Environmental Stewardship
The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.
Genesis 2:15
Mission and Commitment Statement
We joyfully strive to be careful stewards of the environment as we honor God’s covenant with all of creation.
We welcome all people to our church and all living creatures to our earth by committing to preserve its beauty and longevity.
As followers of Christ, we seek to live the love of Christ by protecting all of God’s creation; with Christ’s humble and wise demeanor we enjoy the gifts of our environment without wasting God’s generosity.
Webster Groves Presbyterian Church is committed to environmental stewardship and implementing sustainable practices as an integral part of our ministries. We strive to minimize the environmental impact of our church, workplaces and all the events we support, in coordination with our staff, church officers and congregants.
WGPC is proud to have been approved as an Earth Care Congregation by the PC(USA). To achieve this recognition, our Session committed to the Earth Care Pledge, which challenges us to live in a manner consistent with God’s call not only to care for creation but to commune with creation because of our love for Christ. Please contact our Mission Outreach Coordinator, Beth Kazlauskas, if you have any questions.
Environmental Corner
Don't Idle
Choosing not to idle is safer, better for your car, saves gasoline, and therefore money, and helps reduce emissions that cause global warming. Choosing not to idle may be one of the simplest and most effortless things we can do for our environment. Many of us of a certain age were taught to let a car idle before driving. However, this is actually detrimental to today's car engines, wastes gasoline, and causes environmental damage. For every 10 minutes your engine is off, you'll prevent one pound of carbon dioxide (the primary contributor to global warming) from being released. Exhaust from idling vehicles can cause respiratory problems and Webster Groves police note that many stolen vehicles were left idling. If you are going to be idling for more than 10 seconds, it is better to turn off the car and restart it when you are ready to go.
Recycling 101
The average American generates 4.48 pounds of trash a day, adding to a monstrous 262 million tons of trash per year in the United States. Approximately 35% is recycled.
Aluminum, such as beverage cans, pet food cans, aerosol cans, aluminum foil, and cookware, can be recycled. It takes 60 days to repurpose aluminum cans. It is cheaper to make material from recycled material than it is to make the same material from scratch.
Recycling Tips
1. Walmart, Target, Dierbergs, and Schnucks recycle the film or stretchy plastics..that is grocery bags, newspaper bags, dry cleaning bags, zipper sandwich bags, and plastic cereal bags. Curbside pick up does not accept these items. We knew that, but we didn’t know any paper labels on this type of plastic needed to be cut off first.
2. Rinse bottles with hot water and shake well. Pour out the water, allow to dry and replace the lid back on the bottle.
3. Any item with more than one material cannot go in your recycling bin. For example a Pringle can has a metal base along with the cardboard round container. One could cut off the bottom, then the container might be recycled.
Recycling Information
Our Recycling Station in Fellowship Hall accept the following:
- markers/highlighters/pens
- batteries (rechargeable, alkaline, hearing aid)
- cell phones/chargers
- corks
- eyeglasses
- hearing aids
- printer cartridges
- electric cords
For locations to recycle other items, see Where to Recycle in St. Louis
Tree Stories Needed
The Environmental Stewardship group is seeking tree stories from the congregation.
- Has a tree played an important part in your life...
- Do you have a favorite tree and why...
- What has a tree given you or you have done for a tree...
Any story about a tree would be appreciated. We are collecting tree stories for our Tree Theme. Send your tree story to Denise Thomas.