Ideas for Sustainable Living
This document was begun and includes tips by participants at a brainstorming forum on sustainable living that occurred on January 27, 2008 at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Birmingham. It also includes Kara's favorite green tips, first presented as part of the July 13, 2008 Sunday service. If you have ideas you want included (or corrections), please contact Marion Fintel.
“Individuals need to know that the actions they take will make an impact, and that they are not acting alone. These feelings of isolation or powerlessness are primary causes of burnout and dropout. To succeed, we must help people overcome denial, recognize their power to make a difference, overcome feelings of isolation connect to deep values and aspirations, and focus on positive solutions more than negative consequences.”
~Betsy Taylor, from Sustainable Planet
A. Reduce energy consumption at home.
1. Live in a smaller home.
2. Consider environmental impact of all large purchases such as house, car, and major appliances.
3. Buy EPA Certified Energy Star Appliances.
4. Have a home energy audit.
5. Check the temperature in your freezer and fridge. Keeping the appliances colder than 37 degrees and 3 degrees Fahrenheit respectively is not necessary according to the EPA.
6. Use compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs) and recycle used ones (Home Depot will recycle used ones).
7. Use LED nightlights.
8. Unplug televisions, computers, and other electronic devices when not in use in order to eliminate standby power.
9. Hang clothes out to dry rather than using a dryer.
10. Include a dry towel in dryer with wet clothes in order to reduce drying time.
11. Replace windows with ones that conserve energy.
12. Use a programmable thermostat.
13. Cool home by opening windows when possible.
14. When building a new home, orient house in relation to sun.
15. Install a tankless, instantaneous water heater.
16. Use a water heater only for water going to the shower.
17. Consider alternative energy sources such as solar energy.
18. Turn off lights when leave a room.
19. Purchase a portion of your electricity from renewable energy sources at at: http://www.alabamapower.com/residential/renewable.asp
B. Reduce gasoline consumption
1. Lower speed while driving. On the interstate, try not to exceed 55 mph.
2. Coordinate travel to reduce gas consumption.
3. Walk when possible.
4. Drive vehicle that gets good gas mileage such as a Prius.
C. Practice water conservation
1. Shorten shower time and collect water from shower for use in the yard.
2. Use rain barrels to collect water for use in yard.
3. Collect rinse cycle water for use in yard.
4. Collect condensation from air conditioner.
5. Don't flush toilet every time (applies to urine only).
6. Place bricks in toilet tank.
7. Check for leaks in toilet by adding food color to tank and checking to see if it enters bowl without flushing.
8. Turn off water while brushing teeth, etc.
D. Reduce, reuse, and recycle purchased products.
1. Reuse ziplock bags and bread wrappers.
2. Buy used clothes and household items at thrift stores. Donate items no longer wanted to thrift stores as well.
3. Make special effort to avoid buying new plastic items if good quality used items are available.
4. Use more recycled products
5. Take reusable cloth bags to grocery and other stores rather than using plastic bags.
6. Recycle plastic bags.
7. Recycle paper. Tip from Living Like Ed (by Ed Begley, Jr.): Paper recycled through curbside program likely to become backing on roof tiles. In order for used white office paper to be recycled as paper, separate from other paper and take directly to Alabama Environmental recycling center.
8. Take glass to Alabama Environmental Council recycling center.
9. Don't use a computer printer at home in order to reduce paper consumption.
10. Get on list to stop catalogue delivery (go to www.greendimes.com).
E. Avoid environmentally harmful products.
1. Use environmentally friendly products for cleaning such as vinegar, grapefruit and salt, and Liquid Sunshine.
2. Buy clothes that do not need to be dry-cleaned.
3. Cut down on purchase of batteries by using rechargeable batteries.
4. Use heat-resistant glass or ceramic containers in microwave instead of plastic. This reduces the need for production of plastic products and eliminates the possibility that chemicals could pass from the plastic into the food.
5. Avoid Styrofoam. Consider bringing your own coffee cup when polystyrene is the only alternative offered.
F. Consider the environmental impact and energy consumption involved when making food choices.
1. Belong to an organic coop.
2. Create a community garden.
3. Buy fresh, locally grown produce at Farmers Market and/or Pepper Place.
4. Compost.
5. Try worm composting.
6. Create a home vegetable garden.
7. Eat less meat and more fruits, vegetables, grains.
8. Buy local, organic, grass-fed meat instead of factory-farmed, shipped meat.
G. Create an environmentally friendly church.
1. Conduct an energy audit on church.
2. Evaluate heat pumps of church.
3. Consider installing windmills on church property.
4. Provide members with opportunities to give away items no longer wanted or to share items with rest of congregation.
5. Include Jones Valley organic gardens in a service and for Share the Plate.
6. Conduct a class on composting.
7. Create an environmental education corner of the newsletter.
References
1. www.thedailygreen.com
2. Begley, Ed. Living Like Ed: A Guide to the Eco-Friendly Life. New York: Clarkson Potter/Publishers, 2008.
3. Taylor, Betsy. How do we get from here to there? Sustainable Living: Solutions for the Twenty-first Century. Boston: Beacon Press, 2002.
Unitarian Universalist Church of Birmingham
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Mailing Address: P.O. Box 19786 · Birmingham, AL 35219
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