National P2 Week

[Natalie Roy <NatalieRoy@compuserve.com>]

Happy P2 Week everyone! Thought I would share some upbeat P2 Week messages
from  VA DEQ with the listserver!  VA DEQ conducts extensive P2 Week
outreach to the folks they work with on a daily basis by sending out
messages on different themes.  Thought this message would brighten
everyone's day and give you an idea about what one state is doing.   I hope
to see many of you in the D.C. area at the MVP2 awards celebration tomorrow
night at the Senate Hart Office building in Room 708 from 5-7 p.m.  After
the week, NPPR is putting together a short little update on activities that
transpired.  If you are interested in being included in that please e-mail
Steve Spektor at staff@p2.org.
Thanks
Natalie Roy
NPPR
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Forwarded message

You are receiving these emails from the Virginia DEQ's Office of Pollution
Prevention as part of the celebration of National Pollution Prevention
Week, September 16-22, 2002.  
Please pass them along to your co-workers, friends, and family to help
promote P2!!

Well Pollution Prevention (P2) fans, it is finally here!!!!  Welcome to
National Pollution Prevention Week!!  I know that you've been waiting all
year for it -- the anticipation, the excitement of walking down the stairs
every morning of P2 Week to see what P2 gems (http://www.p2gems.org/) have
been left under the P2 tree for you!  

Have you all been good P2-practitioners?  Have you implemented that P2
project that you started last year?  Have you made progress on developing
your Environmental Management System?  Have you come up with plenty of
innovative source reduction ideas that reduce your costs while benefiting
the environment?  (Good, then be sure to share them with me and other P2
folks by emailing me your most innovative P2 practices at home and work --
rtgriffin@deq.state.va.us)   Have you bugged your co-workers and family
members to death with your incessant rantings extolling the virutues of P2?
 I'm not even going to ask if you've been in out of compliance....not with
P2 in your arsenal!

Now before we start opening our P2 gifts (of course, p2 gifts aren't
wrapped, right! http://www.epa.state.oh.us/opp/consumer/holiday.html) ,
let's go straight to the top -- to get an official welcome to P2 Week from
the Virginia DEQ's Director Bob Burnley -- take it away Bob! 
http://www.deq.state.va.us/p2/p2week/message.html   Yep, one of those
critical P2 elements -- got to have strong upper management support --
Thanks Bob!  and also note from Bob's message that the Virginia DEQ again
has developed a p2 week website
(http://www.deq.state.va.us/p2/p2week/activities.html) complete with the
daily emails, a P2 message from President Bush himself, downloadable
posters, the P2 Everyday activity, and fun P2 tips. (Thanks to Jen Comfort
-- you rock!) 

and now without further a-do, the first in our series of "unique"
perspectives on this guiding force in our lives....P2:
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This Drought is Great, Don't You Think?!  
Okay now, don't anyone blow a vein on me here.  I know full well that the
drought has been a terrible hardship for many folks out there, and it's
having significant impacts on wildlife and other natural systems, etc, etc.
 However, for some of us P2 folks out there, we can't help but chuckle just
a little bit at all the fuss surrounding mandatory water restrictions and
the fines and everything that comes with it.  For years, P2 Engineers have
been preaching source reduction techniques such as counter-current rinsing
and filtration systems which greatly reduce industry's water consumption. 
On the municipal side, we've all heard encouragement to conserve
water....at least during summer months.  And finally, we've got you strange
ones out there trying to convince us all to catch every drop of water, get
rid of all your grass (see the lazy gardener email from 2000), and take
group showers (I had to mention this even if the data is still be collected
on this study-savings are questionable and i suspect ulterior motives). 
But, try as we will.....You No Listen!! 

Hey, us P2ers do need to remember to periodically tip our hats to the
enforcement folks out there...and the media in this case too -- the hoo-pla
surrounding the water restrictions is working!  People are complying
voluntarily -- reluctantly, they have finally given up on their beautiful,
green lawns -- and they are reporting those businesses that run their
sprinklers even when its raining!     

So, why are we chuckling?  This is a classic P2 model -- when pushed
against the wall - people P2!  Forced by regulatory troubles, scarcity,
escalating costs, or increasing population density, Pollution Prevention
techniques thrive!  However, the most exciting thing is that people's
habits really are changing!  People have given up on their lawns for this
year and are planning to decrease the size of their lawns for next year
(it's just more work!).  They're taking shorter showers, they're fixing
those leaky toilets and faucets, and they're catching warm-up water for
watering uses......they are thinking about water and not just taking it for
granted!!  

The drought is still upon us -- and it likely will at least affect our
water supply for the next few years.  But will we remember this time of
scarcity?  Let's turn this around and think about it in a positive
light....isn't it kind of nice that you only have to water your
drought-resistant shrubs and other plants once a week or so?  And guess
what, they're right purty too -- maybe purtier than that green grass!  hey,
have you missed cutting grass this year?  and don't get me started on the
west nile schtuff....

Here a bunch of good websites and tips for water conservation!

Fun Facts, EPA -- http://www.epa.gov/safewater/kids/trivia.pdf
http://www.epa.gov/OGWDW/wot/howmuch.html
Governor Warner's Drought in Virginia --
http://www.naturalresources.state.va.us/Drought/WaterRestrictionsFAQ.cfm
Tips, Virginia Science Museum -- http://smv.org/savewater.html
Tips, American Water & Energy Savers --
http://www.americanwater.com/49ways.htm
Tips, City of Newport News --
http://www.newport-news.va.us/wwdept/conserv/conserv.htm
h2ouse Water Saver (this is cool!) -- http://www.h2ouse.org/
A commercial product for reducing the waste of "warm-up" --
http://autocirc.com/autocirc_economics.htm
(catching warm-up still the best in my book!)

Tidbit Factoids.....
"Drinking" Water?  Americans use approximately 100 gallons of water per
day....less than 2 gallons is for cooking and drinking.          
You could go vegetarian...It requires 60 pounds of water to grow a pound of
wheat. Producing a single pound of meat, on the other hand, can take as
much as 6,000 pounds of water.
Ahh, hot shower....a new shower head with an aerator can save up to
70%....and still give you a good shower!
Sppppssppp!  A toilet leak can waste up to 50 gallons/day.


Send me your ideas, and thanks for P2ing!

Tom Griffin, Outreach Manager
VA DEQ Office of Pollution Prevention
804-698-4545

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