SInce it’s inception however (checkout the first poster here) many good things have come from it and organisations like the Earth Day Network (earthday.org) that grew out of that first Earth Day have done a lot of good things.

Even though April 22nd is the official Earth Day it is, in my opinion, important to look at the remaining 364 days of the year for actions that cause permanent change, which is evident by the year-round domestic and international programs being run by organizations like the Earth Day Network.

Tip: In this season of consumer celebration most people tend to go overboard waste more then regularly.

Here is one aspect of this celebration where we can save a little waste:

• From the people of Earth911.com: TreeCycling

And a few various tree recycling sources:

• http://www.recycleyourchristmastree.com/
• http://searchchicago.suntimes.com/homes/news/1354745,HOF-News-arbor02.article
• http://dpw.lacounty.gov/epd/xmastrees/index2008.cfm

Here are some pictures from the event:

Lost of people do it. You know, get the urge to do loads of other stuff while waiting for the shower to get hot (like making coffee, make breakfast, walk around, feed the pets, talk to the pets, wave to the neighbours….uh…mental note: close blinds).

A company called Evolve has come up with two products that help to reduce your water usage. The basic concept entails automatically shutting of the water flow when it reaches 95 degrees.

For more information visit: http://evolveshowerheads.com/lower_flo_showerheads.html

Tip: Reducing waste equals reducing our impact. One way we can do this is by replacing throwaway plastic bags with reusable containers. Storing food items for instance in reusable containers instead of plastic sandwichs bags can potentially save you waste and money.

Another thing you can use reusable containers for is beverage containers. The next time you order your “custom, double extra-special but hold the…” drink consider using a reusable container. There’s even options for those who just can’t shake the need for that specific look and feel of that paper/plastic drink cup. Check it out here: http://www.thinkgeek.com/caffeine/accessories/a3a4/

Tip: There are several ways to reduce junkmail. There are free ways so you can diy: obviously.com/junkmail, ecofuture.org/jnkmail.html, globalstewards.org/junkmail.htm, junkbusters.com and opt-out.cdt.org

Also there are paid services: From the website www.41pounds.org: “The average adult receives 41 pounds of junk mail each year. Our (41pounds.org) service stops 80-95% of unwanted catalogs and junk mail for you. We’ll (41pounds.org) contact dozens of companies on your behalf to STOP YOUR JUNK MAIL and PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT.”

I can’t say if the paid service works since we’ve just only signed up. I’ll post an update in a month.

For more info checkout the website www.41pounds.org and www.41pounds.org/impact

Tip: Buy a large bag or two that you can reuse. In our case for example, we have a bag that, when loaded, almost fills the entire shopping. We got the bag at Ikea for under $1. You fold it up and throw it in your shopping cart, do your shopping and while checking out you pack the stuf into the reusable bag instead of plastic or paper. Outside the savings in plastic or paper it also has a great time-saving advantage since you now have fewer bags to pack in and out of your car. Make sure to get sturdy large bag you like and feels comfortable to you.

Also you may want to opt for a cooler. If you have any perishable items like dairy and meat products and you don’t want lying around in a warm car, you can also keep a reusable cooler in the back of your car. It can be a real fancy one or just one of those cheap ones you can pick up at Walgreens. They keep cool for a very long time and you can use them for years. This way you can also do some errands on your way back from shopping and you don’t have to race like hell drive fast to get home to keep your groceries in a preferred state.

Calculate your personal impact
Example: Let’s say you shop every week and have an average of 5 plastic bags every time. Using this scenario you have just saved 260 plastic bags (5 bags per visit times the 52 weeks of a year, 5 x 52 ). Did you know it takes 20 years for a plastic bag to decompose? This way you will save the planet at least 5200 years of trying to decompose the one-time plastics you used for only about 30 minutes.