How can I live a greener more environmentally friendly lifestyle when I live in an apartment in the City?
7 thoughts on “Tips on living green in the city?”
www.AGUA-LUNA.com (Consultant)
I have a HUUUUGE list available at www agua-luna com it’s like 33 pages long & would just spam this whole answer. But here’s a few cut from the list below. If you’d like the entire list feel free to visit www agua-luna com or email me through the site directly & I’ll send you a free copy.
Also Agua-Luna com now offers Carbon Offsetting Credits, since our Team of Volunteers is already accomplishing several carbon eliminating projects, we’re now converting the carbon offsets to you. Visit www agua-luna com for a FREE carbon calculator to calculate your carbon footprint for free & more info on carbon credits.
You could also Volunteer with us, planting a tree or working on a Sustainable Renewable Energy Building Project in Mexico OR The Amazon. Again see www agua-luna com for more info.
If you can’t join us here are some ways you can atleast contribute from home..
Recycle paper, cardboard, newsprint & magazines.
Recycle aluminum cans.
Recycle all batteries.
Recycle & reuse. Roughly 50% of the average person’s trash can be recycled. Don’t forget that hazardous waste like batteries, your printer’s ink cartridges, & cell phones can be recycled too! Find out how & where to recycle in your area. Always buy recycled paper. Just 1 ton of recycled paper saves 17 trees.
Just because your community doesn’t pick up all recyclables on the curb, it doesn’t mean there are not viable alternatives nearby. Check with dry cleaners, supermarkets, manufacturers, your local public works department & civic organizations to find out where recycled goods can be dropped off, at a location near you.
Did you know that just in 1995 alone, recycled toner cartridges kept over 21,000 tons of trash out of landfills? Believe it or not, now you can recycle your printer’s toner cartridges! Every year, Americans throw out enough printer cartridges to stretch from Los Angeles to New York City & back again. Toner cartridges can be recycled, having just as good a performance as an unrecycled cartridge. To recycle your toner cartridges, find a local business that does printer cartridge recycling, or contact the manufacturer of your current toner cartridge & ask about a cartridge recycling program.
Not only should you recycle, but buy products that are recycled. By purchasing these products, you are helping to conserve natural resources, & to protect the environment.
Wash clothes in cold water.
Hot water is unnecessary for most clothes. When needed, use warm water.
Fill your toilet tank.
Put a plastic bottle or two, filled with water & rocks, in your tank to reduce the amount of water used in each flush.
Clean your filters.
Clean the filters of your air-conditioners once a month to improve energy efficiency. While you’re at it, change your car’s filters as recommended in your manual.
Get a low-flow shower head.
Stop at the hardware store on your way home, & get a low-flow shower head. Takes a few minutes to install, & it’ll save gallons of water a day.
Lower your thermostats.
If you use heating, get by with less heat & wear warmer clothes. If you use air-conditioning, get by with less cooling & wear cooler clothes.
If it’s a nice sunny day, hanging clothes only takes a few minutes, & you’re using solar power instead of electricity to do the job. It also makes your clothes last longer.
Turn down your water heater.
Most people have their water heater’s thermostat turned up too high, wasting energy. Turn it down to 130 degrees, saving energy but still hot enough to kill bacteria.
Use CFC light bulbs.
Hope this helped, feel free to contact me personally if you have any questions if you’d like assistance in making your first self sufficient steps, I’m willing to walk you step by step threw the process. I’ve written several how-to DIY guides available at www agua-luna com on the subject. I also offer online & on-site workshops, seminars & internships to help others help the environment.
Dan Martin
Alterative Energy / Sustainable Consultant, Living 100% on Alternative & Author of How One Simple Yet Incredibly Powerful Resource Is Transforming The Lives of Regular People From All Over The World… Instantly Elevating Their Income & Lowering Their Debt, While Saving The Environment by Using FREE ENERGY… All With Just One Click of A Mouse…For more info Visit:
www AGUA-LUNA com
mel
take a bike or walk to work.
recycle everything.
go to vacant lots and pick up the litter every saturday.
I can’t believe there is a thumbs down jagoff here. 🙁
whsgreenmom
One of the great advantages of living in the city is most things are within walking distance and public transportation is more readily available, so use those options when practicle. An advantage of an aparment is less space, so it is less tempting to buy things. When you do have to buy look for durable items that can serve you for a long time. Reduce single use or disposable items, this will save you space and money. Find a local farmers market and buy fresh and local, organic if you can find it. Detox your cleaners and beauty products. I’ve found that castile or natural soap, vinegar and baking soda clean almost anything. You can line dry your clothes on plastic hangers on a shower rod or on a folding wooden rack. Reduce packaging, you can usually save money and buy smaller quantities of many items in the bulk bins, I use my own cloth bags to shop for pasta, grains, cereal, nuts, dried fruit etc.
There are many ways to go green in the city. First, use public transportation or walk whenever you can. You probably already do this. Next, use appliances wisely. Change your bulbs to compact flourescents. They will save you money, and the world fuel and carbon emissions. Use cold water for your wash (along with non-phospate detergent), run the dishwasher only when it’s full, or if you hand wash dishes, don’t rinse them under a running faucet. Fix leaky windows to save on heating costs. Recycle your metal cans, plastic bottles, glass bottles if possible, and all kinds of paper. There is probably already a program set up in your city. Recycle your old clothing and household goods at Goodwill, and your old eyeglasses at most optical stores ( the Lions Club sends them to poor people). Above all, try to live consciously so you use less of all types of consumer goods. The ones you do use try to buy locally and be picky about the ingredients or packaging. Things already made of recycled material are great, like paper towels, stationary, even shoes and clothing. The less there are of additives in your food or fancy wrappings that will get tossed on your other items, the better. Good luck in your quest to go greener!
QueenofPins
try and save water by having shorter showers and washing up by hand.
Recycle, not just sorting rubbish but also reuse things when you can.
Buy eco friendly products and products not wrap ed in plastic and other non-biodegradable.
Try not to use to many chemicals, cleaning wise.
Ride a bike
Buy green power
red
stop driving the car.
and instead of wasting that gas and making extra pollution, take the bus or walk or the subway.
change your light bulbs to those environmental swirly light bulbs.
try making your showers take less time.
and fill up your dishwasher as much as possible. and try to fill up your washer as much as possible.
and recycle.
generation7
grow small veggies,i.e.,tomatoes,on your patio.
compost. if you don’t have the space,see if your city has a communal area.if you can do it at home it’ll turn to fertilizer for your plants.
recycle-does your building have bins/ if not,check out the city cites.
even if all you do is take plastic bags back to Walmart,you’ve made a difference.
replace your light bulbs w/ cfl-will also cut your light bill.
dry your clothes on your patio,run washer/dryer/dishwasher after dark to save energy.
take the bus/subway or walk as much as possible.
pay bills online.
spend a few $$ on re-usable canvas shopping bags.
find a farmer’s market & buy locally grown.
turn off the lights when you leave the room. unplug stuff that’s not in use.
I have a HUUUUGE list available at www agua-luna com it’s like 33 pages long & would just spam this whole answer. But here’s a few cut from the list below. If you’d like the entire list feel free to visit www agua-luna com or email me through the site directly & I’ll send you a free copy.
Also Agua-Luna com now offers Carbon Offsetting Credits, since our Team of Volunteers is already accomplishing several carbon eliminating projects, we’re now converting the carbon offsets to you. Visit www agua-luna com for a FREE carbon calculator to calculate your carbon footprint for free & more info on carbon credits.
You could also Volunteer with us, planting a tree or working on a Sustainable Renewable Energy Building Project in Mexico OR The Amazon. Again see www agua-luna com for more info.
If you can’t join us here are some ways you can atleast contribute from home..
Recycle paper, cardboard, newsprint & magazines.
Recycle aluminum cans.
Recycle all batteries.
Recycle & reuse. Roughly 50% of the average person’s trash can be recycled. Don’t forget that hazardous waste like batteries, your printer’s ink cartridges, & cell phones can be recycled too! Find out how & where to recycle in your area. Always buy recycled paper. Just 1 ton of recycled paper saves 17 trees.
Just because your community doesn’t pick up all recyclables on the curb, it doesn’t mean there are not viable alternatives nearby. Check with dry cleaners, supermarkets, manufacturers, your local public works department & civic organizations to find out where recycled goods can be dropped off, at a location near you.
Did you know that just in 1995 alone, recycled toner cartridges kept over 21,000 tons of trash out of landfills? Believe it or not, now you can recycle your printer’s toner cartridges! Every year, Americans throw out enough printer cartridges to stretch from Los Angeles to New York City & back again. Toner cartridges can be recycled, having just as good a performance as an unrecycled cartridge. To recycle your toner cartridges, find a local business that does printer cartridge recycling, or contact the manufacturer of your current toner cartridge & ask about a cartridge recycling program.
Not only should you recycle, but buy products that are recycled. By purchasing these products, you are helping to conserve natural resources, & to protect the environment.
Wash clothes in cold water.
Hot water is unnecessary for most clothes. When needed, use warm water.
Fill your toilet tank.
Put a plastic bottle or two, filled with water & rocks, in your tank to reduce the amount of water used in each flush.
Clean your filters.
Clean the filters of your air-conditioners once a month to improve energy efficiency. While you’re at it, change your car’s filters as recommended in your manual.
Get a low-flow shower head.
Stop at the hardware store on your way home, & get a low-flow shower head. Takes a few minutes to install, & it’ll save gallons of water a day.
Lower your thermostats.
If you use heating, get by with less heat & wear warmer clothes. If you use air-conditioning, get by with less cooling & wear cooler clothes.
If it’s a nice sunny day, hanging clothes only takes a few minutes, & you’re using solar power instead of electricity to do the job. It also makes your clothes last longer.
Turn down your water heater.
Most people have their water heater’s thermostat turned up too high, wasting energy. Turn it down to 130 degrees, saving energy but still hot enough to kill bacteria.
Use CFC light bulbs.
Hope this helped, feel free to contact me personally if you have any questions if you’d like assistance in making your first self sufficient steps, I’m willing to walk you step by step threw the process. I’ve written several how-to DIY guides available at www agua-luna com on the subject. I also offer online & on-site workshops, seminars & internships to help others help the environment.
Dan Martin
Alterative Energy / Sustainable Consultant, Living 100% on Alternative & Author of How One Simple Yet Incredibly Powerful Resource Is Transforming The Lives of Regular People From All Over The World… Instantly Elevating Their Income & Lowering Their Debt, While Saving The Environment by Using FREE ENERGY… All With Just One Click of A Mouse…For more info Visit:
www AGUA-LUNA com
take a bike or walk to work.
recycle everything.
go to vacant lots and pick up the litter every saturday.
I can’t believe there is a thumbs down jagoff here. 🙁
One of the great advantages of living in the city is most things are within walking distance and public transportation is more readily available, so use those options when practicle. An advantage of an aparment is less space, so it is less tempting to buy things. When you do have to buy look for durable items that can serve you for a long time. Reduce single use or disposable items, this will save you space and money. Find a local farmers market and buy fresh and local, organic if you can find it. Detox your cleaners and beauty products. I’ve found that castile or natural soap, vinegar and baking soda clean almost anything. You can line dry your clothes on plastic hangers on a shower rod or on a folding wooden rack. Reduce packaging, you can usually save money and buy smaller quantities of many items in the bulk bins, I use my own cloth bags to shop for pasta, grains, cereal, nuts, dried fruit etc.
My favorite book on the subject is The Green Book which can also be found online at http://www.readthegreenbook.com. Also check out the website http://www.biggreenpurse.com to get information on shopping green.
There are many ways to go green in the city. First, use public transportation or walk whenever you can. You probably already do this. Next, use appliances wisely. Change your bulbs to compact flourescents. They will save you money, and the world fuel and carbon emissions. Use cold water for your wash (along with non-phospate detergent), run the dishwasher only when it’s full, or if you hand wash dishes, don’t rinse them under a running faucet. Fix leaky windows to save on heating costs. Recycle your metal cans, plastic bottles, glass bottles if possible, and all kinds of paper. There is probably already a program set up in your city. Recycle your old clothing and household goods at Goodwill, and your old eyeglasses at most optical stores ( the Lions Club sends them to poor people). Above all, try to live consciously so you use less of all types of consumer goods. The ones you do use try to buy locally and be picky about the ingredients or packaging. Things already made of recycled material are great, like paper towels, stationary, even shoes and clothing. The less there are of additives in your food or fancy wrappings that will get tossed on your other items, the better. Good luck in your quest to go greener!
try and save water by having shorter showers and washing up by hand.
Recycle, not just sorting rubbish but also reuse things when you can.
Buy eco friendly products and products not wrap ed in plastic and other non-biodegradable.
Try not to use to many chemicals, cleaning wise.
Ride a bike
Buy green power
stop driving the car.
and instead of wasting that gas and making extra pollution, take the bus or walk or the subway.
change your light bulbs to those environmental swirly light bulbs.
try making your showers take less time.
and fill up your dishwasher as much as possible. and try to fill up your washer as much as possible.
and recycle.
grow small veggies,i.e.,tomatoes,on your patio.
compost. if you don’t have the space,see if your city has a communal area.if you can do it at home it’ll turn to fertilizer for your plants.
recycle-does your building have bins/ if not,check out the city cites.
even if all you do is take plastic bags back to Walmart,you’ve made a difference.
replace your light bulbs w/ cfl-will also cut your light bill.
dry your clothes on your patio,run washer/dryer/dishwasher after dark to save energy.
take the bus/subway or walk as much as possible.
pay bills online.
spend a few $$ on re-usable canvas shopping bags.
find a farmer’s market & buy locally grown.
turn off the lights when you leave the room. unplug stuff that’s not in use.
way to go!!