SUSTAINABLE LAWRENCE: Test your sustainability IQ

   Last year, during Community Day, Ralph Copleman and several Sustainable Lawrence volunteers asked local residents to test their Sustainability IQ.
   The results were mixed, with some residents more knowledgeable than they thought, and others less so. This week, we are giving residents a chance to excel on this year’s quiz by providing the answers to last year’s.
   So read up on the Ralph’s sustainable questions and answers from last year; then come join us at Community Day to test your Sustainability IQ.
   1. Energy: Which burns cleaner (fewer greenhouse gas emissions), oil or natural gas?
   Answer: Natural gas burns cleaner (source: Energy Information Administration). Natural gas, when burned, emits lower quantities of greenhouse gases and criteria pollutants per unit of energy produced than do other fossil fuels. Per unit of energy, oil produces nearly 40 percent more greenhouse gases than natural gas; coal produces over 77 percent more.
   2. Global warming: How much of the world’s oil production is consumed by drivers on American roads?
   Answer: 14.3 percent, that’s one barrel of oil in every seven produced worldwide (source: National Public Radio). According to the Energy Information Administration, the United States produces 10 percent of the world’s petroleum and consumes 24 percent. Nearly two-thirds of every barrel of oil goes to gasoline or diesel fuel.
   3. Bio-diversity: What is the keystone (animal) species of our bioregion? (What is a “keystone species”?)
   Answer: Would you believe — the beaver (source: Rutgers University). A keystone is the stone at the top of an arch that supports the other stones and keeps the whole arch from falling. A keystone species is a species on which the persistence of a large number of other species in the ecosystem depends and whose disappearance initiates significant changes in an ecosystem.
   4. Food: How many working farms do we have in Lawrence Township?
   Answer: Lawrence Township is home to 14 farms! In 2007, most folks said two or four. If you’re thinking we have so few farms here, you may also be thinking you can only go to supermarkets for your food. Think again. Local farming means fresher, healthier food right close by. Check out the Trenton Farmers Market and the Sunday morning farmers market in the village of Lawrenceville. Or look up the farms themselves and go visit. We have great farmers here and terrific local food.
   5. Natural spaces: What percent of the land area of Lawrence is permanently protected and preserved?
   Answer: 25 percent, that’s 5.5 square miles of farms, parks, and natural spaces.
   6. Sustainability at home: Name three things a person or family can do at home to move closer to ecological sustainability.
   Answers: Many people of all ages gave familiar but sound advice on how to be more sustainable. In fact, the kids often did better their parents. Answers people gave us included:
   • Drive less;
   • Take shorter showers;
   • Turn heat down and air conditioning up;
   • Replace used-up light bulbs with compact fluorescent ones;
   • Make sure the schools teach kids about sustainability;
   • Change municipal land use policies (not exactly something you can do at home, but it’s an excellent idea nonetheless);
   • Recycle. (Along with recycle, SL recommends Rethink, Reduce and Re-use.) For more easy tips, check out our SET of “Seven Easy Things” anyone can do to promote sustainability at home.
   7. Community Action: What suggestions do you have for Sustainable Lawrence that would help make life in our community more sustainable? Answer: Contact us with your suggestions!
   OK, this was a trick question!
   So here’s our advice for this week: Come see us at Community Day on Sunday, visit a local park or take a walk in a preserved open space (Shipetauken Woods, Northwest County Park, or Drexel Woods by the Lawrence Nature Center) and celebrate things you’re already doing at home to be sustainable. And think of one more thing you can do. We’ll thank you.
   Find further information at www.sustainablelawrence.org. Contact Sustainable Lawrence at 609-895-1629 with questions or suggestions for additional eco-tips.