Everyday actions that help the environment

It doesn’t take as much effort to help our environment as you might think. Just a few small changes can make a big difference. We have a whole list of options.

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Want to save the planet? It’s easier than you think! Small changes in various areas of your life can have big impacts on the damage you do to our planet.

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• Compost
• Use the energy-saving function on your appliances.
• Skip the oven preheat. Unless you’re baking, it’s completely unnecessary. Just adjust your timing slightly.
• Fix that leaky faucet.
• Stop being lazy and do your dishes instead of using paper/plastic ware.
• Grow your own food. (This means healthier food for you and less transportation costs to ship produce across the planet.)
• While you’re at it, shop the farmer’s market or local farms for what you can’t grow or butcher on your own.

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• Take your kitchen timer to the bathroom, then limit your showers.
• Buy shampoos and soaps that are safer for the environment.
• Soap up with your significant other. It saves water and time.
• Turn off the water while you brush those teeth.
• Cut down on the baths — they use around twice as much water as showers.

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• Only do your laundry when you have a full load.
• Avoid using hot water – Stick with cold or warm (It uses less energy).
• In the summer, hang your clothes out to dry. That always smelled so good anyway, right?
• Buy the concentrated laundry detergent.
• Don’t toss those wire hangers — give them to your dry cleaner or see if the local thrift store needs them.

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• Turn down the heat, turn up the air conditioner.
• Unplug electronics that aren’t being used.
• Turn the lights off.
• Change out your light bulbs for compact fluorescent ones.
• Turn off your monitor if you leave your computer for more than 10 minutes, turn the PC off if you’re leaving for an hour or more.

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• Reuse water bottles or replace them with the reusable kind.
• Recycle those cans, wine bottles and paper goods.
• Can you repurpose that old furniture or well-loved clothing, instead of trashing it?
• Unsubscribe to your junk snail mail.
• Sign up for paperless billing.

Check out these fun ways to encourage recycling at your house >>

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• Bring your own bags.
• Are you sure you couldn’t walk there?
• Downgrade from that SUV.
• Double up on water-cooler time by carpooling to work.
• Condense errands into one trip and one efficient route.
• Boycott Styrofoam.
• Bring your own cup or mug to the coffee place.

Seems easy enough, right? We have the utmost faith in you that with a little determination, you can make a big difference in your footprint on the environment. Suit up and get it done!

More ways to stay green

Teach your kids the value of nature
What can you do with your old batteries?
Top 20 green products for your home