Going Green at work

[homealone]

Making every possible attempt to go green at home is extremely important. Though for alot of people, most of their time is spent in the office at work. Here is yet another place that the idea of going green is also important. The efforts for a greener work environment is catching on but it seems to be a slower effort. Though with just a bit of help from you, it may catch on alot faster. Start by speaking to the boss. By having a greener work environment the company is most likely going to save money, but it will also of course be helping our planet. Here are some great yet easy tips to help your work place go green.
If you are leaving your work area for more than 10 minutes, be sure to turn any lights off. Nearly 43% of the power used in an office is due to the use of artifical lighting. If you are able to use natural light in your office instead of overhead lights or a desk light, thats even better. Seek energy efficient bulbs to be placed through out your work place. These types of lights use around two thirds less power then regular bulbs, and save a great deal of money for the company.
Nearly one billion dollars per year are wasted on computers in the work place. This is because all to often computers in the work places are left on at all times. Even when not in use. Its always a good idea to shut off a computer if it is not being used. This of course will save the company alot of money. Though before taking this step in your effort to go green make sure that your computer can be safely turned off. If it is needed to run maintenance or backups then it may need to be left on at all times. Also set your computer to go to sleep if not being used, this can also cut down on the amount of power it uses. Screen savers are great to have on a computer, but keep in mind that they do not save on electricity. When you are purchasing new monitors, printers, or computers choose those which are energy saving, and be sure to recycle the old equipment.
Most offices in the U.S. tend to go through around 10,000 sheets of paper per year, so make it a habit to not only use both sides of the sheet of paper. Save all of those old documents that are no longer needed. These can be used for scrap paper through out the office, they can be used to rough drafts and also for all those faxes that most offices recieve daily.
Ask that recycled paper be purchased for your office. This will save the company money and it will cut the amount of waste that fills our landfills.
Set your office up for recycling. Just about any type of paper that your office uses or recieves can be recycled. This includes fax paper, junk mail, and envelopes. Also items such as old pagers, cell phones and PDA's can also be recycled.
If you travel for your business, then consider traveling by bus, train, or even subway if possible rather than renting a car. Public transportation will cut down on travel expenses and help the environment. If there is no choice but to rent a car then seek one which is a hybrid. Most rental agencies are now offering these types of cars.
Take a look at your commute to work. If possible here is yet another great way to help in the green effort. If you can rather than driving to and from work consider a car pool or even transit. Many companies are allowing employees to work from home and telecommute. This is an even bigger savings.
Use plants in your office and all around the work space. Plants will help to absorb some of that indoor pollution. Also ask that only nontoxic products are used to clean the offices and surrounding areas.

[missmanors]

You've made some good points, homealone. I'd also suggest that using refillable bottles for water or soft drinks would also be a good idea. Our landfills are filling up fast with plastic drink bottles that could be recycled, or as I said, refillable ones are the best to use.

[homealone]

Thank you for adding Missmanors. Refillable bottles are the best way to go to help our planet.