The Green Column

Columns — By Staff Report on July 30, 2010 at 6:34 am

The Green Column

by Richard C. MacCrea, Andrews Valley Initiative

How Living Green Can Save You Money

That is the title of a “lunch and learn” seminar I have been asked to give in Andrews on July 28. Details:

A lot of people think they cannot afford to live green. But living green can reduce our cost of living, something we all need to do to survive this recession.

What do we mean by living green? Changing how we live so we cause less damage to our planet. There are billions of ways to do this. Some cost money. Some save money. We should all start with what saves money.

Would you live green if it saved you money? My family is saving about $700 per month by living green. Our household utilities last month cost $29.65 including water, air conditioning, and everything else. How much could you save? That depends on the way your family lives and what changes you are willing to make.

This “lunch and learn” seminar will focus on some easy ways to reduce your cost of living that also happen to be green. True, not all of these ideas will work for you, but with so many options I am sure some will. I believe that if everyone took advantage of the green ways to save money, many more people would live green. The money saved can help us pay off our credit cards. And the earth will benefit too.

With so many ways to live green, how can you know what will save you money? Sadly, there is a lot of biased information that comes from companies trying to sell us something. Many companies have jumped into the green movement to make fast money selling products and services that do not work as promised. This gives green a bad reputation. On the other hand there is a lot of very good information that can help us reduce our energy consumption and save a lot of money. There are a lot of great ideas that work, services and products that can reduce your cost of living. Attend the seminar and learn where you can find reliable information.

Seminar: How Living Green Can Save You Money

When: July 28, 2010 (noon to 2:00pm)

Where: One Dozen Who Care (65 Wilson Street, Andrews, NC, in the plaza next to Andrews pool and recreation center on business 19)

Cost: $5

Call one Dozen Who Care to reserve your seat 828-321-2273

Please fill out the energy survey and send it to me in advance. This information will help me apply the program to the needs of those attending.

Bring your own lunch and drink.

Richard C. MacCrea is the director of The Greening of Andrews Valley, a program of Andrews Valley Initiative. He works in the field of energy efficient, green building. rmaccrea1@gmail.com