Bad news continues to flow more than three weeks after a massive oil-rig explosion 50 miles off the Louisiana coast, fueling collective senses of not just dread but frustration. Yet many Americans looking for a way to help counter this environmental (and economic) disaster can find one as close as a personal grooming choice.

As Andy Paras reported on the front page of Saturday’s Post and Courier, “the freshly clipped hair falling unceremoniously to the floor at the Verbena Salon” on St. Philip Street “may soon be used to sop up the crude oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico.”

The Verbena is one of many salons across the nation donating hair cut on their premises to “A Matter of Trust,” a charity that has long collected and delivered that natural substance as a natural defense against petroleum pollution.
The innovative concept evidently works: A lot of hair can soak up a lot of oil.

So encourage whoever cuts your hair to join that worthy cause.

And keep in mind that getting your hair cut can protect the environment not just by providing a sponge of sorts for offshore oil spills, but by reducing electricity consumption and the greenhouse-gas emissions it produces.

After all, when you have less hair on your head, you’ll be cooler — and less likely to run your air conditioner.

Source: http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20100512/ARCHIVES/305129970