Climate change is upon us in full force. We can blame it on big corporations & greed but I believe that each of us can do a part in helping it as well as helping the environment. 

What do you personally do to combat climate change and how do you help the environment?

-We put in a heat exchange in our house (no more burning dead dinosaurs).
-We have a fuel efficient car that gets about 35-45 mpg.
-We recycle.
-We get energy star appliances. 
-I turn off the water when I brush my teeth.
-I TRY to turn off lights when not in use. (This one I sometimes have a hard time with.)

This is all I can think of at the moment.

What ways to do you help?


Cat

Pretty much the same. My 2007 Opel Astra GTC gets around 36.2 mpg the way I drive it.
I take it easy on the interstate when going to work and only do 65 mph with cruise control on when possible (since there is no speed limit here on some parts of the Autobahn that makes me one of the slowest cars but at least I don't stress myself, conserve fuel and even safe money).
I would ride my motorcycle to work (75 mpg) but unfortunately each shift either begins at night or ends after dark and I don't want to ride in the dark as there are too many animals around.

You can also help saving the environment by buying local groceries. Over here we can get most food stuff from around the world. If I can chose for example between butter from Ireland or butter from less than 100km away then I chose the local product as it wasn't shipped around half the continent (even though the Irish stuff actually tastes a little bit better....).

We're replacing light bulbs with LEDs whenever one needs replacing (however there isn't much choice in that as traditional light bulbs are no longer available in the EU).

I use shopping bags made of fabric which can be reused for years instead of throw away plastic bags and I buy no single use items as plastic cutlery or plates or cups.

Pretty much the same. My 2007 Opel Astra GTC gets around 36.2 mpg the way I drive it.
I take it easy on the interstate when going to work and only do 65 mph with cruise control on when possible (since there is no speed limit here on some parts of the Autobahn that makes me one of the slowest cars but at least I don't stress myself, conserve fuel and even safe money).
I would ride my motorcycle to work (75 mpg) but unfortunately each shift either begins at night or ends after dark and I don't want to ride in the dark as there are too many animals around.

You can also help saving the environment by buying local groceries. Over here we can get most food stuff from around the world. If I can chose for example between butter from Ireland or butter from less than 100km away then I chose the local product as it wasn't shipped around half the continent (even though the Irish stuff actually tastes a little bit better....).

We're replacing light bulbs with LEDs whenever one needs replacing (however there isn't much choice in that as traditional light bulbs are no longer available in the EU).

I use shopping bags made of fabric which can be reused for years instead of throw away plastic bags and I buy no single use items as plastic cutlery or plates or cups.



I agree with you about local food. We have a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) share-which I think is one of the best investment we can make. We pay in the spring and then get produce throughout the summer/fall. Last week was our last share day.  :\'( :\'(  Not only do we have GREAT produce every week, we are also helping out our local farmers.

I like to get local food when I can-but I don't do the shopping so I don't always get a say in what is bought.

As for the cloth grocery bags, we have mixed feeling about them. Yeah, they are good but we use the plastic ones for garbage bags (we reuse them-we also use them and the cloth bags for our CSA, too). Without them, we would have to buy garbage bags-buying something specifically to throw away.

We also use the LED light bulbs, too. 


Cat

Climate change is upon us in full force. We can blame it on big corporations & greed but I believe that each of us can do a part in helping it as well as helping the environment. 

What do you personally do to combat climate change and how do you help the environment?

-We put in a heat exchange in our house (no more burning dead dinosaurs).
-We have a fuel efficient car that gets about 35-45 mpg.
-We recycle.
-We get energy star appliances. 
-I turn off the water when I brush my teeth.
-I TRY to turn off lights when not in use. (This one I sometimes have a hard time with.)

This is all I can think of at the moment.

What ways to do you help?


Cat



I definitely agree with these Cat.

I don't own a car (yet - I want my first to be an EV once they're affordable). I go to work by train/bus, and bike to local places in the ice-free months, or walk/bus instead. I do borrow my parent's car when I need to, which isn't the most fuel efficient, but I'm not using it much in the first place.

I am flexitarian. My weekday breakfasts and lunches are always vegetarian and often my dinner is too. I was working towards becoming a vegetarian/vegan, but I've abandoned that as a near-term goal, it is too difficult.  :-\\

I always check whether a product's packaging is recyclable or not before buying it, and I might buy a competing product instead if it is not.

I stay in the basement or the library during the summer months to not use too much AC.

Those are what I can come up with so far, but I am really big on environment and I factor it into many of my decisions. :)

We recycle as much as possible (in fact we were doing paper, cans and bottles for years before the council started their kerbside collections)

I have reusable shopping bags. In the UK we are now charged for any plastic bags we buy (5 or 10p)

We buy energy efficient appliances (A* rated if possible) when we need to replace them

I could be better at turning off lights but do try.

I run my washing machine at either 40 or 30 deg C washes

Our most recent car was bought largely on its fuel efficiency (I think Dai said it was 70mpg)

Compost our vegetable peelings at home

In my city we have curbside recycling and compost collection every week and garbage collection every two weeks, so that sort of forces us to sort our waste, and explains my hate for non-recyclables. :P

We recycle as much as possible (in fact we were doing paper, cans and bottles for years before the council started their kerbside collections)

I have reusable shopping bags. In the UK we are now charged for any plastic bags we buy (5 or 10p)

We buy energy efficient appliances (A* rated if possible) when we need to replace them

I could be better at turning off lights but do try.

I run my washing machine at either 40 or 30 deg C washes

Our most recent car was bought largely on its fuel efficiency (I think Dai said it was 70mpg)

Compost our vegetable peelings at home



What car gets 70 mpg?

Oh, and I do wash just about everything in cold water on gentle cycle (it is not as long as regular cycle) and with my dishwasher, I have an hour cycle-doesn't dry them. I just open up the door when it is done.


Cat

What car gets 70 mpg?




Audi A4 diesel.  Though it is 56 mpUSg

When it comes to laundry I reuse the same shirt many times and I have many clothes in my closet so I don't need to do laundry very often anyway  :D

When it comes to laundry I reuse the same shirt many times and I have many clothes in my closet so I don't need to do laundry very often anyway  :D



But you should change your shirt.

In addition to what Cat said, I do try to buy local products whenever possible, but it's hard to find local tomatoes in winter

I just read this article this morning:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/where-does-your-recycled-plastic-go-perhaps-into-future-highways/2018/10/28/2aa3f5c4-d157-11e8-8c22-fa2ef74bd6d6_story.html?utm_term=.813997fda393

That is a cool idea. I had read about solar roads but the first round failed. Maybe sometime in the future but it is not there yet. But, it seems like the recycle plastic roads are already being used.


Cat

I just read this article this morning:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/where-does-your-recycled-plastic-go-perhaps-into-future-highways/2018/10/28/2aa3f5c4-d157-11e8-8c22-fa2ef74bd6d6_story.html?utm_term=.813997fda393

That is a cool idea. I had read about solar roads but the first round failed. Maybe sometime in the future but it is not there yet. But, it seems like the recycle plastic roads are already being used.


Cat


I read about this a few weeks ago. It is also possible to build sewers and electric wiring underneath, and put sensors underneath them to detect traffic flow and the weight of vehicles above. It might also be possible in the future to put wireless chargers underneath these plastic roads to charge electric vehicles and e-bikes as they drive :)

The problem is, plastic resonates sounds much more than traditional bitumen/asphalt roads.

Apparently the idea came from India where locals melt roadside garbage to fill in potholes, because the government doesn't bother filling it itself. I can imagine, the cities there have a lot of little and mountains of garbage ;D

I'm farting less.  :(  :(  :(

This year we are FINALLY going to have our backyard redone. At first, we were thinking of digging everything up and planting grass-because right now there are a bunch of weeds all over the place. Then we started reading how grass is really not great for the environment. After a little research, we discovered that clover is much better. Not only does it help the butterflies & bees, it doesn't need to be mowed (which uses gasoline). Also, we are thinking of planting blueberries. Not only will they feed us, they will also feed the birds as well as the bees. We also want to transplant some of our milkweed that is in front to the back-again for the butterflies & bees.


Several years ago, I realized that I was in the financial situation where I can do monthly donations to 4 charities. Heifer International, the Vermont Foodbank, & the local Humane Society are the ones that I have chosen. But, I was trying to come up with the 4th. At first it was going to be the local women's shelter. I sent them a check with a note saying that I wanted to do a monthly thing. Never heard from them. Not even a thank you. Ok, I guess they didn't want my money. So, for many years now, it has only been 3 charities. But then I figured out what the fourth will be-TREES!  My fourth charity will be the Arbor Foundation that plant trees. I think planting trees is one of the simplest thing we can do for our environment.


Cat

Climate change is upon us in full force. We can blame it on big corporations & greed but I believe that each of us can do a part in helping it as well as helping the environment. 

What do you personally do to combat climate change and how do you help the environment?

-We put in a heat exchange in our house (no more burning dead dinosaurs).
-We have a fuel efficient car that gets about 35-45 mpg.
-We recycle.
-We get energy star appliances. 
-I turn off the water when I brush my teeth.
-I TRY to turn off lights when not in use. (This one I sometimes have a hard time with.)

This is all I can think of at the moment.

What ways to do you help?


Cat


The items that I put in bold are things that I also do (or at least strive to do... especially the lights that I'm not using).

Also I strive to not use electrical appliances quite as frequently. For example, our household electric bill has been higher than it was a year ago at this time, but that is due in part to the fact that we now have a swimming pool in our backyard, and we have a mechanism that turns the "pump" on and off at certain times, to help keep the water free of naughty things like microorganisms. But the rest of the $$$ on our electric bill can be attributed to the electrical appliances that we run regularly, such as our TV sets, computers, and chargers. That being said, I have tried to limit my time on the computer as of late, although I do have to go online on a daily basis to check my email and things like that.

I do a lot of things because it saves me money and I don’t like to be wasteful.

I recycle because it’s free as opposed to $2.50 a bag for trash. Food waste goes out to the woods for compost or the animals. Very little goes in the trash.  And every spring the county has a free hazardous waste recycling day.

I like to fix old things and keep them going. Makes me feel good and add to my repertoire. I also tend to keep things forever. The bike I still ride I got in 1988. I like to make things out of nothing. For example made an ac cover for my camper out of a water heater skin. A bike carrier out of bed frame.

One of my cars I got in 2003. Has over 300k miles and still gets 32 mpg highway which is better than Epa. Back when gas was over $4 a gallon I did some crazy mods so the car would get 40 mpg highway.

Not like you need it more than 1 week out of the year here but I don’t have ac. I love my basement for that. Natural cooling. In the winter I burn pellets which are made from ground up wood waste rather than burning fossil fuel.

Other little things sometimes like washing my hands with little water. Eating what I got and don’t buy more till it’s gone. Keeping things rather than toss them only to rebuy them later. I don’t like to see things go to waste.