Earth Day is an annual event that takes place on 22nd April to demonstrate support and awareness for the environment and its protection with this year theme of Invest in Our Planet.
A little bit of background
The first event was held in 1970 which coincided with the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere. Denis Hayes an activist was hired by United Nations (UN) Secretary General U Thant as National Coordinator. Denis and USA Senator Gaylord Nelson joined forces, renamed the event as “Earth Day”, and included the entire USA with more than 20 million people protested in the largest single-day protest in human history focusing on the protection of the environment against water and air pollution.
During 1990s, Earth Day went global with the participation of 200 million people in 141 countries making the environmental issues part of the world state, giving the recycling efforts a boost worldwide. As a consequence of these actions, in 1992 the first UN Earth Summit took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
During 2000s, efforts were focused on global warming and clean energy with the participation of 5,000 environmental groups in 184 countries by leveraging the power of the internet.
During 2010s, efforts were focused on combating the cynicism of climate change deniers, a disinterested public, and a divided environmental community with the collective power of global environmental activism.
Currently, Earth Day is widely recognized and celebrated as a day to challenge human behaviour to global and local policy changes towards the environment.
After more than 40 years since inception, the aim has not changed and every year there are more steppingstones achieved towards the engagement of everyone around the protection of the planet and the awareness of the climate crisis. However, I think the worst position is the lethargy towards any environmental issue.
Therefore, let us start by focusing on three issues: recycling, energy conservation, and water conservation, as these have major impact on the environment as well as a major impact on the household finances.
Issue 1: Recycling
Recycling is defined as the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. The benefits of recycling include reducing the usage of raw materials for the creation of new things, reducing the energy usage, and reducing the greenhouse gases emissions.
Currently, recycling is the main component of modern waste reduction by promoting the environmental sustainability. The recyclable materials are glass, paper, cardboard, metal, plastic, tires, textiles, batteries, and electronics. The biodegradable waste is transformed into composting as a way of recycling, and it includes food and garden waste.
The recycling products need to be sorted into categories and then disposed accordingly. Most local authorities recycle glass, paper, cardboard, plastic, and compost during their weekly household collection. However, metal, tires, textiles, batteries, and electronics required a more specialised recycling process so contact your local authorities for proper disposal. Although, many local authorities had made major improvements towards recycling and it looks easier, this process still requires the participation of everyone to do every day.
Although recycling is the main technique for waste reduction, the next step is reduction of our usage of single-use recyclable items.
The aim is to avoid the consumption of plastic as this contributes towards the plastic pollution which affects the environment significantly. This is because plastic is inexpensive and durable, making them very resistant to many natural processes of degradation. The high levels of plastic have serious consequences for the ecosystem mainly affecting land, waterways, and oceans.
There are three categories of plastic pollution named after their size which are micro, macro, and mega-plastics. Mega and macro-plastics are found in packaging, footwear, and other domestic items. Micro-plastics are the result of the degradation of mega and macro-plastics.
Currently United Kingdome recycles 26.9%, composting of 17.4%, incineration with energy recover of 39.3%, and after recycling only 11.2% of the waste goes to landfills. While USA, recycle 23.6% but 50% goes to landfill (source: Wikipedia).
Tip #1: Reduce the single-use recyclable items.
Change plastic for long-lasting portable cutlery made of metal, as wooden one make the food taste funny.
Change plastic for paper packages items.
Change white for recyclable printing paper.
Change disposable cups for a long-lasting flask (one for hot and one for cold beverages).
Change plastic for long-lasting drinking straws made of metal, as the paper ones do not last and taste funny.
Change disposable to refillable ink cartridges.
Change bag for bagless vacuum cleaners.
Change plastic for fabric shopping bags.
Change wrapped for loose fruits and vegetables.
Change gift wrapping for gifts bags.
Change non-rechargeable for chargeable batteries.
Issue 2: Energy conservation
Energy conservation is good for the environment as it reduces the carbon footprint in the world and helps you save money, as energy consumption is expensive. The energy sector is considered the biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions, as most energy is still produced by burning coal and fossil fuels with processes producing different kinds of gases and residual particles.
Energy conservation is the top strategy for achieving the world’s climate goal and it starts at home by reducing our power usage.
Energy optimization could save up to £70 a year and can be achieved in two stages: first, when possible, invest in energy-efficient appliance, lighting bulbs, and heating systems; and finally, by turning off the switch at the socket or unplugging from the socket as the standby power consumes energy without offering any feature.
The standby power is when the appliance is still connected to the plug but in a different state, therefore consuming energy without offering any feature. Additionally, it is estimated that the standby power contributes towards 1/% of the global carbon emission (source: Ovo Energy website).
Even though appliances had become more energy efficient and consumed less power while in standby mode, the number of appliances in the household has increased significantly. Although the power usage is very low, over time this adds to the energy bill, contributes toward shorting the lifespan of the appliance as it wears down the wiring and components, and increases the risk of fire in the household as the power wasted is dissipated as heat.
Tip #2: Save electricity to save the planet.
The biggest consumers of standby power appliances in the household are (source: 20somethingfinance website):
Living area
Video game console = 63.74W,
TV = 48.5W,
DVR with cable = 43.61W,
Satellite TV box = 33.05W,
Cable box = 30.6W,
DVD/Blu-Ray players = 10.58W,
Stereos/Speakers = 5.44W,
Office/working area
Desktop computer (sleeping) = 83.3W,
Plugged in laptop (not charging) = 50W,
Desktop computer (off) = 9.21W,
Inkjet printer = 4W,
Computer LCD monitor = 3.5W,
Mobile phone charger = 1W,
Kitchen area
Microwave = 4.9W,
Coffee maker = 2.7W.
Issue 3: Water conservation
Water conservation is the practice of efficiently using the water by reducing unnecessary water usage. This is due to the fact that fresh clean water is a limited resource as well as a very costly one, therefore, water conservation is critical for the environment and our finances.
The majority of the water consumed at home can be isolated to the toilets, washing machine, baths, showers, faucets, and leaks. With this in mind the average person in the UK uses around 142 litres of water a day.
The water use by everyday activities at home is (source: water.org.uk):
Shower = 13 litres (power shower), 8 litres (mixer shower), and 5 litres (electric shower).
Bath = 80 litres per full bath.
Toilets = 5 litres per flush (modern cisterns), or 9 litres for an older toiler.
Washing machine = 50 litres per cycle.
Dishwasher = 14 litres per cycle (modern dishwasher) or 10 litres (eco-setting).
Hand washing = 8 litres per bowl wash, or 30 litres per running tap wash.
Car washing = 250 litres per hose use, or 30 litres per bucket use.
Considering that washing machines (uses 590kwh) and dryers (uses 769kwh) are the two of appliances that consume the most energy in the house comparable with the refrigerator (uses 596kwh). It is very important to reduce our energy consumption while doing the laundry as well as reducing the wear and tear of our clothes.
Tip #3: Change your laundry habits.
Washing clothes adds up to 2.26m tonnes of CO2 emitted each year, therefore, reduce your carbon footprint and save energy by:
Wash clothes with cold water – washing clothes at 30°C will save 40% of energy consumption while at 20°C around 62%, in comparison with washing at higher temperature. Cold washing: at 30°C could save you up to £40, at 20°C could save you up to £60.
Wash full loads – as the energy consumed is the same regardless of the size of the load.
Add an extra spin to your washing cycle – this would allow you get rid of as much water as possible before starting the drying process.
Right load size for your dryer – as a too full dryer, will take longer to dry.
Separate heavier and lighter items on the dryer – as the time used is different depending on the material.
Air drying whenever possible – the best option is line-drying outside, but indoor drying racks are still a good option as they are weatherproof. Air drying instead of tumble dryer could save you up to £70.
Give your clothes room to dry – hang items individually and leave space between items allowing them to dry faster.
Final Remarks
Remember that global warming is a fact that is happening every day, and it is up to everyone to contribute towards reducing the impact of the greenhouse gases in our environment.
I was born in Mexico and in January 1986, yes, I am that old, the greenhouse effect in Mexico City was so bad that I was unable to attend school for all the month and it looked like the city was covered in fog. During my travels, I have only see this effect once more while visit New Delhi, India during my first in 2006.
As a result, Mexico City implemented drastic measure regarding the usage of the cars. Where only new cars were allowed to circulate every day, while older cars were unable to circulate one day of a week with the worst cases two days a week (including the weekends).
In 1993, I celebrated with my school my first “Earth Day” and since then I have been aware of my water consumption as many towns of Mexico do not have drinking water, I also started recycling as much as possible.
Since then, the awareness has increased but the policies have not caught up. While in Mexico City, you are able to categories your recyclable items there is still a lot of waste going to landfills. The issue with recycling is the cycle. You buy a new item, you dispose it, but then someone needs to use that material and reuse it. If there are no companies using that material recycling is not a good business, so countries do not do it.
Currently, there are more products being created using recycling material and the impact now is more visible. After 40 years of Earth Day working in ways to recycle, most package tell you if you can recycle them or not, most local governments have their own recycling scheme, but the weakest link is us following these instructions to continue with the recycling process.
Although, the recycling process takes many people to fulfil their part to move things forward, the conservation of water and energy is something that you can do at any time, so start today.
However, now is time to change our shopping habits and contribute further to the recycling process and take it to the next level by reducing the waste that we buy. Stop buying things wrapped in plastic, change for items made of recyclable materials, but above all stop buying things that have plastic, as the amount we consumed is not the amount we recycle, and the rest affect our ecosystem.
It is up to us to save the planet as it takes everyone to do it.
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