Wellness #41: Going Green, Part 1

It was depressing but not surprising to see how much more carbon dioxide a United States resident produces as compared to people of other countries. It was even more depressing to find that my family is above average, even though I think we are more careful than many. It looks like there is a lot of room for improvement.

Using the Yahoo! Green calculator, carbon footprint for my husband and I came out as 17.1 tons of CO2 per year, vs. the US average per person of 9.44 tons per year. I guess "per person" that is less than average. Most of our load seems to come from the vehicles we drive (9.88 tons of CO2).

The EPA personal emissions calculator was the only one that showed us as less than average (32,839 pounds of CO2 per year vs. an average of 41,500 pounds). We could reduce this by 25% if we bought a more fuel efficient car and tried to drive less. This version of the calculator was good in that it let you easily see how a change in your actions can reduce your emissions.

I have visited the Bayou City Urban Harvest market on Richmond, and the farmer's market in the Woodlands (http://www.grogansmillvillage.com/gm_gmshopping_farmersmarket.htmtm). I was disappointed by both, as lots of the items were over-priced boutique goods (soaps, heirloom veggies, candles, jewelry, etc.). It seems that to get the real good stuff, you have to arrive at the crack of dawn and be very agressive. That's not my style.

The farmer's market behind Canino's Produce at 2520 Airline is better for produce, but much of it is not locally grown. This is true of many of the farm stands near my home, too. They have some of their own produce (corn, tomatoes, beans, etc. ) in season, but they also buy Chilean strawberries, and sell that at a markup on a table next to their own stuff. As usual, buyer beware.