20 Easy Ways to be Environmentally Friendly
- Reduce the number of journeys you make by car – investigate whether some journeys can be made by bus, by sharing a lift, or by walking or cycling (the last two will also improve your fitness).
- If you live a long distance from a shop you wish to visit, see if you can order online or via mail order. The delivery cost may actually be less than the round-trip in your car. Reuse or recycle any packaging you receive with your goods. (It's more environmentally friendly to have one lorry on the road than several cars.)
- Recycle kitchen and garden waste by starting a compost bin and/or wormery. You may never need to buy fertiliser again.
- Make use of your local councils' doorstep recycling scheme.
- Instead of going abroad for your holidays, why not explore your own country? Air travel is one of the most polluting forms of transport.
- Switch your electricity to a green tariff. In many cases, this tariff is now the same price as other sources.
- When cooking food on the hob, use a lid on the pan.
- Only boil the amount of water you need for your drink.
- Take a shower instead of a bath.
- Turn off unused lights and electrical equipment.
- Reduce the amount of junk mail you receive and recycle - register with the Mail Preference
- Service (www.mpsonline.org.uk - in the UK).
- Fit energy saving light bulbs in those rooms you tend to leave lit for more than a few minutes at a time.
- Buy goods made from recycleable materials (including packaging), and/or from sustainable sources.
- Don't replace your mobile phone every twelve months, only when it either breaks, or you need extra functionality. Recycle your old phone.
- Ensure your home is properly insulated, and only heat areas that need to be heated. You can sometimes obtain grants to help cover the cost of fitting additional insulation.
- Use good quality, reusable shopping bags instead of cheap, single-use versions.
- Replace worn out cookware with good quality cookware with a lifetime guarantee.
- Switch to an ethical bank.
- Allow foods to cool to room temperature before putting them in the fridge or freezer.
- Buy goods produced locally wherever possible.
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