“GREEN” is a colour of relaxation that is the reason our mother Nature gifted humans with such elegant color everywhere we go in the form of leaves, trees and forests with which we are surrounded .But it is so obvious that importance of something will be never realized until it is lost but sometimes humans will never realize that the most essential things for existence such as plants, water and air which are said be the children of nature from many centuries are being polluted and thrashed to death in ignorance…
Plants ,Water and Air have been helping the mankind in many useful ways since centuries but man who always looks for change ignored nature when he got used to his own fascinating invention of technology which was a kick start for the emission of greenhouse gases causing pollution and warming .He not only used technology in daily routine life but also made it essential for his life resulting in severe GLOBAL WARMING.
We humans never gave a thought about natural resources as we always felt that they are well sufficient for us that they would be available for next generations….but very sooner the perception and anticipation of our aristocratic ancestors went wrong when days arrived when we have started going places like necklace road, parks for fresh air, waiting for days to get fresh water, wearing masks to prevent ourselves from polluted air thinking as if we are the victims of nature .But, it is clearly proved that we have victimized the nature and betrayed it ruthlessly in ignorance by exploiting all such natural resources from nature…
What is the use if you are gifted all luxuries’ but left with scarcity of basic elements of survival? What is the use to have willingness to provide the best education for the kid leaving his future blind with no basic elements of survival ?Finally what is the use of having brain knowing that you are the reason for such situation?
So let us analyze our daily actions which are hindering many lives on this planet, let us realize that we are the one who takes so much from nature but gives less to nature….there is always a solution to pay back for the mistakes we have done so far…Here are the tips:
1. Replace a regular incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb (cfl)
CFLs use 60% less energy than a regular bulb. This simple switch will save about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide a year.
2. Install a programmable thermostat
Programmable thermostats will automatically lower the heat or air conditioning at night and raise them again in the morning. They can save you $100 a year on your energy bill.
3. Move your thermostat down 2° in winter and up 2° in summer
Almost half of the energy we use in our homes goes to heating and cooling. You could save about 2,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year with this simple adjustment.
4. Clean or replace filters on your furnace and air conditioner
Cleaning a dirty air filter can save 350 pounds of carbon dioxide a year.
5. Choose energy efficient appliances when making new purchases
Look for the Energy Star label on new appliances.
6. Do not leave appliances on standby
Use the "on/off" function on the machine itself. A TV set that's switched on for 3 hours a day and in standby mode during the remaining 21 hours uses about 40% of its energy in standby mode.
7. Wrap your water heater in an insulation blanket
You ’ll save 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year with this simple action. You can save another 550 pounds per year by setting the thermostat no higher than 50°C.
8. Move your fridge and freezer
Placing them next to the cooker or boiler consumes much more energy than if they were standing on their own. For example, if you put them in a hot cellar room where the room temperature is 30-35ºC, energy use is almost double and causes an extra 160kg of CO2 emissions for fridges per year and 320kg for freezers.
9. Defrost old fridges and freezers regularly
Even better is to replace them with newer models, which all have automatic defrost cycles and are generally up to two times more energy-efficient than their predecessors.
10. Don't let heat escape from your house over a long period
When airing your house, open the windows for only a few minutes. If you leave a small opening all day long, the energy needed to keep it warm inside during six cold months (10ºC or less outside temperature) would result in almost 1 ton of CO2 emissions.
11. Replace your old single-glazed windows with double-glazing
This requires a bit of upfront investment, but will halve the energy lost through windows and pay off in the long term. If you go for the best the market has to offer (wooden-framed double-glazed units with low-emission glass and filled with argon gas), you can even save more than 70% of the energy lost.
12. Get a home energy audit
Many utilities offer free home energy audits to find where your home is poorly insulated or energy inefficient. You can save up to 30% off your energy bill and 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. Energy Star can help you find an energy specialist.
13. Cover your pots while cooking
Doing so can save a lot of the energy needed for preparing the dish. Even better are pressure cookers and steamers: they can save around 70%!
14. Use the washing machine or dishwasher only when they are full
If you need to use it when it is half full, then use the half-load or economy setting. There is also no need to set the temperatures high. Nowadays detergents are so efficient that they get your clothes and dishes clean at low temperatures.
15. Take a shower instead of a bath
A shower takes up to four times less energy than a bath. To maximize the energy saving, avoid power showers and use low-flow showerheads, which are cheap and provide the same comfort.
16. Use less hot water
It takes a lot of energy to heat water. You can use less hot water by installing a low flow showerhead (350 pounds of carbon dioxide saved per year) and washing your clothes in cold or warm water (500 pounds saved per year) instead of hot.
17. Use a clothesline instead of a dryer whenever possible
You can save 700 pounds of carbon dioxide when you air dry your clothes for 6 months out of the year.
18. Insulate and weatherize your home
Properly insulating your walls and ceilings can save 25% of your home heating bill and 2,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. Caulking and weather-stripping can save another 1,700 pounds per year
19. Be sure you’re recycling at home
You can save 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide a year by recycling half of the waste your household generates.
20. Recycle your organic waste
Around 3% of the greenhouse gas emissions through the methane is released by decomposing bio-degradable waste. By recycling organic waste or composting it if you have a garden, you can help eliminate this problem! Just make sure that you compost it properly, so it decomposes with sufficient oxygen, otherwise your compost will cause methane emissions and smell foul.
21. Buy intelligently
One bottle of 1.5l requires less energy and produces less waste than three bottles of 0.5l. As well, buy recycled paper products: it takes less 70 to 90% less energy to make recycled paper and it prevents the loss of forests worldwide.
22. Choose products that come with little packaging and buy refills when you can
You will also cut down on waste production and energy use... another help against global warming.
23. Reuse your shopping bag
When shopping, it saves energy and waste to use a reusable bag instead of accepting a disposable one in each shop. Waste not only discharges CO2 and methane into the atmosphere, it can also pollute the air, groundwater and soil.
24. Reduce waste
Most products we buy cause greenhouse gas emissions in one or another way, e.g. during production and distribution. By taking your lunch in a reusable lunch box instead of a disposable one, you save the energy needed to produce new lunch boxes.
25. Plant a tree
A single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime. Shade provided by trees can also reduce your air conditioning bill by 10 to 15%.
26.Buy fresh foods instead of frozen
