Lucy Jones, Accidental Eco Warrior

by Bob Williamson

   Lucy Jones earned minimum wage. She worked hard for her money. She had been unable, in these tough times, to get a full-time job, so she needed to make every dollar count. Then her husband, Sam, lost his job. Lucy decided to put an ad in the paper and sell all the electrical appliances they owned but didn’t need: the so-called labour-saving devices. There was the electric knife, the electric can opener, the juicer, and a number of other appliances that were rarely used.
   Lucy never considered the fact that her electric bill would go down. You see, when in use, the electric knife used 110 watts per hour, and the juicer was eating its way through 220 watts per hour. For every saved kWh of electricity they were now saving, they also reduced their home emissions by nearly 1 kilo of CO2 per kilowatt hour.
   Noticing the small savings in their electric bill from not having those unnecessary appliances, they decided to look at all of their appliances and electronics that were sucking power 24/7, even though they weren’t in use. They unplugged the microwave oven and the TV cable box, saving another $15 per year off their electricity bill on those two appliances alone.

   Lucy didn’t live far from the local diner where she worked. Instead of taking the car, she decided to start walking.  This gave her the recommended 30 minutes of exercise a day she needed to stay fit and healthy. After a week she said to Sam, “We don’t need the electric treadmill anymore!” The money they raised from its sale went to pay the costs of running the truck for 6 months! The truck’s fuel bills dropped dramatically and so did the emissions from burning gas, 9.1 kilos per gallon!
   Now Lucy was on a roll! She was getting more fit each day and feeling good, not just about saving money, but also saving the environment. She thought about all the trash they had been adding to the landfill from food packaging and tinned foods. Buying fresh foods would eliminate this waste.  One evening she told Sam, “You know all these fast food meals we eat are costing us too much. I was thinking if we shop at the farmers market and buy food that’s in season, it will be much cheaper.” Sam agreed. So the very next weekend they set out for the farmers market.
   They started using cotton shopping bags when they went to the market. By doing this one little thing and saying NO to plastic bags, they were saving an average of 15 plastic bags for every trip to the supermarket and

helping to preserve resources.
   By buying local and in season produce instead of buying food shipped in from all over the world, Lucy was saving 8.1 tonnes in emissions from food miles, which is equivalent to them driving 1,000 fewer miles every year.
   Lucy, a very bright lady, realized they could buy extra produce at the markets when it was every year.
plentiful, in season, and cheap. They could blanch the excess vegetables they bought and store them in the freezer for later. She started keeping a journal and worked out just how much they could save each week, each month, and each year on family groceries.
   Sam, an aspiring writer, suggested they write a book on how to live on less.
   Lucy started a home business, selling preserved and pickled foods along with her frozen vegetables. Before the first month was out, she was making an average of $80 per week for a morning’s work. Lucy could see that her minimum wage job at the diner would soon be a thing of the past.

   Now it has been 12 months since Lucy and Sam set out to cut their family budget costs. Lucy has a thriving business and Sam’s book, How We Moved from the Breadline to the Holiday in Florida in Just 12 Months, is

now a hit e-book.
   So if you really want to “keep up with the Joneses,” follow Lucy’s lead! Bob Williamson is the Chair & Founder of the Greenhouse Neutral Foundation. He has long crusaded for the need to change from the present course we are on in the developed and fast developing nations. A respected environmentalist with many national and international awards, he is committed to adding his voice to that for change; to a future safe for all. You can follow Bob on twitter.

Issue 4 | February/March 2010

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