LANL Environment Earth Day 2008

Director's Message

April 22 marks the 38th anniversary of Earth Day. Earth Day is an annual celebration of the planet, with a focus on how we can sustain and improve our environment the other 364 days of the year. We have an impact on the planet, and it is our corporate and individual responsibility to minimize these impacts.

The Laboratory’s Earth Day theme this year is “How big is your footprint?” We have created a website with information about Earth Day activities along with tips on how we can reduce our environmental impacts.

As a Laboratory, we are pursuing aggressive measures to reduce our footprint, through recycling and reusing materials and chemicals, and by generating less waste. We have specific goals for reducing both sanitary and process waste, and to cut consumption of fuel and energy.

The following are some actions to help us achieve these goals and reduce our impact on the earth:

• Participate in our annual Great Garbage Grab litter pickup and beautification competition.
• Recycle your office trash – bins for recycling paper, aluminum, and plastic should be available in all work areas.
• Contact the LANL Pollution Prevention Office for support in reducing the impacts of your specific work at the Laboratory .
• Participate in your community's Earth Day activities.
• Use the carbon footprint and ecological footprint calculators on the LANL Earth Day website and try to find ways to reduce your footprint.

~Mike Anastasio