Our family goal is to reduce our overall carbon footprint. We are already very aware of our environment. This annual goal is designed to incorporate all aspects of conservation in our family habits and lifestyle.
We are being very serious about this desire to go green. Specifically, we have reduced down our vehicles to one, and we are going to move to a home that is about half the size of our current one which is more than enough for our needs. We will be choosing a new home that is closer to public transportation and has enough room for me to grow a small garden for our family produce needs. We are cutting red meat out of our diet completely, and will be going nearly vegetarian. We already have a diet full of vegetables, fruits, nuts/legumes, and grains. I was even able to switch my family to whole wheat breads and tortillas as well as brown rice this past year so we are well on our way to a more organic, earthy lifestyle.
In the Home
- Don’t use the dryer in the summer months. Whether electric or gas, less use of any energy to heat air to dry your laundry is less energy consumed. Certainly don’t dry towels, as they contain a lot of water, and naturally dry by design.
- Wash clothes with cold water, hang dry your laundry rather than putting it in the dryer when it’s warm outside. Clean the lint filter in the dryer every time.
- Take mainly cool showers if you are healthy or if you want to boost up your immune system and save energy and water at the same time.
- Replace any incandescent light bulbs with Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFL) or Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs)
- Use the microwave. Microwaves use a lot less energy than conventional ovens and stoves, especially for heating water.
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Turn off your lights when they aren’t being used, even when you leave a room for a short period of time.
- Use dishwashers instead of washing dishes by hand. You actually use more hot water when you wash dishes by hand. Do not use the heated dry mode on your dishwasher.
- Turn off the faucet while brushing your teeth. You will save 25 gallons of water a month.
- Reduce water in your toilet tank. Putting a liter bottle filled with water in your toilet tank can save 300 gallons per month.
- Use a low-flow showerhead and faucet aerators to conserve water.
- Unplug your electronics: Most electronics still use some energy even when turned off. This ‘standby mode’ or ‘phantom load’ drains up to 10 percent of electricity used in most homes.
- Turn off your computer when you’re not using it. Or adjust your computer’s power management to reduce the amount of power it uses while idle. Do this on any computer’s you have access too.
In The Garden
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Use perennial vegetables instead of annuals (there are more than you think!)
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Plant edibles including trees, vines, bushes, mushrooms, and ground-covers, to reduce your carbon footprint and have a “farmer’s market at home”.
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Avoid using leaf blowers and other dust-producing equipment.
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Leave grass clippings on the yard they decompose and return nutrients to the soil
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Use recycled wood chips to keep the weeds down, retain moisture, and prevent erosion
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Plant marigolds to ward off pests rather than a pesticide
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Water grass early in the morning. See more on Water Conservation in Gardens
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Borrow seldomly used items such as ladders, chain saws, and party decorations.
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Put leaves in a compost heap instead of burning them or throwing them away
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Install water barrels to collect rain water from troughs. Place a small bucket in your sink to collect water when washing produce. Use this water in the garden.
edit Reduce Reuse Recycle
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Live where you work. Consider reducing the number of trips you take by habit.
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Consider car pooling.
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Consider using your bike, feet, or mass transportation for most transportation needs
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Consider purchasing a Hybrid vehicle, or more efficient car.
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Purchase radial tires and keep them properly inflated
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Drive during non-peak hours If you avoid heavy traffic you will not spend a significant amount of gas during stops.
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“The shortest distance between two points is a straight line” Keep that in mind while driving. Plan out your trips accordingly. Indeed some trips may be “slower” due to lane speeds, but less time on the road is less gas. More money in your pocket and less damage to the environment.
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Know when to turn the car off. The best way to warm up a modern car is to drive it. Idling hurts engines, wastes gas, and contributes to global warming and pollution.
DIET!
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Decrease your meat consumptionChoose seafood that is both sustainable and healthy.
. More land has to be put into agricultural production to produce meat than to produce plant products. Because the methane they belch is 23 times more effective at retaining heat than CO2, domestic animals contribute more to global warming than all human transportation combined.
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Buy local products. Buy goods that were produced locally rather than transported across long distances.
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Buy food from the bulk bins at your local health food store. Most food in those stores is more expensive but the bulk bins and bulk spices are often cheaper than grocery store equivalents and use less packaging. Bring your own reusable jars or other containers.
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Be particular about the fish you eat. Many fish are over harvested or their capture has negative impacts on ocean ecosystems. In addition, some species of seafood pose health risks due to heavy metals and toxins that have built up in their systems.
(All of these excellent tips are found on http://green.wikia.com/wiki/How_to_reduce_your_carbon_footprint)
Join us in adopting some of these great tips and get more green with us!
From the Lilypad 
