Baby Steps to a Better World
Monday, October 29, 2007
Totally easy ways you and your family can help save the environment.
Use rechargeable batteries. Like it or not, you have toys that require batteries. Buying rechargeable batteries saves money, packaging waste, and time frantically running to the store while your kids complain that their toys don't work. If 10 percent of children used rechargeables, about 38 million batteries would be saved from landfills!
Run your dishwasher when full, and try not to pre-rinse. You can save up to 20 gallons of water per load, adding up to 7,300 gallons per year. That's about as much water as the average person consumes in their entire life!
For the holidays, consider gift cards or movie tickets instead of boxed gifts. Not only are you allowing the recipient to get something they actually want, but if half of America replaced two boxed gifts with gift cards, we would save over 50 million pounds of waste.
Bag the baggies—send kids to school with reusable lunch boxes. Besides being healthier for your children and their food, you save money and waste.
Use the library. According to Ecolibris.net, about 20 million trees are cut down each year for 'virgin paper' used for books sold in the U.S. alone. And only a fraction of publishers are using post-consumer recycled paper for new books.
(All statistics come from the The Green Book: The Everyday Guide to Saving the Planet One Simple Step at a Time, published by Three Rivers Press, unless otherwise noted).
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There are A LOT of things you can do to be “greener” without spending a bunch of money. First off, start really THINKING about what you’re spending money on. Is this item creating excess waste, is it recyclable? Can I pass it on to a friend when I am done with it? Consider where it was produced, how much travel it took to get to your store, and the conditions under which it was manufactured. It is simply about being MINDFUL when shopping and making COMPASSIONATE choices. Further… Compact Florescent Lightbulbs. These are totally cheap and they save tons of money over time. Forget disposable ANYTHING. Just forget it - buy reusable and recyclable items. (Except trash bags, of course…) Use Glass or Pyrex rather than plastic. Platic production is a nightmare for the environment and it is very unsafe if heated or frozen. Forget the paper/plastic at the grocery store. Every store sells the canvas re-usables for about $1 now, and pillow cases or tote bags you already own work great and hold lots more groceries than the plastic bags. Get your kids to start recycling everything. Paper, plastic, glass, and aluminum. Let them create their own little system, and allow them to keep the money after they hit the recycling center. It is motivating and educational for them. Use cold water when washing clothes as long as they are not soiled with blood or potentially toxic material. Buying “organic” is all fine and good, but majorly expensive. So shoot for your local Farmer’s Market and simply buy LOCAL, rather than Organic. It saves money, contributes to the local economy, lessens impact of gas emissions, and the food tastes WAY better because it is super fresh. And stop drinking bottled water. JUST STOP. Buy one of the Energy Star 5-gallon dispensers, refill your 5-gallon jugs at the water store for $1.25 and fill up your own reusable bottles with that water. Like I said…just be mindful and make compassionate choices. It is not that difficult.
- Danielle Mumolo
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