12 Easy Ways to Be More Eco-Friendly

Happy Earth Day!

Here are some tips that I use to be more environmentally friendly.

1.Stop buying plastic……plastic wrap, plastic straws, plastic sandwich bags, plastic utensils, whatever it may be that you use that is plastic stop buying it! Replacement: reusable versions such as tupperwares, stainless steel straws, beeswax sandwich wraps

2. Invest in a few good reusable bag for your groceries rather than getting plastic or paper bags- you can even buy insulated ones for your perishables and frozen products.

3.If you do use plastic bags when you get your groceries be sure to either reuse them as dog waste bags or take them back to the store for them to be recycled. If you ask an employee they can direct you to where they recycle the bags.

3. Save the plastic tube from your clorox/lysol wipes and create a place to store your doggie bags. Buzzfeed has a great tutorial video here.

4. If you don’t have a pup but want to reuse the plastic tube you can make your own all purpose cleaning wipes. Buzzfeed also has a tutorial video for this here. *I have tried this video but the only difference is I used a clorox/lysol wipes container and cut the paper towels down to size. More Eco-Friendly: omit the paper towels and just use the solution by pouring it over a few washcloths in a tupperware. Just wring them out before use so you can reuse the leftover cleaning solution on fresh washcloths.

5. Stop buying plastic water bottles and invest in a Brita, PUR, or whatever water filter you prefer. It is estimated that 300 plastic bottles are saved per water filter. You can even invest in a water bottle that has a filter in the bottle so you can get that bottle water taste from the drinking fountain. Check out the bobble for an easy starter bottle.

6. Turn off the water in between hand washing dishes, brushing your teeth, and if you really want to go all out in between shampooing, conditioning, etc in the shower. If you have a partner, shower together- saves water and is a nice intimate way to start your day together.

7. Pick up trash during your morning run or when you walk your dog. You can reuse a plastic grocery bag and fill it up with trash or pick up a couple piece at a time and dispose of it at the next garbage bin you walk by.

8. Be conscious of the amount of food you waste; this affects the environment poorly too. Start planning out your meals by estimating how much food you will need, what meals you are going to make, and keep in mind the expiration dates on your food. Try looking at apps for your phone that keep track of your current groceries/grocery list, this can be helpful when trying to remember what expires first.

9. Buy food from the bulk sections when possible; these are the areas that have large bins of specific ingredients. Places like Sprouts, Whole Foods, and sometimes Trader Joe’s have these bins. Use a mason or glass jar for the ingredients/food item and virtually no waste has been created. Save any pasta jars, pickle jars, or any glass jar that previously held food in it. Soak the jars in dish soap and warm water for about 20 mins then you can easily wipe off the old label.

10. Try using an eco-friendly detergent to cut out toxic chemicals, a decently priced and good brand is Ecos. You can buy it in bulk from Costco they also have a Ecos cleaning product starter pack here. *Just to be sure I did some research on Ecos products and there were no recent claims of their products not being Earth friendly

11. When you are out for a night of drinking, try to have the bartender reuse the cup that they previously served you in. I have found that most bars don’t mind doing this because it is less work for them. Especially if they served it in a glass it is one less glass they have to wash.

12. Try cutting down on the amount of aluminum foil you use or omit it completely. Aluminum foil is just as bad if not worse than plastic. The reason for this is due to its inability to break down in a timely manner and it being incorrectly recycled.  I am still trying to figure out something to replace aluminum foil with so for the meantime I reuse the foil that I do use, you can wash it in soap and water. Here are some cool ways to reuse aluminum foil. 

What are your ways of being more Eco Friendly?