Turn (off, up, or down) and unplug
These are the easiest things we’ll ask you to do in the name of Mama Earth. They require little to no monetary investment. They’re small dogs with big bite.
1. Turn off the lights when you leave a room. Duh.
2. Turn down the thermostat in the winter 2 degrees. For every degree you lower it you can save 3% of your total heating energy and 1000 pounds of carbon dioxide. Besides, you never wear that sweater your grandmother knitted you. Turn it down even further at night. Hey, now you have an extra reason to cuddle up and get cozy. (Please keep in mind your newborn or that tropical bird, though.)
3. On the other side of the coin, turn that thermostat up in the summer. Hey, we’re from Buffalo. We love the cold and hate the heat. But if we can all turn that A/C down in the summer months that’ll be energy well-saved. Think of it this way: the less we use A/C now, the less we’ll need it later.
4. This one knocked our organically-grown cotton socks off when we read it, so here it is according to the Alliance to Save Energy:
Many idle electronics – TVs, VCRs, DVD and CD players, cordless phones, microwaves – use energy even when switched off to keep display clocks lit and memory chips and remote controls working. Nationally, these energy “vampires†use 5 percent of our domestic energy and cost consumers more than $4 billion annually.
Five percent! We suggest tackling this problem with a power strip or surge protector. Just plug those electronics into a single strip and flip it off (no, not the finger) when you’re done. Quick, easy, and efficient.
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