Keeping the Pet Of The Day world a green place?

[shepgirl]

We have cut our garbage in half, use the recycling boxes and never use pesticides, for myself and my dogs as well as the environment. I clean out the closets 2X/yr or more and donate everything to charitable organizations instead of just garbaging it. We use washable dustcloths and cloth napkins instead of paper ones to limit the amount of garbage. All cleaners are environmently friendly. We compost everything instead of garbaging it, except meat products, and dairy. All bath and shampoos are natural and biodegradable. So much more that I can't think of off hand but our lifestyle has taken a real turnaround. The only thing we haven't switched to are the energy saving bulbs and that was because they exacerbated a health condition I have.

[Freedom]

We have the energy saved bulbs all over the house.
Use the recycle bins - blue one is for plastic, glass, metal; green one is for paper, cardboard etc.

We have a compost pile, that serves the veggie garden. Even the clippings from mowing the lawn go in that pile. (We mulch in the heat of summer, bag the clippings Spring and Fall and empty the mower bag to the compost.)

Avoid chemical fertilizers on the lawn and veggie garden. Marigolds go around the tomato plants as those keep the aphids away, and other things like that.

I never used paper towels or paper napkins until Dad moved in with me, almost 8 years ago. Now, between him and 14 pets, it seems inevitable.

[Karen]

We recycle paper, as well as cardboard, glass and plastic. Our city is very big on that, and if you you have cardboard boxes - say, for example, 50-year-old ones from your basement that might disintegrate if flattened, you can bring them to the recycle depot and there's a dumpster with a compacter attached.

I also direct Freecyclers there who wants books - there's a bring-a-book/take-a-book shed, and no one polices you, so you can either just leave a few books and abscond with taking any away, or vice versa!

We don't mow the lawn too short, so it conserves water better, and builds better roots.

[kitten645]

I do most of these things however living in an apartment is an additional challenge as there is no composting/gardening options. I'm also in a confined space to have more than one garbage can so I make lots of smaller trips to the recycling bin down by the dumpster.
I'm continually appalled at what is left at the dumpster. Perfectly good furniture, books, bikes etc. I try not to be a packrat so I virtually never take home anything I won't use. I LOVE Freecycle! There's NOTHING that SOMEBODY can't use! I went thru all my cleansers and switched to natural ones (white vinegar, lemon juice for spiders etc) I freecycled the things I won't be using anymore. I know it technically means someone else will do the polluting but I figure they'd buy the stuff anyway and my changing my ways helps. I've freecycled a bunch of broken appliances that "fix it' type's could use. It's great! Try it out!

[Russian Blue]

Environmental initiatives have been drilled into me from a young age. My grandparents used to recycle, reuse and reduce everything! They showed me I didn't need a Swiffer to properly clean the floor, or Fabreeze my make my home 'smell' fresh. I'm really shocked at the number of new products on the market that are popular yet so environmentally irresponsible. So many are one use, and they're in the trash.

My educational background is in Environmental Management. About 15 years ago, I helped plan recycling initiatives for the City of Toronto. The committee I worked with examined initial plans/costs to bring organic recycling to Toronto. Fast forward 15 years and Toronto now has weekly pick-up of organic recycling (called the Green Bin Program read more here), weekly blue box pick-up and remaining garbage gets picked up once every two weeks. The success rate of diverting organic waste from landfill is amazing with the Green Bin program!

We had an Energy Audit completed on our house and are almost finished implementing the energy recommendations. We live in a century old home, so fixing it up to save energy costs and help the environment is a win-win situation. Many of our home renovations were completed using re-used materials from renovation stores and we donated many items back to these stores to continue the cycle.

We will be converting our outside gardens/landscaping using Xeriscaping methods. If you're unfamiliar with this, check out this link: Xeriscaping

At the cottage, we use all natural products, keep the landscape as natural as possible, and will be installing a solar hot water tank.

On a day to day routine in the city, we try to use public transportation whenever possible, we buy things with the least amount of packaging and the least impact on the environment.

[Edwina's Secretary]

I take my own reusable bags with me...not just to the grocery but to the department store, the drug store...any shopping.

I unplug rechargers and the power strip to the computer when not in use.

I air dry many clothing instead of using the drier.

And the light bulbs, the sorting of greens and recyclables.

But I have to giggle...changing light bulbs is work but driving a hybrid isn't!

(yes, I drive a hybrid...and I keep the rpm under 2K as much as possible...but that is probably not as much work as changing a light bulb.)

[pitc9]

I use reuseable grocery bags.
Recycle everything that can be recycled.
Don't use the a/c in the house or car if I don't really need it.
Don't water my lawn.
Don't leave the water running when I brush my teeth and take short showers.