Small Changes to Help the Environment

There are many websites out there with tips for helping the environment. This is just a short list of small things we are doing. Please share with us what you are doing to help save the planet for the next generations. Together we can make a difference.

1) Just say no to plastic bags! 

Once I started to think about it, buying one item and getting a plastic bag for it just did not make sense under most circumstances. Sure there are times it is raining out, and you want that extra layer of protection. I'm thinking about those times you pop into a store for one item (for me, it was making a copy of a key) and you leave with that item, plus a bag. Do you always need that bag? Even better...bring your own bags and cut down on the clutter in your home. Support NJ Senate Bill S-812 to have a 5-cent fee on all single use bags by clicking HERE.

2) Handkerchiefs

Don realized he was carrying tissues and napkins for those times he needed to blow his nose (or the times Ashley had a sneeze). The tissues and napkins would then end up in the laundry, making a giant mess. His solution was very old-school: carry a handkerchief. If it ends up in the laundry, it is no big deal, plus he is not wasting paper.

3) Cat litter containers

It seems every couple of months, Don comes up with a new use for those cat litter containers each of us cat owners accumulate. Cat lovers know these -- they are big enough to seem useful, but how? We use one as a trash can, another to collect recycling, a third for composting, a fourth for gardening tools (who cares if it gets dirty?), and a fifth one he attached to the back of his bike to carry milk cartons back from Halo. This week he figured out a way to attach a lock to one to make it seem more protected (yes, if someone really wants in, they will find a way). Here is a link to many more uses for these containers.

4) Live Local

Support the local businesses near to your home. Chances are you are already meeting these local business owners at church, school, in the park, etc. By supporting their businesses, it helps them to be able to continue living nearby.

5) Attend a local Eco-Fair

As luck would have it, I'm on the planning committee for the Living Local Expo taking place March 23, 2013 from 12-4 at Lawrence High School. Come out to learn more ways to live local and help the environment.