WAYS
to make your world
a better place
COMMON SENSE IDEAS TO HELP PROTECT AND IMPROVE YOUR HOME AND COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENT.
or
of
1. Never dispose of
motor oil, gasoline, or
kerosene by pouring
them down a drain
sewer. One quart
motor oil can make
250,000 gallons of
water undrink-
able. This is
more than 30
people can drink
lifetime. 2. Convert a
space under your sink or somewhere in
your kitchen for a recycling center. In
1988, Americans recycled over half of
the 80 billion aluminum beverage cans
produced. 3. Drive fuel efficient cars.
A car that gets only 18 miles per gallon
(mpg)—the current average for cars
driving U.S. roads—will produce about
60 tons of carbon monoxide during its
lifetime. A car that gets 26.5 mpg (the
standard set for auto makers' 1989 fleet)
will emit 20 tons less. 4. Purchase
foods in bulk whenever you
can. You'll not only save
money, you'll have
less packaging to
recycle, or throw
away. 5. Have a
household "environ-
mental meeting." Get
everyone involved in
your effort to
conserve water and electricity, and to
recycle. 6. Conserve energy and
save on your hot-water bill. Wash your
clothes in cold rather than hot water. A
typical hot wash/ warm rinse load costs
you approximately 58 cents. The same
load in a cold wash/cold rinse cycle
costs only 3 cents. 7. At the super-
market, purchase products with the least
amount of packaging necessary. 8.
Use traps instead of rat and mouse
poisons, roach and ant killers. 9. Protect
groundwater by using less chemical
fertilizer on your lawn. 50% of the U.S.
depends on groundwater for drinking
water. (Fertilizer can leach into
groundwater.) 1O. Avoid aerosol
spray can products that use
cloroflorocarbons (CFC's). Use stick
deodorants, pump hair sprays, and the
old fashioned (but fun) shaving cream
bars and brushes. CFC's can remain in
the atmosphere,
?
destroying ozone for 70-100 years.
11. Make cardboard recycling bins for
cans. Bottles. Paper. And plastics. Have
your children help you decorate the bins
to make them colorful. Six billion tons of
waste are generated in the U.S. each
year. 12. Reuse plastic and paper
shopping bags. Reuse glass jars,
containers and squeeze bottles. Reuse.
Reuse. Reuse. 13. Fix leaky faucets.
Just one drip of water per second from a
leaky faucet can waste up to 200 gallons
of water a month. A leak
that can fill a coffee
cup in ten minutes
can waste up to
3,280 gallons a
year. 14. Use
rechargeable
batteries instead of
non-rechargeable batteries.
15. Water your lawn or garden in the
early morning or evening to reduce
evaporation. 16. Weed your lawn or
garden by hand—rather than employing
hazardous chemicals. 17. Plant trees.
Trees can help offset global warming by
removing carbon dioxide from the
atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is the
leading contributor to the breakdown of
the ozone lays*. Trees also prevent
erosion and provide shade and beauty to
your home. 18. Participate in your
community's recycling Program. If it
doesn't have one, help start one. Some
places to start could be your office,
apartment building, or school. 19. Sup-
port environmentally sensitive manu-
facturers that offer "refillable or reusable"
packaging. 2O. Reduce your use of
disposable diapers. Use cloth diapers or
a diaper service. In 1988, approximately
18 billion paper and plastic diapers were
landfilled in the U.S. 21. Trim your
trash—think the Three R's: REDUCE.
REUSE. RECYCLE. 22. Install storm
windows and caulk and weatherstrip
doors and windows. If your windows
aren't insulated, 10-35 percent of your
home's heat may be escaping. 23. Join
a Citizen's Environmental Group. EPA has
a list of groups in your area. 24. Wrap
your water heater with insulation to keep
heat from escaping. 25. Keep your
own coffee cup at work—avoid using
disposable plastic or foam. 26.
Maintain your car properly and adhere to
auto emission standards. 27.
Support fastfood outlets that have
eliminated wasteful packaging. 28.
If you think someone—devel-
opers, farmers, anyone—is
illegally filling or dredging a
wetland in your area, notify EPA or
the Army Corps of Engineers.
Wetlands are vital natural
resources. Wetlands are
being destroyed at a rate of 350,000 ,-
-500,000 acres/year. Between •
1955-1975, more than 11 million
acres of wetlands were lost
entirely—an area more than half
the size of Ohio. Permits from the
Corps are required to fill or dredge
wetlands. 29. It doesn't cost
you a thing to be a good neighbor. If you
see someone else's litter in the street,
pick it up and deposit it in the trash
barrel. Better yet, recycle any littered
cans or bottles. 3O. Teach children to
love and respect animals. But if you are
a dog owner, please respect your
neighbors, too—use a scooper. 31.
Get personally involved in protecting the
environment in your community. Attend
local government hearings, ask
questions about the environmental
effects of projects — let your
voice be heard. 32. EPA
limits the amount of
pesticides that can be in
food. Take extra precaution
by washing fruits and
vegetables before you eat
them. 33. Reduce
your electricity
consumption by
purchasing energy-
efficient appliances.
Look for and use the
yellow energy label on major appliances.
34. Walk to nearby destinations, or ride
a bike, take public transportation or join
a carpool. Between 1980-1984,
Americans increased their driving by
almost two billion vehicle miles. 35.
Get more light from your lightbulbs
—keep lightbulbs and lampshades
clean. 36. Radon may cause 5,000 to
20,000 lung cancer deaths per year. Get
your home tested for radon. It's easy to
fix. Call EPA for a radon information
packet. 37. Leave asbestos undis-
turbed unless it is damaged or crum-
bling. Seek expert advice for removal or
containment. (Older homes are most
likely to have asbestos-containing
materials.) 38. Build small, hot fires
using only dried wood. Never burn
household rubbish or treated wood.
Wood-burning stoves and fire-
places contribute to air pollution.
In some communities, they
create more carbon monoxide
than cars do. 39. Paint
contains solvents and
metals poisonous to people
and the environment. When
disposed of improperly —down
the drain, or on the ground—it
can contaminate the ground
and water. Buy only as much
paint as you need, or give
leftovers to neighbors and
^
V-.--X'
friends. Also, find out how to dispose of
it properly by contacting EPA. 4O.
Make your toilet low flow by putting a
gallon jug of water in the tank. Low-flow
toilets can use as little as 1-1/2 gallons
of water per flush compared with the
usual 5-6 gallons used for many
"conventional" toilets. 41. Recycle to
raise funds for community projects. In
1988, Americans earned more than
$700 million by recycling 1.5 billion
pounds of aluminum beverage cans.
42. If you suspect that you have
lead-based paint in your
home, don't remove it
unless you've had it
tested. Lead-based paint
is best left undisturbed.
Cover it with wallpaper or
other building material.
Do not sand or burn it off.
43. If you belong to a club
OIL organization, tackle an
environmental improvement
project for Earth Year 1990. And every
year. 44. Fix leaky toilets. A leaking
toilet can waste up to 200 gallons of
water/day without making a sound. Test
for a leaky toilet by adding food color to
the tank. Without flushing, if color
appears in the bowl after 30 minutes,
you have a leak. 45. Replace toxic
cleaners, polishes and air fresheners
with less-hazardous vinegar, baking
soda, lemon juice, cornstarch and salt.
For Example: Use cornstarch for
cleaning rugs and upholstery. 46. If
you have lead pipes or joints, let the
water run for several minutes in the
morning to flush out the water that has
been standing in the pipes. The main
source of lead in drinking water is pipes
and soldered joints. High lead exposure
can cause anemia, kidney damage and
digestive problems. 47. Start a home
composting program. Find a spot in your
yard for composting leaves, grass
clippings, and kitchen scraps. This
makes great fertilizer for a garden.
48. Cut down on the amount of
disposable products you buy. Long
wearing products are usually more
durable and will reduce the amount of
waste sent to landfills. 49. Cedar
chips and aromatic herbs are good
substitutes for poisonous mothballs.
5O. Don't keep
saying, "You're
gonna do it."
|^^
I •
EPA 905-M-90-003
REMEMBER:
Our Earth has limited resources. That's why it's so important we conserve and preserve them.
Get involved today—you can make a difference! For more information about how you can
protect the environment, call U.S. EPA at:
1*800*571*2515
in Illinois
1*800*621*8431
in Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin
Safe Drinking Water Hotline 1-800-426-4791
Consumer Product Safety Commission 1-800-638-2772
Radon 1-800-SOS-RADON
Pesticides 1-800-858-7378
Waste Minimization Hotline 1-800-424-9346
Small Business Hotline 1-800-368-5888
Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know 1-800-535 0202
National Response Center Hotline (for reporting spills) 1-800-424-8802
printed on recycled paper
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Chief Seattle's Letter to
Washington
"The
President
in Washington
sends word that he
wishes to buy our land. But
how can you buy or sell the sky?
The land? The idea is strange to us. If
we do not own the freshness of the air and
the sparkle of the water, how can you buy them?
"Every part of this earth is sacred to my people.
Every shining pine needle, every sandy shore, every
mist in the dark woods, every meadow, every hum-
ming insect. All are holy in the memory and experi-
ence of my people.
"We know the sap which courses through the trees
as we know the blood that courses through our veins.
We are part of the earth and it is part of us. The per-
fumed flowers are our sisters. The bear, the deer, the
great eagle, these are our brothers. The rocky crests,
the juices in the meadow, the body heat of the pony,
and man, all belong to the same family.
"The shining water that moves in the streams and
rivers is not just water, but the blood of our ancestors.
If we sell you our land, you must remember that it is
sacred. Each ghostly reflection in the clear waters of
the lakes tells of events and memories in the life of
my people. The water's murmur is the voice of my
father's father.
"The rivers are our brothers. They quench our
thirst. They carry our canoes and feed our children.
So you must give to the rivers the kindness you
would give any brother.
"If we sell you our land, remember that the air is
precious to us, that the air shares its spirit with all
the life it supports. The wind that gave our grand-
father his first breath also receives his last sigh. The
wind also gives our children the spirit of life. So if we
sell you our land, you must keep it apart and sacred,
as a place where man can go to taste the wind that is
sweetened by the meadow flowers.
"Will you teach your children what we have taught
our children? That the earth is our mother? What
befalls the earth befalls all the sons of the earth.
"This we know: the earth does not belong
to man, man belongs to the earth. All things
are connected like the blood that unites
us all. Man did not weave the web of
life, he is merely a strand in it.
Whatever he does to the web,
he does to himself.
"One thing we
know: our god is also
your god. The earth
is precious to him
and to harm the
earth is to heap
contempt on
its creator.
tamed? What
"Your
destiny is a
mystery to us.
What will happen
when the buffalo are all
slaughtered? The wild horses'
will happen when the secret corners of the forest are
heavy with the scent of many men and the view of
the ripe hills is blotted by talking wires? Where will
the thicket be? Gone! Where will the eagle be?
Gone! And what is it to say goodbye to the swift pony
and the hunt? The end of living and the beginning
of survival.
"When the last Red Man has vanished with his
wilderness and his memory is only the shadow of a
cloud moving across the prairie, will these shores
and forests still be here? Will there be any of the
spirit of my people left?
"We love this earth as a newborn loves its mother's
heartbeat. So, if we sell you our land, love it as we
have loved it. Care for it as we have cared for it.
Hold in your mind the memory of the land as
it is when you receive it. Preserve the land for
all children and love it, as God loves us all.
"As we are part of the land, you too are part of the
land. This earth is precious to us. It is also precious to
you. One thing we know: there is only one God. No
man, be he Red Man or White Man, can be apart.
We are brothers after all."
.
EPA/Illinois 1-800-572-2515
EPA/IN, MI, MN, OH, WI 1-800-621-8431
Safe Drinking Water Hotline 1-800-426-4791
Consumer Product Safety Commission 1-800-638-2772
Radon 1-800-SOS-RADON
Pesticides 1-800-858-7378
Waste Minimization Hotline 1-800-424-9346
Small Business Hotline 1-800-368-5888
Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know 1-800-535-0202
National Response Center Hotline (for reporting spills) 1-800-424-8802
United States Environmental
Protection Agency
Region 5
Office of Public Affairs
Chicago, IL 60604
April 1990
Doc. #905-M90-003
printed on recycled paper
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