Welcome to our Close the Loop® E-Newsletter Issue 18 Nov/Dec 2002 A Bimonthly Newsletter for Friends of www.closetheloop.com _____________________________ In this issue: You've heard of Girl/Boy Scouts, Now Check Out Earth Scouts! Tire Safety: Take good care of your tires, and they will take good care of you. Aquaculture a growing industry Recycling is Our Future Marketplace: Shopping with Values Propose an Article _____________________________________________________________ You've heard of Girl/Boy Scouts, Now Check Out Earth Scouts! Earth Scouts, new national program based on the Earth Charter: A Declaration of Interdependence with badges with 16 principles for respect for nature, economic justice, universal human rights and a culture of peace, is inviting volunteers including parents, youth, educators, artists and other enthusiastic community members to help in its formation. http://www.earthchartersummits.org/EarthScouts.htm _____________________________________________________________ Tire Safety: Take good care of your tires, and they will take good care of you. Overwhelmingly, America's drivers believe that tire care is important, yet a large population of drivers are either performing little to no maintenance or are making critical mistakes when caring for their tires. In a public opinion study conducted by the Rubber Manufacturers Association, only 11% of US drivers are checking their tire pressure properly, and almost half of drivers did not check their tire pressure as often as they should. 66% of drivers do not know where to find the proper tire inflation pressure Take a few minutes to learn the facts at: http://www.rma.org/tiresafety/tiresafetybrochure.pdf http://www.rma.org/newsroom/pdf/ntsw_fact1.pdf http://www.rma.org/tiresafety/seasonal_tips_fall.html A consumer education program of the Rubber Manufacturers Association, website: www.rma.org ____________________________________________ Aquaculture - A growing industry by Nicole Henninger Aquaculture is a type of sustainable farming of aquatic organisms in fresh, brackish, or salt water. It is a rapidly growing industry that produces various aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae, and aquatic plants. Most aquaculture crops are produced for human consumption, but there are also aquaculture products such as baitfish, ornamental fish, fish used for sport, pearl oysters, mussels and more. Aquaculture is performed in many part of the United States. For example, more than 75 percent of the trout produced domestically for human consumption are grown in Idaho. Florida is where most United States fish farms that produce ornamental fish are located, and the largest baitfish aquaculture industry is located in Arkansas. Although many other states have been practicing aquaculture for some time, Pennsylvania is also involved with the industry. Credits Phoenix Foods, an integrated sustainable fish and hydroponic (a.k.a. aquaponic) farm located in the West Phila Empowerment Zone, with a year-round, daily harvest of pesticide-free Tilapia and Sweet Basil at market prices. It is a recirculating system where fish waste is biologically transformed into nitrogen, a plant nutrient. (215) 477-3000 Aquaculture Network Information Center http://aquanic.org ______________________________________________________ Recycling is Our Future The U.S. Department of State has invited Close the Loop, LLC to participate in their celebration of America Recycles Day 2002. This year's theme is "Recycling is Our Future". This year's celebration will be the Department's Expo 2002 to be held at the State Department Headquarters Building in Washington, D.C. This year's Expo will have strong emphasis on end-use products. Some background info on America Recycles Day, November 15, 2002 First year: 3,000 special events were held in 48 states and three U.S. territories. More than 1,300 related newspaper articles were published across the U.S., and 50 TV news stories were broadcast in the top 100 media markets. The America Recycles Day Web site tallied more than 1 million hits. 750,000 people entered the American Green Dream House drawing by pledging to recycle. Recycling rates increased across the U.S. Today: Today America Recycles Day is a national nonprofit organization based in Alexandria, Virginia. More than 3.3 million Americans from all 50 states participated in AMERICA RECYCLES DAY, as well as residents of the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands - a 440 percent increase from the first year. For more information on Events in Pennsylvania, please visit: http://www.proprecycles.org/ard/prizes.html Or, visit the national organization http://www.americarecyclesday.org/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Marketplace: Shopping with Values What is a "green business"? A green business operates in ways that solve rather than cause environmental and social problems. These businesses adopt principles, policies, and practices that improve the quality of life for their customers, employees, communities, and the planet. "Green" refers to both social justice and environmental sustainability. One easy way to give your friends and family meaningful gifts that reflect the true spirit of the holiday season while helping to build a more just and sustainable world is to give Co-op America memberships. For more information, please visit: www.coopamerica.org . Check out their "National Green Pages" directory of products and services for people and the planet. Another way to shop with values is to purchase recycled products as gifts for your employees, friends & family. It will conserve natural resources, strengthen markets for recyclables, & show that you care about the environment. At Close the Loop, you'll find one hundred unique items, many made right here in the Pocono Mountains of PA by local artisans. They will remember you & appreciate the environmental awareness displayed by your unique gift made from recycled post-consumer content materials. Please visit: www.closetheloop.com In the "TIRE FACTS" above, one of the most interesting facts is the number of new products that contain recyclable tire rubber, 110 & counting! One of the most promising products is Rubber Mulch for playground safety: Too many children are getting hurt and killed on our playgrounds. According to the most recent data from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), in 2001 almost 190,000 children were injured seriously enough on public playground equipment to require emergency room treatment. On average, 17 children die each year playing on playgrounds. Many of these deaths and injuries can be prevented if playgrounds from equipment design to surfacing content to the playground's layout were designed with safety in mind. Protective surfacing is the most critical safety factor on playgrounds because approximately 80% of all injuries are caused by falls. For more information on Playing It Safe: The Sixth Nationwide Safety Survey Of Public Playgrounds June 20, 2002, please visit: http://uspirg.org/uspirg.asp?id2=7219&id3=USPIRG& Please read more about our rubber mulch at: www.closetheloop.com/tirechips.html _______________________________________________________________________ Preventing Terrorism is on the minds of most Americans, be prepared by gathering the following: EMERGENCY READINESS, provided by The Memphis and Shelby County Emergency Management Agency in Tennessee. Complete this checklist now, before a disaster strikes, so you will be ready when/if it happens. Your family will cope best by preparing for an emergency before it happens. One way to prepare is to assemble an Emergency Readiness Kit. Once an emergency event has occurred you will not have time to shop or search for supplies. If you gather your supplies and equipment in advance your family can endure an evacuation or in place sheltering. http://www.co.shelby.tn.us/county_gov/mayor/ema/erk.htm http://www.co.shelby.tn.us/county_gov/mayor/ema/famemergplan.htm |
