Ten tips for green living

It’s Earth Day today, so an opportunity to think about how green our lives are. We have 10 simple actions you can easily implement into your every day life to have a more positive impact on the environment and lead a greener life.

By Dulcie Horn and Beth Longville

1. Switch it off!

Starting off with something simple: turn off your electrical appliances when not in use and don’t leave things on standby either. This isn’t just great for the environment, you’ll also notice it when your electricity bill comes in.

2. Water, water, water

There are so many easy ways you can save water in the home; repair that leaky tap, take showers not baths, turn the tap off whilst brushing your teeth and only use your dishwasher and washing machine when full. You can even reuse water to save more. Washing the vegetables for your dinner? Collect the water while you’re doing it and use that to water your houseplants!

3. Recycle

This doesn’t just mean sorting your rubbish out properly and going to the bottle bank (although you should definitely do that!). There are endless imaginative ways you can also recycle within your own home, from reusing old envelopes and using magazines as wrapping paper to using your food waste as compost. Make sure you have less to recycle in the first place by opting for paperless bills, using reusable cloths, printing on both sides of paper.

4. Coffee ground compost

If you have a daily cup of coffee in the morning, or have seen your local coffee shop selling used coffee grounds, then you can help stop adding to landfill waste with coffee ground compost. Used coffee grounds and coffee filters are a great addition to your compost pile as it helps add nitrogen. Another great use of ground coffee is to put it straight onto your beds for excellent fertilizer. 

5. Clean green

Rather than using toxic shop-bought cleaning products, you can easily make effective cleaning solutions from common household objects like baking soda and white vinegar; eco-friendly and much cheaper.

6. Get on yer bike

If your commute isn’t too far, opt for walking or cycling. Not only is it better for the environment, there are also plenty of benefits for your health. If that’s not an option, then look into car sharing.

7. Eat local

Have a look at where your food was grown and try and eat things with as little food miles as possible. Make your food twice as local by growing your own vegetables too.

8. Use reusable bags

The plastic bags that you get in shops can take anything from 15 to 1,000 years to decompose. Go shopping prepared with tote bags that you can use again and again.

9. Meat free Mondays

You’ve probably heard of the phenomenon Meat free Mondays, as channelled by chefs like Jamie Oliver but you probably don’t know the impact this simple change can make. If you’re a family of four and you go meatless for one meal a week, the impact is the same as driving a hybrid car. Raising livestock is a huge contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions so swap for a vegetarian meal once a week (or better yet just go vegetarian!). 

10. Second-hand clothes

Buying clothes second-hand not only means that you’re probably going be wearing something more original but with an average of 11.8 million tonnes of clothing being thrown away per year, buying second hand will also impact the environment in a great way. If charity shop rummaging isn’t your thing, then organise a clothes swap or alter something you already have. If possible, wash it all on cold and hang to dry rather than tumble.

Image via Shutterstock