What can you do to help take good care
for our planet?
Kids
with HEART Activities: With your family,
decide on one or more new green tips to implement for at least six
weeks. Document the ways you have
helped our environment with pictures, graphs, and stories.
29 General Tips (for Going Green)
from Squidoo
They can also
save you money,
too.
Every
little bit is a step to help save
the earth!
- Change to fluorescent
bulbs - If every house in the United States changed all of the
light bulbs in their house, that would be equivalent to taking one
million cars off the streets.
- Don't
rinse - Skip rinsing your plates before putting them into the
dishwasher. In average you will save 15 gallons of water per load.
Plus,
you will save
time.
- Hang outside to dry
- Get a clothes line or rack to dry your clothes. Your clothes will
last
longer and you will save money
- Turn
off computers at night - Don't just put them to sleep. You
will
save an average of 4 cents a day which ads up to $14.60 a year.
- Use both
sides of paper - if you have a printer with a double sided print
option use it. You will save half of the amount of paper you would
have
normally used than when your done bring it to the
recycle
bin.
- Get rid of baths - Don't
take baths; take showers. You will
in average save about half the amount of water that you would if you
were taking a bath.
- Don't
get bottled water - Instead of bottled
water get a reusable
container to carry water. Also you can get a filter to
make your
home tap taste more like bottled water. It is definitely more cost
efficient.
- Turn the water off when you
brush. Your parents have said
this before, now I say it. You will save 4 gallons of water doing
this
alone.
- Shorten
your shower - Every minute you cut from your shower is
roughly 5
gallons of water. The less time your shower takes, the lower your
impact on the environment.
- Recycle glass - If you do not
recycle glass, it will take a million years
to decompose.
- Don't
preheat the oven unless needed. Just turn the oven on after
you put the dish in it. Also, to see if it's finished just look
through
the glass instead of opening it.
- Use
warm or cold setting on washer - Instead of the hot cycle, use
the warm or cold setting. This will save a lot of energy a year.
- Turn
down your thermostat - Every degree lower in the winter or
higher in the summer you put it is a 10% decrease on your energy
bill.
- Turn
off your lights - This is an easy one. Turn off your lights
when you
are not using them. The benefits are obvious.
- Get
rid of junk mail - There are many services that can help you
get rid of junk mail. That will lead to a lot less trees being cut
down
to take up room in your mailbox.
- Use matches instead of
lighters - Lighters are usually
considered disposable so they will most likely end up in land fills.
You
can use the cardboard matches which are much more eco-friendly
because
they are made of recycled material.
- Don't get a paper
phone book - Instead of getting a paper phone book. Use a
online
directory instead.
- Give
things away - Take things that you are not going to wear or
use
and give it to a charity or someone who will use it.
- Go to a car wash - Going to a car
wash is a lot more water
efficient then washing your car at home.
- Stop paper bank statements - Why
waste paper getting your
bank statement mailed to you when you can just check it out online.
- Buy rechargeable
batteries - Even though it will take a good investment to buy
these you will find yourself gaining it back in no time.
- Pay
your bills online - If every house in the US did this then
we
would save 18 million trees every year.
- Get
a reusable bag - You can't recycle plastic bags, instead get
yourself a reusable bag so that you won't have to worry about
carrying
your necessities.
- Do
errands in bulk - Make a list of the things you have to do, and
see if you can fit a couple of those things together in one ride.
- Inflate
your tires - If your tires are inflated at all times your
car
will run more miles on less gas.
- Wrap presents creatively -
Without going out to get wrapping
paper you can use newspaper, an old map, or anything else. It would
look
a whole lot more creative.
- Plant a tree - It's good
for the air, can keep you cool, and can
increase your property value.
- Buy local produce - Consider
how much energy it takes for produce from
china or any other country to come here. If you have the option to
buy
local, do it.
- Walk
or ride your bike when you can - If you have to go somewhere
close consider riding your bike or walking there instead of your
car.
It's better on the environment and healthier.