“Going green” is a popular phrase that is being bandied about a lot these days. It refers to using various everyday methods to preserve the environment and conserve energy and resources. Businesses in St Lucia are becoming more ‘green’ conscious and changing how they operate by investing in environmentally sustainable solutions or by taking measures to reduce the amount of resources consumed.
No matter your area of business, there are many steps you can take to reduce its negative impact on the environment. It can also help to reduce costs, which is always welcome, especially in a tough economy. Here are some ways your business can go green and be a more environmentally friendly place.
Upgrade Your Equipment
- Invest in more energy-efficiency computers, fax machines and copiers or fuel-efficient vehicles. This can help to lower your company’s energy bills.
- Shut off lights, equipment and machinery when not in use to conserve energy. Leaving electrical gadgets on can also put stresses on them and reduce the items’ life span.
Use Less Paper
- If you only need one page of a document, set the print menu so only that page is printed. Also, when printing a web page, copy and paste the text into a Word document instead of printing web pages to avoid printing a lot of stuff you don’t need, and wasting colour inks.
- Print on both sides of a sheet. You can actually set your photocopiers and printers to print on both sides by default.
- You can reduce or eliminate the need for sticky notes and note pads by using free or inexpensive software programs, such as NoteWhen or Stickles. Just like electronic calendars and task lists they can be set to remind you of an event or task. Ultimately, electronic files save floor and file space. They can also be password protected or encrypted to prevent unauthorized access or alteration. In the long run, this means less wastepaper ends up in our landfills.
Change Your Bulbs
Should your company switch from incandescent to Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFL)? Here are a few things to consider:
You save money: An incandescent bulb that uses 75 watts can be replaced with a CFL bulb that uses only 20 watts. The average CFL bulb lasts from 8,000 to 12,000 hours – 10 to 20 times more hours than incandescent bulbs
You use less energy: By using a CFL bulb you help to keep 450 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere over the lifespan of the bulb. That’s almost like taking two small cars off the road for a year.
More efficient: Incandescent bulbs usually last less than a year. A CFL bulb can last 8 to 10 years.
Save Water
By using less water, organisations can save quite a lot on on water supply and wastewater disposal charges. Here are some ways you can do this:
Go low-flow – Try outfitting your taps with low-flow restrictors. A low-flow faucet aerator discharges less than 1.5 gallons of water per minute compared with 2.2 gallons for standard faucets.
Use water tanks: Install rainwater tanks to water gardens or lawns, flush toilets and for other processes in your business operations.
Fix your leaks: Encourage staff to report leaks and get them fixed promptly.
Change your toilets: Upgrade single flush toilets to new dual flush toilets which use 3 litres for a half flush and 4.5 litres for a full flush. Older toilets use nearly 5 gallons of water per flush, while some newer ones use two.
Use the hose less: Use a mop and broom to clean floors rather than a hose, and car wash products instead of water to clean your vehicles.
By taking proactive steps toward going green, not only is it good for the environment, it could also be great for your bottom line .
