop severe reactions to the pesticides. The run-off pollutes the rivers and the drinking water. People are sick and animal habitat is destroyed.
Two certification programs are being developed for floriculture using less of these chemicals. Organic certification focuses on the environment, while sustainable includes both social and environmental standards. There are two websites where you can order these flowers: OrganicBouquet.com and VeriFlora. Most of the farms are in California, Columbia, and Ecuador.
Of course, if you don’t care to spend this much on flowers for Mother’s Day, you can make your mom happy at less expense. Just do any—or all—of the following: give her a BIG HUG, get a chocolate bar from the SAC table, pick some field flowers, and do a job around home that she really doesn’t like to do herself. (Nancy Peterson)
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Green Sanctuary News
by Nancy Peterson