Is Your New Community Environmentally Friendly?
For those of you out there who are living green, I know that you all make efforts to live green within your home and to teach your friends and family all about recycling and being energy efficient and just living a conservative lifestyle when it comes to natural resources.
However, we must continuously ask ourselves how we can go beyond the normal day-to-day efforts we are making.
We need to make sure that when given the opportunity we are making the best choices for our environment.
I want to talk about another way that we can make a difference.
I was recently talking to a local builder in the area and he was telling me about an award he won for a community he had recently developed.
He won this award for keeping the environment in mind as he built.
He had managed to create the perfect community without disturbing the surroundings.
This got me to thinking...
we as responsible consumers have more work to do! When having a new home built we need to ask questions about the community that we are buying in.
Be sure it is an environmentally friendly community.
Just because the homes being built are energy efficient and are built with "Greenies" in mind, it doesn't mean that the community you will be living in is a mean green environmentally friendly machine.
Here are a few things your will want to ask.
Are efforts being made to preserve natural features such as open spaces and habitats? Are careful measures being take to protect existing wetlands and wildlife? Is the community energy efficient with the focus on water conservation and even the preservation of existing trees? If you already live in a community, with no plans of moving then you can still make a difference.
Start with your Home Owner's Association.
Go to the meetings, start creating a buzz among your neighbors about planting trees and the types of shrubs and plants they plant in the landscaping around the community.
Think about ways your neighborhood can recycle.
If there is a community pool, try to get them to switch from chlorine and chemicals to a saltwater pool.
Lead your neighborhood down the road to a greener tomorrow.
However, we must continuously ask ourselves how we can go beyond the normal day-to-day efforts we are making.
We need to make sure that when given the opportunity we are making the best choices for our environment.
I want to talk about another way that we can make a difference.
I was recently talking to a local builder in the area and he was telling me about an award he won for a community he had recently developed.
He won this award for keeping the environment in mind as he built.
He had managed to create the perfect community without disturbing the surroundings.
This got me to thinking...
we as responsible consumers have more work to do! When having a new home built we need to ask questions about the community that we are buying in.
Be sure it is an environmentally friendly community.
Just because the homes being built are energy efficient and are built with "Greenies" in mind, it doesn't mean that the community you will be living in is a mean green environmentally friendly machine.
Here are a few things your will want to ask.
Are efforts being made to preserve natural features such as open spaces and habitats? Are careful measures being take to protect existing wetlands and wildlife? Is the community energy efficient with the focus on water conservation and even the preservation of existing trees? If you already live in a community, with no plans of moving then you can still make a difference.
Start with your Home Owner's Association.
Go to the meetings, start creating a buzz among your neighbors about planting trees and the types of shrubs and plants they plant in the landscaping around the community.
Think about ways your neighborhood can recycle.
If there is a community pool, try to get them to switch from chlorine and chemicals to a saltwater pool.
Lead your neighborhood down the road to a greener tomorrow.