(Ed note: I tried to find a photo of Canadian money, I really did — but with the exchange rate these days, does it make a difference?).
Moving on: Today’s green change is tied into a previous one, #88 to be exact, in which I pledged to ask for no receipt whenever I purchased something and, if I absolutely had to get one, would recycle it at home. While a lot of cash registers are manufactured in such a way that they have to print out receipts whenever any numbers are typed in, there’s a way of paying that at least cuts down on the paper: cash.
If you pay for something with credit card, you almost always have to sign for it, which usually demands a separate receipt; and if you pay by debit, there’s usually a longer stub to accommodate all the fine print. But cash is cash — it’s straightforward, uncomplicated. Plus, it doesn’t require any electricity or fancy swiping machines.
So from now on, I’ll be taking out the benjamins in larger batches to avoid using plastic. The only downside — fewer air miles accumulated.
Photo courtesy of PhotographyNewbie on Flickr
October 9, 2007 at 3:48 pm |
I dunno… I think I might have to dispute this one. Did you think about the trees and energy and water and metals that it takes to make currency? And every year there is a ton of currency that gets destroyed and replaced by new currency… I think that electronic payments have less of an impact, just because the infrastructure to use plastic already exists and all the payments are done from one account to another, without material input. Just my opinion, though
October 9, 2007 at 6:04 pm |
That is a tough one – it may be a wash. Paper money is usually made from a lot of various parts and processes. Paper, cotton, those little holograms, and other weird anti-counterfeit steps. Which makes manufacturing cash a fairly involved process which is likely pretty heavy on resources. Then take into consideration the amount of coins and whether they are better or worse environmentally than paper. Lifespan wise they are better, but is the initial mining and smelting still better? Arguably the extra receipt paper is the only sustainable (albeit not always recyclable) component here.
Neither system seems ideal really. If I had to go with my gut on this one I would say CC is better than cash $. Although if it really matters let me know and I’ll bust out my research pants
October 9, 2007 at 6:06 pm |
Really? Man, I thought this one would be a no-brainer… well Shawn, if you’re up for it, you can totally put your research pants on and find out for me. If I’m wrong, I’ll have to go back and press the Opposite button on my screen for this post!
October 9, 2007 at 6:16 pm |
If you feel bad about using a credit card, why not get one that gives to a charitable cause each time you spend money?
Me, I’m not willing to give up my points. And being an accountant, there’s no way I could give up my receipts. But I don’t think using a credit card is so much worse than using cash in the first place.
October 9, 2007 at 6:32 pm |
Although credit cards are made of plastic, and the credit card industry generates tons and tons of waste. I am on the “opt-out” list so that I am not supposed to receive credit card solicitations, and I’ve called directly all my credit card companies to ask that they not send me solicitations, and yet I still receive one a day – usually two envelopes plus about 3 sheets of paper plus a cardboard or plastic fake credit card to inspire me to get their card. So besides the plastic card you use, there’s a lot of plastic and waste floating around in the environment because of credit cards.
On a related issue, are Canadians allowed to refer to money as “Benjamins”? I believe Ben Franklin was ours, ma’am.
October 10, 2007 at 5:21 pm |
I have a credit card with the Citizens’ Bank of Canada called the Shared Interest Card. Whenever I make a purchase, something like $0.10 goes into a fund and at the end of the year all the cardholders vote on four non-profits to whom the money is given (and they really get it, ’cause I work at one of the organizations that was chosen last year!).
I think they also have cards dediated to supporting Amnesty International and Oxfam (I could be wrong). Maybe that will allay some of your concerns over credit card use.
October 11, 2007 at 1:34 am |
I think No Impact Man had a post a few months ago about the economy, and how everything we do in our interactions can go towards supporting the very same wasteful system that we feel trapped in. He expressed it much better than I can. One thing that I took away from it, I guess, was that we can opt out of cooperation with corporations. One way of doing that is not to use a credit card–keep your money from flowing in that direction. I don’t know what the politics are in Canada, but I couldn’t find a green or progressive credit card company here in the US if I tried. So, I have a credit card that supports my alma mater, but am trying to wean myself off of it. Oddly, though, when I signed up to do everything online and not have paper bills, they began sending me lousy photocopies (or “draft quality” printouts) of the “real” monthly statement, rather than the original statement itself. I haven’t figured out the logic. They also recently went from having one single page per statement to having two pages. The second page contains fine print, and is always superfluous.