As the Sustainability Club at Arroyo Grande High School, our goal is to spread environmental awareness and compassion in our community to make a positive impact on our planet while we still can. The SLO Land Conservancy and the yak tityu tityu yak tiłhini (YTT) Northern Chumash Tribe are working together to purchase, permanently protect and preserve the Diablo Canyon Land after the power plant gets decommissioned.

This is an important cause as it connects both the essential protection of habitats and local species, but also to the preservation of the YTT culture. Here in SLO we are living on the land of the Northern Chumash (YTT), and it is important to take steps to preserve their culture as well as the land, which is vital in sustaining biodiversity and therefore fighting climate change.

The money we raise through these donation boxes will be donated to the SLO Land Conservancy in order to get an appraisal for the land. It is a first step in a process that is going to take years. Although these results are not instantaneous, this fundraiser has the potential to make a real impact on the earth on a local, attainable level. We must start actively working to fight climate change and protect these lands at some point, so why not start now?

Please consider donating today, for the people and the planet.

What are some environmental effects of meat?

• Emissions - According for the New York times, farming (including meat) leads to 574 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Cows release methane, a greenhouse gas, and if they were a country, the animal would be the third biggest greenhouse gas emitter in the world. Cattle are responsible for 62% of emissions from agriculture. A startling fact from a 2017 study states that if the entire population of the United States were to trade out all of the beef in their diets for beans, the country would get half way to the target emissions in the Paris climate accord. This doesn't mean everyone has to remove the food from their diets, because to some it can be important culturally, but it is important to think about taking shifts away from beef and towards other sources of protein.

• Water Use - The raising of animals takes a lot of water, from the water needed to grow, feed the animals, to drinking water. According to the article The Mathematics of Sustainability, over one thousand gallons of water are needed to produce just one pound of beef, compared to 216 gallons of water for soybeans. Cows can drink up to 30 gallons of water a day.
• Pollution - It's a bit nasty to think about, but animals raised for food in the United States produce about 3 times more excrement than the entire US population (PETA "Meat and the Environment"). These massive amounts of manure aren't disposed of responsibly by big corporations, and usually end up in rivers and lakes as "runoff". Runoff from companies that produce meat is one of the leading pollutants of rivers and lakes. The water becomes contaminated and viruses are spread.
• Land Use - It is extremely inefficient to use land for meat production. The beef industry is responsible for being the top contributer to deforestation. Since 1970, 91% of the Amazon Rainforest is used for livestock pasture. That means most of the Amazon, one of the earth's most beautiful and effective sources to combat carbon emissions and climate change, is gone and used up so that the meat industry can continue. The more the meat industry thrives, the more the earth suffers.

What can we do?

• try to get your meat and other animal products from locally sourced, responsible farms

• try switching out beef and lamb for chicken

• try eating less meat in general

• try going vegetarian

• try going vegan

Every year the whole world consumes more than 80 BILLION items of clothing.

The fast fashion industry is extremely environmentally destructive. The rate at which we buy, produce, and get rid clothing is seriously harming the earth.

https://youtu.be/BiSYoeqb_VY

• the definition of "fast fashion" is: "inexpensive clothing produced by mass-market retailers in response to the latest trends" (Oxford Dictionary)
• the clothes made by the fast fashion industry are designed to not be sustainable, creating massive amounts of inexpensive clothes, making consumers feel like they should buy more and more.
• fast fashion brands like Forever21, Gap, Old Navy, Top Shop, H&M, Zara, Shein, Target, Brandy Melville, and so many more use unsustainable methods of production like making large quantities of clothes that aren't good quality, and terrible working conditions like sweat houses, paying workers less than half of minimum wage, unethically low pay for grueling work.
• the fast fashion industry is responsible for high carbon emissions, wastewater, and significant waste in the landfill.

• 85% of textiles (fabric/clothes) end up in the dump each YEAR

• The fast fashion industry produces 10% of carbon emissions
• Fast fashion is second only to oil as the world's largest polluter
• 1.2 BILLION TONS of CO2 per year are produced from fast fashion
• 20% of global wastewater comes from fast fashion

• clothes are made from 63% petrochemicals

WHAT CAN WE DO?

• try going to a thrift store!

• try out second-hand online shopping!

• upcycle old clothes!

• shop at eco-friendly stores!

Reefs are one of the most spectacular environments on the planet, and even though we live far away, we can still take steps to protect them.

• Oxybenzone, a chemical found in sunscreens:

1. leads to coral bleaching
2. damages coral DNA
3. causes young coral to create a hard skeleton too early

• These toxins threaten beaches around the world
• Some (not all) sunscreen ingredients that are dangerous for reefs include:

1. Octinoxate
2. microplastic spheres or beads
3. Octocrylene
4. Methylparaben
5. Ethylparaben
6. nanoparticles like zinc oxide or titanium dioxide

What can you do about it?

70% of all plants need pollinators to survive, but right now, their numbers aren't doing great. Bee populations are plummeting due to pesticides and climate change, and monarch butterflies remain on the endangered species list.

• In both Europe and the U.S., bee populations are dropping 30% every year
• Pesticides contribute significantly to pollinator population decline.
• .Birds, beetles, bats, wasps and flies are also important in the pollination process.
• Pollinators maintain and create the ecosystems that support the natural world and everything in it, including humans.
• Butterflies are really sensitive to climate change
  1. When they are forced to migrate north due to a warming climate, ecosystems are upended along with the birds, small mammals and other insects that depend on them for food.

WHAT CAN WE DO?

consider growing:

• Hummingbird Trumpet
• Milkweed
• California Poppy
• Silver Lupine
• Salvias, buddleias or dahlias
• Common Sunflower

On average, only 10% of plastic water bottles are actually recycled. The other 90% wind up in the landfill or littering the environment.

• Plastic bottles that don't make it to the landfill usually end up in the ocean, where sealife can get stuck, or even mistake the plastic for a snack. The plastic is toxic to sealife, and could harm people too if they eat seafood.
• IMPORTANT: China used to buy American recycling, but that stopped, so now recycling in the US is barely happening.

• Hydros are generally about $50 and keep your water nice and cool
• Nalgenes are made in the US (we love ethical working conditions!) and are generally $7

Every year, in the United States alone, 40 billion plastic utensils are sent to the landfills. Or worse, they end up in rivers and eventually the ocean.

• In land settings, utensils can choke or poison wildlife.
• In the ocean, they become pollution that not only hurt wildlife but will haunt the ocean for at least another 450 years.
• Even the most remote places on earth aren't safe from this pollution.

Is 20 minutes of use worth 450 years of destruction?

• An easy solution that I use in my life is carrying a pouch of reusable utensils in my car or backpack, similar to the ones pictured above. It is cheap and easy once it becomes part of habit.

1. on amazon, reusable utensil packs range between $6 and $11
2. as an alternative you can always diy your own version using household cutlery and a pencil pouch or other small bag.
3. some links:

• If faced with a large gathering where metal or wood doesn't make sense on a large scale, consider biodegradable cutlery instead of plastic.
• Sometimes, I show up to a restaurant that only has plastic utensils offered, and I forgot to bring my own! In these situations, sometimes I will order a wrap, burrito or nachos that I can eat with my hands instead of using the plastic option.
• If plastic is the only option, take the extra second to recycle it.

In the United States, we throw away 10 million metric tons of glass every year. That's the same as about 2,000,000 African elephants, in mass.

1. The process used to make new glass:
   1. mining causes land degradation
   2. uses huge amounts of energy
   3. disrupts ecosystems
2. And if the glass isn't disposed of correctly
   1. It can end up in our oceans and be consumed by sea life
   2. It can take up to a million years for glass to deteriorate.
3. But if it is.....
   1. recycled glass can reduce air pollution by 20% and related water pollution by 50%
   2. glass can be recycled an infinite amount of times, whereas plastic gets down cycled, and eventually can no longer be recycled any more.
   3. it can have a life as a new type of glass instead of being doomed to a landfill or other parts of the earth for thousands of years

So what can we do about it?

• Repurpose
  1. store other materials in the kitchen, like dry pasta or chocolate chips.
  2. use as a container in your lunch to reduce the use of plastic bags.
  3. create a whole new set of glassware for your kitchen. Unlike plastic, which is unsafe to use for food more than one time, glass can be used indefinitely without the risk of dangerous chemicals.
  4. use as storage where you once turned to plastic, like paint brushes, jewelry, pens, pencils, paperclips or other small household items.
• Recycle
  1. recycling glass is unique because unlike plastic and paper, the glass does not lose any quality every time it get recycled, meaning it's lifespan is endless.
  2. it's a great alternative to the landfill, where it will last a long time and pose possible threats to the wildlife.
• Get creative
  1. consider an interesting glass jar as a unique and sustainable gift package.
  2. use as pots for plants that don't need a lot of water, like succulents.
  3. use as elegant vases for cut flowers
  4. glass is an unique an versatile material in craft projects (paint for cool marble effects, punch holes in the lid and fill with fairy lights for a unique nightlight.)

Every year, the average person uses nearly one pound worth of plastic sandwich bags.

• that's 540 plastic bags.
• that's over a million plastic bags every year just for the population of our school.
• think about the 132,853 schools across the nation using plastic bags every day.

We can't stop the use of plastic bags all in one moment, but if more and more people take small steps, widespread change can be achieved.

• It's healthier for you and the earth-- it doesn't leech chemicals over time like plastic bags.
• It's reusable and made of renewable materials
• You can diy your own (scroll to the bottom for the recipe)
  1. https://blog.mountainroseherbs.com/the-complete-guide-to-diy-beeswax-wraps-including-a-beeless-vegan-food-wrap
• If that's not your jam, it can be found on amazon for between $10 and $20, or at Trader Joe's for $8

• Wash it with cold water and soap, hot water will melt the wax.
• I often bring a sandwich in my lunch, and I use the same wax wrap for it every time. It's easier because I don't have to change the creases.
• It can be easily secured with a rubber band or string.
• They wear out after about a year, so when the time comes either compost it (if made with non-toxic, biodegradable materials) or throw it away.
  • Be proud because at that point you've saved at least 540 plastic bags from haunting our earth for hundreds of years.

We know recycling is an important and sustainable practice, but why?

• Recycling produces much less carbon than manufacturing
• Recycling reduces landfill usage, allowing our landfills to stay open longer and reducing the need for new landfill space
• Goods made from recycled materials use less water, create less pollution and use less energy!

How many times can one item get recycled?

1. 1. plastic:

1. 2. glass:

1. 3. paper:

1. 4. metal:

So, what can we do to help?

• Use more glass, metal, and wood. This will both reduce the creation and waste of plastics and be more sustainable because glass and metal can be recycled endless times.
• Be considerate when throwing stuff away. Its easy to just throw a glass bottle in the trash, but if we take an extra second to recycle it, we can continue its lifespan.
• Be considerate about the things we use. If getting some take out, you can request no plastic forks or plastic-wrapped napkins.

According to "The New Plastics Economy: Rethinking the future of plastics" (2017) only 5% of plastics in the United States are getting recycled.

1. We can keep down transportation emissions on heavy (mostly water) bottles of soap
2. We can use a reusable bottle to prevent more plastic from being manufactured in the first place.
3. Most are non-toxic :)
4. The amount of plastics we buy gets reduced, which means less unnecessary waste ultimately ending up in landfills for hundreds of years.
5. The amount of money spent on soap or other cleaning supplies is significantly reduced. A 12 oz container of hand soap at Target costs almost $4, whereas one dehydrated soap pellet goes for $1.56 on blueland. (makes 9 oz of soap)

*in the process of writing*

Between 16 & 20 billion disposable coffee cups are used in the United States every year. That's an insanely huge amount, and most aren't even recyclable.