Tips to Minimize Your Carbon Footprint at Home
If you read the news at all or spend any time on social media, you’ve definitely seen the multiple posts relating to climate change and how the Earth is at a critical point. Sea levels are rising, glaciers are melting, and permafrost is non-existent, animals going extinct or reaching endangered status due to the lack of food and trails for their migration patterns. It’s scary to read and think about what kind of world are people leaving for future generations. Some lawmakers are doing their best to fight climate change, but others tend to think it’s not as critical as people are believing.
Regardless of your stance on the matter, there are ways (even the tiniest ones help) to reduce your carbon footprint at home. While you might not want to live a completely green lifestyle, these tips could aid you in the reduction of your carbon footprint while saving you money. That’s right! Some of these tips will save you money in the long run as you start growing your own vegetables, cutting down on certain gardening related costs and even reducing your monthly light bill.
If you are interested in any of the above that was just described, then you definitely want to keep reading!
Grow Your Own Garden Using Your Own Mulch and Compost
One tip to reducing your carbon footprint is to grow your own fruits and vegetables. This will not only save money in the long run once your garden is producing a nice quantity of produce, but it will also help you eat healthier. Using natural pest removers and reducers will eliminate food from the grocery store that has been treated with chemical pesticides and steroids for size. Instead? You get freshly grown fruits and veggies at your fingertips. Plant lots of trees in your backyard that will turn carbon dioxide into oxygen and revel in the natural privacy they offer.
Another way to reduce your carbon footprint by growing your own garden is to use homemade mulch and compost. This will act as a barrier to your plants against pests, temperature changes and wind speed changes. It helps the soil from being contaminated plus you get rid of things from around the house and yard. Compost also breaks down and formulates numerous nutrients that will help your plants grow strong and hearty. You can use items from newsprint to eggshells to yard clippings to wood chips. Just simply research homemade mulch and compost recipes online and get to work! Want to store your compost at home in a sealed container but don’t want to have to go outside into the elements each time you have something to add? Then check out these excellent kitchen compost bins.
Carpool or Use Public Transportation
Want to reduce wear and tear on your vehicle? How about lower your gas bill each month or week, depending on how often you use your car? Then start carpooling whenever possible. If there is enough interest, you can even start a carpool group where the vehicle used switches off each week. If a member needs their vehicle during their week, have a backup driver for the carpool and help each other save money.
Another option is to instead of running errands on the weekends, do them after work to reduce the number of trips you have to make. This reduces the wear and tear on your vehicle along with your carbon emissions.
One other way? Look into public transportation in your area, size up the costs and schedules and determine if that’s an option for you and/or members of your family. While it can be a pain at times, it does reduce your personal carbon emissions and helps the ozone layer.
Go Solar
While the thought of outfitting your home with solar panels might be too expensive, try using them in your backyard and around your patio. These lights gather the power of the sun and converts it to electricity for a soft, elegant glow. Another cool thing about solar lights is not only do they help keep away flies and moths, they also can be purchased in multiple places.
If solar power isn’t an option for you at this time, switch out your existing high wattage light bulbs to LED lights that offer the same intensity of light without the wattages of electricity.
Conclusion
Regardless of your personal beliefs in the fight against climate change, it is important to help the environment in small ways. This will help the natural order of life on the planet stay status quo and not burn out. Bonus? It saves you money and helps you live a healthier lifestyle for you and your family. The days of being worried about what’s in the food you eat and how you will pay for that increase in your monthly light bill. Instead – you have the comfort of knowing where and how your food was grown in terms of fresh produce, you will save money on your utility bills and also save wear and tear on your vehicle (which also reduces your gas bill).
Reducing your carbon footprint at home leaves you with numerous things to gain and really, nothing to lose – except the carbon footprint of course!
