Green living is a trend that continues to grow in popularity each day. With how much we have been changing the atmosphere, it’s no surprise that many people want to do their part. This blog post will explore how to be more eco friendly and how doing so will help out the environment and save you money.
What is eco-friendly living?
Living in an eco-friendly way is how we live our lives today. It can be difficult to know how we can make a difference and make a huge impact on the world around us. Here are some ways that you might start living more eco friendly:
- Turn off appliances when not using them (i.e., light bulbs, televisions).
- Use less energy by turning your thermostat down or up depending on the day/season etc.
- To compost food waste management such as vegetable peels and eggshells diverts organic material from landfills into nutrient-rich compost for gardens. Fresh vegetables grown with this compost provide delicious side dishes while reducing landfill space taken up by uneaten fruits & vegetables.
- Use less water by taking shorter showers, turning the tap off while brushing your teeth, doing dishes, etc.
- Use eco-friendly products that are safe for humans and our planet.
What are environmentally friendly practices?
As a person who strives for an environmentally friendly lifestyle, living in an area with as many options as others can become difficult. For example, I live in the desert southwest, and recycling is not easy or convenient here at all. However, we do take care of our land and keep it as clean as possible. Being eco-friendly is a lifestyle choice that helps not only the environment but also your wallet too! Let’s talk about how you can be more environmentally friendly in your everyday life:
- Recycle everything that you possibly can; this will help lessen garbage going into landfills.
- If you don’t need an item anymore, consider giving it away to someone who does rather than throwing it away (another great way to save money)
- Use reusables instead of single-use items where feasible – for example, if drinking water out of disposable plastic waste bottles often throughout the day, invest in reusable ones, so they are just rinsed out and used again.
- Get closer to nature by going on a hike or walk in your local park(s) or somewhere outside – this will help reduce the amount of stress as well.
How do I become more environmentally friendly?
It is easy to become more eco-friendly! The first step of how to be more eco-friendly is reducing your energy-efficient consumption. Ensure that you turn off the light bulbs when they are not in use and take short showers instead of long ones. You can also buy electricity-efficient appliances for your home – these will save you money on bills by using less energy than older models. By following simple steps like this, it’s possible to significantly reduce the amount of energy you consume within a few weeks or months.
Another way I become more environmentally friendly is by recycling anything that cannot go into the kitchen bin. Newspapers, cereal boxes, and plastic bottles all have different recycling systems, so make sure that they are in the correct bag and/or box if you put them out on trash pickup day. Batteries can also be recycled – most supermarkets have a point where you can drop off old batteries, which helps keep our environment safe by preventing them from ending up in landfill sites.
Another approach to becoming more environmentally friendly is changing how we live our lives outside of the house. Try walking or cycling instead of using your car whenever possible. You could try having an eco-driving day once every week – this will help reduce how much gas you use when driving around town for errands such as shopping, visiting friends, and going out for meals.
Is eco-friendly living cost-effective?
Eco-friendly items are more expensive for a variety of reasons, including low demand and high manufacturing expenses. According to a Telegraph story, green items might cost up to 50% more than conventional goods. In Europe, customers ended up spending 2,000 extra euros per year to be environmentally conscious.
Because of supply chain consequences, eco-friendly items are typically more expensive. It is not simple to create items with a low environmental effect — and additional expenditures add to the challenge. Eco-friendly techniques are more expensive when it comes to agricultural products. Organic food is pricier than non-organic because it needs more land.
What are eco-friendly choices I can make at home?
Being environmentally responsible is not only about avoiding plastic bags; it’s about making daily choices that will actually decide our species’ success or failure. We can increase our awareness of pollution reduction, animal protection, and natural resource conservation and take other measures that can assist reduce the rate of climate change.
Every individual may make a difference, especially when environmentally conscious behaviors become ingrained and influence others to follow suit. Doing what is good for the future of life on Earth can have immediate personal rewards. It can help you unleash your creativity, increase your connection to your community and the planet, and may even help you live a healthier lifestyle.
We must minimize the quantity of garbage we produce and recycle or reuse consumer items rather than discarding them. The United States is one of the countries with the highest levels of trash production in the world.
#1 Reuse and recycle
Recycling helps to conserve natural resources, decrease pollution, and save energy. Recycling is sifting and cleaning garbage to generate “secondary materials” — mostly glass, paper, metal, and plastic — for reuse in goods. Recycled metal, for example, is an essential resource; according to the Aluminum Association, production with recycled aluminum is 92 percent more efficient than manufacturing with unused raw materials. Recycling accounts for around 40% of the country’s aluminum supply, yet we still waste away nearly $1 billion worth of aluminum cans that might have been recycled each year.
#2 Remove the bag
Plastic bags are harmful to the environment. They disintegrate over hundreds of years and represent a particular hazard to animals. Every year, hundreds of thousands of marine animals perish after mistaking chemical-laced plastic bags for food. Many animals become trapped in plastic bags and suffocate as a result.
When it comes to retail bags, a good rule of thumb is to refuse them when your item is otherwise transportable or bring your own bags. Use and re-use all of the bags — paper, plastic, and fabric — that have accumulated in your closet over the years, whether or not they are labeled “reusable.” If they get too filthy to carry your new goods, use them to line garbage cans or pick up rubbish. Finally, appropriately dispose of them — recycle if possible.
#3 Purchase only what you intend to utilize
Americans consume far more than they need in terms of automobiles, food, furniture, home goods, recreational equipment, and gadgets – and we buy far more than we need, with many of our consumer purchases seeing little usage.
Excessive personal consumption of commodities results in increased direct and indirect environmental costs, such as the energy consumption and pollutants generated in exploiting natural resources and the production, transportation, and disposal of products.
These expenses may be significantly lowered by avoiding impulsive purchases and doing a genuine assessment of necessity before making a purchase. When you purchase products, look for long-lasting alternatives with the least amount of packing and the lowest possible carbon footprint, and preserve them in excellent condition.
#4 Purchase secondhand
Utilize eBay, Craigslist, or other online marketplaces to purchase second hand products, particularly sturdy goods that are only required for a brief period of time, such as baby furnishings. Second hand products may be nearly as appealing and frequently as practical as new ones, and giving a home item a second life significantly reduces its carbon impact. A third or fourth existence could be much better.
#5 Avoid investing in inactive equipment
When you purchase goods that you will not utilize regularly, you are squandering money and natural resources. When you require equipment, tools, or party supplies not available through friends, rent them from a specialist rental company or a home improvement store. Let friends and family know you’re willing to share any goods you already have in the tool shed that you don’t use daily. Initiate a sharing culture in your area through block parties and regular encounters.
#6 Purchase items with little packaging
Consumer goods packaging is added to trash dumps. According to the EPA, containers and packaging accounted for the lion’s share of municipal garbage, accounting for almost 78 million tons, or nearly 30%. A little more than a third of waste is recycled, yet many end up in landfills. Packaging also greatly increases the cost and environmental impact of consumer items.
When avoiding packing is not possible, repurpose containers, polystyrene (styrofoam) fillers, and bubble wrap, or inquire whether your local shipping provider can utilize them. Recycling is the third-best option after reducing and reusing.
#7 Avoid single-use items
According to the EPA, paper and plastic plates and utensils, disposable diapers, paper towels and napkins, and inexpensive plasticware contribute roughly 20% of America’s waste stream, totaling 50 million tons in 2015.
The greenhouse gas emissions generated by the manufacturing and disposal of these products are a major source of concern for global warming. For gatherings and picnics, stock up on sturdy, bargain-priced dishes, silverware, and glassware. Takeout coffee, use cloth napkins instead of paper, cloth diapers, cloth rags, rechargeable batteries, long-lasting razors, and refillable coffee thermoses.
#8 Abandon the habit of purchasing bottled water
For the second year in a row, Americans consumed 13.7 billion gallons of bottled water, surpassing carbonated beverages. While tap water in the United States is usually safe and must fulfill EPA requirements for potability, bottled water’s popularity stems from its convenience. And consumption continues to rise as people abandon sugary beverages in quest of better health but continue to rely on bottled water at the expense of environmental health.
According to California’s Pacific Institute experts, the energy necessary to create, transport, and chill bottled water are up to 2,000 times required to generate tap water. Additionally, plastic bottles can take up to 450 years to disintegrate. Therefore, while drinking lots of water is necessary for good health, use a reusable water bottle or just a glass when pouring water from your faucet.
#9 Turn off all lights
On an hourly basis, the cost of maintaining light bulbs is negligible: operating a 60-watt bulb for one hour consumes 0.06-kilowatt per hour of power, or roughly 1.2 cents if your electric rate is 20 cents per kilowatt-hour. However, the costs accumulate. According to 2015 usage figures, lighting accounts for 13% of the average household’s energy expenditure. By turning off an unneeded light, such as those in vacant rooms, you may not only save money but also help the environment by reducing your carbon footprint.
#10 Unplug electronic devices
Much electronic equipment, including televisions, microwaves, scanners, and printers, uses standby energy when not used to save warm-up time. According to the Office of Sustainability at Harvard University, the total electricity or energy consumed by idle devices — frequently referred to as vampire or phantom electricity — equals the yearly output of 12 power plants in the United States. Utilize energy strips to facilitate plugging and unplugging these gadgets.
#11 Eat less meat
According to an article published in The Guardian, Oxford University researchers discovered that we could utilize around 75% less land for agriculture globally by eliminating meat and dairy consumption. That is about equivalent to the combined size of the United States, China, Australia, and the European Union.
Vegetarians consume fewer calories and fat, weigh less, and have a reduced risk of heart disease than nonvegetarians. Even a slight reduction in meat consumption makes a huge impact.
#12 Volunteer
Numerous environmental organizations, land conservancies, and other organizations dedicated to environmental care offer volunteer programs. Whether it’s litter picking, making a garden, fund-raising, trail clearing, filling envelopes, or teaching others, volunteering allows you to meet new people, remain current on environmental problems, and contribute to preserving our one earth.
How does having an eco-friendly life help?
While some people may not see how living an eco-friendly life helps, it is often the first step to saving our planet and keeping future generations healthy.
Some of the most common things people might not think about how it affects our planet include: recycling, taking shorter showers, and using a water bottle filter in place of drinking water. All these small changes will help save enormous resources, which helps keep Earth clean for future generations.
While there are many ways that being eco-friendly may seem difficult or tedious, we can create big results if we all make one change at a time together.
Having an eco-friendly lifestyle means every little bit counts, from reusable shopping bags instead of plastic ones when grocery shopping to making sure your electronics get recycled properly, so they don’t end up in landfills.
Even if it seems like you are not making a big difference, remember how much of an impact one person can make by simply recycling or using reusable shopping bags instead of plastic ones. By joining together with friends and family members to help create eco-friendly lifestyle habits, we will all be helping save the planet.
You don’t have to do everything at once either. If you start small, eventually, those little steps add up into something huge that helps contribute even more to keeping our world healthy for future generations.
Having an eco-friendly lifestyle is also just being responsible and respectful towards others because taking care of ourselves means caring about how others live, which makes everyone happier overall.
Leave A Comment