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Ten fast and easy tips for going “green”

By Lori Bongiorno

Posted Fri Mar 27, 2009 3:38pm PDT

More from The Conscious Consumer blog

Want to live a more environmentally friendly life, but don't know where to start? Here are some ideas to help you take the first step. These simple suggestions don't require any extra time or cash. In fact, you'll probably end up saving money.

The tips below are adapted from Green, Greener, Greenest: A Practical Guide to Making Eco-Smart Choices a Part of Your Life, which illustrates the whole spectrum of green options because we're not all starting from the same place.

Food: Eating less meat and dairy is good for your health, your budget, and the planet (raising livestock is responsible for 18% of global greenhouse gases). Cutting back even a little bit helps. Some ideas to get you started: Limit the amount of meat on your plate and fill up with grains and veggies, avoid meat for one meal each day, or make one day a week meatless.

Food prep and storage: Don't microwave food in plastic containers because chemicals are more likely to leach out when they are heated.

Personal care: Say no to antibacterial soaps. Not only are they completely unnecessary, but they may also do more harm than good by contributing to the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Children: Use glass baby bottles or choose safer plastics without estrogen-mimicking bisphenol A (BPA). For older children, choose stainless-steel sippy cups. They are more expensive, but will last a lot longer than their plastic counterparts so you'll have to buy fewer.

Cleaning: Using old towels and T-shirts instead of disposable wipes and paper towels will cut down on waste and save you money. Plus, cloth is softer, so it's better for cleaning delicate items.

Save energy: Turn out the lights when you leave a room, activate the power-down setting on your computer, and reduce standby power consumption by unplugging electronics you aren't using. Or try plugging electronics into a power strip and turning it off when you go to sleep or leave for long periods of time.

Save water: Turn off the tap while you're brushing your teeth. You'll save up to 8 gallons of water a day or 2,880 gallons a year. If everyone in the U.S. did this, we'd save 875 billion gallons of water a year.

Home improvement: Use caulk, spray foam, and weather-stripping to stop heated or cooled air from leaking out of your home. Installing door sweeps is another easy and inexpensive way to keep your house from leaking cash.

Garden: Water grass in the cool of the morning to avoid evaporation, make sure sprinklers are watering your plants and not the pavement, and check hoses for leaks.

Transportation: Stop idling. Maximize fuel efficiency in your car by driving the speed limit, rolling up windows when you're on the highway, and taking good care of your car.

Ready to do more? Check out these greener and greenest suggestions.

Environmental journalist Lori Bongiorno shares green-living tips and product reviews with Yahoo! Green's users. Send Lori a question or suggestion for potential use in a future column. Her book, Green Greener Greenest: A Practical Guide to Making Eco-smart Choices a Part of Your Life is available on Yahoo! Shopping and Amazon.com.

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Posted by Hussein Sat Apr 11, 2009 12:16pm PDT
Food for thought!
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Posted by Looking Out For You Sat Apr 11, 2009 2:13pm PDT
Good list. Regarding point #1 - Increase Veggies? Remember pesticides? If decreasing dairy and meat in one's diet is an improvement of health remains to be seen. At one point we were encouraged to drink milk for healthy teeth and bones. On point #2 - Do not use the microwave (Avoid as much as possible). It is radiation (Albeit, small amounts) and is harmful to the environment in consumption of energy and CFC outplacement.
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Posted by diana_23 Tue Apr 21, 2009 3:31am PDT
Very important article.I like it.I think that each of us can take something useful for her/himself:-)
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Posted by Deeba Tue Apr 21, 2009 5:51pm PDT
Yes indeed, what great ideas. India has been using stainless steel for ages, & I find that an environement friendly, reuseable option. Begin with baby bottles,& move on to steel for everyday crockery. On a foodie level,don't throw out the over ripe bananas. Freeze them & use them in a bread or cake when you have time. Waste less!
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Posted by humairab Wed Apr 22, 2009 2:44am PDT
What a helpful site i just got to get useful tips for living better. hb
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Posted by Snigda Wed Apr 22, 2009 5:37am PDT
earhday
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Posted by Viviana Wed Apr 22, 2009 2:56pm PDT
Yeap thats right lets save water! lets save our awesome planet!
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Posted by Unhappy @ Hampton Wed Apr 22, 2009 3:50pm PDT
ANOTHER THING I DO IS RECYCLE EVERYTHING. WHEN COOKING LOOK AT WHAT IS IN YOUR HAND BEFORE YOU TOSS IT IN THE TRASH. I BET U COULD RECYCLE IT. ie ALLLL PLASTIC BAGS FOOD COMES IN; SALADS,VEGGIES, CHEESE. i FIND BREAD BAGS GREAT TO FREEZE LEFTOVERS IN. COMPOST PEELS,SHELLS ETC. TODAY FOR EARTH DAY I TURNED ALL OLD PRESCRIPTIONS TO THE HOSPITAL. MY VEGETABLES ARE ALL PLANTED.
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Posted by Amrutha R Wed Apr 22, 2009 5:19pm PDT
hi
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Posted by Leah Thu Apr 23, 2009 8:01am PDT
Cutting back on dairy consumption good for health and budget? Your reality check has BOUNCED big time. Can you suggest a source of calcium with better bioavailability? I think not. And let's do a price comparison. One gallon of milk at Randall's with store card - $2.49 (sometimes as low as $2 on sale). One half gallon of Silk soymilk at HEB - $2.99 ($5.98 per gallon). Last time I looked $5.98 is more than $2.49. The rest of your article... either it is irrelevant (don't need bottles at all when you feed babies straight from the source) or we've been doing it for years already. Try suggesting something innovative, like keeping a bucket in the bathroom to catch bath/shower water while you are waiting for the warm water to get to the faucet. Then you can water a tree or flowerbed with it instead of letting it run down the drain.
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Posted by exiquio.guevara Mon Jul 6, 2009 5:14am PDT
nesesito en espanich
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Posted by smiley_moose123 Tue Oct 27, 2009 3:23pm PDT
If you water the grass in the cool of the morning, I can see how it won't evaporate then. But, what if the water doesnt dissolve as quickly as you would think it would? If it got hotter during the day, and you're water evaporated then, would you have to water your grass and plants again?
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