Energy Conservation - What We Can Do About

Are we aware that we are consuming more than conserving energy at present? Do you know that it has a big impact on amounts of pollution, on natural resources, and creating problems in our landfill space?

Because of our habit of being more complacent and with the birth of different electronic gadgets, we are overwhelmed to the point that we forgot to take care and tend to abuse our natural resources. We are unaware of how big the impact would be in the environment on a daily basis with what we are doing everyday.

First way I think is to be aware of our current situation, issues like global crisis, climate change, energy crisis and environmental degradation. That is a fact. With that, we are also unaware of the positive effect each of us can have by taking small steps towards saving energy in the home, and recycling.

Go Recycle

Recycling involves processing used materials (waste) into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution (from incineration) and water pollution (from landfilling) by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse gas emissions as compared to virgin production. Recycling is a key component of modern waste reduction and is the third component of the "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" waste hierarchy (source: Wikipedia).

          Recyclable materials include many kinds of glass, paper, metal, plastic, textiles, and electronics. Although similar in effect, the composting or other reuse of biodegradable waste – such as food or garden waste– is not typically considered recycling. Materials to be recycled are either brought to a collection center or picked up from the curbside, then sorted, cleaned, and reprocessed into new materials bound for manufacturing.

Instead of letting metal, glass, plastics, electronics, textiles and paper dumped in the garbage can, which can lead to cause pollution and chemical effect into the soil, water and air; why not turn them into a new, more energy efficient product to be utilized multiple times. Here are some facts on recycling:

• The average person throws away 60 pounds of plastic packaging every year.
• If everyone recycled their Sunday paper, 500,000 trees would not have to be cut down, every week.
• For every 700 new paper bags, one 15-year old tree has to be cut down.
• It takes 30 percent less energy to make paper from recycled materials than raw materials.
• It takes 16 times more energy to create a new aluminum can, than one from recycled material.
• The energy saved from recycling one aluminum can is equal to the energy used to power a computer for three hours, or watch the television for one hour.
• It takes 30 percent less energy to manufacture glass from recycled materials.

(Source: The Power of Saving Energy in the Home: Energy Conservation Facts by BStone).

If you want to start and help conserve energy, begin at your own home. Turning off lights, purchasing energy efficient products approved by environmental committee, unplugging electrical appliances when not in use would make a big difference. You would say that it only has small impact on energy consumption – for now. But overall, in the long run you will see that it has big impact.

Furthermore, use efficient, compact fluorescent bulbs. It can last five times longer, and consume 70 percent less energy than conventional bulbs.

By leaving computer monitors on overnight, or not having them on energy saving modes, nine million tons of carbon dioxide emissions are wasted every year (source: BStone). So it is still best to unplug it when not in use.

Turning on the water heater down by 10 degrees, 45 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions would be saved every year.

Asking all the members of your household to refrain from opening and closing the door of your refrigerator would cut down your energy consumption.

Turning down the thermostat 10 degrees every night will reduce heat energy use, and costs, by around 10-20 percent.

Updating or fortifying home insulation, turn off lights if it is a sunny day, putting more ventilations at home like windows to refrain from using an air condition and electric fan, appreciating the nature, the weather and taking advantage from it would really help cost down electricity bill and at the same time conserve a lot of energy. Would that sound cool?

We Can Make It Happen

Yes, we can make it happen now and not tomorrow. Every opportunity, in every way, we can always help restore our natural resources and conserve much needed energy for a greener, brighter and better future.