June 2009
By Andrea Fox, Ms. Green Quick Fixes
How to Start Shopping Green
Wielding consumer power in the name of green is a great way to cause change.
Some products or services that are green may be at times, though not always, more expensive. But that's in part due to increased short-term costs that businesses pay initially to weave environmental safeguards into their practices. As consumers, we should support these businesses for their efforts. And the more customers a business has, the more opportunities there are for costs to come in line with not-so-green competitors.
The following Green Quick Fixes will help you search out products or services that are going green and help you approach the task. The best, and most carbon-neutral way, is to begin with local resources.
Restaurants
Go online to the Green Restaurant Association and find out how it judges a green restaurant and search restaurants locally, or when you are planning to be away from home.
Things to look for: Recycling, participation in community biodiesel programs; purchasing products locally; buying organic and hormone-free products as much as possible; taking appropriate water conservation and waste management measures; and composting programs.
There are small to large green lawn care companies cropping up in nearly every community.
Things to ask about: What kinds of chemicals do they use? What are their fertilizers made of? How do they approach lawn care? Do they conserve water? Do they incorporate xeriscaping? Do they seek and procure eco-friendly masonry and wood products? Are their seeds organic?
For more information, check out Massachusetts Greenscapes — a project aimed at beautifying landscapes and protecting water quality.
You can buy green power anywhere you live, even if your local power provider doesn't actually use renewable energy sources. You can also do some things in your life to seek greener energy, such as procuring biodiesel for boats, using a wood-burning stove, and harnessing passive and active solar power. You can get an energy audit, update and maintain heating and cooling equipment to run efficiently and on less energy, and find out about procuring renewable energy now.
There are numerous companies in Massachusetts that can assist.
How to approach them: Talk to local and community biodiesel programs in your area to see if there is anything you can incorporate into your life that would reduce reliance on crude energy sources. Talk to all HVAC specialists, contractors, and other service providers about their Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, and ask each company about renewable practices and how they can help consumers reduce carbon footprints.
Green products are widely available in the marketplace. By seeking out and purchasing these brands, you'll help propel a paradigm shift toward manufacture of eco-friendly products. There are also thousands of services that are working hard to incorporate green practices, such as capturing and reusing water and heat energy, recycling, and low-impact manufacturing.
How to do it: Search national and state online green business directories that are strict about brands and services they list. Become a customer of local health food stores, shops, and markets that focus on environmentally-friendly products and practices. Watch out for greenwashing by turning to the labels on everything you buy. Ask service providers how they are going green. In a short time, you will become an educated green consumer. Then, be sure to recommend your favorite green products and services to others.
Clothing is one of the hardest areas to go green. It's a market category that shows the least movement to embrace green practices. The greenest thing to do is to make careful, long-lasting purchases and wear clothes as long as possible. Look for items that are made from organic or natural, renewable materials, and look for indications of fair trade.
