Eco-Consultant Spotlight
| Green Irene is the largest green consulting firm in the US with over 500 trained Eco-Consultants. You can find your local Eco-Consultant at locator or by contacting us.
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Gerald Carter
Troutville, VA
Gerald has been greening the Botetourt County area for the past year, but he has been a concerned resident for much longer. He is proud to assist businesses in becoming more sustainable and show them exactly how much money and resources they can save in the process.
Terri Carrier
Jackson, TN
Terri first saw the need for businesses to go green in the 1980s and 1990s when she owned her own RV dealership. That experience led her to see that more services and tools were needed for businesses to go sustainable. As a trained Green Irene Eco-Consultant, she focuses on assisting businesses in the RV, boating and camping industries go green while saving money and reducing their carbon footprint.
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Featured Sustainable Business
| Stratus Building Solutions
Congratulations to Green Business Bureau member Stratus Building Solutions for being named #1 fastest growing, privately-owned company in St. Louis by the St. Louis Business Journal (May 21-27, 2010 Edition). |
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Greetings!
I am asked regularly why companies are making the effort and investment to operate their businesses more sustainably even in the absence of a government mandate to do so. The big three are:
-To save money through energy conservation and other resource conservation (i.e. paper, water)
-To attract and retain customers who share these values, especially in conjunction with a credible Green Certification
-To attract and retain employees who prefer to work at a organization that shares these important values
These are important areas as well:
-Create a healthier work environment for employees and related reduced costs
-To spur innovation in green product development
-To provide credibility when pushing these same issues down the supply chain to your suppliers in order to reduce costs and improve the greenness of your products and services
-Part of broader brand initiatives, including being a Carbon Neutral company
-Part of broader Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives
Welcome to our first email newsletter geared towards small-and mid-sized businesses looking for actionable ideas on how to operate more sustainably.
Sustainably yours,
PJ Stafford
Eco-Consultant | Co-Founder
Green Irene LLC
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Recent Posts at Green Irene's Green Business Blog
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Fluorescent Bulb Recycling for Businesses: Responsibilities and Solutions
Many businesses already use fluorescent tubes, which is an important step in maximizing energy efficiency as long as you have upgraded from the old T-12s (a measure of the diameter of the tube) to the newer (and thinner) T-8s or even T-5s. Fluorescent tubes and compact fluorescents use 75% less energy than comparable incandescent bulbs, and they last up to 13 times longer, making them an excellent choice for reducing your environmental footprint and utility costs.
However, all fluorescent bulbs contain mercury as an important ingredient in generating efficient light. This mercury is harmless when sealed inside the bulb, but it can cause significant ecological damage if improperly disposed of. Approximately 670 million fluorescent bulbs are improperly thrown out each year in the U.S., which releases more than 2 tons of mercury into the environment, where it contaminates soil, waterways, and eventually our food chain.
In an upcoming edition we'll look at new LED replacement tubes that last 50,000 hours and have no mercury, but are currently much more expensive ($65 for a LED tube vs $3 for a fluorescent tube).
Federal, state and local governments increasingly require businesses to recycle their spent fluorescent lighting (rather than just dispose of in a landfill), and some states also hold businesses liable for mercury contamination from their broken bulbs, even if the contamination occurs after disposal! This makes appropriate recycling essential to protect against fines and environmental liabilities.
It does not cost much to recycle your office's mercury-containing lighting. Over the life of a fluorescent bulb, it is estimated that the cost to properly recycle today is less than 1% of the total cost of ownership!
Green Irene offers fluorescent bulb recycling kits that are a great solution to guarantee cost-effective and convenient recycling for your business. Each kit includes all you need to recycle from your facility, including a container, liner, prepaid return shipping label, and bilingual instructions. Best of all, processing is handled by Veolia, the world's largest environmental services company. You'll receive a Certificate of Acceptance to document that your bulbs have been properly recycled.
By including fluorescent bulb recycling in your budget, you can maintain energy-efficient lighting while also staying in compliance with federal, state and local laws. Contact your local Green Irene Eco-Consultant to help you make sure that you fulfill your company's responsibility to environmental protection, and that you receive the best value for your 1%. Green Irene's recommended recycling kits, which include pre-paid shipping, start at $45.
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Taking Toxic Chemicals Out of Your Cleaning Routine
Since Green Irene launched the Activeion ionator EXP as part of our non-toxic cleaning product line, we've received a ton of questions about the underlying technology for the device. After years of using typical cleaning chemicals on employees desks, breakroom and other work surfaces, the idea of a totally chemical-free cleaning and sanitizing solution struck some as a little too good to be true. Many companies have an outside cleaning crew come through nightly or periodically, but you should have a say in what toxic (or non-toxic) products they are using in your employees work areas. We were also skeptical until we tried the ionator ourselves and studied the independent lab results. This amazing device really works, and many businesses and institutions have already adopted the technology as part of their day-to-day cleaning toolkit. The technology driving the ionator products has even been used for decades in food processing plants, four-star restaurants, and large hotels. So how can an appliance transform water into a safe cleaning and sanitizing agent? Most cleaners work through chemistry by creating a reaction to break up dirt, stains, or germs. The Activeion ionator EXP works through  physics: much like the freezing of water creates ice, and the heating of water makes steam, the ionator EXP gives water a tiny electrical charge. This process, called "water electrolysis," actually makes tiny bubbles throughout the water that hold this electrical charge. As these "nanobubbles" build up on a dirt particle, the electrical charges push against each other (like magnets pushing away from each other), which breaks the dirt apart and suspends it in the surrounding water, making it easy to then wipe away. Most typical sanitizers also work chemically, relying on a chemical reaction to kill bacteria. However, the ionator EXP uses the physical process of "electroporation." The electrical charge held by the water creates holes in the cell walls of surrounding germs. This irreversible process kills bacteria, viruses, and other germs within 6 seconds of exposure. The ionized water is completely safe; you can get it on your skin and it's 100% safe for ingestion. (Don't try that with the chemicals your cleaning company uses now!) The nanobubbles and the electrical charge in the water last only 30 to 45 seconds, after which the water returns to a completely regular state. By eliminating the repeated expense of buying general-purpose cleaning chemicals to clean things like desks, whiteboards, windows, countertops and the like, the ionator EXP can give you a safer, quicker, and less expensive way to clean and sanitize. Your local Eco-Consultant can help you to better understand how the device would fit with your business' cleaning routine. You heard it here first...just like every office has a vacuum cleaner, every office and institution will soon have the ionator EXP.
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Get a Green Business Makeover and Earn the Green Business Bureau Certification
Green Irene can be your outsourced Chief Sustainability Officer! As you look for ways to reduce expenses and attract new customers, consider the business benefits of operating your business more sustainably and earning a well-regarded Green Business Certification. With a Green Business Makeover you'll have in-person assistance to implement the Green Business Bureau certification.
Our local Green Irene Eco-Consultant will tour your facility during a 2-to 4-hour initial visit and start you on the path to greening y our office and business practices. Through a personalized web portal, we present a set of recommendations that you and your team can further implement at your own pace. You also receive a 12-month "Ask Green Irene" subscription with unlimited support from the largest national green consulting firm.
A Green Business Makeover with Green Business Bureau Certification requires a relatively small commitment of time and money. In return, you are making a strong initial commitment to yourself, your employees and business partners to provide a less wasteful, more sustainable and healthier work environment. Read more about our Green Business Makeover, priced from $450.
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Green Irene Featured Products
Green Irene researches and recommends what it considers to be the right solutions for small-and medium-sized businesses looking to operate more sustainably. Here are a few of the many business products available from your local Green Irene Eco-Consultant.
Recycling Receptacles
Amazingly, many companies do not recycle paper, cans and other easy to recycle items. Employees who recycle at home hate having to send all their recyclables to the landfill when at the office, and th ere are real costs to be saved by reducing the volume of trash you pay to cart to the landfill. A paper and can recycling program is an easy and visible initiative for a company looking to operate more sustainably. Our modular recycling receptacles are the most customizable option for recycling whatever it is your business collects the most, be it paper, plastic, trash or glass. Choose your own labels, shapes, and sizes when you order. Then, set them up in a highly visible and heavily trafficked area - the more they're used, the less trash enters our landfills. These stylish bins will encourage employees and customers alike to do their part and recycle.
Square 24 Gallon: $230 Half Round 8 Gallon: $220
Vending Miser
Vending Miser is a quick solution for immediate energy savings with the vending machines in your lunchroom. The device incorporates  innovative energy-saving technology to power down machines when the surrounding area is vacant, while also ensuring product stays cold by monitoring room temperature and periodically repowering cooling systems. Energy consumption is reduced an average of 46%, typically resulting in savings of $150 per machine annually plus additional savings in maintenance.
Price: $179
Toilet and Urinal 5-Second Leak Detector - 16 oz.
Our Toilet Leak Detector can diagnose leaks in your office toilets  (including tankless models) and urinals in 5 seconds! A member of your company's Green Team can apply a 5-second test once a month to make sure thousands of gallons of water aren't being inadvertently wasted in your offices. Applied to the inside of a toilet bowl or urinal, this blue liquid creates a visual guide to where leaks exist in your bathroom fixtures, allowing you to make repairs and save over 78,000 gallons of water per year (3 swimming pools) per leaking fixture. Most toilet leaks cannot be seen or heard.
Price: $8
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Got a Question? Ask Green Irene
Dear Green Irene,
I'm worried that launching a series of green business initiatives might add more work to what is already a full plate for each of my employees. Won't I just be adding to their stress?
Sincerely,
The Caring CEO
Dear Caring CEO,
Depending on the size of your company, we generally recommend that you designate a volunteer Green Coordinator for areas like waste reduction and recycling, energy conservation and efficiency, and even water conservation and purity. Our typical client has 25-100 employees, and most of them can easily find 2-3 volunteer coordinators to form a Green Team without adding measurably to their work load. Many of the green initiatives actually reduce employee stress! Green cleaning initiatives and improvements in indoor air quality with HEPA air filters, reduce employee exposure to chemicals that can result in headaches and fatigue. And don't forget - many employees want to practice at work what they practice at home! It can be a morale boost, and, if employees want to get more involved, it's an opportunity for them to bond with co-workers outside of the regular day-to-day functions. Last, but not least, you save money by implementing the waste-reducing components of going green, and there is always ways to spend that savings to reduce employee stress!
If you've got a question about greening your business that we can feature in our next newsletter, please send it to ask@greenirene.com.
Sustainably yours,
Green Irene
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