What Can You Do About Plastic Pollution?

Plastic pollution hurts plant and animal life.

Taking Action

Last week, we blogged several facts about plastic pollution.  Plastic pollution is just as common as any other type of pollution; causing horrible problems for the environment.

Ways to combat plastic pollution are:

• Choose to reuse when it comes to shopping bags. Cloth bags are available at almost every retail store at low prices.
• Reduce everyday plastics such as sandwich bags and juice cartons by replacing them with a reusable lunch bag or box.

Plastic Pollution: The Dangers of Not Recycling

Have you ever thrown even a bottle cap in the garbage?
The effects may surprise you.

Did You Know...

That there is such a thing as plastic pollution?  You might have heard of air or water pollution- but plastic pollution actually causes devastating effects to the environment.

We are surrounded by plastic throughout the day.  Plastic drink-ware and utensils, products for work, decorations in our homes, etc.  If you throw out even one of these products, instead of choosing to recycle, think about these consequences:

• Americans throw away approximately 35 billion plastic water bottles every year (source: Brita).
• It takes at least 500, and up to 1,000, years for plastic to degrade.
• In the Los Angeles, California area alone, 10 metric tons of plastic fragments (including straws, bottle caps, etc.) are carried into the Pacific Ocean every day.

A Truly Green Saint Patrick's Day

Celebrate the "Green" Way

If you ever wanted to start living an eco-friendly life- what better day to begin than Saint Patrick's Day?  On a day dedicated to all things green- why not also focus on the environment? 

If you are hosting a Saint Patrick's Day party at your apartment, here are some tips to really live "green":

1) Buy in Bulk

If you are entertaining guests tonight- try to buy in bulk.  This is more cost effective in the long run and also conserves resources, like plastic and cardboard, when you buy one large package or carton versus a series of small ones.

Green Tips for a Clean Car

Spring Cleaning: Car Edition

The first day of spring is only 10 days away!  It is a great time to think about spring cleaning.

Last month, we detailed some eco-friendly spring cleaning tips in a post.  This week- we are expanding on that tip to include some green cleaning tips for your vehicle!  After such a harsh winter, you might want to really clean off your car.

Green Car Tips:

1) If you want to clean your car- go to a commercial car wash. 

Car washes actually use less water than if you were to try to wash your car yourself.  Usually, people overestimate the amount of water needed to wash their vehicle, or leave the hose running when cleaning, so conserve water and head to a car wash.

Grady's Green Initiatives

Did you know that Grady Management celebrates our 50th anniversary this month?

As a company, there are many ways we promote green initiatives in the apartment communities we manage.  In fact, Grady Management has been a leader in energy conservation technology since 1971.

Some ways we promote green living include:

• Our Utilities and Energy Conservation Administrator, David Farmer, constantly monitors community consumption of electricity, natural gas, heating oil, and water to ensure we conserve these resources and that we manage our carbon footprint.


• Our Director of Maintenance, Mark Rasavage trains team members in energy conservation programs and best green practices, tests and selects energy efficient and eco-friendly products.


• We are moving toward energy efficient LED (light emitting diodes) light fixtures, CFL (compact fluorescent light) bulbs, common area lighting controls, and more efficient HVAC upgrades to help lower utility costs.