11 Nov
Prisons Beginning to Recycle, Grow Food: Why Can’t We?
I’m going to just go out on a limb and say it…if they can do it, why the heck can’t we? If prison systems in this fine country, filled with some of the hardest, meanest and plain craziest people ever born can get involved with and embrace recycling programs, grow-your-own food systems and composting, then why can’t all the rest of us, who actually still Have our freedoms?! The simple answer is, we can!I just read a pretty inspiring and awesome article about how certain prisons, namely the one from the article in Olympia, Washington, are doing more than their part in trying to “green” up the prison systems. Apparently, “Inmates of the minimum-security facility, 25 miles from Olympia, the state capital, raise bees, grow organic tomatoes and lettuce, compost 100 percent of food waste and even recycle shoe scraps that are made into playground turf.” How insanely awesome is that?!
Because prisons are 24 hours a day, 7 days a week buildings and must always be “on” it is no secret that they are Massive energy “hogs” as it were, and use a great deal of energy, resources, food and electricity to keep up. Doing this helps “give back” and reduce the already massive carbon footprint that most prisons have become. The secretary of the Washington State Department of Corrections was quoted as saying, ““It reduces cost, reduces our damaging impact on the environment, engages inmates as students…” What’s more, a prison in California that is doing similar things, uses solar panels to actually give BACK enough energy to the grid to power over 4,000 local homes. Wow.
The bottom line is, if prisons can take steps like this to help green up the environment, why can’t the rest of us? It is far easier for us to start composting, recycling and even starting some amazing gardens in our back yard. Every tiny step helps, so why don’t we All start taking a few giant leaps?
(Image via Wikipedia)
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