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Green Venue and Transportation Choices
Consider the location and transportation carefully.
They are directly related to each other and how green your wedding is.
How far do your guests have to travel to get to the location of the ceremony? How about from the ceremony to the reception?
Gas consumption and pollution from driving and flying are bad for the environment.
Try to minimize or offset travel as much as is feasible for your wedding.
The distances you and your guests have to travel is something you should think about when choosing locations for the wedding ceremony, reception, and any hotel your out of town guests might use.
Here are some things to consider when choosing your wedding venue and transportation:
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Select wedding venues (ceremony and reception locations) that are close to home
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Have your ceremony and reception in the same venue. It can make things much easier, typically costs less, and can be better for the environment
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Select a local hotel nearby and recommend it to your out of town guests.
If possible, see how green the hotel is before recommending it, e.g. Do they have recycling opportunities, conserve water, and reduce waste?
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The amount of power required to light, heat or cool the venues you choose for your ceremony and reception can impact the environment.
Do your venues use CFLs, green power or offset their usage?
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Find out if the location for your wedding is LEED certified.
The LEED certification sponsored by the US Green Building Council provides independent third-party verification that a wedding venue is an environmentally responsible healthy place to hold your wedding reception.
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Other things to consider when choosing a venue: Do they have other green practices in place, such as water conservation measures, recycling, and waste reduction policies?
Do they use environmentally harsh chemicals, such as cleaners, fertilizers and pesticides, or do their use biodegradable alternatives for cleaning and garden care?
Do they offer a shuttle service on your wedding day?
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Consider choosing a venue that dedicates itself to the environment and uses its proceeds toward preservation and conservation, such as a State Park, National Park, Historic Site, or Wildlife Sanctuary.
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If you have to choose a hotel, ensure they have green practices in place and ask if they have a shuttle service available.
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Consider choosing a pretty outdoor location with natural light and a temperate climate during the time of year you choose to have your wedding, such as an arboretum, community garden, public park, or even a large well-decorated backyard garden area.
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Think of unique and innovative forms of transportation for the bridal party
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Renting a Limo can cost a lot and can bad for the environment if not offset
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Consider using a horse and carriage.
It's not only more romantic, it's more energy efficient too.
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You might want to ride off into the sunset together on a horse
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Encourage guests to carpool together or enlist the help of a bus/shuttle service.
If alcohol is served, a shuttle service can help ensure your guest's safety.
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Consider eco-tourism for your honeymoon
- Have a local honeymoon and discover more about your own area
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Instead of flying, travel by train
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Remember that the total number of guests, flights, cars, and nights of hotel stays adds up to a very large carbon footprint for your wedding.
What is Carbon Offsetting?
A carbon offset is a way of giving money to an organization so it can do environmentally good things to counteract / mitigate your carbon footprint.
Typically, you calculate how much greenhouse gas emissions you are producing for your transportation, electricity use, or other such activity,
and then pay a certain amount of money to a carbon offset organization so they can do something of equal or greater value for the benefit of the environment.
For example, you could purchase carbon offsets to compensate for the greenhouse gas emissions caused by driving your vehicle or traveling by air.
Here are some reputable carbon offset organizations:
Carbon Fund
Live Neutral
Native Energy
TerraPass
New ideas on how to make eco-friendly wedding choices emerge regularly.
Please
Contact Us with your suggestions.
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