It's all about small changes
Save water - Turn off the tap while brushing your teeth!
Sometimes, making change seems like a big deal, as though it should require great effort and serious time commitment. While some changes do entail this, others are tiny changes that are easy to make in our day-to-day life – and yield great results.
Don't leave the tap running while you're brushing your teeth - I've read that by doing so, you can save close to 19 litres of water A DAY.
Shave a few minutes off your shower time (once you've mastered showing in less time, shave another minute off) - For EACH MINUTE you're standing in that shower, you're using up about 23 litres of water. Imagine how much water you can save by cutting your shower down by just a few minutes.
Tell cashiers (in advance) that you don't need a receipt - I read in The Green Book that if everyone in the United States refuses ATM receipts, enough paper would be saved to circle the equator fifteen times. Get us in on that action, and we'll all be saving a heck of a lot of trees.
Switch paper bills to e-bills - Save paper and precious trees by switching to e-bills. You'll also have a lot less clutter in your home office.
Buy booze from local breweries or wineries - Support your local companies and reduce how much you rely on goods that travel a loooooong way to get to your doorstep.
Be a vegetarian once a week - I am certainly not a vegetarian, so I won't push that on you. But Adria Vasil does say that going vegetarian is one of the top things you can do for the environment. If you're not into gonig totally vegetarian, opt for being a vegetarian once a week. By doing so you'll save 318 litres of water; 112b kilograms of grain; consumer 15 per cent less saturated fat; and save some money.
What are some of the small things you do to help the environment?
July 14th, 2009 at 7:14 pm
When I'm done with my magazines, I leave them in my doctor's reception area for others to enjoy.
July 14th, 2009 at 8:53 pm
I donate toys, clothes, blankets and books to charities so items are recycled. I try to buy local foods. I also ride a bike or walk as often possible and try to make fewer shopping trips. I buy secondhand books. I reuse leftovers and have tried limiting shower time :)There are a lot of ways to help the environment.
July 14th, 2009 at 9:19 pm
This sounds silly, but I empty the cats water dishes into my hanging plant on the front porch.
It's just enough water to moisten the plant, and then I pour the cats a fresh bowl.
July 14th, 2009 at 9:34 pm
Hang laundry. Free use of solar energy!
July 15th, 2009 at 9:41 am
I use mesh cotton reusable produce bags at the farmers markets rather than plastic for my fruits and veggies. Then I store them in my fridge in the same bags - they work just as well as the green plastic bags that they sell on t.v.
July 16th, 2009 at 11:52 am
recycle, recycle, anything and everything that is recyclable. Walk or carpool or better yet use your bike in the summertime.
July 29th, 2009 at 11:37 am
Not sure what these cotton reusable produce bags are. Where did you source them?