Some interesting facts seem to come out of the woodwork around Earth Day.  Researchers out of the University of Chicago found that our food choices may be just as important as what types of cars we drive, when it comes to global warming.  It seems the average American diet requires an extra ton and a half of carbon dioxide equivalent when compared to a strict vegetarian diet (per year I believe).  As noted by Natural Resources Defense Council giant livestock and dairy farms (with hundreds of thousands of pigs, chickens, or cows) often generate the waste equivalent of a small city!

Some sites are encouraging consumers to trial vegan living for a day, or once a week.  I receive the newsletter from Meat out Mondays, which is full of great recipes and vegan suggestions.  They offer me that little boost of motivation for sneaking some additional vegan meals into my week.  I suppose the small steps do count, even if making the full vegan leap is not yet in the plans. 

Beyond some veganistic trials, here are some other great Earth Day tips that I either incorporate into my life or plan to, starting today! 

• Replace incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs, they use about a quarter of the electricity and last 10 times as long.  We will be heading to Home Depot today, as they are giving away free fluorescent bulbs in honor of Earth Day.  Fun Fact: If every household in America switched just five bulbs, the energy savings would be equivalent to taking 8 million cars off the road, according to the Sierra Club.
• Install low-flow showerheads and faucets that will use half the water without decreasing performance. Turning down the hot water heater to 120 degrees will also reduce electricity use while cutting costs by as much as 50 percent. – A must!
• If you have houseplants, water them with leftover drinking and cooking water whenever possible to reduce water consumption.  - Amazingly enough, I just clued into this one a few weeks ago.
• Reduce the amount of on "standby power" you use by unplugging electronic appliances you are not currently using.  - I’ve always wondered if this mattered?
• Reuse margarine tubs to freeze foods or to pack lunches to reduce the need for foil or plastic wrap. – You should see our collection of Toby’s (tofu pate) tubs, those things seem to last through a gazillion dishwasher runs!
• Recycle! – This can be difficult in some areas, where you must drop off at recycle centers rather than pick-up (i.e. where I live), but worth it.
• Use recycled/re-usable grocery shopping bags – My Capers (Wild Oats) bag has seen an incredible amount of mileage, and is much easier to carry.  A recent promotion at Trader Joe’s earned me two more free recyclable bags (use your own bag, and they give you another new one for free).  With my collection of three enormous bags (they hold three times the amount of those little rippable plastic deals) I am set for almost all shopping trips.  I hope that the U.S. someday imposes the plastic bag fee that is found in so many countries throughout the world.  If you don’t need a bag, tell the checker before they scan the items.  They are quick to throw them in bags and will often throw away the bag (right in front of your eyes!) if you say you don’t need a bag after the fact.  Trust me.
• Cancel subscriptions to magazines or newspapers you don't actually read, especially if you could read them at the local library. Give old issues to friends, coworkers, nursing homes, doctors' offices or libraries. – Guilty, this is one we have to take care of.
• Exercise – We have a rule in our house, if it is within 1.5 miles (takes 30 minutes to walk or 12 minutes to jog) no cars allowed.  We also find this makes our trips much more efficient.  Dropping of movies that are due, picking up prescriptions, and grabbing foods on sale at my local grocer becomes an all-in-one shot, and I get some exercise to boot!  In a rush?  Bike.
• Recycle paper. Recycling a stack of newspapers only 4 feet high will save a good-sized tree. – Wow!
• Buy Bulk – If you find yourself purchasing cereals and other dried goods regularly, check out your bulk food section.  You may not only save on packaging (stuffing a huge load into one of those jumbo plastic bags), it will also likely be cheaper.
• Skip the produce bags – Most fruits and veggies do not require a plastic bag, and may actually store better without one.  Apples, oranges, bananas, peppers, zucchinis, you name it, don’t bag it.
• Buy local – If you have a farmers market nearby, head to it.  Or, at the very least, stick to domestic produce at the grocers.  Local producers use less energy to transport their goods than those grapes from Chile.  Also, you are more likely to be buying produce that is less expensive and in season when you buy domestically.
• Go Organic – Of course this is always an excellent option for fruit, veggies, meat, and grains.  Pesticides, antibiotics, and hormones leach into our soil, our water supply, etc., etc., etc.
• Turn off the lights! – If you aren’t in the room, turn it off.  Getting light timers can be helpful.
• Invest in an programmable heating/cooling thermostat – They are cheap (about $25) and easy to find.  They allow you to set the temperature desired, and they regulate the heat.  Our heating bill (in the mountains) dropped by quite a bit when we swapped out the old dial thermostat.
• Turn off your computer and monitor when they're not in use. Computer screen savers and slide shows use a great deal of energy. – I wasn’t aware of this until a year ago, but I now turn it off every night.
• Live in a "recycled" home. Buy or rent an existing home rather than contributing to suburban sprawl by buying in a new housing tract away from the city center. – This is a big one in my opinion.  The craze for “new” housing has created an incredible amount of waste and empty homes.
• Recycle, recycle, recycle! – Whenever possible, aluminum, plastic, etc. 

Any more suggestions?

Happy Earth Day!

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