DEQ.utah.gov - Living Green in Utah

Living Green in Utah: What a Bright Idea

"We have not inherited the Earth from our fathers. We are borrowing it from our children."
- Lester R. Brown - Worldwatch Institute President

Earth is our home, a planet shared with our neighbors and millions of animals and plants. To preserve it for our children, we must teach them how to treat it. As Chief Seattle said, "Teach your children what we have taught our children, that the Earth is our mother. Whatever befalls the Earth, befalls the children of the Earth. This we know. The Earth does not belong to us; we belong to the Earth...."

We can teach by example, by living green. Everyone can do it. Living green means thinking about what you really need and then using resources wisely. If we all make an effort, we will have cleaner air, less waste and we will preserve valuable resources for our children.

What Can I Do?

Turn off lights when you leave a room. Shut off the faucet when brushing your teeth. Wash only full loads of clothes and dry them on a clothes line in summer. Do what you can to lessen winter inversions and summer smog.

Here is how:

Observe no-burn days
Drive Less
Drive at a steady speed
Keep your car properly maintained
Generate less waste

Every Utahn tosses away about four pounds of garbage daily, or nearly 1,500 pounds annually. To reduce the garbage:

REDUCE: Buy durable products, ones with little packaging and buy only what you need.
REUSE: Save food containers to store leftovers, share excess hazardous products like paint and oven cleaner and avoid disposable dishes.
RECYCLE: First, reduce and reuse. Recycle what is left. Products commonly recycled include aluminum, newspapers and magazines, plastics, steel, glass, corrugated cardboard, computer paper, white paper, telephone books and automotive oil.

How Much Money Will I Save?

Recycle used oil
Used oil from a single oil change can pollute 1 million gallons of fresh water, a year's supply for 50 people.
Recycle aluminum cans
Each recycled can saves the equivalent of 1 cup of gasoline. Americans throw away enough aluminum yearly to rebuild the American Airlines fleet 71 times.
Recycle/Reuse your paper
U.S. residents throw away enough wood and paper yearly to heat 5 million homes for 200 years. Each ton of paper made from recycled pulp saves 17 trees, 42,000 kilowatts of electricity and 7,000 gallons of water.
Turn lights off when not in use
Yearly, you'll save $23 on energy bills, 394 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions and 14.1 pounds of nitrogen oxide emissions.
Keep vehicle well tuned
You'll save $131 in energy bills and 2,736 pounds of carbon monoxide emissions.