Going Green: Different Ways to Help the Environment

The earth's natural resources are being continuously depleted year after year. Landfills are overflowing with the millions of pounds of garbage that is being discarded. Carbon monoxide and other gases generated by power plants, automobiles and other technologies are polluting the atmosphere and causing global temperatures to rise. The ozone layer, the earth's protective shield, is being destroyed by fluorocarbons. Our rivers and streams, and even the oceans, are becoming polluted.

What can you do to help the environment? Most people already recycle aluminum cans, plastic and glass and also their printer's ink and toner cartridges. And it is becoming commonplace to see shoppers using canvas tote bags instead of the store's plastic or paper bags. Here are a few other ways that you can help the environment.

Going Green - Ways To Help The Environment #1

Replace your store bought cleaning products with natural substitutes. Store bought cleaning products contain hazardous chemicals and phosphates which end up polluting our waters and also are hazardous to our health. Your own natural cleaning products can be easily created using vinegar, baking soda and lemon juice.

Going Green - Ways To Help The Environment #2

Create a compost pile. Compost leaves, grass clippings and other yard debris. Add organic kitchen discards such as banana peels, coffee grounds, eggshells, vegetables, etc. Keep the compost pile moist and mix it up often, so that it does not become tightly packed. When your compost is ready several months later, it can be mixed into the soil or sprinkled throughout the plants in your garden. By recycling this yard and kitchen waste you will be reducing the amount of garbage sent to the landfills and the amount of energy used to take it there.

Going Green - Ways To Help The Environment #3

When painting indoors or outdoors, use a non-toxic paint with a zero VOC level. VOCs are volatile organic compounds that release toxic emissions into the atmosphere. Use brushes and rollers instead of using a paint spraying machine or aerosol spray paints which contain fluorocarbons and deplete the ozone layer.

Going Green - Ways To Help The Environment #4

When grilling outdoors using charcoal briquets, do not use lighter fluid. Use an electric charcoal starter to ignite the flame. Lighter fluid emits VOSs as the charcoal burns, polluting the air and leaving a residue on food.

Going Green - Ways To Help The Environment #5

Stop receiving junk mail. Unwanted junk mail is an absurd waste of paper causing hundreds of thousands of trees to be destroyed annually. You can reduce your junk mail by as much as 75% by notifying Mail Preference Service, Direct Marketing Association, 11 West 42^nd Street, PO Box 3861, New York, New York, 10163-3861 or visit their website at http://www.dmachoice.org .

Going Green - Ways To Help The Environment #6

Use cloth diapers instead of the disposable type. Our landfills are filled with disposable diapers which are made of wood pulp and plastic and take five hundred years to decompose. The life span of a single cloth diaper is approximately six months. Think of how many disposable diapers would be used in this six months time span. Additionally, if disposable diapers are not rinsed out before trashing as is recommended, untreated human waste ends up in landfills and untimately in the groundwater.

Going Green - Ways To Help The Environment #7

Turn off your computer monitor when not in use. You can set your computer preferences so that your monitor turns itself off after a designated period of time. Energy will be saved by doing this since the monitor uses much more energy than the actual computer itself.

Going Green - Ways To Help The Environment #8

Plant trees in your yard. Trees help the environment by taking in carbon dioxide from the air and producing oxygen, which helps to decrease global warming. Trees produce shade which aids in cooling your home. They also diminish urban runoff of rainwater thereby reducing water pollution, and serve as a natural habitat for birds and wildlife. It is best to plant trees that are native to your local area.

These are only a few ways that you can help the environment. If every one of the over six billion citizens of the earth did their part, the deterioration of our environment could be greatly reduced. And perhaps it could even be restored to its original condition.