Apr 25
000

SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment & Busch Gardens Make Switch From Plastic to Paper

By Paige Wills in How Paper Is Environmentally Friendly, Why Choose Paper?

 
Plastic Ocean

Plastic Ocean (Photo credit: Kevin Krejci)

Many companies are beginning to make the shift from plastic to paper to help the environment. Plastic bags are polluting our environment and harming our wildlife.

I recently gave a presentation on this topic. Many sea animals, especially sea turtles, are mistaking plastic bags for jellyfish. Click here to look at this picture…can you tell which is the plastic bag? It’s hard for humans to tell the difference, imagine how hard it is for sea creatures. In case you are wondering, the picture on the right is a jellyfish.

According to a press release on market watch’s website titled “From Gift Bags to Beverage Cups, Theme Park Visits More Planet-Friendly–SeaWorld and Busch Gardens Parks Say Good-bye to Plastic Bags – Precedent-setting Move Keeps 4 Million Plastic Bags Out of Landfills Annually,” SeaWorld and Busch Gardens are replacing plastic bags with paper bags.

According to the press release, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment are the largest theme park to make this commitment. Guests will have the option of purchasing a reusable shopping bag or using a paper bag made from 100 percent recycled paper.

Here is a short excerpt from the press release:

“Approximately 1.4 billion tons of trash, including plastic bags, enters the ocean annually. Wildlife such as endangered sea turtles often mistake plastic bags for jellyfish, one of their favorite foods.”

In addition to eliminating plastic bags, the press release indicated SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment and the Coca-Cola Company have made a 10 year partnership to provide guests with paper cups made from 85 percent renewable resources. This will help significantly as guests currently use more than 13 million paper cups annually throughout the 10 parks.

I think it’s great that a large company, like SeaWorld, has made this commitment. SeaWorld knows firsthand the harm human trash can cause to marine life. Humans need to be more committed to recycling.

What are your thoughts on this topic? Do you think plastic bags will eventually all be replaced with paper and reusable shopping bags?

Here is a YouTube video about plastic and our ocean.

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Apr 18
002

Earth Day: Plant a Tree

By Paige Wills in Facts About Deforestation, How Paper Is Environmentally Friendly

 
US Navy 040422-N-3019M-001 Sailors assigned to...

US Navy 040422-N-3019M-001 Sailors assigned to Pearl Harbor Security Detachment help plant a Ku Kui tree at Webling Elementary School in honor of Earth Day (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Most children receive a tree in elementary school in honor of Earth Day. This year, Earth Day is on Sunday, April 22.

I was recently walking in my yard and noticed a lone pine tree growing in the middle of an open area in our woods. It wasn’t very big and is a little lopsided. My dad told me that it was one of the trees I brought home for Earth Day in elementary school. I didn’t pick the best location for the tree to be planted, but nevertheless, it survived! It has grown since then; however, now as much I expected. It’s only a little over 6 feet and it was planted over 10 years ago.

According to Earth Day Network’s website, Earth Day began in 1970. Here is a brief excerpt about the history of Earth Day from its website:

“The first Earth Day on April 22, 1970, activated 20 million Americans from all walks of life and is widely credited with launching the modern environmental movement. The passage of the landmark Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act and many other groundbreaking environmental laws soon followed. Growing out of the first Earth Day, Earth Day Network (EDN) works with over 22,000 partners in 192 countries to broaden, diversify and mobilize the environmental movement. More than 1 billion people now participate in Earth Day activities each year, making it the largest civic observance in the world.”

Earth Day reminds us that Earth’s natural resources are precious and limited. It allows us to take a step back and realize the destruction humans have caused. We need to take better care of the Earth, its animals, and natural resources.

So this Earth Day, go out and plant a tree or help pick up some  trash to help restore Earth to its natural beauty.

Do you or your family do anything special for Earth Day? Do you remember receiving trees to plant in elementary school? Do you remember or visit that tree to see how it has grown?

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Apr 17
000

Old, Shredded Paper Currency Could Be Incorporated Into Ford Vehicles

By Paige Wills in Facts About The Paper Industry, How Paper Is Environmentally Friendly, Why Choose Paper?

 
Shredded Paper

Shredded Paper (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Do you ever wonder what happens to old currency? Most of us know it is shredded and disgarded in some way. However, one company is looking to give old, shredded paper currency new life. Ford is looking at possibly using shredded, paper currency in its cars and trucks.

According to press release on marketwatch.com titled “Higher Oil Costs Could Speed Up the Use of New ‘Green’ Materials Such as Old U.S. Paper Money in Future Fords,” “Potential alternatives to petroleum-based products, including old U.S. paper currency retired from service and shredded, could join soybeans, denim, plastic bottles and other materials used in Ford vehicles.” The press release also stated, “…8,000 to 10,000 pounds of retired paper currency are shredded daily – more than 3.6 million pounds annually. The shredded money is either compressed into bricks and landfilled, or burned.”

John Viera, Ford’s global director of Sustainability and Vehicle Environmental matters, said in the press release, “The potential to reuse some of the country’s paper currency once it has been taken out of circulation is a great example of the kind of research we are doing,”

So you may be wondering where in the world will the shredded paper currency will be used in a vehicle. According to the press release, it is being considered for interior bins and trays. There is not a guarantee it will be used; however, it is a possibility.

Click here to read the entire press release. It’s pretty amazing what materials are already used in some of their cars. For example, “Focus Electric uses a wood-fiber-based material in its doors and recycled plastic bottles in its seat fabric.”

I think it would be neat if Ford incorporated old money into their vehicles. In addition, it would prevent the paper from ending up in landfills or being burned, which is just another way that paper can be environmentally-friendly.

What are your thoughts on this topic?

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Apr 16
001

A Technology Guru Understands Importance of Books: Ironic?

By Paige Wills in Facts About The Paper Industry, Why Choose Paper?

 
Stack of books in Gould's Book Arcade, Newtown...

Stack of books in Gould's Book Arcade, Newtown, New South Wales (NSW), Australia. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In today’s technological society, many believe, especially technology specialists, that the printed book will eventually be replaced. However, one technology guru is trying to keep one copy of every book ever made to preserve history for future generations.

I saw a segment on CBS Evening News about this topic. His name is Brewster Kahle. Libraries and colleges send him their old books. He scans every book and makes it available online, copyright permitting. The website where these books are available is www.archive.org. However, he also keeps the hard copy in storage.

Librarians send him old books. In the segment, one librarian said it made her feel better because she knew the books were going to a good home.

In the segment, Kahle said all e-books look the same. However, he said physical books provide a different experience.

In an article on Business Insider’s website by Dylan Love titled “Meet The Guy Attempting To Collect Every Book Ever Published Before They’re All Digitized,” he favors digitization but feels that digitization should not make physical books obsolete.

I believe Kahle’s message is a strong one. In the segment, he said that we mustn’t forget where we came from.  In an article on CBS News’ website by Edecio Martinez titled “Archivist builds Noah’s Ark for books on the web” Kahle said “there is always going to be a role for books.”

This just goes to show that even technology specialists recognize the important role the printed word plays and will continue to play in our lives.

Watch the video from CBS Evening News.

Share your thoughts on this topic.

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Apr 15
000

The R.M.S. Titantic was a Royal Mail Ship

By Paige Wills in Facts About The Paper Industry, Why Choose Paper?

 
RMS Titanic departing Southampton on April 10,...

RMS Titanic departing Southampton on April 10, 1912 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Today, April 15, 2012, marks the 100 year anniversary of the sinking of The Titanic. America’s fascination with this ship is astounding. I was watching a television show this morning and it said that this year, over 100 books have been published about the Titanic. It’s amazing that something that happened so long ago is still so popular. The movie, Titanic, was just recently re-released in 3D and is bringing long-time fans back to the box office.

However, I just found out that the R.M.S. stands for Royal Mail Ship. The Titanic was a Royal Mail Ship!

According to an article by Jennifer Rosenberg on about.com titled “10 Facts About The Titanic That You Don’t Know,” the Titanic had its own newspaper, The Atlantic Daily Bulletin, on-board that was printed daily. Here is a short excerpt from Rosenberg’s article:

“The R.M.S. Titanic was a Royal Mail Ship, a designation which meant the Titanic was officially responsible for delivering mail for the British postal service. On board the Titanic was a Sea Post Office with five mail clerks (two British and three American). These mail clerks were responsible for the 3,423 sacks of mail (seven million individual pieces of mail) on board the Titanic. Interestingly, although no mail has yet been recovered from the wreck of the Titanic, if it were, the U.S. Postal Service would still try to deliver it (the USPS because most of the mail was being sent to the U.S.).”

I have always been fascinated with The Titanic since I was young. I guess there is just something magical about it. Still to this day, if the movie in on television, even though I’ve seen it a hundred times, I always end up back on that channel.

I think when people watch the movie; they can relate and wonder how they would react in that situation. They sort of place themselves in the movie. However, what those people went through is unimaginable and we must remember that it isn’t just a movie, it really happened.

One survivor, Jack Thayer, wrote a book titled “Jack Thayer and the Wreck of the Titanic.” Here is an overview from Barnes and Noble’s website about the book:

“The Seventeen-Year-Old Son of a Pennsylvania Railroad Official Tells the Moving Story of His Rescue

ONE of the calmest of the passengers was young Jack Thayer, the seventeen-year-old son of Mr. and Mrs. John B. Thayer. When his mother was put into the lifeboat he kissed her and told her to be brave, saying that he and his father would be all right.

He and Mr. Thayer stood on the deck as the small boat in which Mrs. Thayer was a passenger made off from the side of the Titanic over the smooth sea.

The boy’s own account of his experience as told to one of his rescuers is one of the most remarkable of all the wonderful ones that have come from the tremendous catastrophe. Here, in his own words, is his story.”

Any documents that survived that dreadful day are extremely important to history and are also extremely valuable. Just imagine if you have the front page of the newspaper with the sinking of the Titanic. Also, any tickets or papers offer some glimpse into that night and are probably very valuable.

So if you are a Titanic buff and have some extra time this Sunday afternoon check out Jack Thayer’s book and get a first-hand account of the sinking of the Titanic or go see it in 3D.

Share your thoughts on this topic. Did you know the Titanic was a mail ship?

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