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Eco-Facts & Fiction

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eco-facts

YOU'VE HEARD Invest in carbon offsets
WE SAY Don't buy into it
This is an idea that sounds great in theory, but in practice, not so much. Here's the premise: To offset emissions you create going about your daily business-washing your clothes or commuting to work-you can pay a company that promises to help the environment by, say, curtailing air pollution; developing renewable energy sources, like wind power; or planting trees.

While it is a brilliant marketing idea, you can't cancel out the effects of your activities. Once you've taken a flight, the emissions from the plane are already in the atmosphere. There's no way to get rid of them, no matter how many trees you plant. Investing in carbon offsets may help alleviate some guilt, but it doesn't impact the bigger picture. Curtailing your energy use is a much more efficient alternative.

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While I agree on most of these points, I will make one comment about the hybrid cars -- they seem like a great idea until you have to dispose of the battery which are a huge source of pollutants. The whole picture needs to be seen when talking about being green. And while it seems like there would be a huge fossil fuel savings, what about the fossil fuels it takes to charge the electric battery?

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I believe that further fact checking needs to be done regarding the segment on cloth diapers. No one I know who uses cloth diapers does laundry every day. Most cloth diapering families have an extra 2 loads of laundry per week added into their routine, and many people line dry their diapers, further reducing the impact of energy usage. Cloth diapers are no less convienent than disposables. These are not like the diapers we grew up with; the new cloth diapers have snaps or velcro and elastic and look very similar to disposables. There are systems that suit anyone and everyone, and are just as easy to use while running errands or staying at home. The cloth diapering community is full of fabulous people who can answer any question about convenience or enviromental impact. As a new mom and business owner, I would never use anything but cloth diapers.

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