Sustainable Living: 65 Ways You Can Start Living More Sustainably
Buying a fuel-efficient car reduces air pollution and your carbon footprint and saves you money. The difference between a car that gets 20 miles per gallon (mpg) and one that gets what is alcoholism 30 mpg amounts to about $708 in fuel costs per year, or $3,538 over five years (Peters, 2021). Originating from Spain, castile soap was traditionally made with pure olive oil but is now more commonly produced by mixing vegetable oils such as hemp, avocado, jojoba, and coconut. For a simple, multipurpose kitchen spray, add 50ml of castile soap to 800ml tap water in a spray bottle.
The deadly plants hiding in your garden
Monitoring how often you flush and investing in an eco-friendly design that uses less water can save nearly 13,000 gallons of water and nearly £100 on your water bill. The warmth from the sun can also add a few degrees to the inside of your home, reducing heating costs. You can program these meters to turn on and off at certain times of the day. This keeps your house at a comfortable temperature without expelling unnecessary energy.
Don’t run the dishwasher or washing machine until it’s full
Plastic production is expected to at least double by 2050, while plastic waste in the US has grown continuously since 1960. If we continue our plastic consumption at the current rate, it could account for 20% of oil production by 2050. More than 99% of plastic is made from chemicals sourced from fossil fuels. Keeping our buildings warm through winter is https://ecosoberhouse.com/ one of the biggest challenges in sustainable energy. Fossil fuels still meet 60% of the world’s energy demand for heating, and emissions from the sector are still growing despite a rise in renewable heat.
Get in touch with nature – even if you’re indoors
- Valli has been writing well researched articles about renewable energy, sustainability and green technologies for GreenMatch since 2017.
- The washable and reusable Diva Cup is also a great eco-friendly option.
- We hold so much power, and by making small changes, we can create a big impact.
Where you can, replace everything you use once with reusable items. Rinse your veggies and fruits and reuse that water to water your garden. Redirect water from your bathroom to your toilet tank and use it for flushing the toilet. Water from the washing machine can be recycled and used to wash the car.
With a smart thermostat, it’s easy to schedule your HVAC to run less while you’re out for the day, so you’ll use less energy by cooling your home only while you’re in it. Re-using a water bottle also saves money in the long run, as fewer plastic bottles will need to be purchased. In reality, it’s easy being green—giving the planet a helping hand is just a matter of making one simple change at a time. Wood burning fireplaces and stoves may seem “old-fashioned,” how to be more environmentally friendly at home but they’re still considered a sustainable way to create energy for your home as long as you follow a few guidelines.
They can offer recreational and gardening space, as well as offset a home’s footprint by greening and area that on most homes is just a blank space. Then there’s always the option to use recycled, reclaimed or sustainably-sourced wood. Once again, salvage and re-use stores are great places to look for used wood products. And if you aren’t able to find what you’re looking for, look for FSC wood products instead, which are third-party certified to have come from well-managed forests.