reduce my environmental footprint

I started a compost bin out back and I’ve been throwing some of the compostable waste from my kitchen in there. With a little baby in the house, I it’s not easy to get out to the compost bin right away, so that’s why I have a tupperware bowl in my kitchen where I can throw food waste to take out later. Eventually the compost will go to nourish the tomato plants I got from a friend to plant out back.

Some compostable stuff still goes in the garbage can, but it’s a good start.

After a couple weeks of using disposables while we got used to the whole new-parent thing, we started using cloth diapers. It’s actually not that hard, once you get used to it. It would be easier still if the spin cycle on our washing machine didn’t require supervision.

I’ve heard that the carbon footprint of using cloth diapers is comparable to that of disposables, when you factor in the energy required for manufacturing and washing them. But cloth diapers have the benefit of not clogging up landfills, so I think this counts as reducing my footprint.

Do we go to the next step of making and using cloth wipes? We shall see…

Since I’m pregnant and peeing all the time, my water consumption has increased in the form of increased toilet flushing. So sometimes when I’ve only peed (and I’m at home, and nobody else is likely to need the toilet again before me) I don’t flush. Overall I probably still have increased water consumption compared to pre-pregnancy, but I’m doing what I can.

I had been looking for some cheap cloth napkins, but not finding any, I made my own. Aren’t they pretty! Now I can stop using paper napkins. To be honest, I haven’t bought paper napkins in awhile and have just been using paper towels torn in half. So now I can feel classy and save the Earth at the same time.

I have recently been making more of a conscious effort to cut back water consumption by not letting the water run as much when I am washing dishes and brushing my teeth. I feel like I should somehow cut back my shower consumption as well but am not quite ready to start taking navy-style showers.

Probably when I’ve bought a house I will install low-flow showerheads. I always used to hate the things because I had really long hair and the reduced water pressure made it hard to rinse out the shampoo. But, perhaps it won’t be as bad now that I keep my hair shorter.

I signed up at http://www.yellowpagesgoesgreen.org/ to opt out of receiving the Yellow and White Pages. I never ever use the yellow pages – I look things up online instead. I could probably imagine a situation where I might use the white pages, but I honestly think I could find my way around it, by trying to look the person up online or asking a mutual friend for the information.

DH and I discussed baby diapers over the weekend, and I think I’ve convinced him that we should use mostly cloth diapers once the baby comes. You should have seen his face when we were reading about how to clean cloth diapers – I’ve never seen him look so disgusted :-)

But we still need to talk to someone knowledgeable about cloth diapers, since it looks like there are lots of different kinds and we’re having trouble making sense of it all.

I’ve been getting much better about bringing my reusable bags into the grocery store. Plus, I brought one to the fabric district yesterday so I didn’t have to get a plastic bag there. Baby steps!

Like Kate, I’ve started doing this (and sometimes under the limit) and I, too, have noticed an improvement in fuel economy. It takes me longer to get where I’m going, and I’ve estimated that I save only about $4 per extra hour I spend on the road. But, it’s not about the monetary savings, it’s about saving the environment! Plus, I’ve noticed that I feel less rushed/stressed while I’m on the road – an unexpected but appreciated side effect!

I bought a box fan this weekend (finally, after 2 years of intending to buy one) so for the past few days DH and I have been using the fan instead of the air conditioner. DH is a little grumpy about it because it doesn’t cool down the apartment quite as fast as the AC. But I say he’s just been spoiled since we’ve been using the AC almost every day this summer.

What we really need to do is come up with a better way of securing the fan in the bedroom window that also easily allows us to move the fan into the living room when we need it there.