By Diane Porter

It waits, patiently, in a corner of the pantry. It knows that it goes out on Tuesdays, doing its good work with a load of diet Coke cans, glass bottles, newspapers and plastics #1 and #2. Salad bar containers make guest appearances, and once in a while a Tide bottle livens things up with its vivid orange and blue, but that’s about as exciting as it gets for the recycling bin.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. It’s the mantra of environmentally concerned people everywhere. Maybe you’ve gotten the third part of the equation conquered: If it’s glass, plastic, metal or paper, it goes in the bin. It saves space in the garbage and it saves resources for the planet. But what about the rest? Are you reducing your carbon footprint? Can you reuse more things than you do?

You can, easily, and here’s the best part: It will also save you money. Frugality gets its own cult-like devotion these days. In economically questionable times, anything that keeps a little more cash in our pocket is welcome. And while we’d all like to go out and buy hybrid vehicles and solar water heaters, it may be more practical right now to concentrate on small things that add up to make a difference.
The key is, don’t think you have to overhaul your life. Look around your house, be conscious of your routines, and find small changes that work for you.

“I think the important thing to remember, when trying to go green to save green, is that you shouldn’t try to change too many habits too soon,” said author Leah Ingram, who writes The Lean Green Family, a blog that tells how she (pictured left), her husband and their two pre-teen daughters have adopted a green lifestyle and saved money at the same time.

“Take it slowly, doing one thing at a time, kind of like when you might go on a diet or start a new exercise program,” Ingram said. “Take baby steps. Soon enough it will all seem like second nature.”

How small can a baby step be? Here’s how small: Milk in your cereal. When you’ve finished your cereal, do you drink the milk from the bottom of the bowl, or do you throw it down the drain? If you’re the latter, cut the amount of milk on your cereal tomorrow by about half. Make it a goal to have the cereal and milk end at exactly the same time. Just a fourth of a cup of milk saved daily adds up to close to six gallons of milk in a year. That’s six gallons’ worth of containers that don’t have to be out in the world, and a nifty $20-$30 in your pocket.

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By Tom Kessler

Almost 90 percent of the car shoppers who visit Kelley Blue Book’s Web site say they are concerned about the future of our environment, company research shows. Among survey respondents, 80 percent agreed that individuals should make lifestyle changes to help reduce CO2 emissions. And 75 percent of KBB shoppers reported that they have made changes to further the betterment of the environment. The most frequent lifestyle changes cited were:

• recycling (54 percent)
• cutting back on driving (46 percent)
• purchasing a fuel-efficient car (31 percent)

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By John DeFore

San Francisco residents recycle almost 70 percent of their total waste. Houston? Just over two and a half percent.

That’s according to an article in the trade journal Waste News that labels Houston the worst recycler among the nation’s thirty most populous cities. The ranking has sparked newspaper coverage lately, with accounts seeking both to establish blame for the startlingly low rate and to assess possibilities for improvement.

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By Nima Kapadia
What do unwanted catalogs, coupon packs and credit card offers have in common? They each share the same destination: our trashcans. 41pounds.org can help Americans reclaim their mailboxes and reduce junk mail by 80 to 95 percent.

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By Harriet Blake

Independence Day brings back memories of picnics and fireworks. Lots of paper and plastic, coal or gas grilling, and a brilliant light show. Is it possible to celebrate the Fourth and remain green? Let’s take it step by step.

Photo: Elke Dennis/Dreamstime.com

Having a daytime party that makes use of natural outside light is great. Depending on what you have in mind, that may or may not work. Holding your event outdoors works best, avoiding the cost of electricity and lessening the use of air conditioning.

But if you live in a hot climate, that may not be desirable. If an evening party is more of what you have in mind, consider soy candles. Soy candles are more eco-friendly since they are not made from petroleum-based paraffin candles which contain up to 11 carcinogen compounds, labeled toxic air agents by the State of California Air Board.

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By John DeFore

Big American retailers like Wal-Mart and Home Depot have been embracing compact fluorescent light bulbs for a while now, but some customers who read the fine print have been peeved that, since they contain mercury, the twisty little energy-saving bulbs are easier to buy than to dispose of properly. This week, Home [...]

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By John DeFore

While scientists make news with super-towels designed to repair eco-disasters, consumers may be happy to note that their more humble domestic clean-up needs aren’t being ignored.

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By Nima Kapadia

Best Buy, the nation’s largest electronics retailer, is asking consumers for their electronics this summer.

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By John DeFore
In 2002, the City of New York was recycling about a fifth of its waste, but some in the Bloomberg administration thought the program cost too much. In response to a budget crisis, the city stopped collecting glass and plastic (they continued paper and metal collection), arguing they’d save $40 million [...]

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By Lynette Holloway
As part of the rite of spring, families will gather in parks and nature preserves across the nation to celebrate Memorial Day this weekend, dragging out barbecue grills, blankets, coolers, and traditional picnic fare such as cheese, sandwiches, chips, and beer. Children will take advantage of the open air and romp around [...]

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By Harriet Blake
Your first reaction might be YUCK. Composting is not for the squeamish among us.
The definition alone is enough to turn you off: the aeorobic decomposition of biodegradable organic matter, performed by aerobic bacteria, yeasts and fungi and in the later stages, assisted by ants, nematodes and worms.
Organic gardening expert Howard Garrett describes compost [...]

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By Barbara Kessler
Manufacturers have pounced on the composting trend, giving you, the consumer, many choices for how you want to recycle your kitchen and garden waste. Here are a few:

This Tumbleweed Compost Bin was Member Tested and Recommended by the National Home Gardening Club, according to Clean Air Gardening, an online store that sells [...]

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