Grades of Green

REUSABLE PRODUCE BAGS

Did you know that Manhattan Beach residents voted to BAN all plastic shopping bags from local grocery stores and businesses?  This law will soon go into effect!   While you may already be bringing your groceries home in reusable bags, you might not have thought about the rolls of plastic bags you find in the produce department at the grocery store.  The ban doesn’t apply to those, but there’s still a way to avoid them.  Reusable, machine-washable mesh produce bags are fantastic for bagging those bananas and beets. Plus, they allow air to circulate so they can go straight into the fridge.  The fine mesh allows for easy scanning of produce bar codes, and you can even rinse and drain your purchase directly in the bag.  Find reusable mesh produce bags at a variety of online retailers.

 

SAFE DISPOSAL OF MEDICATIONS
 
Is one of your New Year's Resolutions to clean out your medicine cabinet? You may find that you have unused pharmaceuticals that have expired. These items should be disposed of in an environmentally-safe manner, preferably through a Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Collection Program. Manhattan Beach offers residents a convenient option for disposing of unwanted controlled substances. You may take expired or unwanted prescription medications and over-the-counter remedies to the Manhattan Beach Police Department's Drug Disposal Drop box, located in the Manhattan Beach Civic Center parking lot.
 
Scientists are finding traces of prescription drugs in our ground water, soil, waterways and even our drinking water! You have the power to reduce pharmaceutical pollution by purchasing as few medications as possible and by disposing of expired medications properly.
                                                          
THE LOW-DOWN ON HOLIDAY LIGHTING
 
As you decorate your home for the holidays, why not consider lines of LED lights? LED bulbs use 90% less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs. Plus, they last about 6 times as long as CFL bulbs, and 60 times longer than the old incandescents! Unlike CFLs, LEDs contain no mercury, so they are safer if the bulbs break. Have an old incandescent line that no longer works? Don’t send it to the landfill! You can mail it to a recycling program where they will dispose of the components properly. For details, click here.  You can even receive a discount on new LED lights if you do so. Happy decorating!

 

CAN IT BE RECYCLED?

Recycling can be confusing at times.  We hear conflicting information about what can and can’t be recycled.  We’re fortunate that our waste management company allows us to lump all recyclable items together in one bin.  They do the sorting for us!  We can make their jobs a little easier by making sure the items in our blue bins are, indeed, recyclable.  The Los Angeles Times has compiled a great list of the items most often asked about, along with a detailed account of which cities’ waste management companies allow the items to be recycled.  Manhattan Beach specifically appears on the list several times.  Take a moment to test your knowledge of whether you can toss those wooden chopsticks or empty deodorant containers.  You may be surprised by the answers!  Check it out here.

 

LESS IS MORE

If you've never had the chance to watch a TED talk, it's a great way to learn something new, to be inspired, or to lose yourself in a topic you never thought about.  Each talk is between 5 and 20 minutes in length, so it's easy to take a break when you find a few extra minutes in your day.  Many of the speakers are committed to living a greener life, including writer and designer Graham Hill. Living an "Edited Life," as he suggests, is an effective way to reduce your carbon footprint and bring more freedom and happiness to you and your family. Explore other TED talks here.

 

OCTOBER 12th, 2011 - 

National Walk/Wheel to School Day... DO-OVER

 

RE-DO Because of the October 5th much needed rains, Pacific is celebrating
National Walk/Wheel to School Day AGAIN on October 12th-complete with Clif
Kid Zfruit giveaways. You have more time to plan your walking groups. If you
live too far to walk to school all the way, please carpool to a few blocks
away from school then walk the rest of the way.

*BTW-KUDOS to those who walked or wheeled to school on the 5th despite the rain-THANKS!!

"Thanks" Panther Community and "Thanks" Clif Kids. For more info contact Colleen Soulis Pachler .

 

WALKING AND WHEELING WEDESDAYS - CONTEST

Each week we will tally up who has walked or wheeled to school on Wednesdays, and the class in grades 1 - 5 with the highest percentage of Walkers/Wheelers at the end of the month will get a special visit by the Pacific Panther! He'll hang out in your class for the whole next month until we take the next tally.

Walking and wheeling to school provides a healthy alternative to driving for both kids and adults! It also helps to relieve traffic congestion around the school, and studies show that kids who participate in exercise before school are more prepared to focus on studies when they get into the classroom. And besides, it's great for the environment! So, why not walk or wheel every day to school--it's a great habit to get into!
 

GO GREEN LUNCHBOXES

To PURCHASE a Go Green Lunch Box for $33, please contact Nicole Sevier. Pls visit http://gogreenlunchbox.com/products/products.html to view style selections. When you do, send Nicole the quantity for each item and style name(s). She will arrange payment and Go Green Lunch Box delivery to you. By purchasing through Nicole, Pacific PTA earns money. Thanks!

 

 

Ways to make a ‘GREEN’ difference today & every day

Try one of the suggestions below or come up with your own idea

*Only take what you know you can eat. Our eyes can be bigger than our stomachs...you can usually get more if you are still hungry.
*”Want Not, Waste Not”- eat your food as fresh as possible so you receive more nutrients while at the same time NOT wasting.

*Bring home what you don’t eat in your packed lunch or snack.
*Go “CAR FREE” for a day once in a while. Enjoy MB while you walk or
bike everywhere.
*When you are in your car, combine your stops so you spend less time
driving to and from places.
*When stopping in front of school or someone’s home, turn off your ignition.
*REUSE, reuse, reuse. How can you reuse something? Ask your friends
and family for ideas.
* SWAP & SHARE games, books, clothes, etc. instead of always buying new.
* Visit the library for books instead of the bookstore.
* Purchase food and items grown or made as close to home as possible.
* Make sure your recycling materials are basically clean and dry. Wet or gooey items contaminate our recycling materials so they cannot be recycled & end up in the landfill.
* Use reusable bags and containers...try to take home as few shopping bags as possible.
* Conserve energy...you know how...’unplug’, ‘shut down’ or ‘turn off’.
* Pick up trash near streets so it doesn’t go down the storm drain.
* Keep your home at a comfortable temperature by opening or closing windows instead of using your heat and air conditioning.

Check out Grades of Green weekly EARTH TIPS for more ideas...if you have a tip you would like to contribute, please send it to Janet Anderson.