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Computing
Go portable.
Laptops are 90% more energy efficient than desktops,
with built-in energy saving properties such as LCD screens and sleep modes.
Put your computer to sleep.
Screen savers are a thing of the past. Created to prevent images being
burned into your monitor, this is no longer a thing of a concern, and
uses just as much energy as surfing the net. To truly save energy, set
your computer to enter sleep mode, which can cut electricity used by 80%
and save you a bundle on your next bill.
Monitor your monitor.
Computer monitors use much more electricity than the hard drive of a computer.
If you are going to be away from your monitor for 15 minutes or more, turn it off.
Better yet, purchase one that doesn't use as much energy, such as an LCD monitor.
Cooking and Food
Meals.
Eat in the campus dining centers instead of take-out. You'll reduce transportation
and disposable container costs and you'll get exercise to boot.
Cook Smart.
Natural gas ovens are almost twice as efficient as electric ovens.
However, if you must cook with an electric oven, purchase one with a convection fan:
these cost up to 30% less to operate than electric ovens without a convection fan.
Don't Peek!
Have you ever stolen a look at your dinner in the oven before it's
finished or looked under the lit of a cooking pot? Every time you do this, as much as
25% of the heat escapes. Use an oven light, timer, and meat thermometer instead.
If every American were to peek one less time per year, we would prevent nearly 7000 tons
of carbon dioxide from escaping into the environment.
Eat locally grown food.
So much can be accomplished through such a simple effort.
Eating locally grown food supports local development, prevents food from needing to be
transported and thus expelling carbon dioxide into the air, and food is generally fresher
and cheaper.
Say "Excuse You" to Beef.
Believe it or not, a significant problem facing the earth's ozone layer is from cow
burping. Passing gas releases methane into the ozone, which is much more rare than
CO2 but 23 times more potent. Because cows have four stomachs, they burp an awful lot.
In one year, the world's 1.3 billion cows release over 73 million tons of methane into
the environment. Burping aside, setting land and energy aside for meat production is
significantly more wasteful than the land and energy needed to produce vegetables.
In short, if Americans reduced their meat consumption by 10%, we would save enough
grain to feed over 60 million people.
Know your labels.
Just because something says it is "natural" or "organic" doesn"t necessarily mean it"s
better for you or was grown using fewer pesticides. The USDA uses four different
classifications of organic food, and only food that is 95% - 100% organic may carry
the USDA organic seal. This does not stop companies from playing word games, however,
so watch what you are purchasing!
Buy in season.
Buy fruit and vegetables when they are in-season. This decreases the amount of miles
they must travel to reach you, AND they taste better!
Your mother was right - eat more vegetables.
What she didn't tell you was that it makes sense economically. Not only is produce
cheaper than meat, but the total value of raw materials used for meat production in
the US in one year is higher than the value of all the gas, oil, and coal consumed by
the US each year.
The smaller the better.
Cutting your food up into smaller pieces decreases the time and energy needed to cook it.
Put a lid on it!
Always cover your food before you put it in the fridge. Uncovered food releases moisture
that makes it more difficult for your fridge to keep things cool. Also, your roommate will
appreciate the lack of smell and mess.
Energy
Keep it cool.
When deciding how to organize your room, make sure to put your mini-fridge somewhere where
the sun won't hit it. This way you won't have to keep turning down the temperature to keep
things cool as the days grow hotter.
Clean out the lint.
Don't rely on your fellow dorm mates to have done the job for you - always check and make
sure the lint cache is clean. This improves air circulation and requires less energy to dry
your clothing.
Unplug everything.
Even when turned off, many appliances still leak a small amount of electricity - and this
can add up very quickly over time. To avoid losing precious energy, unplug electronic
equipment whenever possible. Coffeemakers, toasters, and other kitchen appliances are easy
to unplug after every use. For entertainment equipment use a power strip and turn it all
off. Unplug cell phone, i-pod and other portable items charging equipment.
Batteries aren't better.
Just because electronics leak electricity doesn't mean that switching to batteries is a
smart answer. Disposable batteries contain toxic metals that are impossible to get rid
of that when crushed, release these toxins into the air. Even when disposed of correctly,
the material must be separated and stored forever. If you must use batteries,
use rechargeable ones.
Lifestyle
Reduce.
Of the "Three R's," reducing your intake and output is the most important. Each American
produces nearly 1700 pounds of garbage a year. If you reduce the amount of stuff you
need to throw away, you won't have to reuse or recycle as much.
Compost!
Composting reduces the emission of greenhouse gasses and also creates a very effective
fertilizer for your garden. In order to avoid an odor coming from your compost pile,
it is important to aerate it with oxygen by stirring it at least twice a month.
This prevents fermentation which both releases a foul odor and methane gas into the
atmosphere.
Teach future generations.
Tell your younger siblings, cousins, or children the merits and benefits of recycling.
We all know that it is important to grow up learning good habits - why not make recycling
one of them?
Be creative!
Before you throw something out, think to yourself: what else could I use this for? You
can always find at least two uses for something that is not the use it was created for.
Save yourself money, time, and give the environment a little bit of a break and reuse
everything you can.
Use reusable containers.
As well as bringing cloth bags to supermarkets, carry a thermos around with you if you
need a drink. Instead of emptying several small cans of soda, for example, buy a
big bottle and fill up when you need to.
Just because it's easier doesn't mean it's better.
Using plastic plates and silverware might make cleaning up a lot less of a hassle,
but it adds a lot of unnecessary waste to our already growing landfill problems.
Use reusable dishes and wash them afterward - water is renewable and you'll save
money on having to constantly restock.
Donate!
Donating old goods to services such as the Salvation Army not only leave you with
less stuff, but if you get a receipt, can be deducted from your taxes as well.
Have a yard sale.
If you don't want to donate your old possessions and eBay is too much of a hassle,
holding an old fashioned yard sale can accomplish the same goal of getting rid of
your stuff and saving the landfills from filling more land.
Donate your car.
Often this makes more sense than trying to sell it, as when you donate it the
organization you give it to will give you a receipt for the absolute highest current
value on the market. You may not have as good luck selling it for that price.
Educate yourself.
Read books, talk to people, and join newsletters (online, of course, to save paper!)
to learn as much as you can about energy conservation. You'd be surprised how many ways
you can help the environment that you may never have thought of on your own.
Communicate.Talk with your roommate about energy conservation such as turning
off lights when you leave the room, using reusable plates, and recycling. It does little
good if you're trying your hardest to do your part if the person sharing your space
isn't doing a thing.
Office
Print carefully.
If you're just printing off notes for a class, a to-do list, or something equally as
"un-official," use the back of a paper you have already printed on.
Print and copy on both sides of the paper. Saving paper is one of the best things you
can do to conserve energy, and prevents you from having to go run out for more paper
every week or so.
Use power strips.
Using a power strip reduces the amount of electricity leakage when appliances are off
from 75 watts each to only about 3 or 4 watts. It also protects your appliances from
power surges, and gives you more places to plug things in as dorm rooms generally don't
have more than two outlets.
Printer Cartridges.
Refill them instead of buying new and throwing the old ones out.
Purchasing
Be fashionable!
Buy recycled products such as reclaimed furniture, vintage kimono purses, or rebuilt
Levi skirts. Recycling doesn't work one way.
Paper or Plastic?
It takes 430,000 gallons of oil to manufacture 100 million plastic bags.
Help the environment and lower gas prices by choosing biodegradable bags, or just bring
your own reusable bag when you shop.
Labels, labels, labels.
Not every product contains information that it is made from recycled material. Keep
in mind that these products are ALWAYS made from some mixture of non-virgin materials:
aluminum soda cans, glass containers, tin cans, and pulp cardboard.
Buy Locally.
Purchase from local vendors all that you can. You not only help the economy where you live
but you are decreasing trucking costs and packing material usage. Even online shopping
can contribute to more use of these resources.
Bottled Water.
Why not buy a reusable water bottle? Many offices and homes have 5 gal containers that
you could use. Even tap water in CNY is still in the top 10 worldwide in flavor.
Use reusable containers.
Packaging supplies make up 1/3 of America's landfills. Try using plastic containers
that can be washed and used again and again instead.
Don't bottle it.
Drinking enough water is important, especially after exercise and during hotter months,
but there's no need to bottle it. Recent studies have shown that tap water is just as
safe, if not more safe, than bottled water. So, buy a reusable container and keep on
filling it!
Recycling-Reusing
Resell.
eBay is a wonderful new resource for a new age of recycling. If you have old items
that are still useful but you just don't want them hanging around anymore, hop online
and sell them to someone who does want them rather than throwing them away.
Once again - recycle!
For each aluminum can you recycle, you will prevent one pound of carbon dioxide from
being emitted. If you recycle your newspaper every day, you'll prevent one hundred
pounds of carbon dioxide from being emitted each year.
Recycle the unusual.
If you have something that you aren't sure is recyclable but feel weird about throwing
out, ask! Chances are there is some place that will take it. For example, oil change
and auto parts stores take motor oil neatly packed in clean milk jugs.
Transportation
Drive Smart.
Cars are responsible for 21% of the world's global warming emissions.
Oil consumption is the key here. To reduce oil consumption, make sure your car has
regular tune-ups, and take note: if you suddenly find yourself filling up more often
than normal, something may be wrong with your vehicle.
Don't idle.
Letting your car idle for more than 20 seconds burns more gasoline than turning the
engine off and on, and can actually hurt your car by letting gasoline condense and
damage cylinder walls and spark plugs. Save your wallet and the environment and turn
the engine off.
Don't speed.
A car's fuel efficiency starts to plummet after 60 miles per hour, so watch that
lead foot when driving on the highway.
Drive less.
Carpooling and taking public transportation can make your life easier while helping
keep the environment cleaner as well. If 500 people took public transportation instead
of driving each day, over 300 tons of carbon dioxide would be prevented from entering
the environment.
Choose your ride wisely.
SUVs get upwards of 16 miles to the gallon, as opposed to 23 mpg and up found in
smaller passenger cars. To save money and the environment don't choose an SUV unless
you plan on doing off-road travel.
Make a road trip of it.
When it's time to go back to school or pack up at the end of the year, see if you can
carpool with other friends in the area. You'll save gas and you can trade off on the
chore of driving.
Water
Watch for leaks!
If your faucet is dripping at the rate of one drop per second, you can expect to waste
2,700 gallons per year which will add to the cost of water and sewer utilities, or
strain your septic system.
Go easy on flushing.
In the average home, the toilet accounts for 28% of water use. Avoid flushing the toilet
unnecessarily. Dispose of tissues, insects and other such waste in the trash rather than
the toilet.
Brushing your teeth.
Turn off the water if you brush your teeth. Some estimates have this action saving over
2000 gallons per year.
Bathing.
Take shorter and cooler showers. When you are at the sink, fill the basin instead of
letting the water run
Wash wisely.Do only full loads of laundry. If you have only one or two things
that need to be cleaned, either wait until you have more items to add to the load or hand
wash them. It saves water and makes your clothing last longer as well.
Watch your water.
Every day, between the sink, the shower and the toilet, the average American uses
50 gallons of water per day. |
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