How Green Is Your Hobby

Last year over 150 billion gallons of gasoline were consumed in the United States. That works out to about 500 gallons for each person living in this country. At a national fleet average of twenty miles a gallon the average American drives 20000 miles per year though this is skewed by truck usage which stocks our shops and factories though it is not technically individual transportation. Most driving is not discretionary. We drive to work and school and to run the errands we need to do to live our lives. It is in our free time, our hobbies that we have the ability to determine whether we will have a low environmental impact hobby or not. There are few hobbies or interests that are more environmentally kind than philately. Even golf requires a drive to the course and bikers often put their bikes on racks and drive miles to get the perfect ride. Now that few collectors go to stamp shows, most philatelic purchases are online and the delivery of your stamps is by the USPS who were coming to your house anyway. Certainly no one chooses their hobby based on its environmental impact alone. But the next time you are working on your stamps (by your CFL lighting, of course) pat yourself on the back as, by environmental impact at least, you have the best hobby there is.