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Eco-Tips
Earth Day is a time for all of us to take action and protect our environment. Here are a wide variety of eco-friendly tips that you can use to celebrate Earth Day. And remember, you can use these tips all year long, too!
Conserve Water
Use the 3 R’s: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle
Watch your carbon emissions
Earth Day is a time for all of us to take action and protect our environment. Here are a wide variety of eco-friendly tips that you can use to celebrate Earth Day. And remember, you can use these tips all year long, too!
Conserve Water
- Don’t keep the water running while you are brushing your teeth or shaving.
- Run the dishwasher only when it is full. Doing so can save 10-20 gallons of water a day!
- 20% of indoor water use can be attributed to showers. Install low-flow showerheads to save water and money.
- Water your lawn and/or garden early in the morning or late in the evening when it is cooler. This will prevent evaporation and allow your plants to get the water they need.
- Sweep sidewalks and driveways instead of using your hose to rinse them off. Washing a sidewalk or driveway with a hose wastes about 50 gallons of water every 5 minutes.
Use the 3 R’s: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle
- Reduce
- Don’t purchase disposable items, such as plates, cups and silverware.
- Avoid buying products that come with excess packaging.
- Purchase products that contain less or no toxic chemicals.
- Reuse
- Use cloth napkins or towels while eating or to clean up any spills or messes.
- Empty jars make great storage containers for your leftovers.
- Save any boxes you may accumulate and reuse them, either for shipping or for storage.
- If something breaks, try to fix it if possible rather than just tossing it out.
- When you’re out shopping, bring a reusable bag with you to carry your purchases instead of collecting a bag from each store.
- Rent, borrow or share items you don’t use very often such as tools, party decorations and audiovisual equipment.
- Recycle
- Recycle paper, glass, aluminum (both cans and foil), cardboard and plastic.
- Make a compost pile in your backyard with food scraps, grass clippings and other dead plants.
- Buy products that are made with recycled products and use recycled packaging.
Watch your carbon emissions
- Cut back on the miles you drive each day by walking, biking or combining car trips. If you stopped driving 20 miles in your car each day, you could save about 900 pounds of CO2 each year.
- Adjust your thermostat in both the summer and winter. Turn your air conditioner’s thermostat up by 2 degrees in the summer and save 110 pounds of CO2 each year; turn your thermostat down 2 degrees during the winter nights to save 92 pounds of CO2.
- Keep on recycling! A household with four people that recycles newspapers for a year can save about 737 pounds of CO2.
- Offset whatever carbon emissions you can’t reduce or omit. Visit www.begreennow.com to find out more.
