Resources & Links for Earth Care

As a Presbyterian congregation we have wonderful resources through Presbyterians for Earth Care. Their website is chock-full of excellent links and resources, as well as a wonderful newsletter. If you are interested in Earth Care with the Presbyterian Church (USA), please consider supporting the work of Presbyterians for Earth Care. Our denomination also has a wonderful website.

Below you will find numerous links to information about carbon use, lightbulbs, carbon offsets, recycling, and more.

CARBON CALCULATOR - the average American's 'Carbon Footprint' is 22 tons of carbon dioxide/year, far above the world average of 6 tons. This section provides tips to help you reduce your carbon footprint.

Carbon Footprint Calculators

Convert your home to wind power- It’s easy and your current power company will continue to bill you. Go to the section “For Residents” on the Clean Currents website, then fill out the on-line forms to sign up. The cost is about 13 cents/kWh.

Perform an Energy Audit- you may be eligible for financial incentives to improve the energy efficiency of your home.
 
Replace your Incandescent Lights with Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs)
  • The 2007 US Energy bill effectively phases out incandescent bulbs by the middle of the next decade by setting energy standards that these bulbs cannot meet. We will all be moving to CFLs or light emitting diodes (LEDs). In general, choose a bulb with the wattage ¼ the amount of the wattage in the bulb you are replacing.
  • The projected facts are compelling. Wash Post (1-20-08) reports: 5-10 percent of residential electricity goes into lighting. ‘If every American household replaced just one incandescent bulb with a compact fluorescent bulb, the country would conserve enough energy to light 3 million homes and save more $600 annually. It would be as if 800,000 cars were taken off the road.’.
  • Bulb technology is changing. Manufacturers are making improvements: CFL bulbs come on faster; both halogen bulbs and LEDs are becoming more cost effective.
  • PEPCO is subsidizing purchases of CFL’s through a surcharge on every bill. The surcharge will add less than 50cents to the average residential bill. Savings are $1.50 on single packs and $3 on multipacks at participating Home Depot, ACE Hardware, Strosniders or COSTCO stores. The cost of replacing a single incandescent bulb with a CFL will pay itself back 10-times over in the first year alone in energy savings.

  • Some things you should know about CFLs from Pepco’s January newsletter
  • Use in open fixtures that allow air flow.
  • For recessed fixtures, use a reflector CFL rather than a spiral CFL since the design evenly distributes the light.
  • If the light fixture has a dimmer, you will need a special ENERGY STAR CFL designed for these fixtures. (Note: Not all of these work with every dimmer. Try one, and save your receipt in case you need to return it.)
  • Warning! CFLs contain a slight amount of mercury. Be careful if one breaks: open windows, use disposable gloves, put debris in a plastic bag and do not use the vacuum cleaner. www.earth911.org gives you a current list of recycling locations for your zip code.
  • Frequently-Asked Questions (FAQs): see article on the City of Fort Collins, CO website.
  • Nice guide to selecting the correct bulb.
  • Purchase CFLs with discounts on-line..

Buy carbon offsets- The ‘Environmental Defense Fund’ launched a new website to make it easier than ever for businesses and consumers to buy carbon offsets. The EDF says they have identified projects that offer permanent carbon reductions and are also good for communities and the environment.

Recycling and Free-cycling

Recycling has become commonplace, but there are always opportunities to do more. Check out the Montgomery County website for information about local recycling as well as information on recycling electronics and other potentially hazardous materials.

Free-cycling is a movement to share resources and reuse as much as possible. Locally many people use the Olney-Brookeville Exchange listserv to share freecycle opportunities, but there is also a national database, and many communities have their own freecycle listservs. Check for one in your community here.