SAGE Archives

2009

I have compact fluorescent (CFL) bulbs in the ceiling fan in the kitchen. Should I turn this fixture off when I leave the room for only 5-15 minutes?

Asked by Paula Giese
Why can't we install windmills in our backyards and trap the power individually for our personal use? Is the limitation how to store it and feed it into my electrical circuits, or what? Is it cost, or sound pollution to my neighbors, or has a household system just not been developed yet?

Asked by Maria Schmidt
Is there a link between our plastic use and climate change?

Asked by Raul Nava
On all the recycling bins at our waste facility and in the information we get from the people who pick it up, we are told that we can't recycle styrofoam. What do we do with it?

Asked by Joe Bates
Given an appropriate location, how large a solar array would it take to power the entire United States, assuming present efficiency levels? How much CO2 would be released to the atmosphere in producing those panels? What other harmful byproducts would be produced, and how much?

Asked by Paul Hayne
How will real estate markets/values be affected by physical impacts of global warming? How is the insurance industry going to use climate change models to inform rates and premiums?

Asked by Alice Cook
Is online shopping likely to save on carbon emissions or not? How do the carbon emissions compare between me driving a 15-mile round-trip to the bookstore versus the carbon emissions for Amazon to ship the book through their warehouse and UPS to me, including the extra packaging?

Asked by Dan Scales
I'm a Stanford alum who's been on a binge of finding healthy ways to live, and I have a lot of questions about personal care products. The things I'm focusing on now are shampoos and conditioners, soaps and toothpaste. Which products would you recommend that are healthiest for the body and for the environment?

Asked by Leah Yelverton
It's obvious that reusing plastic bags is a good idea, but it's not obvious that recycling them is worthwhile because they have so little mass. How much energy and raw materials are actually required to make plastic shopping bags, and how much do we save by recycling them?

Asked by Jim Salvia
Can the choices you make at the grocery store truly impact the environment?

Asked by Monica Jain
For a household appliance, at what energy differential does it make sense to replace immediately vs. at end of life for the unit?

Asked by Rolf Munson
I like wine, red wine.Â I am trying to define the greenest wines.Â I have thought about harvest practices and shipping methods and their impact on the environment.Â It would be great to get help defining which wines are greener.

Asked by Jorge Tabares
How much energy does a typical laptop and desktop use in standby mode? How has this been reduced over time by changes in technology?

Asked by Shiva Swaminathan

Student authors welcome your queries on sustainability and the environment.

SAGE answers are researched and written by upper division and graduate students enrolled in an environmental journalism course.

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SAGE Archives

2009

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