How To Be More Eco-Responsible In 2018
We’re constantly being reminded that we need to be more aware of our environment – and more importantly, our impact on it. If you want to start becoming more “green” but aren’t sure where to start then Nina Simons has you covers. You’ll get all the basics covered here so you can help you home become greener over the next 12 months
We are all well aware of the fact that if we want to keep our planet clean and healthy for the future generations we have to be more eco-responsible than we are now. We can do so simply by paying more attention while recycling, for example, that will take little of our time and do a lot for the preservation of the environment. So, here are some pro-environment tips on how to recycle smart and how to become more eco-responsible in 2018.
Proper recycling is smart recycling
First things first, make sure that you are disposing of waste in the right cart or bin. It does sound obvious, but there are many commonly mistaken materials thrown away in wrong bins every day, that results in million dollars losses for removing items (contaminants) that either can’t be recycled or shouldn’t be in the particular recycling stream.
One of the most common recycling mistakes is pizza box cardboard disposal. Although pizza boxes are made of cardboard the grease and food remains contaminate the raw material which makes it unrecyclable. What you can do is tear off the contaminated parts of the cardboard before recycling it to help the process.
Also, avoid putting your recyclables in plastic bags when disposing since they cause a lot of issues in the recycling process even though they are labeled as recyclables. If you happen to have a lot of plastic bags on your hands, you can give them to some grocery stores that collect them or opt for recycling programs that focus exclusively on them. You should carry with you a cotton shopping bag to avoid using one-time plastic bags. Check out this great article on how to be more eco friendly in the kitchen (the tips can apply to other areas of your house too!)
Save energy and save money
Improve your home’s energy efficiency and save on your energy bill simply by making a few home improvements such as replacing your kitchen appliances with energy-efficient ones. A smart way of saving energy as well, is investing in solar panels or you can start with simpler things like installing solar phone charger. Also, replacing batteries with rechargeable ones is a great way to be more eco-responsible because you will use them longer and you will protect the environment since regular ones contain a significant number of dangerous metals that can leak and harm the environment.
Replace all the light bulbs with LED bulbs because they save a significant amount of energy than a traditional lighting such as fluorescent and incandescent lights.
Go green, choose green cleaners
Next time you are at the store doing your monthly grocery shopping, take some time to read the labels on the products. Instead of choosing random cleaning products, search for the green cleaners. Switching to plant-based products will reduce air pollution both inside your home and outside. Also, reduce the use of bug sprays and pesticides and make your home eco-friendly by finding an alternative replacement for the harmful chemicals. Keep in mind that it is important to keep your home clean to make it bug-proof and opt for greener alternatives to make sure you are not polluting the nature. There are many recipes you can DIY using natural ingredients to make your own solutions for pest-control in your garden and in your home.
Pro-environment oasis on a rooftop
Speaking of gardens, lately, there have been more and more articles on the topic of rooftop gardens. The new generations of landscape architects explain that planting a rooftop garden in urbanized areas brings many benefits. One of them is that green roofs retain rainwater and return a portion of it to the atmosphere through evaporation and transpiration.
Rooftop gardens are a great way to save energy as well because they reduce the heat flux through the roof and less energy is used for cooling or heating which leads to lower electricity bills. That means that in the summer the garden protects the building from direct sunlight – solar heat while in the winter it minimizes heat loss and therefore green roofs conserve energy.
If you have enough space on the top of your building then don’t hesitate to make a green roof (together with other tenants) and create an oasis among the concrete buildings that will help save the planet and keep the environment healthy. Invest in easy to use hose reels, tools and other gardening equipment to keep the garden neat and tidy. Installing solar panels on the rooftop in the corner of your garden can also be a great way to save energy.
Being eco-responsible today and taking care of our environment now means we are working towards a better tomorrow. And it is about time to start paying our debt to nature and become more responsible!
- Follow Nina Simons on:
