Sustainability Practices At Work Create A Better Bottom Line
Trash Talk By BETH TURNER
Tulsa Master Recyclers Association
ECO READING: Check out a book on recycling for a little summer reading. There are many great titles for young and old on the topic. Whether it’s a digital copy or paperback, the Tulsa City County Library is a great resource.
More than 20 local companies recently completed a year-long beta test of a new sustainability tool created by Sustainable Tulsa, and it’s now available for you, free of charge. It’s called ScoreCard. The ScoreCard is a unique sustainability report for area businesses and organizations. Sustainable Tulsa’s Corey Williams says this reporting improves a company’s “triple bottom line.”
Williams notes that ScoreCard creates savings and employee retention and brands your company as committed to growing a healthy economy for the Tulsa area while protecting our natural resources and improving the quality of life. “Over the last eight months, two dozen area companies tested the online tool, with volunteer coaches guiding them through the process,” says Williams. “The Sustainable Tulsa board researched tools used around the country to find the best model. Our tool was inspired by the sustainability report used in Austin, Texas, and improved upon with a personal coach experience for each company participating. We will be making the ScoreCard available in July to all Tulsa companies.” For more information, log on to SustainableTulsa.org.
Compost Bin Sale
The Metropolitan Environmental Trust wants to inspire more composting in our area, so they are offering their most popular backyard bin at half price. A few interesting statistics about composting reported from Penn State include:
• The average U.S. household generates 650 pounds of compostable materials each year.
• Over 60 percent of what we put in our landfills is organic waste, such as food scraps, yard trimmings and paper, much of which can be composted.
• Composting saves money. Families reduce their garbage collection bills, and municipalities save money on transporting and disposing of waste when organic materials are eliminated from the collection system.
• Compost improves soil, adding important nutrients for plants, as well as reducing the need for buying fertilizers.
The bin is on sale now for $50. For more information, call 918-584-0584 or visit metrecycle.com.
Summer Reading
Summer is a great time to catch up on some reading, and thanks to our local library system, we have magazines, books, movies and music, free of charge and right at our fingertips. The Tulsa City County Library offers a free, downloadable app for all smart phones and tablets. After downloading, simply enter your library card number to access their online catalogs. If they do not have a book or magazine you enjoy, you can email them a request for purchase. You will receive an email when your request becomes available. So, whether you enjoy a digital copy or the paper copy, here are some titles provided by Project Learning Tree at plt.org to enjoy discovering more about recycling and those working hard to protect our natural resources:
Kids: “Nature Recycles – How About You?” by Michelle Lord is a great book to introduce the concept of reuse to young children. You might also be inspired to creatively reuse items in your life like the animals repurposing materials in their habitats.
Teens: “Heroes of the Environment” by Harriet Rohmer tells 12 true stories of modern conservationists working to fight pollution around the world.
Adults: “Unbowed” by Wangari Matthai recounts her extraordinary journey from her childhood in rural Kenya to winner of the Nobel Peace Prize for her work empowering women to protect the Kenyan environment.
“A Sand County Almanac” by Aldo Leopold is known as one of the most influential nature books ever published.
Quick Tip
I leave you with a simple tip that I find makes my summer (and year-round) travel a little cleaner and easier. Keep bags for trash in your vehicle. While traveling, I have them on-hand to use one of them to contain my recyclables. When I get back home, I can drop the bag in my bin as I unload the car. Travel can sometimes create a lot of waste, and this little step helps me “green up” my footprint. What tips do you employ while on the road? Send them to bethturner@me.com so we can all live a little greener, together.
Updated 07-15-2016
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