Let’s Go Green Santanu

In our homes – Conserve Energy Turn off unneeded lights even when leaving a room for a short time. Turn off appliances when you are not using them. Use a ceramic coffee mug instead of a disposable cup. Switch to fluorescent light bulbs. They last longer and consume one-quarter of the energy. Say NO to plastic bags whilst shopping and buy reusable jute or cloth bags. Up to 30% of power used by TV's is used while they are in stand by mode.

In our Office – Lets learn to Re-use Write/Print on both sides of paper with reduced side margins. Reuse items like envelopes, folders and paper clips. Use copies/registers made from recycled paper. Use the left over pages at the end of copies for rough work. Put off lights and fans of your workplace when all of you leave. Avoid driving a car/bike for short distances. Prefer walking to near destinations. This would effectively save lots of fuel, help reduce pollution and would also save your money. 60% of inkjet printer ink is thrown away.

Avoid bottled water like Bisleri Every bottle takes 1,000 years to biodegrade. A bottle that holds 1 liter requires 25 liters of water in its manufacturing process (this includes power plant cooling water). Always carry your own water bottle and encourage re- usage of bottles. Recycled paper uses 60% less energy than virgin paper. Each ton purchased saves 4,000 kW-h of energy, 7,000 gal. of water and 17 trees, and a tree has the capacity to filter up to 60 lbs. of pollutants from the air.

Ways to save WATER Its 100% Natural and 0% Replaceable – Mind it! Get fixed any water leaks at your home. Avoid any overhead water tank overflows. Take water in a glass only as much as u want to drink. We tend to fill up full glass even if we want a little. Do not keep your tap water running while brushing your teeth. Wash your cars with water buckets instead of running pipe water. We can invest in Rain Water harvesting system because rain water drained in sewage drains becomes un-usable. Space heating represents 25% of the energy budget for an office building.

Computers/Servers Configure your computer for standby/sleep mode Don’t use screensavers Turn your monitor off when you step away Laptops draw 1/10 the power of a desktop computer. Connecting a laptop to a conventional monitor will still save almost 1/2 the energy of a standard computer.

Paper/Printing Minimize handouts (digital equivalents) Use both sides of the paper, reuse scrap paper Edit digitally (track changes) Print only what you need (cut and paste) Reduce margins, font size if you can Use recycled paper (uses 60% less energy) Try Green Print According to a study done by the Penn State Green Destiny Council, reducing margins to.75” on all sides results in a total reduction of paper by 4.75%.... If everyone used Efficient Margins, every year we would save 6,156,000 trees.

Lighting Use natural light where possible Use task lighting Turn off the lights when you leave Lighting an average-sized empty office overnight wastes enough electricity to make 1,000 hot drinks or print 800 sheets of paper.

Personal Devices Minimize use of personal equipment or appliances (fans, mini fridges, coffee makers) Consider using a power strip that can be turned off when you're done using your computers, printers, wireless routers and other electronics. Use rechargeable batteries Dispose of used batteries properly Use washable mugs or glasses rather than disposable cups Use recycled paper with high Post Consumer Waste content and low bleach content Recycle used ink cartridges. Device chargers continue to charge (using up to 95 per cent of the power) even when no longer attached to the device.

To wrap things up: If we follow even half of these recommendations, we all can consider ourselves as an environmentalist. And at the same time we protect the help of our generations to come and above all we get to save so much of our money doing it.. “Don’t forget – A penny saved is a penny earned!” There are plenty of little steps that we can take at home/office to help save the environment. While the eco-footprint of each step is small, thousands of people doing the same thing can make a great difference. In making some small changes to the way that you do things at home or office, you are gradually making a difference, even as an individual. You will save on costs and improve your health at the same time, so helping to save the environment isn't a totally altruistic exercise!

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