GO GREEN THIS SPRING WITH ELYSIAN VALLEY UNITED
This month, make a difference in your community by going green! Every step you take helps our environmnent and makes this a better world for us all. Join us in making a difference!
1. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Do your part to reduce waste by choosing reusable products instead of disposables. Buying products with minimal packaging (including the economy size when that makes sense for you) will help to reduce waste. And whenever you can, recycle paper, plastic, newspaper, glass and aluminum cans. By recycling half of your household waste, you can save 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide annually.
2. Use Less Heat and Air Conditioning
Adding insulation to your walls and attic, and installing weather stripping or caulking around doors and windows can lower your heating costs more than 25 percent, by reducing the amount of energy you need to heat and cool your home.
Turn down the heat while you’re sleeping at night or away during the day, and keep temperatures moderate at all times. Setting your thermostat just 2 degrees lower in winter and higher in summer could save about 2,000 pounds of carbon dioxide each year.
3. Change a Light Bulb
Wherever practical, replace regular light bulbs with compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs. Replacing just one 60-watt incandescent light bulb with a CFL will save you $30 over the life of the bulb. CFLs also last 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs, use two-thirds less energy, and give off 70 percent less heat.
If every U.S. family replaced one regular light bulb with a CFL, it would eliminate 90 billion pounds of greenhouse gases, the same as taking 7.5 million cars off the road!
4. Drive Less, Drive Smart
Less driving means fewer emissions. Besides saving gasoline, walking and biking are great forms of exercise. Use the Metro when possible, and check out options for carpooling to work or school.
When you do drive, make sure your car is running efficiently. For example, keeping your tires properly inflated can improve your gas mileage by more than 3 percent. Every gallon of gas you save not only helps your budget, it also keeps 20 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.
5. Buy Energy-Efficient Products
When it's time to buy a new car, choose one that offers good gas mileage. Home appliances now come in a range of energy-efficient models, and compact florescent bulbs are designed to provide more natural-looking light while using far less energy than standard light bulbs.
Avoid products that come with excess packaging, especially molded plastic and other packaging that can't be recycled. If you reduce your household garbage by 10 percent, you can save 1,200 pounds of carbon dioxide annually.
6. Use Less Hot Water
Set your water heater at 120 degrees to save energy, and wrap it in an insulating blanket if it is more than 5 years old. Buy low-flow showerheads to save hot water and about 350 pounds of carbon dioxide yearly. Wash your clothes in warm or cold water to reduce your use of hot water and the energy required to produce it. That change alone can save at least 500 pounds of carbon dioxide annually in most households. Use the energy-saving settings on your dishwasher and let the dishes air-dry.
7. Use the "Off" Switch
Save electricity and reduce global warming by turning off lights when you leave a room, and using only as much light as you need. And remember to turn off your television, video player, stereo and computer when you're not using them.
It's also a good idea to turn off the water when you're not using it. While brushing your teeth or washing your car, turn off the water until you actually need it for rinsing. You'll reduce your water bill and help to conserve a vital resource.
8. Plant a Tree
If you have the means to plant a tree, start digging. During photosynthesis, trees and other plants absorb carbon dioxide and give off oxygen. They are an integral part of the natural atmospheric exchange cycle here on Earth, but there are too few of them to fully counter the increases in carbon dioxide caused by automobile traffic, manufacturing and other human activities. A single tree will absorb approximately one ton of carbon dioxide during its lifetime.
9. Encourage Others to Conserve
Share information about recycling and energy conservation with your friends, neighbors and co-workers, and take opportunities to encourage public officials to establish programs and policies that are good for the environment.
Can you think of a tenth step? Email us at family@evucsc.com with your ideas, and we’ll add a tenth step later this month
Celebrate Spring at EVU
As the seasons change once again, and we've either stuck to or completely forgotten our New Year's resolutions, Elysian Valley United continues delivering a variety of programs and services to meet your needs in 2008.
We start off with our signature program, "Kids United:" the after-school tutoring begins its eighth year of programming every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday afternoon, from 4 to 6 p.m. Both EVU staff and volunteers are happy to provide local students support for homework and school projects.
Students, parents and the local community are welcome to use our convenient multi-media area; 15 computers are available for homework, research and general internet use. From term papers to e-mail, the multi-media area is our link to the world.
If you're interested in borrowing a book or reading the latest magazine, come to our People's Library; we stock over 5,000 books in our lending library, along with a variety of popular magazines, including People, Vanidades, Time, Popular Mechanics, Self and Sports Illustrated.
We also support wellness programming in the neighborhood, with EVU's Mole Rojo Running Club and the 2006 and 2007 SCNCA So Cal Cup Champion United Cycling Club. If you're interested in having fun and staying fit, come see us!
Throughout 2008, Elysian Valley United continues to provide quality community-based programs and services; as ever, we remain true to our core belief that our services remain free to local residents. Come and visit us soon and see what EVU is up to!
