Set sprinklers to water the lawn or garden only - not the street or sidewalk.
Use the microwave to cook small meals. (It uses less power than an oven.)
Purchase "Green Power" for your home's electricity. (Contact your power supplier to see where and if it is available.)
Scrape, rather than rinse, dishes before loading into the dishwasher; wash only full loads.
Cut back on air conditioning and heating use if you can.
Turn off appliances and lights when you leave the room.
NORFOLK -- Establishing natural habitat in an industrial area has its challenges.
In the very heart of the ship repair industry, BAE Systems is working to make a difference for the environment.
"We've put in a variety of different habitats. Here along an old steam line are wetlands, an oyster reef, butterfly gardens, another little upland habitat here," says Mike Ewing, BAE System’s environmental manager.
He says it’s not just a corporate commitment. The workers chip in, too. Some have given their free time to help.
"That was our first River Star Project put in in 1998 and that wetland was put in with all volunteer work," explains Ewing.
A floating boom that typically is used to contain an oil spill or other pollution it used to keep litter off the newly-formed wetlands.
The company invests time and money into business practices that make a difference.
BAE Systems installed a system to collect and treat polluted water running off the dry docks. Last year alone, they filtered 30 tons of copper from treated water that would have gone back into the river.
The shipyard is actively looking for new ways to do more. For example, the materials used to expand an oyster reef came from a previously untapped source, -- a hull cleaning from the nuclear barge Sturgis.
Until now, the build-up taken off ship hulls would be sent to landfills. So, it’s a win - win - win situation: more oyster reef, less landfill use, cost savings for BAE Systems.
The company’s also working to save energy.
“We're trying to capture as much of the condensate from this steam as we can, put it back into the boiler rather than buying new water and spending more energy in heating up the water," Ewing notes.
Since installing the steam recovery system a few months ago, BAE Systems has cut heating costs by saving more than a half-million gallons of water and another half million cubic feet of natural gas.
BAE Systems is one of 63 businesses and agencies in the Elizabeth River Project's River Star program. They're praised for making improvements to their mile-long stretch of property along the river.
