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Top Green Tips From True Green: 100 Everyday Ways You Can Contribute to a Healthier Planet by Kim McKay and Jenny Bonnin Photo by Nicky Gordon/iStockPhoto.com
A gardener's rake and hat rest on a fence near a vegetable garden.
Nearly 25 percent of the water used inside the average home is for showers. A family of four, each taking a five-minute shower once a day, uses about 700 gallons (2,650 liters) of water every week. You can cut that amount in half by using low-flow shower fittings that reduce the flow by 50 percent or more while maintaining ample water pressure. Compared with a standard showerhead, which might use 4 to 6 gallons (15 to 23 liters) of water a minute, a water-efficient showerhead can use as little as 1.5 to 2 gallons (6 to 8 liters). After a year of five-minute showers with a low-flow showerhead, that family of four will save up to 20,000 gallons (75,710 liters) of water as well as the energy needed to heat that water. This in turn reduces greenhouse gas emissions by more than 300 pounds (136 kilograms) per year and lowers the family's water and energy expenses. Look for efficient plumbing fixtures with the EPA's WaterSense® label.
Step up to the line
An electric clothes dryer generates more than 6.5 pounds (3 kilograms) of greenhouse gases per load. A solar clothes dryer, better known as a clothesline, generates none. Choose the natural solution whenever you can. If it rains while clothes are hanging, consider it a softening rinse. For those times when you must use a dryer, make sure your washing machine's spin cycle removes as much excess water as possible, dry only full loads, and keep the dryer's lint filter clean so it operates at maximum efficiency. Also, ask your local utility company or government agency about efficient-appliance rebates, and look for the Energy Star® label when purchasing a new washer. Grow your own
Even unprocessed foods contain "embodied energy"—the fuel and water consumed in growing, harvesting, transporting, storing, and selling. The farther your food travels to reach your plate, the greater the expended energy and resulting associated greenhouse gas emissions. Having your own fruit and vegetable patch is not only a source of guaranteed fresh organic produce but also very eco-efficient. It's even a great motivation to get outside and get some exercise. A kitchen garden can also be a source of fresh herbs for daily cooking. And if you can't grow your own produce, patronize your local organic vegetable farm or farmers market—you'll be buying close to home, the produce you purchase will likely be lower in embodied energy, and you'll be helping your local economy. Give back to the earth Food scraps and yard clippings make up one quarter of U.S. solid waste. When this organic matter ends up in landfills and decomposes without air, it produces methane, a greenhouse gas 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide. A compost pile or worm farm is a simple but effective way to cleanly convert waste from the kitchen or garden into something productive; you can reduce your yard waste 50-75 percent by composting. Each ton of organic matter you divert from the garbage can will prevent the creation of a third of a ton of greenhouse gases in landfills. Put a pail next to the kitchen sink to collect all food scraps that are not meat or dairy. Leave clippings on the lawn when mowing, and adjust your mower blade higher to cut less off the top of your grass. Yard clippings quickly decompose into nutrient-rich humus, providing up to 25 percent of a lawn's fertilizer needs each year. Compost is also the perfect natural fertilizer, containing all the necessary elements to improve soil structure and microbial activity while retaining soil moisture—and saving precious landfill space.
Treat it like it grows on trees Paper comprises nearly three-quarters of office waste, so simple recycling measures can significantly reduce an organization's waste-removal expenses. Print out only what is necessary and proofread documents carefully on your computer screen to avoid having to print multiple copies. Place a tray on your desk to collect single-side, printed scrap paper and use it for taking notes or in the photocopier or fax machine. Keep a paper-recycling bin under your desk and in communal printing areas, and encourage your colleagues to recycle. Log off and shut down
There are an estimated 55 million office computers in the U.S., and many of them never get switched off, needlessly consuming energy overnight and on weekends. Computers and monitors use more electricity than all other office equipment combined. The average computer left on all day, every day uses nearly 1,000 kilowatts of electricity over the course of a year, producing more than a ton of carbon emissions. In contrast, a computer switched off at the end of the day uses less than 250 kilowatts—and significantly lowers energy bills. Turn off equipment at night, on weekends, and when it is not being used for extended periods of time during the day. If you are away from your computer for shorter periods, put it in sleep mode or enable your PC's power management features, which will reduce energy use to about 5 percent of full operating power. And buy Energy Star®-compliant office equipment for even more savings.
Borrowing benefits
Next time you are in a news agency, bookstore, or DVD shop, ask yourself if you really need to own something you will probably only read or watch once. Join the local library and video rental store, and borrow rather than buy books and DVDs. See if you can borrow items you seldom use—power tools and camping gear, for instance—from family and friends. Services usually have a lower environmental impact than goods, so indulge in regular trips to the movie theater rather than spending thousands of dollars on equipment to replicate the experience in your own home. Pack it in
From soft drinks and sugar packets to cheese singles and shrink-wrapped cucumbers, the amount of packaging we consume continues to proliferate. Each year our country throws away more than 75 million tons of packaging and containers—that's a staggering 532 pounds (241 kilograms) for every man, woman, and child—and less than 40 percent of it is recycled. All plastics marked 1 to 7 are theoretically recyclable, though some cities and towns only recover 1 (polyethylene terephthalate), 2 (high-density polyethylene), and 3 (polyvinyl chloride). Check which plastics your community recycles and avoid purchasing packaging that will end up in a landfill. Buy in bulk where you can, and choose fresh produce from local markets over plastic-wrapped supermarket goods. Avoid excessive packaging: Pay for the product, not the package. Choose reusable packages—and reuse them. Become a passenger Even though America has only 30 percent of the world's cars, we consume nearly half of the global daily fuel consumption—that's 9 million barrels of oil each day. More than 200 million cars and light trucks currently travel U.S. roads, consuming 40 percent of U.S. oil and emitting 20 percent of U.S. carbon dioxide pollutants. And while six in ten Americans have public transportation available to them, only 10 percent use it with some frequency, and just 4 percent use it as their primary means of getting to work (even fewer walk or cycle). Over a year, taking a bus instead of driving a car for a typical ten-mile commute saves two tons of carbon dioxide emissions and reduces air pollutants such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, and benzene. Using public transport leads to improved and more efficient services as well as quicker travel times due to lower traffic congestion. Or consider a car-sharing service. You'll save money, drive less, and spare the atmosphere from tons of toxic emissions. Money talks
If you've bought shares in companies directly, consider selling them and reinvesting the money through a socially responsible investment (SRI) fund that reflects your social and environmental values. The increasing financial clout of these SRI funds is an important driver of more sustainable business practices. Their investments provide crucial dollars for research and development, which leads to more efficient use of renewable or recycled resources. Cheaper prices lead to greater demand, which in turn creates economies of scale and even lower production costs. If you only have a savings account, choose a community-based bank or credit union that provides affordable loans to not-for-profit enterprises.
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