Thirty percent of Earth’s total waste comes from the United States, and 20.4% of that waste is made up of goods thrown out by businesses. As Earth Day approaches, let’s protect our planet from damage caused by human activities. Here are some tips on how to adopt cost-efficient and eco-friendly ideas for your business. An eco-friendly business uses recycling, energy conservation, and energy-saving equipment to minimize harm to the Earth.
Here are eight smart ways to make your company greener.
Sixty million plastic water bottles end up in landfills or on the streets and in waterways every year. As a company, if you encourage the use of reusable water bottles, it could keep lots of plastic out of the environment.
However, if your company does provide water bottles, it is important to encourage the use of recyclable bins. Only 12% are recycled each year currently.
Incandescent light bulbs are known to use a lot of energy. They only turn 10% of their energy to light. The rest is released as heat. Aspiring eco-friendly retailers should consider switching to a light-emitting diode bulb, also known as LED lights. These convert 95% of their consumed energy into light and only 5% into heat.
There are also CFLs, which are compact fluorescent tubes. These are very similar to LEDs, but are less effective and generally do not last as long as LEDs.
Using these light sources requires less energy from power plants, meaning fewer greenhouse gases are emitted into the atmosphere. Additionally, it is helpful to install sensor lights in your office. Not only will this be cost-effective, but it will also be eco-friendly.
Around one billion trees worth of paper are thrown away each year. Fortunately, going paperless has become a normalized thing in the past couple of years. Bank statements, receipts, and documents have gone digital.
An eco-friendly business can send receipts digitally to phone numbers or email addresses instead of printing them. For consumers that feel uncomfortable giving that information away, you can offer a paper receipt to them just in case.
Another eco-friendly idea is to use recycled paper products such as hangtags, bags, and receipt paper. This can be more expensive than the regular product but will go a long way in saving the environment.
As a team, your company can host environmental-friendly awareness events. Here is what a seven-week plan could look like:
As a greener business, it is helpful to recycle your waste. This helps conserve energy, reduces air and water pollution, and lowers greenhouse emissions. Recycling helps reduce the amount of waste that is sent to landfills. These waste materials can also create reusable and recycled materials so it is important as an eco-friendly business to do this.
Organic foods are those that have been grown and farmed without the use of pesticides, hormones, and artificial chemicals. A requirement to be labeled as organic is that the item must not have artificial food additives. This is not only a healthier way to eat, but also an eco-friendly method. These harmful chemicals, preservatives, and additives are not emitted into the air while farming organic foods.
Supplying the office with eco-friendly products can help the environment. Some of these items include:
Turning off all electronic equipment and lights at the end of the workday can help your company become a greener business.
You can send out daily reminders from a group calendar to shut down computers at 4:55 p.m. Similarly, a reminder to turn off lights is important, too, unless you have sensor lights.
Any business can go eco-friendly with enough determination and resources. Using eco-friendly products and converting your office space can be costly but may save you money in the long run.
Here are some businesses and their eco-friendly ideas:
These companies have launched initiates, policies, and campaigns to be proactive in the eco-friendly community. Not only are these companies contributing to zero waste, but they are also teaching consumers to be mindful of the impact of climate change on business corporations. As a collaborative effort, eco-friendly companies work to eliminate harmful ingredients from their products and aim to use biodegradable and compostable components instead. By purchasing from these environmentally friendly businesses, buyers are also aiding and contributing to saving the Earth. As awareness spreads, more companies, individuals, and consumers will be more conscious and aware of their polluting habits.
The best way to save money with any business is to have all employees work from home. Working from home limits the number of resources it takes to leave your office up and running. This also saves your company money on rent and other expenses.
Your employees do not have to drive to work and release gas emissions and pollution into the atmosphere. Additionally, your employees will not use as much paper and plastic, which means less waste will be sent to landfills.
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