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Step 1
Steer clear of the "dirty dozen." The Environmental Working Group has identified a dozen conventionally-grown fruits and vegetables that commonly have the highest amounts of pesticide residue. To avoid these pesticides, EWG suggests always buying organically grown peaches, apples, sweet bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, lettuce, imported grapes, pears, spinach, and potatoes. See the link below to their report.
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Step 2
Always buy for efficiency and quality. Stop buying cheap, throw-away items. Whether you are buying a new jacket or a new piece of furniture, buy things you know will last a long time. In the case of appliances or cars, always research the energy-use of several models and choose the most efficient.
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Step 3
Purchase items with the most post-consumer recycled content you can find. When you are at the grocery store, look carefully at packaging on items such as toilet paper, laundry soap, and plastic bags. Be sure to prioritize the post-consumer content - this is material being used after it has been recycled and therefore did not come from new resources.
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Step 4
Buy green household cleaners - or make your own at home. Green cleaners have now hit the mainstream and can be found at nearly any store. They are better for the environment because they use non-toxic ingredients that do not harm the ecosystem. You can also clean many day-to-day messes with a vinegar and water or baking soda and water solution. See below for links to additional information.
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Step 5
Outfit your fixtures with compact florescent light bulbs. Compact florescents are now available to fit most fixtures and give off soft, pleasing light. They last up to 10 times longer than traditional light bulbs and can save around $30 on your electric bill over the life of each bulb. According to the website www.cflbulbs.com, "If every household in the U.S. replaced just ONE incandescent light bulb with an energy efficient compact fluorescent light bulb, it would eliminate the equivalent of the emissions created by one million cars."
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Step 6
Buy local, buy organic. Buying locally made goods helps reduce the fossil-fuel used during transportation. Just think about all those clothes and trinkets that travelled all the way from China! Instead, buy organic food at a farmer's market and seek out services from your local area.
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Step 7
Bring your own bags. When you go shopping, bring your bags in for another use before you recycle them - or purchase re-useable cloth bags.
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Step 8
Avoid excessive packaging. Please choose a package made of recyclable materials over those frustrating large plastic contraptions made just for the benefit of the display.
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Step 9
Shop second-hand. One of the best ways to minimize your impact as a consumer is to give useful goods another life by shopping at thrift stores. You will avoid the materials used to make a new product, the fuel used in transportation, and save an item from the landfill.
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Step 10
Buy re-usables, NOT disposables. Use cloth napkins at mealtimes and clean up kitchen spills with cotton towels. Package food in washable containers and avoid using plastic bags and wrap. If you have a baby, use cloth diapers instead of disposables - you will be amazed at the selection of new-and-much-improved re-usable diapers available today (see Resources for more information).
Comments
MIghtyDreamer said
on 10/30/2008 extremely detailed and good suggestions