Earth Day, Every Day: 10 Ways to Help Save the Environment

1. I sincerely hope everyone is doing this already, but eliminate plastic bags every time and everywhere you shop. Take it beyond the grocery store, and carry a canvas bag the next time to head to the mall. On a single shopping trip, consider how many plastic bags you accumulate and by using a simple canvas tote bag, you can help to eliminate some waste! You can pick up bags for about $0.99 at most grocery stores, and even some department stores. If you want something a little nicer, check websites for inexpensive tote bags, or even check your own closet! That large bag you used to take to the beach would be perfect for a trip to the mall!

2. Re-use plastic containers. Many food items including butter, yogurt, lunch meat, and ice cream now come in plastic containers. Simply clean out the containers when they are emptied and you have a ready-made supply of plastic containers for leftovers and other items! You can save pickle jars to store leftover soup and sauces, too! And don't forget baby food jars - if you know someone who has a workshop, chances are they'd love a bunch of small jars to organize nails and screws. Or use them to organize crafting supplies like beads or eyelets!

3. Pack a lunch everyday. It might not look like you're saving the environment by packing your own lunch, but using re-usable bags and plastic containers saves both money, and saves you from adding disposable containers to the trash can.

4. Buy produce (and meat if you can) at a local farmer's market. Not only are you contributing to the local economy, but you're eliminating "food miles".

5. Take it one step further, and plant a vegetable garden with some of your family's favorite foods. A fresh supply of tomatoes, cucumbers, and salad greens also ensures eating vegetables daily. Consider an herb garden in a window box to spice up your cooking and eliminate purchasing dried herbs.

6. Turn out the lights. Hang light curtains or blinds under your heavier curtains and let in the sunshine during the day. Try not to turn on lights until you absolutely need to, and when you do, make sure you're using CFL bulbs. If you constantly forget to turn a light out when you go to bed, consider plugging it into a timer that will automatically turn it off after a certain time. Plug all your electronic devices into power strips that have a switch, and consider turning off the strips when you aren't using the devices. Always unplug chargers when they aren't being used.

7. Instead of purchasing 5 snack-sized bags of chips each week to go in your lunch, consider purchasing one large bag and then dividing it into smaller containers. Again, you can save money while you're helping to eliminate waste.

8. Air dry your laundry. Consider hanging a clothesline in your backyard, or if you can't, invest in some sturdy wooden drying racks. Hanging your laundry outside gives the extra benefit of your clothing smelling like a Spring breeze without buying expensive dryer sheets.

9. Start reading "green" blogs, such as Tree Hugger or Green Daily for daily advice on more ways to help conserve the environment.

10. Just about one of the easiest things you can do to help the environment is to recycle everything you possibly can. If you can't recycle something, try to re-use it. Turn old documents into scrap paper, re-use cardboard boxes to ship things, or re-purpose old T-shirts into rags or even shopping bags. The less garbage you make, the better off the earth is.