<![CDATA[The Episcopal Church of Saints James and Andrew

<![CDATA[The Episcopal Church of Saints James and Andrew - Green Team]]>Thu, 05 Mar 2026 14:18:48 -0500Weebly<![CDATA[Moving Away from Oil & Gas:Heat Pumps for Heating and Cooling]]>Thu, 03 Oct 2024 04:00:00 GMThttps://www.saintsjamesandandrew.org/greenteam/moving-away-from-oil-gasheat-pumps-for-heating-and-cooling

]]><![CDATA[Using Renewable Energy: Solar Panels w. JOHN WARD]]>Sun, 18 Feb 2024 05:00:00 GMThttps://www.saintsjamesandandrew.org/greenteam/using-renewable-energy-solar-panels-w-john-ward

]]><![CDATA[February Environmental Sunday]]>Wed, 15 Feb 2023 16:00:57 GMThttps://www.saintsjamesandandrew.org/greenteam/february-environmental-sunday

]]><![CDATA[Franklin County Celebrates Earth Day]]>Mon, 11 Apr 2022 18:51:50 GMThttps://www.saintsjamesandandrew.org/greenteam/franklin-county-celebrates-earth-dayApril 22
4:30-6pm
Energy Park

Following a rousing lead into the Greenfield Energy Park down Miles Street by two Morris dancing teams, Nolumbeka Project leader David Brule will offer the land acknowledgement to open the first Franklin County Community Earth Day Celebration.

All are welcome to celebrate on Friday April 22, from 4:30-6:00. This family-friendly and fun celebration of Spring will also address climate and environmental solutions, encourage community resilience, and include activities for children.

Community entrepreneur and national speaker, Lynn Benander, will share the state of our energy economy, locally, regionally and nationally, highlighting transitions to a green and sustainable future.

In a tree planting ceremony, two new Linden trees will be honored and planted in the Energy Park; a community art project will create a giant map with local trees; dancing will be led by the Wake Robin and Juggler Meadow Morris Dancers, and Annie Hassett and friends will lead songs.

Businesses, farms, land trusts and other groups that work on sustainable energy and local resilience will host over 20 tables sharing information about their projects. Our Green Team will have a table. Food will be available from local vendors. A poster for the event providing more information is available on our Facebook page.

The event has been planned by representatives of the Interfaith Council of Franklin County, Temple Israel of Greenfield, All Souls Church, our Green Team and others.

The Earth Day Celebration is free and open to the public. For further information contact Tupper Brown at atbrown.law@comcast.net.

]]><![CDATA[The Story of Plastic]]>Tue, 18 Aug 2020 21:01:30 GMThttps://www.saintsjamesandandrew.org/greenteam/the-story-of-plasticVIEW THE STORY OF PLASTIC

To access password to video, speak Ella Ingraham or Contact Us

The Green Team is hosting a discussion for families of the 2019 movie The Story of Plastic on Sunday, September 13 at 11:30 am. The movie is 1 hour 35 minutes long and we think it's suitable for our younger parishioners. We're asking that families and COVID bubbles watch the movie before the September 13 discussions. This movie is a fantastic overview of the human-made crisis of plastic pollution and how it affects the health of our planet and all of God's creatures living here. It ties together major themes we face such as economic and environmental justice.

The movie is available online. We have watched it on Prime for a small additional fee. It's also available on DiscoveryGo, Apple TV and on Xfinity video-on-demand. Download the viewing guide (see below) to go deeper.

- Ella Ingraham for the Green Team

]]><![CDATA[Laundry Microplastics]]>Thu, 02 Jul 2020 14:03:03 GMThttps://www.saintsjamesandandrew.org/greenteam/laundry-microplastics

Did you know?
Every time you wash certain synthetic fabrics, millions of microfibers are released into the water.
Microfibers are too small to be filtered out by waste treatment plants, so they end up in our septic systems and our waterways and oceans, where they affect marine animals and the environment. Textiles used in the manufacturing of garments are often processed with hazardous chemicals throughout production and finishing. When the fibers from these garments are shed, these coatings are as well, and they both enter septic systems and wastewater treatment plants in large volumes.

A 2016 study commissioned by outdoor clothing company Patagonia with graduate students from the University of California Santa Barbara’s Bren School of Environmental Science and Management found that we are sending significant amounts into rivers and oceans every day.

Microplastics have been recovered from the gastrointestinal tracts and tissues of zooplankton, shrimp, mussels, many fish and whales. According to the research team, microfiber pollution is troubling on two levels.

First, it means that animals considered to be filter feeders such as oysters and mussels, which eat by straining food particles out of water, are directly intaking the fibers. Microfibers have been found in oysters and clams.
Second, synthetic fibers (unlike natural ones like wool or cotton) are prone to absorbing chemicals. That means microfibers could potentially pick up chemicals while they travel through wastewater treatment plants, or that they could make it into oceans or streams carrying the chemicals originally added to the clothing they came from.

When you do your laundry you can reduce microfiber pollution by:

Washing synthetic clothes less frequently and for a shorter duration.

Trying to purchase higher quality products as these are likely to shed less fibers during each wash cycle.
Filling up your washing machine. Washing a full load results in less friction between the clothes and fewer fibers released.
Switching to a liquid laundry soap. Laundry powder scrubs and loosens more microfibers.
Using a colder wash setting. Higher temperature can damage clothes and release more fibers.
Using a front loading instead of top loading washing machine. Research reveals that top-loading washing machines cause microfiber shedding at a rate almost six times as high as front-loading. (Note: no find information on top-loading machines without center agitators.)
Installing a washing machine lint filter for your water discharge.
Purchasing a microfiber trapping laundry bag or ball.
Using a septic tank filter to catch microfibers.

There are a variety of products available on-line to help reduce microfiber pollution. I am going to try a Guppyfriend, a bag to hold synthetic garments, to trap microfibers which is touted to be 90% effective. I also saw filters for effluent from washing machines including the Lint LUV-R and Filtrol Lint Filter. Let us know what you find!

Learn More about Laundry Microplastics

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