Carpoling is a great way to reduce CO2 emissions from burning fuel. Ask co-workers that live nearby if they would like to carpool to work! Or when going out with friends, try to go together in one car, or in as few cars as possible.

 

You can produce high quality fertilizer from things you throw away everyday! Start saving your kitchen scraps for a compost pile instead of tossing them in the trash. Anything that's not a meat, fish or dairy product -- including coffee grounds, laundry lint, eggshells, fruit pits and vegetable peels -- can be used to create healthy compost for your home garden. You can build your self a worm composting bin, and reduce the amount of trash being put out to the landfill. Worms will eat food scraps, paper, coffe grounds with filter, eggshells, vegies, and convert them into high grade fertilizer. When mowing your lawn, if you pick up clippings and throw them out, DON'T! Leave the clippings right there to decompose which will give you a healthier looking lawn, and reduce the amount of garbage you put out! Collect leaves that fall and put them around the trunks of trees, this mulch will help feed your trees too! Plant a tree, make a garden! Give back to the environment by planting trees to help reduce the CO2 in the air! You will also save some cash on groceries if you provide yoursel with a little homegrown food.

 

Don't pour your money down the drain! When performing your daily hygiene routine, such as brushing teeth, washing face/hands, showering, we use up A LOT of water. Here are some things I do to help save water and lower those bills! A- When brushing your teeth, turn off that water when you are not using it! running the water 2-3 minutes easily dumps 3+ gallosn down the drain. B- If you like taking long showers, buy yourself a water and energy saving shower head, these things make your showering experience efficient by restricting the amount of water used to about 2.5 gallons per minute. C- Laundry: Filling up the whole washer with dirty clothes, brings down the amount of loads that you will ultimately have to do. D- Drying your clothes: If you have a yard, put up a clothes line! Let the wind and sun dry the clothes for you or buy a dryer rack for your laundry room, and use it instead of your dryer the next time you wash clothes. E - Running a dryer uses a lot of electricity. These things add up, and in short time you will notice you will start saving money, helping out the environment and feeling good about yourself at the same time!

 

These light bulbs consume a fraction of what old light bulbs use, and provide more light as well. You can purchase them at any home improvement store, such as Lowe's, Home Depot, and Wal-Mart. You can save money by purchasing the packs that have a couple bulbs in it. Each bulb you change can save about 30 USD yearly in your electricity bill. If you change 10 bulbs in your house that's already 300+ a year in savings, which brings your monthly bill down about 25 dollars. NEAT!

 

ENERGY STAR appliances use 10-50% less energy and water than traditional models. Nearly all appliances, from TVs to air conditioners to washers and dryers, have models that are made to meet ENERGY STAR standards. When your next shopping for an appliance, be sure to ask for ENERGY STAR."

 

Air conditioners are one of the largest consumers of electricity. Be sure to shut off your air conditioner when you're not home and manually set the thermostats and timers found on newer models. Also, using shades to help cool your home substantially reduces the amount of time your air conditioner needs to run.

 

In the average home, 40% of electricity used to power home electronics is consumed while the products are turned off but still plugged in. Make sure to unplug charges and when you are not using them.

 

You can eliminate 1,600 pounds of greenhouse gases a year just by leaving the car at home twice a week. Go to go.miamidade.gov to find the easiest way to get around the City using public transportation or go to North Miami's Community Bus Service NOMI Express to view the Free NOMI express bus route schedule. And for bikers the Bicycle Pedestrian Program website at Metropolitan Planning Organization for the Miami Urbanized Area to view the available paths, lanes and trails throughout the County or call 305.375.4507 for more information.

 

The average North Miami resident discards nearly four and a half pounds of waste each day - that's more than three-quarters of a ton per year. You can help reduce this waste by following the three Rs: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. If you have questions about the City's recycling guidelines or how to recycle, call the Public Works Daprtment at 305.895.9830

 

Petroleum is used to produce the millions of plastic bags consumed in the City each year. Each cloth bag you use has potential to eliminate an average of 1,000 plastic bags in its lifetime Making the simple switch to cloth bags will reduce our nation's oil consumption and lead to a cleaner environment.

 

Many cleaning products contain chemicals that can damage the environment and impact human health. Some ingredients in commercial cleaning products can be irritating to eyes and skin, and may cause chronic health problems, especially in small children. Green cleaning products are just as effective without the risks. Go to greenerchoices.org for more information on choosing green cleaning products for your home. The City of North Miami has adopted an Administrative Regulation that requires the purchase and use of green cleaning products in all City buildings.

 

Sick of all that mail? Log on to your bank's website and enroll in their paperless banking program. If every home in the US viewed and paid bills electronically, the country would save 18.5 million trees and avoid 2.2 billion tons of toxic air pollutants

 

Send communications electronically and print only if necessary.

 

 

Proper Disposal of Compact Fluorescent Lights