Going green ... one step at a time

At the end of this month I am attending a conference in North Carolina, hosted by one of the only certified "green" printers in America.

As a magazine publisher, I have always been conscious of the amount of paper and waste I create by printing HorseSouth. This is why it is extremely important to me that HorseSouth always has excellent, original and quality content. If I reprinted articles or syndicated articles ... I am wasting valueable paper and killing even more trees. I have turned down distribution house's offers to mass distribute HorseSouth to Barnes & Noble and grocery chains across America. Why? Because the resale rate on the magazine stands of America is less - actually WAY less than 10%. I've never been able to live with the thought of that much waste. Yes, those extra zines are recycled. BUT you should smell my house when the new magazines come in. A part of me loves the smell of fresh printing but I know it's harmful to the environment and even my own body.

Don't get me wrong. I am not fanatical about too much (except visible ear wax in my children's ears!!) I won't be fanatical about going green, I will not likely become a vegan, I'll probably still use dryer sheets. But I am growing a garden, I am recycling, reusing and rethinking the way I do things. One of the things I am rethinking is how I care for my own horses. I have been researching for a new article called My Big Green Barn ... which compounds on the wild horse model and introduces green living principles to the barnyard. Here's small example. On Friday I have "Patch", our paint horse (who is 80% white) a bath. I used Baking Soda, Glycerin and Lemon juice and warm water to wash him. It was going to rain in about an hour ... so i didn't waste water to rinse him off. Before he rolled ... MAN he was white! Even his tail and mane! I dumped the bucket and for once didn't feel bad about it. No detergents, no grass killing! Why hasn't that been a clue for us in the past ... where ever we dump the wash water ... the freakin grass dies!! DUH

Another one of those things I am changing is the way HorseSouth is printed. Right now, we print about 56,000 copies of the magazine. All but about 800 copies are "consumed". Meaning 24,000+ are mailed to someone on request or subscription order. The rest go to nicer tack and feed stores all over the country. Of those, my reports tell me that there is almost NEVER a single copy left.

But, I have to look at it this way. Giving 28,000+ copies away doesn't help me pay the considerable printing bills that go with having the magazine. Yes, people do subscribe because of it but not in the appropriate ratios. I love for people to enjoy it. I hope when they are finished they recycle it ... but I can't gaurantee that. SO - I am looking at moving to printing on recycled paper, and printing less copies to give away.

Recently, I've registered a new domain name that will center around taking care of our horses and our barnyard environment in a green and natural way. I'll be working on this site, with the help of a few key people and I hope we can make an impact together.