I have been pretty environmentally-conscious for as long as I can remember (I think I wrote one of my college essays about being obsessive about scrap-paper-recycling, and somehow I wasn't deemed too quirky to be accepted :)). Kelvin and I and currently live in a very (literally) green area of the country, and we have become even more environmentally conscious and committed to reducing waste since being married and being here, particularly with a baby on the way. Not only do a lot of the things we do reduce waste, but they also really save money. Here are some ways you, too can jump on board!
1. Drive an energy-efficient car
We usually drive my hybrid Prius when we need to go on any substantial road trips, as it gets great gas mileage on the highway. While it's not an "electric" car like my Dad's Chevy Volt (which he charges nightly for a few cents and for which he hasn't had to fill the reserve gas tank for almost a year!), it works well for us.
the plugged- in volt outside my parents' house last month
We also save greatly on gas (which is very pricey in our area
due to its location) by living close (Kelvin - less than a mile, me-
about 3-4 miles) to our primary workplaces. Biking to work (for K, at
least; I have to get on a highway) would make great sense (I biked the few miles to UC Davis all throughout residency and didn't own a parking permit), although our weather here in Humboldt makes that a somewhat tenuous option.
2. Don't waste food
I have always been a good rescuer (hence the name of this blog-- I will eat bananas way past their normal consumption date). I have gradually and successfully converted Kelvin, too, to be a good eater of leftovers. He won't make the same extreme effort as I do to make sure everything gets finished in days or weeks, but, depending on the meal, is pretty game and cooperative to eat leftovers for lunches and some dinners so that I don't have to cook daily (I hate to cook, BTW). He makes fun of my "rabbit meals" of random leftovers, but it works. We also eat out very little, except when on vacation, and also try to buy locally and what is in season at the store.
We do have a
compost tumbler bin off our back porch where our kitchen scraps go, which makes me feel like we are reducing landfill waste. While I have never been successful at getting anything to grow (see
my black thumb) on which to dump my compost, I love the idea of growing your own veggies/herbs if you have garden space and the aptitude.
3. Use reusable, not disposable items.
Like many, we are very insistent on using our reusable shopping bags for any trips to the store (we have heavy duty ones from Trader Joes and a huge blue bag from Ikea which is usually big enough to hold all of our groceries from our trips). If we forget our bags in the car when we enter the store, we go back to retrieve them.
I totally support the idea that stores charge/tax customers for the use of disposable (plastic) bags for their purchases. I HATE plastic shopping bags, which always seem to multiply in your house regardless of how infrequently you get them. We also like to use Chico reusable veggie/fruit bags for our produce, to save on those other small plastic clear bags. We sometimes need to use some clear produce bags, but we reuse them in our fridge or on subsequent grocery trips, or use them for Pepper's poop on our walks.
We have started using and reusing cloth napkins for our meals at home, which we just need to launder these every week or two, and have started to save greatly on paper towel usage.
My mom found awesome high-quality and classy-appearing plastic Costco dinner plates for parties, which are completely reusable and which we will try to get the next time we plan on having a large get-together.
We have registered for several brands of cloth diapers and, at this point, plan to do as much cloth diapering for baby (including cloth wipes) as we can sanely handle. While the use of water to launder them bothers me, they really are MUCH better for the environment (I read somewhere that one diaper may stay in a landfill for up to 500 years before decomposing, and the average child produces about 5,000 disposable diapers before potty training). We will also save a ton of money on diapers over a child's (or children's) lifetime.
We use reusable glasses whenever we can. I bring a tea/coffee thermos to places (like the hospital) that may have paper or disposable cups, and try to refill cool drink containers out of larger bottles rather than using single-serve juices or sodas.
I have convinced Kelvin that buying bottled water is a waste of money and resources (yay for regular tap water, or, for guests, water through a Brita filter).
We buy bulk handsoap to refill our different dispensers, rather than getting a new small bottle each time we need more!
I use refillable razors.
4. Get more out of your product
There is lots of waste that comes with buying new products and new dispensers. I now routinely re-use teabags, as I usually get get at least 2 cups of plenty-strongly-flavored tea out of each bag.
We have two Cuisipro foamers which allow you to use about 75% less handsoap than from the regular soap-dispensers.
We plan to and try to use all electronics "until they die" rather than upgrading to newer products -- this includes our two cars, iPad (yes, the new one may be out but the old one works just fine!), TVs, etc.
We try to upcycle things. Now, I am not a seamstress or a huge "do-it-yourself"-type person due to very limited time, so I can't really make old shrunken sweaters into iPad cases or anything, but I love the idea of upcycled products. I have a great seatbelt bag that K got me for my birthday a couple of years ago.
I have started saving old spray bottles and lotion pump bottles for homemade solutions and sprays, as well as jars for baby food in the future. I am going to attempt to make some homemade baby wipe solution and creams using essential oils, coconut oil, and castile soap.
5. Why buy new?
I have always been a thrifty shopper. I generally see very little reason to buy anything non-electronic or non-hygiene related (i.e. toiletries) new. With the exception of the clothes my MIL got for me and my dress for my sister's wedding, my maternity wardrobe has come from a variety of thrift shops since I see little point in buying new items that will have short lifespans. Craigslist has become my best friend for baby things, which are often extremely gently used due to their limited time of use. While I am definitely a bibliophile, I
can't recall the last time I purchased a new book. My book sources are (in order); ***the public library, used book stores where books are on the sidewalk (when they are $2 or less-- in which I consider reading and then recycling, to another used store or the library, as a "rental" of the book), Amazon marketplace (and only when I can't find it at the library) or on kindle/Nook, where at least I feel like I'm creating less paper/tree waste. I love the e-books for travel.
6. Less is more
We try not to buy *extra things* but rather would spend our money on experiences and travel. As above, I don't hang on to many books, but, once done reading them, try to pass
them on to friends, used bookstores, or back to the public library. We are trying to be baby-gear minimalists. I recently went through and cleaned out our closets to cut down on our general clutter, which I think should be done at least once or twice every year, and was able to resell many items (ipod accessories, printers, a palm pilot, some pet items) on Craigslist and even ebay, and donate many other things. It's great to
borrow, not buy, things, if possible.
7. Turn trash into treasure
For things I couldn't or didn't feel like would sell, I decided to post items on Freecycle, a yahoo-based group where you can post things-you'd-like-to-get-rid-of in your local community so that someone that may find use of the item can pick it up. I've passed on items like an old phone, posters, and kitchen pans to a grateful recipient. This saves items from ending up at the dump, and provides someone else the opportunity to give them a second life.
Happy recycling!!!
