Greening in the New Year: Environmentally Friendly Resolutions
Posted by lindseyshoe
Ringing in the New Year, you can also ring in the green. Try any one or more of these New Year’s Resolutions to begin or continue your journey toward saving money and the environment.
Clean in Green: This year you can go all the way cleaning green with Greenjoyment’s helpful cleaning recipes or you can choose just one change to your cleaning routine such as using one green cleaner for windows, kitchen or bath. Several products are making it that much easier to go green such as Clorox, Arm and Hammer and Seventh Generation, so you don’t even have to make your own. Find out how to begin by visiting “The Basics of Cleaning Green.”
Bag It-No More Plastic in Your Routine: This is actually one of my New Year’s Resolutions. No more plastic bags from the grocery store. I have found several free offers for cotton tote bags from Earthbound, Powershots, Kroger’s, and Arm and Hammer. Can’t find a free offer, Kohl’s sells tote bags for approximately $1.99. Stop in Wal-Mart and purchase large size tote bags from the bags and purses section. On line you can find many patterns and instructions for making your own. Lastly, when all else fails or you are worried about the budget, use paper bags, Kroger’s now offers them as part of your check out experience. Paper bags can be carried back to the store and used a couple of times as well as are easy to recycle.
Reuse or Lose – There are several ways you can reuse items. Check out our article on Electronics Trash for Cash, helping you sell many of your electronic items for store credits or cash. You can also start a uniform or other recycling program at school or extracurricular activities.
Green Your Home: Complete one home improvement project that is environmentally friendly. From our site you can learn about Solar Tubes, Solar Cooking, and Low or No VOC paints. These are just a few ideas. You can even build a whole new house that is earth conscious and environmentally sound. Visit our section on Households for more ideas to get you started.
Light up my Life- Change to fluorescent/energy efficient light bulbs throughout your home. You can simply replace one or two a month and by the end of the year you will be lighting up your life with energy efficient light bulbs that will save you money and save the drain on the environment. http://www.greenjoyment.com/bright-light-clean-disposal-fluorescent-lamps.html#more
Let it Rain - Where I live we get a lot of rain, and it seems silly to let all that water go to waste. Create a rain garden, or water barrel to collect the water or use it for a beautiful landscaping technique. Be sure to see our articles on Rain Gardens and Rain Barrels for instructions on how to create one and how to safely collect and store your rain water.
Reduce, reuse and recycle -We have all heard this phrase and it really is easier to do than you may think. Stick a bucket underneath the sink and as you cook rinse out cans or fold down boxes and place them there. Drop in your curbside pickup box as you take out the trash. Quite often I have more in my recycling than I do in my trash bags. Reuse items, there can usually be more than one use out of a product. For example, sell your books to a used book store or donate them to a library. Use your fabric softener sheets first in the dryer then to clean your windows. Empty plastic containers from sour cream can be used to store “leftovers” or pack snacks in your diaper bag.
In the Bus We Trust: Find ways to reduce your dependency on your car. For example, my husband will treat us to a Sunday morning breakfast of Kolaches. He walks to the store and back, it’s close by and gives him some much desired time to exercise. You can also share rides to work an evening’s entertainment or ride the bus or train to work or entertainment. In our house, the bus saved money, wear and tear, time in the car, emissions, as well as gave a little more time in the day to read a book or the newspaper.
Eat Green: Organically- Each week at the grocery store replace one or more of your regular items with an organic food. By doing so you encourage other organic growers, eliminate chemical toxins in the environment and in your body. You can cut down on antibiotics in meats and milks or chemicals used in our cereals or so called fresh fruits and vegetables. Yes, it costs a little more but it is worth it to eliminate the processes, chemical and antibiotics used in many meats and other foods.
Compost to Get the Most Green in Your Garden: Create your own compost for your garden. This will not only save you money, but eliminate many of the pesticides and chemicals used in commercial compost. Items you can used to compost include: Animal manure, Cardboard rolls, Clean paper, Coffee grounds and filters, Cotton rags, Dryer and vacuum cleaner lint, Eggshells, Fireplace ashes, Fruits and vegetables, Grass clippings, Hair and fur, Hay and straw, Houseplants, Leaves, Nut shells, Sawdust. Shredded newspaper, Tea bags, Wood chips, Wool rags, and Yard trimmings.
Do not use: Black walnut tree leaves or twigs
-Releases substances that might be harmful to plants
Coal or charcoal ash
-Might contain substances harmful to plants
Dairy products (e.g., butter, egg yolks, milk, sour cream, yogurt)
-Create odor problems and attract pests such as rodents and flies
Diseased or insect-ridden plants
-Diseases or insects might survive and be transferred back to other plants
Fats, grease, lard, or oils
-Create odor problems and attract pests such as rodents and flies
Meat or fish bones and scraps
Create odor problems and attract pests such as rodents and flies
Pet wastes (e.g., dog or cat feces, soiled cat litter)
-Might contain parasites, bacteria, germs, pathogens, and viruses harmful to humans
Yard trimmings treated with chemical pesticides
-Might kill beneficial composting organisms
Source: US Environmental Protection Agency
With these ten suggestions for your New Year’s Resolutions you can begin or continue your interest in helping the environment, saving money and power as well as creating a healthier environment for your family and your home.
Greenjoyment wishes you a Happy New Year!
2 Responses to “Greening in the New Year: Environmentally Friendly Resolutions”
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Forgot to mention, that the government have banned standard bulbs as on January 1, 2009. Although it’s still okay to buy old stock, all new manufactured/imported bulbs must be CFL and special recycling centers have been arranged to take CFL waste (as they typically contain mercury). Be careful when buying to look at both the watt equivalence but also whether the bulbs are dimmable and their actual ‘white colour’ output (which is often a lot less than standard tungsten bulbs).
On the plastic bags issue, I wholeheartedly agree. In Ireland, the government introduced a bag tax of about 22 euro cents per bag a few years ago and withing 3 months it was like the whole country had had a spring clean – quite amazing really. They’ve since increased this tax to ‘seal the deal’. Everyone here now has a stash of recyclable/reusable bags or portable crates. Great tip!