The great questions I get in my AskAndy@PSE.com e-mail box are one of the things I enjoy most about writing for the Reporter.

Most of the questions are pretty straightforward, but others are a real challenge — like this one sent to me by Jeff:

“Would you please advise on each step an existing business should take to go totally green?

“Whoa, Jeff! That’s a big question.

Fortunately, I had the good luck recently of sitting in on a roundtable discussion with some local business leaders who had at least a few of the answers.

The conversation, which included about three dozen local companies, was part of Washington CEO’s Green Washington Awards, as featured in the magazine’s June issue.

What’s really interesting is that many of the businesses that won are not the kind who’d come to mind right off.

Take the Seattle Mariners, for example, who include environmental issues as part of their employee orientation, and who have the muscle-bound Captain Plastic urging fans at Safeco Field to recycle their water bottles. With help from Puget Sound Energy, the boys of summer have cut their natural gas use by 30 percent. Their electric bill has dropped, too.

Clearly, the greening of the ballpark goes far beyond the turf of the dancing grounds crew. My, oh my, as a certain Baseball Hall of Fame-bound broadcaster (Dave Niehaus) might say.

Others at the Washington CEO roundtable included:

• Architects who say clients won’t look at a building that’s not energy-efficient.

• Freight companies that now work with competitors to get the most out of every drop of $5 per gallon of diesel.

• And hospitals that say patient satisfaction goes up when sustainability is part of the prescription.

And number-crunchers, take note: Many at the roundtable discussion said the green solution is the best financial solution over time, as well.

That kind of thinking poses a new question: Am I falling behind if I’m not thinking green?

Yes, whether it’s keeping up with business competitors who are getting greener every day, or managing the family finances by saving some green through energy efficiency. Fortunately, as one banker at the roundtable event said, “Start with something simple you can measure, and go from there.”

From my perspective, there’s nothing easier to measure than your energy use. After all, it’s right there on the bill every month from Puget Sound Energy (PSE).

And, if you really want to “drill down”, go to www.PSE.com and create a “My PSE” account and learn more about just how green you can become.

Signing up for Green Power is a snap, too, allowing you to go 100 percent renewable energy in about the time it takes to read this column.

Jeff, thanks again for the question. Keep ‘em coming!

Andy Wappler is a senior public relations manager at Puget Sound Energy. He joined PSE in February 2008 after being chief meteorologist at KIRO-TV in Seattle. For his periodic articles for the Reporter, he said, he looks forward to hearing from you at AskAndy@PSE.com