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buy a pre-existing home to save
open space.
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live near your work; car pool or
take public transportation; lobby your elected officials to provide
adequate public transportation facilities; ask your employer to
organize van pooling, telecommuting, and so on.
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bring a bag or shopping basket
to the store. Many supermarkets now re-cycle plastic bags or give
you a small credit for re-using them.
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buy energy efficient, refillable
and/or rechargable products for your house and your office.
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leave the clippings on your lawn
when you mow it. Most mowers and tractors can be outfitted with
"mulching" attachments that cut the clippings into
smaller, more easily biodegradable pieces. You will need less
chemical fertilizer and you won't need to water your grass as much
in hot weather.
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other yard waste and food scraps
can be turned into compost for lawns and gardens.
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restore bird habitats on your
property by shrinking your lawn and replacing it with ground cover,
shrubs and trees. Use less pesticide -- or none at all: a healthy
bird population will take care of huge numbers of insects.
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don't pour toxics and waste oil
down the drain or in the storm sewer; recycle them.
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lower your water heater
temperature; fill up the dishwasher before running it; install
toilet damps; use low phosphate detergents to stop algae blooms in
waterways and lakes.
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if your driveway isn't paved,
leave it that way. A gravel drive may be a bit harder to shovel in
the winter, but it will absorb rainwater and it won't leach
petrochemicals into the watershed the way asphalt does.
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set up a community pollution
watch or other volunteer conservation group, or join an existing
group (like us!). Long before recycling became state law, volunteer
groups were collecting waste materials such as bottles and
newspapers. The state environmental agencies are perpetually
over-worked and under-funded. You can help out.
We all have an effect on the
environment every day. Here are some tips on reducing our negative
impact that you can try: