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What is sustainability?
Sustainability is a balance of protection for the environment, a thriving local economy and social responsibility that together lead to a good quality of life for you and future generations.
The responsibility for sustaining our world as a healthy environment for future generations rests with us all. Everyone must take responsibility for solving the problems of today and tomorrow. Individuals, communities, businesses and governments are all stewards of the environment and must think about the impacts of our actions now, and years from now.
What you can do
As a citizen and consumer, here are some ways you can contribute to sustainability and become a steward of the environment:
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Buy recycled
Reduce the amount of trash you throw away.
Reuse containers and products; repair what is broken or give it to someone who can repair it.
Recycle as much as possible.
Close the loop and buy items with recycled content.
Properly dispose of hazardous waste
In most homes it is common to have a cabinet full of potent cleaning products. Often times, the solutions we use to rid our house of germs and dirt can be more harmful to our bodies than the germs we???ve cleaned up. Indoor air is typically two to five times more polluted than outdoor air. (Source: EPA) It???s these toxic
household cleaning products that can lead to pollution in our homes. Learn how to safely dispose of household hazardous waste at the City of Tacoma???s
collection facility.
Non-toxic alternatives
Find non-toxic alternatives to household cleaning products at local stores, or make many of the same types of cleaning solutions yourself with safe ingredients that are common items in your pantry.
Get recipes for non-toxic household cleaning alternatives.
Recycle your electronics
Electronics contain hazardous materials such as lead, mercury and cadmium, and they need to be handled properly to protect the environment and human health. Learn about the many options for safely
disposing of computers and other electronics.
Practice natural yard care
The way you care for your yard and garden has a big impact on Tacoma???s environment. The rain washes what is on your lawn into nearby storm drains and into our local waterways. Learn
earthy-friendly ways to take care of your yard and garden.
Drive clean ??? consider a hybrid or biodiesel
There are several options for hybrid vehicles. A hybrid car uses at least two different fuel sources. Although many combinations exist, the most common sources of energy are:
- a gasoline internal combustion engine
- an electric motor
- a battery that powers electric motor, stores energy
Hybrid vehicles get much higher gas mileage than the average U.S. vehicle because of the use of this special technology. Higher gas mileage means less exhaust into our environment. Learn about the cleanest and most fuel efficient options from EPA???s green vehicle guide.
Biodiesel
Biodiesel is an alternative to petroleum diesel made from vegetable oil that can be used in any diesel engine. Using biodiesel offers many environmental and economic benefits. Find out more about biodiesel, including where to get some, from the Tacoma Biodiesel Cooperative, a grassroots group of Tacoma-area citizens.
Biodiesel powers Tacoma's garbage fleet
In fact, Solid Waste Management???s garbage trucks run on a blend of biodiesel fuel.
As part of Solid Waste Management's commitment to protecting the environment, its 85-truck garbage fleet run on a blend of 80-percent diesel and 20-percent biodiesel. Since the conversion to biodiesel in 2001, Tacoma???s garbage and recycling trucks have helped create cleaner air by emitting fewer harmful pollutants such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and hydrocarbons.
Build green
Green building and remodeling is a way to approach the design, construction and operation of your home that allows for the least negative impact to our environment while providing you with the healthiest living space possible.
These elements common in a green home helps move our region toward sustainability:
- Durable materials
- Less toxic paints
- Energy Star appliances
- Energy-efficient lighting
- Water-saving fixtures
- Renewable and recycled-content products
Conservation and sustainability are on the way to becoming standard practice among the architecture, design and building industries. The more consumer demand for green building, the greater the choices for green materials and lower the cost. Find out more about green building and the City of Tacoma???s EnviroHouse green building exhibit.
Support product stewardship
Product stewardship is a product-centered approach to environmental protection that calls on those in the product life cycle???manufacturers, retailers, users and disposers???to share responsibility for reducing the environmental impacts of products. The goal is to encourage environmentally friendly design and recycling, and reduce flow to the landfills.
All products are designed with a consumer in mind. Ultimately, it is the consumer who makes the choice between competing products and who must use and dispose of products responsibly.
As a consumer, here are ways you can support product stewardship:
- Purchase products with recycled content, and products that can be recycled at the end of their life.
- Ask if the manufacturer has a ???take-back??? program.
- Choose products that are expected to have a longer life.
- Choose products with less packaging.
- Use products safely and efficiently
- Take the extra steps to recycle products that are no longer needed
- Write your elected officials to encourage them to promote or support Product Stewardship principles in legislation. Local elected officials and their contact information can be found at www1.leg.wa.gov/legislature.
Learn more about product stewardship
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