In The Home
Recycle everything you can: newspapers, cans, glass bottles and jars, aluminum foil, motor oil, scrap metal, etc.
Investigate local recycling centers that take items your garbage hauler does not.
Try to use phosphate-free laundry and dish soaps.
Use cold water in the washer whenever possible.
Don't use electrical appliances for things you can easily do by hand, like opening cans.
Re-use brown paper bags to line your trash can instead of plastic liners. Re-use bread bags, butter tubs, etc.
Store food in re-usable containers, instead of plastic wrap or aluminum foil.
Save wire coat hangers and return them to the dry cleaners.
Take unwanted, re-usable items to a charitable organization or thrift shop.
Don't leave water running needlessly.
Install a water-saving shower head.
Set your water heater at 130 degrees.
Have your water heater insulated free of charge by your utility company.
Turn your heat down, and wear a sweater.
Lower your thermostat by one degree per hour for every hour you'll be away or asleep.
Turn off the lights, TV, or other electrical appliances when you're out of a room.
Get a free energy audit from your utility company.
Burn only seasoned wood in your woodstove or fireplace... and don't light them as often.
IN YOUR YARD
Start a compost pile.
Put up birdfeeders, birdhouses, and birdbaths.
Pull weeds instead of using herbicides.
Use only organic fertilizers... they're still the best.
Compost your leaves and yard debris, or take them to a yard debris recycler. (Burning them creates air pollution, and putting them out with the trash wastes landfill space.)
Use mulch to conserve water in your garden.
Take extra plastic and rubber pots back to the nursery.
Plant short, dense shrubs close to your home's foundation to help insulate your home against cold.
(savetherainforest.com)
