Make sure your ecological footprint is 'green'
By KIM KIMZEY, Staff Writer, Spartanburg Herald-Journal
Published June 8, 2007

Photo: ALEX C. HICKS JR.
Chuck Hall has written a book, "Green Circles," about living environment-friendly.


If you're the average American who throws out about 4.5 pounds of trash every day and annually emits about 40,000 pounds of carbon dioxide, estimates place your ecological footprint at 24 acres.

The Sierra Club defines ecological footprint as the "area required to produce the natural resources you consume expressed in global acres."

Chuck Hall of Chesnee shares ways to live more earth-friendly in, "Green Circles: A Sustainable Journey from the Cradle to the Grave."

"I wrote the book because there's just such an overwhelming amount that you can do to be sustainable in your lifestyle. I wanted to give people an idea of all the stuff that is out there," Hall said.

He gathered information on several environmental issues and condensed his findings into chapters that offer general overviews of topics, such as natural childbirth and green burial. A list of Web sites is also included.

"Green Circles," contains advice on "raising green children," "living without electricity" and "green building techniques."

There's even a chapter on how to plan a "green wedding." Suggestions include invitations printed on recycled paper with biodegradable soy-based ink and exchanging wedding bands made of recycled gold.

Hall works as a sustainability consultant and maintains www.cultureartist.org, a Web site devoted to environmental issues. He also attends graduate school at Converse College, where he's studying marriage and family therapy.

Hall grew up on his grandfather's cotton and cattle farm between "Abbeville, South Carolina, and nowhere."

Nowhere is actually Antreville.

That rural upbringing, he said, sparked his interest in sustainability. Fatherhood only strengthened it.

"Once I had children, it was like I wanted something to leave for them, too," he said.

"I remember when I was a kid, my grandfather had 400 and something acres. Now it's all subdivisions, convenience stores and everything else. The woods that I grew up in aren't there anymore; it's parking lots."

He believes people don't lead "greener" lifestyles because they believe it's difficult and time consuming.

"They don't want to have to spend a bunch of money to make a lot of changes," Hall said. "People ask, what's in it for me? And they focus on the short-term instead of the long-term. The question isn't what's in it for me; the question is what's in it for my kids? What are they going to inherit?"

Hall said there are many things folks can do to be green that don't require much money or time.

He recommends installing compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). Although they cost more than regular bulbs, they are thriftier in the long run, both in terms of money and energy saved.

Energy Star qualified CFLs use about 75 percent less energy than standard incandescent bulbs and last up to 10 times longer. They also save about $30 or more in electricity costs over each bulb's lifetime, according to Energy Star's Web site.

"We have a thing called a solar clothes dryer - it's a clothes line," Hall said.

Visit the farmers' market. Hall said purchasing locally grown food supports the local economy and helps reduce emissions.

He points out that, on average, food travels an estimated 1,500 miles from the farm to the grocery store.

"When we move into this concrete jungle, we drive to work in metal boxes and live in concrete and asphalt cities and towns, we've lost that tie to nature, and so we've lost a part of ourselves," Hall said. "There's a part of us that's not there anymore - it's like we've thrown that away. So, everything becomes disposable - people, places, products."

"Green Circles" is available online at www.amazon.com and www.barnesandnoble.com. Save trees and money by ordering an online version of the book at http://booklocker.com/books/2907.html.

For more information about Hall, visit www.cultureartist.org.