Every day is a good day to go green, but St. Patrick’s Day gives us a great excuse to make it official. Here in the Midwest, we have a deep connection to the land. We plant it, harvest it, and depend on it every day. We are surrounded by nature and are not blind to the impact we can have on the land. This St. Patrick’s Day, we’re celebrating that connection by sharing five meaningful ways your business can work to protect it.
1. Reduce Agricultural Runoff
If your business involves farming or land use, then protecting nearby water sources is a big deal. Besides just avoiding hefty fines, you can protect local wildlife and the environment by taking some practical steps.
Planting buffer strips with native grasses like big bluestem, switchgrass, or prairie dropseed will help put distance between the fertilizers and chemicals you use on your crops and surrounding water sources. If want the bonus of encouraging pollinators to visit your fields, you can also native flowers such as wild bergamot, milkweed, black-eyed Susans, and liatris. Liatris is one of our especial favorites especial favorites because it has a deep taproot that helps increase soil permeability, reduce erosion, and filter out contaminants from rainwater, such as fertilizers, pesticides, and hydrocarbons. Planting these buffer strips with natives will protect water sources, the environment, and draw pollinators to your land.
2. Switch to LED Lighting in Facilities
Warehouses, barns, storefronts, and offices can use a whole lot of energy. It is important to review energy use and find ways to improve efficiency. One of the best ways you can do this is be upgrade to LED from older, inefficient lighting options.
This is a low-barrier, high-impact way to go green. It is also very practical for business owners because these upgrades will cut costs and save money in the long run.
3. Host a Community Recycling Drive
One of the local schools near the GAI office runs a plastic bag recycling program. In the last few years, they have collected hundreds of pounds per year of plastic and gotten it recycled. This is a great example of a community-wide recycling initiative.
If you are a local business, you can host a recycling program. Whether you choose to incentivize the community with a discount, prizes, a friendly competition, or simple recognition, you can make it a wonderful event that encourages people to come together, make a difference, and go green.
4. Trash Assessment
A trash walkthrough or waste audit is another great way to assess and reduce your company’s environmental impact. Essentially, it is a systematic review of what a business throws away with the goal of reducing, reusing, or recycling where the option exists.
Here are the basic steps for a waste audit:
- Collect or track waste from all areas of the business over a set period of time (1 day – 1 week typically). You can physically do this, or you can ask employees to record waste on a pad of paper by each trash bin to record what they dispose of and how much it weighs.
- Sort the waste into categories like paper, plastic, metal, food scraps, hazardous materials, and general landfill waste.
- Weigh and Measure each category to establish a baseline.
- Analyze the waste to determine that biggest sources of waste and identify any patterns.
- Act upon your findings by creating a simple action plan to reduce the higher sources of waste.
Some solutions at the end of a waste audit include simply adding recycling bins, changing purchasing habits, reducing paper use, or starting a company compost bin. Every company will have different output and need different solutions.
5. Switch to Solar
Switching to solar is our final (and our favorite) way to go green for St. Patrick’s day! Solar energy offers a source of energy you can rely on for rates that are stable, meaning you can go green while saving green.
Switching your energy source to solar or microgrids will dramatically reduce your carbon footprint while stabilizing your utility bill at the same time. By sourcing energy from your own production, you’ll be protected against skyrocketing utility hikes. As a financial bonus, you’ll also enjoy an increase in your property value when you install a solar array.
Beyond the financial reasons for switching to solar, your operations can enjoy stable, secure energy access. Battery storage or microgrid setups ensure that critical operations, like livestock barns or irrigation systems, are kept up and running during outages. This reduces major risks to your business as we see more volatile weather patterns and aging grid infrastructure.
Have a Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
The greenest businesses aren’t built overnight — they’re built one smart decision at a time. Whether you’re reducing runoff, cutting energy costs, or taking the leap into solar, each of these steps moves your business toward a more sustainable and resilient future. This St. Patrick’s Day, we hope you’ll find your pot of gold at the end of the rainbow — and that it comes in the form of lower utility bills, a healthier land, and a thriving community.
Ready to take the next step? We’d love to help. Reach out to the GAI Energy team today to learn more about how solar can work for your business or for resources to start tackling any of these green initiatives.
Owner & Director of Sales
Cindy started as a consultant with Green Alternatives in 2009 and has moved into her current position within the last few years. She loves meeting with potential clients, answering their questions, and ultimately designing a PV solar system that meets their needs and goals.