Idling your car, especially during hot or cold weather, seems necessary to keep comfortable.  However, if instead, we turn off the gas, listen to the radio and keep the windows up, we’ll quickly be back to comfort. (Both hybrid & EV cars run off the electrical battery when idled, another reason to get one!)

Remember even 1 minute of idling at a stop or keeping the engine running to stay warm or cool produces unnecessary CO2 and other harmful air pollutants. If motorists avoided idling for just 3 minutes every day of the year, CO2 emissions could be reduced by 1.4 million tons annually!  That’s the equivalent of taking 320,000 cars off the road for the entire year!

Think about it, idling gets you nowhere, & reducing idling is caring for all of God’s creation, including US!

Click here to download and read Idling Reduction for Personal Vehicles, by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Office, a comprehensive yet easy to read article about idling.

Some good climate news:
Renewables generated a full 30 percent of electricity worldwide last year, according to the Global Electricity Review 2024. AND researchers found the increase in wind and solar generation from 2019 to 2022 generated $250 billion in climate and air quality benefits in the U.S. alone. We need to keep up the good work!

About Green Chalice Ministry: Green Chalice educates the congregation about caring for God’s creation by promoting initiatives that inspire partnership in caring for creation. Please contact us to learn more and join us in our mission to Worship, Grow and Serve – Caring for God’s Creation