PUHI — It’s a no-brainer, said Kaua‘i Community College Japanese Student Club President Noah Hess, regarding the use of compact fluorescent light bulbs as opposed to the less-efficient incandescents. Hess was just one of the many students participating in KCC’s
PUHI — It’s a no-brainer, said Kaua‘i Community College Japanese Student Club President Noah Hess, regarding the use of compact fluorescent light bulbs as opposed to the less-efficient incandescents.
Hess was just one of the many students participating in KCC’s Earth Day celebration Thursday, where some 20 organizations gathered under a big white tent on campus to demonstrate the necessity of going green and honoring the earth.
The KCC Japanese Student Club, along with the KCC Environmental Club, handed out free CFL bulbs provided by Blue Planet in exchange for older incandescents. By noon, some 200 CFLs had already been swapped, according to Hess.
“There is almost no end to the benefits of using CFLs,” he said. The bulbs have a 10-year life span in comparison to the incandescents’ useful life of a few months. And the bulbs are “just as bright,” but require less energy.
Also touting more environmentally-savvy options at the Earth Day affair was Zero Waste Kaua‘i Chair John Harder, who said he is in the process of developing a sustainability plan for and with the college.
Banning plastic water bottles and bringing county recycling bins to campus are just two of the many possibilities, he said.
Implementing sustainable programs with the college could help divert some of the 75 percent of island waste which has the ability to be re-used, he said.
“Things we know have another life,” said Zero Waste’s Pat Gegen, referencing a majority of the approximately 250 tons of garbage taken to the Kekaha Landfill each day.
In fact, recycling one ton of paper alone saves 17 trees, two barrels of oil, 3.2 cubic years of landfill space and 60 pounds of air pollution, according to Zero Waste. And recycling one aluminum can could power three hours of television viewing.
It wasn’t just students who got to enhance their environmental knowledge and mingle with environmentally-savvy organizations Thursday. Community members like Dennis Takahashi paid tribute to the planet as well.
Showing off a “sweet leaf” plant called stevia he grew in his own back yard, Takahashi said he believes in the importance of food sustainability, another important factor in contributing to a cleaner island.
And although fossil fuels might not be associated with an unpolluted environment, Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative was in attendance Thursday to demonstrate some of the renewable-energy efforts the co-op has considered undertaking.
KIUC’s “off-grid energy power system” which doubles as a renewable-energy trailer was in tow Thursday to show attendees the benefits of alternative sources of power, said KIUC staff engineer Steve Rymsha.
The trailer consists of two photovoltaic systems, a wind turbine and a “large battery,” all serving as “a really good instrument to get kids excited” about renewable energy, he said.
From cups made with corn to reusable shopping bags, the KCC celebration is an annual effort to make individuals “aware that every day is Earth Day,” said Crystal Cruz, who helped organize the event and serves on the student government of the college — the Associated Students of the University of Hawai‘i at KCC.
Visit www.earthday.org for more information.
• Coco Zickos, business and environmental writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 251) or czickos@kauaipubco.com.
