Going+Green+M.A.

Melody Abbott

Cons of Going Green:

Many businesses today are advertising things that are "green" and will help the earth. Sure, it sounds good, but some people ask if we are really doing enough recycling to help the earth at all? They say that we aren't. Also, there are such things as wind turbines and Solar panels which supposedly say that they will reduce the amount of wasted electricity, and save you money. Well, did you know that installing a wind turbine can cost you $3000? In this post, I will tell you the scary facts about going green, and if it is really worth the money.

There are many facts about the US's trash over the year's, and most of these facts are the worst in the world. Overall, in 2008, the were 251 million tons of trash that went into landfills, and this was only in the US. In this trash pile, it was made up with things that could be recycled, such as paper, aluminum, batteries, carpet, glass, oil, steel, and lots of other things. In 1999, 44 billion soda cans went into landfills. With that statistic, it shows that the world really isn't going green, because most of those soda cans could have been recycled. In 2000, 13 million tons of wood was thrown away. This wood could have been used to make furniture, playgrounds, houses, any many other things. In 2001, 2.4 million tons of aluminum, 11 million tons of glass, and 82 million tons of paper was thrown out. The amount of paper thrown out in 2001 is a 1/3 increase from the amount of paper thrown out in 2001. Another thing that can be reused to go to charities or ho​uses is carpet. In 2002, 4.7 million pounds of carpet was thrown out. In 2005, 246 million tons of trash was found. This went up by 5 million tons in 2008! With the amount of trash in 2008 (251 million tons), that means about 4.6 pounds of trash per person per day, compared to the 1.5 pounds of things that each person recycles per day. Today, every human being in the US throws out 8 dry cell batteries, and 10 pounds of textiles (clothing, etc.) per year. Along with this, 200 million tons of oil is improperly disposed of, and since it is not disposed correctly, it can kill a great deal of plants and animals. Another thing about going green, is that it can cost more money than regular electricity.

Some people will install a solar panel to save electricity. According to Jennifer Hill, a Personal Finance Correspondent, installing a solar panel can cost up to $3,849.72, which is way more than the average person would want to spend on it. And the downside of Solar panels is, if there isn't very much sun, then your solar panel will be pretty ineffective, because it can't get energy with out the sun. Solar panels also take up much more space than using electricity would, and it takes more time to install. Other people will buy a wind turbine to get energy. Fitting, buying, and installing a wind turbine can cost you up to $3,850. This takes a long time to install, and takes up some space, and if you the area that you live in sometimes won't have wind, then you may not get energy on those days. Most people don't have the budget to buy wind turbines and solar panels, so they go green by buying "green" cleaning items and organic food. It may be good that the new "green" cleaners are non-toxic, but they are much more expensive, and some people say that they do not work as well as the toxic cleaning items. Many people also say that Organic food is also much more expensive than regular fruits and vegetables that used pesticides and hericides.

So, as you can see, some people argue that going green really shouldn't be done. They say that the US's trash rate has gone up in the last few years, and using green products can cost a lot more money. There are people who argue against going green, and people who will go green. Where do you fit?

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