Shiel Sexton sponsored an Earth Day Luncheon at Franklin College Friday, April 23, 2010. Special guest Steven Cohen, executive director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, spoke on Climate Policy and Sustainability.

Mr. Cohen presented compelling data that supports theories involving climate change and energy issues. He noted that most impacts on the environment are obvious and immediate: hazards, air and water pollution, and the quantity of energy we use and waste. However, the climate change will impact us in the future, not in our lifetime, or that of our children or grandchildren.

According to Cohen, more than half of the world population lives in cities and any impact will affect a higher concentration of people. We can mitigate some of these problems, but most will be left for us to adapt our habits and lifestyle to. Many of us are quite comfortable with today's modern conveniences and the most effective method of reducing our carbon footprint will be our rate of consumption. Technology is a major player on sustainability, in that there are fewer resources used, but more importantly we need to learn to consciously consume resources that are renewable.

So, you may be asking yourself what Earth Day means to construction and Shiel Sexton?

Building construction is among man's most environmentally destructive activities. Shiel Sexton Company believes that growth and progress do not have to be at odds with environmental health and conservation. Our goal at Shiel Sexton is to make a lasting and positive impact - not only on our industry, but on our planet. These are the steps Shiel Sexton takes to Reduce Our Footprint and Leave Our Mark:

• Achieve LEED points on buildings
• Utilize local vendors to reduce transportation cost and support our local economy
• Recycle debris and waste on jobsites
• Use green material alternatives
• Implement security to reduce waste due to theft and vandalism
• Adaptive reuse of existing structures