Choices for conscientious college consumers

How much do you know about the products you purchase? Where do they come from? How are they made? How much waste do they generate? How are they packaged? For environmentally conscious consumers, shopping can be a hassle and a headache. After all, the decisions we make as consumers powerfully indicate our priorities to corporations.

Before panicking over whether you should choose paper or plastic, consider the full lifecycles of the materials. Neither is particularly good nor harmful to the environment relative to the other. Although paper is a renewable, biodegradable resource, it requires massive amounts of water and energy to be processed. The biodegradability of paper is not necessarily an environmental asset either, since biodegradable substances emit methane (a potent greenhouse gas) as they decompose in landfills. Plastic can be incinerated, but paper is a renewable resource while plastic is not.

Styrofoam has long been regarded as an environmental "evil." Styrofoam (which is in fact a misused brand name) gets its nasty reputation from a time when ozone depleting CFC's were used in its production. However, CFCs are no longer involved in the making of Styrofoam, and many products that consumers identify as "styrofoam" are actually polystyrene, a type of plastic that is recyclable. To ascertain whether an object is Styrofoam or polystyrene, simply look on its bottom for a triangular logo indicating its ability to be recycled.

Of course less packaging is better. "But what matters more than the packaging is what's in it," says Outreach Project Coordinator for Tufts Institute of the Environment, Anja Kollmuss.

The act of conservation goes beyond the choice of paper or plastic at the supermarket or whether one orders Wingworks chicken tenders in foam containers or Espresso pizza in carboard boxes.

Students' eating habits also play a role in conservation. According to Kollmuss, eating less red meat is one of the best ways to conserve resources. Processing beef requires massive amounts of water, growing cow feed requires large inputs of water, pesticides and fertilizer, and grazing destroys huge plots of land and leads to manure pollution.

Eating organic meat and poultry instead of regular meat also has positive environmental effects. The animals raised for organic food production are not injected with hormones and their food is not grown with synthetic pesticides or chemical fertilizers.

Kollmuss concedes that it is often difficult to make responsible food choices on campus. The dining halls do not offer organic meat or chicken, for example.

Along with well chosen eating habits, there are several other ways for students to make decisions that will conserve resources. Consuming less in general is an important and often overlooked way of reducing energy waste. The products we buy often undergo energy intensive industrial processes.

There are also more technical ways to save energy. A computer monitor uses the same amount of electricity as a 75-watt light bulb, so turning off your monitor when you are away from your computer saves a considerable amount of energy. "Screensavers," on the other hand, save no energy.

A third of all greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are emitted from cars and trucks. Biking or walking around campus instead of driving significantly decreases air pollution and helps prevent climate change. Using public transportation (like the T) to get around also saves energy as compared to putting another car on the road.

Using your heating and air conditioning wisely can save energy and cut down the electric bill. For the winter, Tufts Institute of the Environment recommends setting your thermostat for between 65 and 68 degrees during the day and between 50 and 60 degrees at night.

Lights account for about 25 percent of electricity use on campus. Compact fluorescent bulbs use 60 percent less energy than regular light bulbs and last ten times longer. They normally cost between $8 and $16, but Tufts students can get them for free through Tufts Institute of the Environment by exchanging their regular light bulbs.

Halogen lamps use a lot of energy, but give off minimal light.

According to the Tufts Institute of the Environment, if you live in an apartment off campus, your refrigerator could be hoarding an unnecessary amount of energy and therefore costing you extra money. "Fridges should be set between 38 and 42 degrees Fahrenheit, and freezers between zero and five. If your settings are ten degrees too cold, which is often the case, your electricity costs will be up to 25 percent higher," according to information from the Tufts Institute of the Environment.

Because of the fuel airplanes require, frequent flying is especially hazardous to the environment. By traveling locally instead of flying you can save a significant amount of energy and improve air quality.