The other day I wrote about what I call bright lines, those conservation steps that are ridiculously easy and very low (or zero) cost, which separate the talkers from the doers (see Bright lines). In my haste, I forgot one of the most obvious ones, and one that I’ve been using for more years than I care to admit: Using rechargeable batteries.
I’m a long-time photographer, which means I have a lot of experience in figuring out better ways to power things like flash units and (back in the day) external motor drives on film cameras. I’ve used NiCad, and now NiMh, batteries to prevent the purchase and disposal of roughly one metric ton of batteries, give or take an exaggeration. That keeps toxic waste out of landfills, saves energy (I’m not constantly buying new batteries with their embedded energy cost to manufacture), with the implied reduction in CO2 emissions and water consumption, among other benefits, and saves money, too.
I realize that a lot of portable consumer electronics have their own built-in or custom rechargeable batteries, including my wife’s Nikon point-and-shoot, and my own Nikon D80, but there are still many places where the average consumer can use rechargeables to great benefit. And if you buy them at a discount retailer like [insert the name of a big-box chain you love to hate], you can get a charger and enough batteries for not a lot of money.
If you have any suggestions for other bright line steps, leave a comment.
