Some eco-numbers to consider
September 9, 2009 by Jennifer
It’s Wednesday, a typical day. As you go about your daily routines however, it might be good to stop and consider some important eco-numbers.
365 – Number of days we all have to make a difference each year, and yet…
137 – The amount of plants, animals and insects species we lose each day to rainforest deforestation.
147,000,000 – The gallons of gas per year that vaporize into the earth’s atmosphere due to shoddy or lost gas caps.
7 – How many trees the average American uses up in one year. Also, the number of greenwashing sins BTW.
4.6 – How many pounds of trash that the average American creates per day.
3 – Percent of folks who recycle their cell phone.
2 – Percent of “green” products (out of 2,219 in the United States and Canada) found to be actually green and NOT greenwashing.
80 – Percent of people who think toxic cleaners are safe.
55 – The percent of paper waste that Americans recycle each year. PAPER! I.e. easily recycled – just 55% – sad.
24 – The percent of disposable water bottles that are recycled in American each year. Not cool when reusable water bottles abound.
107 – number of ingredients in pesticides thought to cause cancer (so far) which makes organic food sound pretty darn good. (After Silent Spring, NRDC, 6/93)
600 – Number of plastic tampon applicators found on ONE beach during ONE beach clean up day.
10 – The number assigned to the most toxic, least safe beauty and body care products by Skin Deep. You probably have some 10s in your bathroom right now.
19,000 – How many pounds of waste the average elementary school creates annually due to lunch time.
18,000,000 – Liters of oil saved when a tax on plastic bags was introduced in Ireland (they reduced their plastic bag consumption by 90%).
1 – How many people it takes to start making a difference. Just one; and that one person today could be you.
[image via stock.xchng]
I have been saving this in my feed reader for over a week apparently! I read it on the first day you posted it and saved it b/c I was really struck by all the numbers. The best part is the last line. One person can make a difference, even through little choices they make, things they change…I saved this partly b/c I wanted to see everyone’s comments afterward, and today when I checked, I was so sad to see none! I don’t know what I was expecting…a lot of encouraging words, arguments, or people whining about how hard it is…At any rate, I just wanted to ask if I could post a link to this on my blog or FB. I think so many people view ‘green’ changes as too hard to even start in their lives, but they forget that every step, small or large, is important! Thanks for putting this out there and giving us some motivation!
Well, comments are always slower in early Fall – I think because of back to school. Plus, people are more likely to comment on negative stuff, but thanks for liking it! I appreciate it, and you can always post links to THF – links = awesome