The green movement has come a long way since it began several decades ago. Multitudes of companies and individuals are now taking every possible measure to green their homes and buildings. Regardless whether you are a seasoned green activist or a novice just catching green fever, take our quiz now to test how green you can be.
How does the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommend that we deal with solid waste?
Choose waste prevention above all and then choose recycling as a second option.
Dispose of solid waste as a last resort only.
EPA recommendations for solid waste incorporate both of the above answers.
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer
The EPA recommends that sold waste be dealt with in the following order: 1. Waste prevention 2. Recycling 3. Disposal (last resort). The way we consume products requires a change of mindset away from the idea that disposable is better.
What is the key to successfully becoming a green consumer?
Ease into green, make one or two green changes a month to sustain a green lifestyle.
Conduct a green audit of your home to identify a list of green action items you can implement immediately.
There is only one way to go green, kick your wasteful habits and jump on the green bandwagon whole-heartedly.
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Wrong Answer
It is best to ease into green by making one or two green changes a month. If you try to do too much quickly, you will likely fall back into old habits.
What are you trying to achieve by going green with one or two items a month?
You want to avoid friends and family judging your environmental passion as an obsession.
You are trying to make a greener lifestyle your way of life by building one good habit at a time.
The idea is to switch to a green lifestyle without causing undue financial hardship as green is more expensive.
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Wrong Answer
According to experts, it takes about 21 to 28 days to create a habit. With the monthly approach to slowly going green, you are creating new habits one month at a time.
Recycling that bottle you are considering throwing out will save enough energy to power your computer for 25 minutes. Putting that bottle in a recycle bin surely beats going with a blank screen on your computer for 25 minutes.
Congratulations, you recycled that tin can and saved enough energy to enjoy your favorite television programs for 3 hours tonight. If you get a friend to do the same, you can walk to a movie rental spot together and pick up a couple of DVDs to watch with the power you both saved.
What is a key secret to slowing down and eventual turning around the current abuse of our Earth?
small changes by many can make a large impact
political action and reform
boycotting of irresponsible companies products
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People need to realize that small changes made by many can make a big impact, if everyone works together to create a green future. Sustainable development should be a goal of any company or individual.
What is the fourth “R” that the green movement recently added to the traditional three green principals?
rethink
reform
retool
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In addition, to Reuse, Reduce and Recycle: Rethink has been added to the original trio. Rethinking how you do things and what products you use to do them with, can make a bigger impact on greening the Earth than the other three put together.
What is one category of items that you can recycle that many people overlook and simply discard?
disposable diapers
electronic items
both of the above
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Wrong Answer
Many municipalities have recycling programs in place to receive electronic items and if your area does not have a program, there may be charities that will take items they can repair or refurbish.
Look for a logo of a green leaf inside a green triangle with a percentage of recycled material printed underneath.
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Look for the wording: "This product contains post-consumer recycled material" along with a percentage to indicate amount of recycled content. The higher the percentage, the more recycled content an item contains.
What is a great way to save money and prevent some waste from entering the system at the same time?
You can purchase items only in recyclable containers.
You can shop for groceries only once a month.
You can buy products you use often in bulk at a health food store or co-op.
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Wrong Answer
You can buy bulk sizes of products that you use often. Packaging is one of the main costs of food, not to mention the gas and time you use for smaller purchases.
What else can you do to cut down on using items that require recycling?
Do not buy bottled water.
Do not buy commercial cleaning products.
Buy only mechanically shelled peanuts.
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Wrong Answer
If you are not crazy about tap water, then instead of buying bottled water for your home purchase a good water filter for your kitchen sink. You can keep a glass container or two of purified water in your refrigerator.
What is one good way almost all of use can do to reduce waste without making a major adjustment?
You can buy a travel coffee cup and make our coffee at home before we start our daily commute.
You can arrange a neighborhood car pool for everyone’s daily commute to and from work.
You can start taking public transport for your daily commute to and from work.
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Taking public transport or starting a car pool is a great way to reduce, but they often require major adjustments. Buying a travel cup and making coffee at home is easy and will save hundreds of disposable cups from reaching a landfill.
What is a good way to implement the green concept of reuse in your home?
Keep food wastage out of landfill by composting it for your garden instead.
You can implement ways to reuse water in your garden, which has a double benefit of reducing consumption.
Both of the above are good ideas to implement the green concept of reuse in your home.
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Composting programs can keep tons of waste out of landfills and improve soil so it does not require fertilizer as well. You can also catch water that is normally wasted to water your plants or garden.
How much energy is saved for every degree higher you set a cooling thermostat?
6 to 10 percent per degree higher
4 to 8 percent per degree higher
3 to 6 percent per degree higher
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Wrong Answer
According to the Louisiana Dept. of Natural Resources, every degree that your home's thermostat is raised in the summer saves 4 to 8 percent on cooling costs. Properly sealing your homes envelope can also save up to another 10 percent annually on heating and cooling.
How much of the worlds annual paper production is consumed in the United States?
one half
one third
one quarter
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Wrong Answer
Americans consume one third of the world’s annual paper production. It is imperative that we make an effort to consume as little paper as possible by e-mailing documents, printing only when necessary and by using double sided printing and copying.
Why are organic foods considered not only healthy for you but also good for the environment?
Organic certification requires that producers use 30 percent less water than comparable non-organic farms.
Production of certified organic foods does not allow use of harmful chemicals or synthetic fertilizers.
Any waste from cooking with organic food such as peelings make better compost.
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Wrong Answer
Production of organic foods does not allow harmful chemicals like pesticides or synthetic fertilizers. Excess fertilizers and insecticides leach into ground water and runoff ends up affecting water quality in rivers and lakes.
What other green-smart strategy can be employed to make a difference for the world?
Buy produce grown by local farmers, which supports your community and cuts down on transport costs.
Plant your own backyard garden as well as using your own compost to fertilize and enrich the soil.
Both answers are green-smart strategies.
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer
You can support your community and reduce carbon emissions by buying produce grown locally. Nothing can compare to eating vegetables from your own garden nourished from compost from your kitchen.
How much more efficient are fluorescent tubes in producing light than a typical incandescent light?
four to six times
eight to 10 times
10 to 20 times
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Wrong Answer
Fluorescent tubes produce four to six times more light than an incandescent bulb with the same wattage rating. The increased efficiency applies to regular tubes, circular tubes and the newer compact fluorescent bulbs.
