Everyday Habits That Can Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

Every day we make decisions that affect the earth in many ways. By making simple changes in our daily routine, we can make a huge impact on the planet. The most important thing you need to accept is that small changes often reap bigger rewards than big ones. Although it is not possible to reduce our carbon footprint entirely, there are many ways of living sustainably.

There are many ways to go about it which include eliminating junk food, using reusable bags, cooking at home more often and using eco-friendly cleaning products. These eco-conscious lifestyle habits can help people reduce their homes’ environmental impact and save money in the long run.

growth of organic food industry

Ditch Electronic and Appliance ‘idling

One of the most common habits that people have is that they turn unused appliances on for hours even though they are home. A new study has found that about 40% of energy goes to waste on standby mode, only accounting for 20% of electricity usage. With the rising cost of electricity and rising concern for our environment, it’s time to ditch your appliances and reduce your carbon footprint.

This way, you’re saving money and reducing your impact on the environment at the same time. The most significant way to save money on electricity and contribute to reducing your carbon footprint is investing in solar energy. If you are looking for professional assistance, you can find reputable Bakersfield solar companies.

Optimize your water and HVAC Settings

The temperature of your home affects the energy you use. When the air is freezing outside, you need to heat up your house. Or if it is scorching hot, you might want to turn on your AC. Optimizing your water and HVAC settings can help you save a lot of money and reduce your carbon footprint. By doing this, you can also contribute towards a more sustainable lifestyle for future generations.

eco friendly business practices

Use the Bike, Bus, or Train

Using the bike, bus, or train is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint and be eco-friendly. The bike has been a popular choice for commuters in recent years. It has a low cost of ownership and no emissions while providing a healthy commute option for many people. The bus is another popular option due to its low cost of ownership and zero emissions.

It is also a good option for people who live in areas without bike lanes or bike trails. The train has been on the rise recently due to its ease-of-use and reduced carbon footprint compared to other transportation options that.

green travel

Choose Roads Less Travelled

The studies have shown that there are many roads less travelled, so it is important to know these alternatives. It is also important to think about your future when making decisions in life. There are quite a few ways that you can reduce pollution in your daily life. For example, if you are driving, take the alternate route when possible and avoid congested intersections on the road. By doing this, you will save fuel and reduce traffic congestion in the long run.

Care for your Vehicle

If you are looking to reduce your carbon footprint or find out what care for your car can do for you. Eco-friendly lifestyle is an issue that many people are concerned about nowadays. They want to reduce their carbon footprint and live a sustainable life by following the sustainable living guidelines.

One easy way to do so is by taking care of your vehicle. Car maintenance helps to maintain the vehicle, while reducing your carbon footprint at the same time. It also helps to protect against damages caused by unforeseen accidents and natural hazards, such as the rain or snowstorms.

car-scanner-diagnostic

Support Local, and Think Eco-Friendly

The rise of local and organic food is a great thing for the environment. However, we should still mind the packaging and avoid the products that come in plastic or other non-sustainable materials. Eco-conscious lifestyle means thinking about your everyday habits.

It means reducing your carbon footprint by choosing sustainable materials, not using too much packaging, buying local, in-season produce, and doing more research on how you can live an eco-friendly lifestyle with your everyday purchases.

Eat More Plants and Less Meat

It is possible to live an eco-friendly lifestyle that is sustainable and healthy at the same time by eating more plants and less meat. Meat and plant-based foods can both be healthy and environmentally responsible. But it takes a conscious effort to consume less meat and more plants.

 

There are many ways to reduce your meat consumption, but the most important is to focus on other daily habits that support an eco-friendly lifestyle as well as reducing your carbon footprint. For instance, if you eat plant-based foods for all of your meals, you can benefit from a reduced carbon footprint. According to The World Health Organization (WHO), the dietary guidelines for health should be focused on fruits and vegetables – not meat.

Don’t Touch Bottled Water

If you carry a refillable canteen and choose not to buy bottled water, you can save up to $300 a year and help the Earth. The earth is in danger because of bottled water. There are many reasons why we should stop buying bottled water and start drinking from the tap instead. One of the most important reasons is that it’s not safe to drink from the tap. Drinking from the tap is good for both your health and for the environment.

ecofriendly plumbing practices

You need to take precautions if you want to avoid getting sick or spreading disease through your tap water. One of the most important things you can do when it comes to saving money is staying hydrated and drinking more water than usual so that you don’t have to buy as much bottled water.

Purchase Consciously

The term “Conscious Consumer” has become synonymous with being eco-friendly. With the ever-increasing demand for products, people are encouraged to buy consciously and reuse items rather than buying brand new ones. One way of living an environmentally friendly lifestyle is by purchasing second hand whenever possible.

sustainable-habits-for-ecofriendly-home

Buying second hand instead of new is becoming more popular as people realize how wasteful it is to make everything brand new. Buying used also keeps the cost down and helps reduce waste generated from manufacturing these items in the first place.

4 Eco Lifestyle Habits You Should Start Implementing

In the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, Mother Nature is finally starting to breathe a little easier again. Indeed, it could be argued that this has been the major benefit of the coronavirus pandemic. The rules and regulations rolled out by political leaders in different countries might be tough, but these encouraged citizens from different parts of the world to change their ways and become more environmentally conscious.

But with lockdown restrictions now easing, it might prove tempting to lapse back into old, environmentally destructive ways. So, to help combat this, we’ve compiled a few simple lifestyle changes to ensure the planet continues to heal.

1. Go organic and shop local

You might have to pay a little more for the privilege, but by shopping and eating locally and organically, you’ll soon start to notice not only the taste difference but the positive difference in your overall health.

With the UK now considering lowering its standards when it comes to importing food, with the dreaded chlorinated chicken now on the table in trade deals with the US, keeping it fresh, organic, and local has never been more important.

compost-organic-waste-farming

The concept of safe food using organic waste generated compost is getting traction.

Aside from helping improve the environment, going organic and shopping local can also boost your local economy. By patronizing products and services from your locality, you are providing income to local workers and encouraging businesses to continue their operations. Going organic and shopping local is something everyone must do in order for their countries to easily recover from the effects of the pandemic.

2. Travel by train

We understand that travel by public transport hasn’t exactly been actively encouraged in recent months, but sooner or later, the world will return to some semblance of normality, and when that happens, train travel is comfortably one of the least damaging forms of transportation.

Of course, we would always recommend walking or cycling if at all possible, but we realise this won’t always be a realistic option. So, rather than firing up the car and spending a good hour wading through rush hour traffic every morning on your way to work, why not switch up your commute? This is particularly relevant in London, where trains from East Croydon to Norwood Junction are running constantly and provide faster and cleaner transport.

biomass-train

Travelling by train might be uncommon for some but making the change will surely be worth it in the long run. Travelling by train allows you to take care of the environment and save money. Moreover, train travel can be a great way to meet new people and appreciate the views in your locality.

3. Go paperless

It’s never been easier to lead a completely paperless life thanks to the digitization of most sectors and data. You’d be surprised how much paper is possible to get through if you’re not careful. The vast majority of services, however, now give you the option to go paperless as a good habit for the environment.

It’s often as simple as logging on to your bank accounts or your energy provider accounts and ticking a box. You can also help the cause a little further by ensuring you recycle all the paper and card you have already used and only printing off hard copies of documents when it’s 100% necessary.

It’s easy for anyone to start going paperless. If you usually receive your bills through physical mail, reach out to your service provider and have your bills emailed to you. You can also go paperless at work by encouraging your colleagues to send out emails for communication instead of printing documents regularly.

4. Avoid bottled water

Green living doesn’t always have to be difficult. Sometimes, it can even save you money! There is absolutely no legitimate reason to continue buying bottled water in this day and age. Plastic is a blight on our environment like no other and bottled water creates more plastic than almost any other product on earth.

water-filtration-systems

A water filter is a cheap and elegant way to filter out any of the potential chemicals and contaminants that might make your tap water seem like a less attractive option. And think of all the money you’ll save, too! Oh, and while you’re at it, ditching plastic bags is something you should really be looking into, as currently, only around 3% of the world’s plastic bags are being recycled!

If you want to take it up a notch, carry a water tumbler inside reusable cotton bags, such as those from calico-bags.com.au. You should always bring reusable bags when you step out of your house because these will enable you to carry your purchases with ease and save money from buying plastics every time you buy something.

Conclusion

Incorporating eco-friendly habits to your life can be challenging at first, but if you want to preserve the environment and ensure that it continues to provide for your needs, you should be willing to make the change. Your efforts will surely go a long way to improve or maintain the condition of the environment!

10 Tips For Going Green On A Budget

With modern life being so hectic and demanding, it’s easy to forget that there’s an alternative. Going green can relieve a lot of the pressure on you in terms of environmental concerns, but it can also be a more relaxing and rewarding way to live. Many people think that in order to make the transition to a more green lifestyle, you need to spend more, but that just doesn’t have to be the case. If you’re savvy with your spending, you can go green without breaking the bank. Here are 10 tips for going green on a budget.

green-economy-coronavirus-pandemic

1. Make use of any cash available to you

First and foremost, you need to make sure that whatever sources of income are available to you are in use. That means any income you’re getting, any cheques or back payments you’re owed, and any debts you can call in should all be present and accounted for in your bank balance. External financial aid can also be a good way to shore up some money; even £500 loans can help with the costs associated with going green if you’re struggling for a little cash.

2. Cut down on your meat

Meat can be incredibly expensive, especially if you buy the high-quality stuff (which you should if you’re conscious of your health). You can swap meat and animal protein for plant-based alternatives, which will save you a significant amount of money both in the short- and long-term. Beans, chickpeas, and other pulses can all be readily used in place of animal proteins, and they’re often better for you as well, especially if you find that you consume a lot of red meat.

3. Ditch your car

There’s a growing school of thought that says you should ditch your car and cycle as much as you can instead. Of course, if you have a lengthy commute, this may not be possible, but you could always cycle to the train station and hop on a train with your bike (assuming this is allowed, of course). By taking public transport or walking to your destination wherever possible, you’ll be saving on costs, looking after the environment, and improving your physical health, too.

green travel

4. Cook more meals at home

By swapping your takeaway meal for a home-cooked alternative, you’ll be saving more money than you might think. Buying the ingredients and spices to make your favourite meals is almost invariably cheaper than buying the meals pre-made, whether that’s as a takeaway meal or as a ready meal from a supermarket. Cooking has also been proven to boost mental health, so start planning some plant-based meals today. You won’t believe how cheap they can be!

5. Stop buying water bottles

Bottled water is one of the biggest contributors to plastic pollution in the world. You don’t need to continuously buy bottled water; instead, try buying a single plastic bottle and re-using it, or better yet, buy yourself a reusable bottle specifically made for the purpose. The environment will thank you, and so will your wallet; bottled water can actually be pretty expensive, especially if you plump for the big brands. Fill up on tapwater instead; you won’t regret it!

6. Go paperless

This one shouldn’t cost you a penny; many companies will, in fact, incentivise you for doing this (or disincentivise you for not doing it). Ditch paper wherever possible in your life. Go paperless with your bank statements and any other bills you receive on a regular basis. Don’t ask for a receipt unless you absolutely need one, and if you do, ask for it to be emailed to you rather than sent on paper. There are plenty of places you can ditch paper in your life, and it won’t cost anything.

a paper free office

7. Drop the tumble dryer and the AC

Many electronic devices in your home could be taking up monstrous amounts of electricity, thus using power you don’t really need. Instead of a tumble dryer, try drying your clothes on a drying rack. While this is common behaviour in the UK, there are still many people who prefer to dry with a tumble dryer, so try it without. Similarly, unless you’re absolutely baking hot in the warm weather, try living without your AC for a while; you’ll save money on electricity this way!

8. Buy as much as you can second-hand

A lot of the goods we buy can be bought second-hand, reducing the cost massively. Doing this is also kinder to the environment, as you’re reusing something that someone else has already recycled. Cars, musical equipment, entertainment (like video games), and clothes are all great examples of things you can buy second-hand, and we’re sure that there are plenty of other specific examples in your life. The next time you’re out shopping, ask yourself if you really need to buy what you’re buying new.

skip bins

 

9. Sell things you don’t need

When you go green, you’ll probably find that there are appliances or other items that you used to rely on but no longer need. You can and should sell these things, because you’ll make a little extra cash and also send the item to someone who actually needs it. Don’t just leave it lying around your home accumulating dust, and don’t throw it away; instead, sell it, and if you absolutely can’t sell it, make sure you responsibly recycle it. You’ll almost always find someone who has a use for your old stuff, though!

10. Add timers to your heating and hot water

Think about the times during the day when you’re most in need of your heating or hot water. There are going to be moments when you don’t really need these things to be on, but they’ll be on anyway, draining resources unnecessarily. If you can, install a thermostat that can be programmed, so you can tell your system when to switch on the hot water and the heating.