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Posts tagged ‘Earth week’

Apr 14

Plan Your 2021 Earth Day

There are activities throughout the month of April

Fifty-one years ago, the United States participated in the first Earth Day, an event which ultimately resulted in the creation of the EPA. Clean Air Act, and Clean Water Act. Honoring Earth Day gives us the opportunity to reengage with our sustainability goals as individuals and as a community.

Every year, the Earth Day Network sets a theme to help direct engagement. This year’s theme is “Restore Our Earth,” a theme that helps focus our attention on conservation, restoration, and building sustainable and equitable communities long-term.

Even the smallest actions like recycling or walking instead of driving can have a big impact.

This year, Salt Lake City kicked off April by helping residents exchange their two-stroke gas-powered lawn mowers for electric mowers. Replacing 1,000 mowers will make a big impact on cleaning our air and improving public health.  

As we continue to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, Salt Lake City organizations have rallied to fill our Earth Day calendar with plenty of fun and safe things to do. Scroll down to find out more about the upcoming Earth Day events!

Get Outside for Earth Day

If you’re the kind of person who wants to get in the dirt on Earth Day, you’re in luck. There are several opportunities this month to get outside and help the planet!

Read more

Apr 21

Happy Earth Day!

This week, we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Even after 50 years, Earth Day is more important than ever. Earth Day symbolizes a global desire to protect the planet and inspires thousands of actions – big and small – every year. Importantly, Earth Day serves as a reminder that collective action can make a difference.

50 Years of Earth Day

Following the Santa Barbara oil spill in 1969, U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson joined forces with Denis Hayes, and other environmental activists to create a day dedicated to environmental stewardship. The first Earth Day included 20 million people across the country in peaceful demonstrations and actions for the environment. The event saw the creation of the recycling symbol; moreover, Earth Day sparked large-scale action to clean up pollution, protect wildlife, and, eventually, fight climate change.

The first Earth Day sent a signal to the U.S. government, demanding direct action to protect the planet. As a result of the demonstrations, the United States had the momentum and support needed to create the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Shortly thereafter, the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act were passed to empower the EPA with key protections for the environment.

With billions of participants celebrating every year by holding garbage clean ups, tree planting, and other volunteer efforts, Earth Day is one of the most significant days of environmental action.

And these efforts are more important than ever. We know that the health of the planet and the health of our communities are inter-connected. 

In 2020, climate action is society’s preeminent environmental issue and is the theme that the Earth Day Network dedicated to the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day.

“The enormous challenge — but also the vast opportunities — of action on climate change have distinguished the issue as the most pressing topic for the 50th anniversary. Climate change represents the biggest challenge to the future of humanity and the life-support systems that make our world habitable.”

The Earth Day Network on the theme for Earth Day 2020.

Indeed, the impacts of climate change– on vulnerable populations, on infrastructure and institutions, on disease vectors, on food availability & access, on public health, on the financial system — are wide-ranging and not dissimilar from what is happening now with the coronavirus pandemic. This is scary, but the good news is that we are showing how quickly we can mobilize to take action! And that too is one of the lessons from the first Earth Day 50 years ago today.

Read more

Apr 17

How to Celebrate Earth Day from Home

Next week– April 22, 2020 marks the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day! Although our communities are facing the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, there are still many ways to celebrate Earth Day and take actions to protect the planet throughout Earth Week and beyond.

To help everyone get involved with Earth Day this year, we put together a new Earth Day page on slcgreen.com dedicated to local and global events.

This year, many of the traditional Earth Day events have moved online in the form of panels, webinars, and virtual workshops around the world. While some plans have been put on hold, moving Earth Day online allows more people to get involved and helps everyone stay safe. The format may have changed this year, but taking action to protect the planet is more important than ever.

On our Earth Day page, you’ll find ways to engage on one of the biggest days of environmental action. Moreover, you’ll learn ways to make every day Earth Day.

Read more

Apr 18

Recycling: This Earth Day, Let’s Get Back to Basics

It’s #EarthWeek in Salt Lake City! We’re excited to bring you a range of content to inspire action on behalf of our planet. As part of that, we were excited to contribute a blog post to the Utah Department of Environmental Quality about recycling. There have been some changes in the industry in the last year and it all reminds us to “get back to basics: reduce, reuse, and recycle right.” Read on!

Contamination Plastic Bags

Plastic bag “contamination” at a local recycling facility. Help us reduce, reuse, and recycle right!

by Sophia Nicholas, SLCgreen Communications Manager

Recycling is one of the most common sense practices to conserve resources and care for the Earth.

So this Earth Day—let’s get back to basics and take a deep dive on what’s going on with recycling these days and what you as an environmentally-conscious person should do to “recycle right.”

Did you know that most of the items you put in the recycling bin get sent to Asia to be processed into new material? Those water bottles get turned into fleece, cardboard into paper bags, and milk jugs into . . . new milk jugs.

A large majority of this material is processed in China.  Or, I should say, was.

You may have heard that China is no longer accepting the world’s waste as of January 2018. They were previously processing roughly half of the world’s plastic, metal, and paper recyclables. Their ban is part of an effort to clean up their environment and not become the home of “foreign garbage.” We applaud China’s strengthening of their environmental laws, policies, and procedures.

However, in the short term, the Chinese ban is causing recycling vendors and processors worldwide to search for new markets for some of the material China no longer wants. This includes lower-quality plastics and paper. China also doesn’t want “contamination”—which refers to non-recyclable items being mixed up with recyclable items, as well as dirty and unwashed recyclables.

READ MORE ON THE DEQ BLOG

Apr 21

Earth Week Day 6: Calculate Your Water Footprint & Reduce It

Water_footprint

GRACE Communications Water Footprint Calculator

While 70% of the earth is covered by water, ultimately about only 1% of that water is available for consumptive purposes such as irrigation, drinking, and bathing to supply a growing population of 7 billion people.

Utah is the second driest state in the nation. We use a lot of water for irrigation – both for commercial farms and for watering our landscapes at home. For the average family, two-thirds or 67% of our total home water use is used outdoors – mostly to irrigate lawns and landscape. Accordingly, finding smarter ways to use and conserve water outside is one of the most effective ways to conserve precious water resources and save money on our monthly water bills.

Follow these steps to reduce your outdoor water use. Read more

Apr 20

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Earth Week Day 5: Common Recycling Mistakes

Are you making these recycling mistakes-

It’s Earth Week!

Each day this week SLCgreen will post different tips and activities to challenge you to reduce your impact on the Earth.

To build off our waste theme, today we are looking at some common recycling mistakes.

Below is a list of common recycling errors and how to fix them.

Read more

Apr 19

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Earth Week Day 4: What To Do With Your Plastic Bags

Each day this week SLCgreen will post different tips and activities to challenge you to reduce your impact on the Earth.

Today we’re focusing on one of the most commonly asked questions: What to do with plastic bags?

Did you know that you shouldn’t bag your recyclables?

In fact, you should avoid putting plastic bags and garbage bags in your residential recycling bin entirely.

Plastic bags hinder the recycling process by:

  • Not allowing the haulers to see if other non-recyclable materials are in the blue recycling bin.
  • Contaminating otherwise good recycling materials.
  • Wrapping around the equipment at the sorting facility. Plastic bags can damage machines and cause shutdowns, wasting time and dollars.

Watch this video by DNA Info Chicago to see how plastic bags can interrupt recycling machines on a daily basis:

So what should you do? Read more

Apr 18

Earth Week Day 3: Grow Your Own Food

It’s Earth Week!

Each day this week SLCgreen will post different tips and activities to challenge you to reduce your impact on the Earth.

Today, we are challenging you to grow your own food– whether that’s a pot of basil or something more ambitious.

April is the perfect time to think about planting seeds or starts and increasing your consumption of local food. Local food decreases the carbon emissions associated with food production and transport; preserves open space; supports local economies and wildlife; and so much more.

So what are you waiting for?

In the video above, Bryant Terry explains the benefits of farming in dense urban areas.

Growing food at home can be simple with the right tools – even in Utah. The first step toward growing your own food is assessing your resources. Do you have a yard space? Do you have sufficient sunlight or shade to fulfill plant needs? Do you have easy access to water on your property?

Answering these questions can help you decide if gardening onsite is best, or if you should look at other options in your area. Read more

Apr 17

Earth Week Day 2: Calculate Your Carbon Footprint & Reduce It

Carbon Footprint

It’s Earth Week! Each day this week SLCgreen will post different tips and activities to challenge you to reduce your impact on the Earth. Today, we are challenging you to calculate and reduce your climate footprint!

Calculate & Reduce

The EPA calculator estimates your footprint in three areas: home energy, transportation, and waste. Everyone’s carbon footprint is different depending on their location, habits, and personal choices. https://www3.epa.gov/carbon-footprint-calculator/

Maybe you are very efficient with the energy usage in your home, but live far away from work so have to drive more. The calculator will give you a snapshot of your footprint and the “best bang for your buck” in how to reduce it.

Read more

Apr 17

Earth Day, Every Day!

Earth-Day-Banner

Here are some #EarthDayEveryDay tips for Earth week!

Monday– Meatless Mondays!

Tuesday– Transportation Tuesdays

Wednesday– Wildlife Wednesdays

Thursday– Green Thumb Thursdays

  • Tend to your garden today. Or start a garden! Spring is the perfect time to plant in Salt Lake City!
  • Need gardening space? Consider community gardening! 

Friday– Idle Free Fridays

Saturday– Crafty Saturday- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

  • Go to a yard sale, host a clothing swap, find a new use for something you were going to throw away, buy a used item instead of a new item!
  • Crafty Saturday upcycle ideas! 

Sunday– Solar SUNdays

  • Try to abstain from using one thing that depends on fossil fuels today (like your car or heater)!
  • Learn something new about solar power today:

“Obama touts solar initiative” 

“The world is now adding more capacity for renewable power each year than coal, natural gas, and oil combined.” 

Vancouver commits to 100% renewable energy use! 

On the cost of renewable energy. 

Happy Earth Day from SLCgreen!  #EarthDayEveryDay