17 Ways to Save the Planet

I read articles quite often that provide their list of ways to save the Earth. If I type in “Ways to Save the Plant” into Google, there are 506,000 different links. Wow, that’s a lot of information. There is no denying that many of these websites and blogs offer terrific advice, but how do we know what is most effective? If I compiled a list of all of the different methods for saving the planet, I’m sure I would collect hundreds, if not thousands. Treehugger offers 25 Ways to Save the Planet and Smartmoney offers 20 Ways to Save the Planet which is certainly a digestible amount compared to the 100 Ways to Save the Planet that Life Goggles offers.

So, which of these tips, methods, hacks is the best use of your time for helping the save the planet?

Fortunately, Gerald Gardner and Paul Stern wrote a great article in Environment Magazine detailing a list of actions that can be taken to achieve the greatest savings of energy and carbon emissions and is prioritized with percentage of energy saved!

According to Gerald Gardner and Paul Stern, the 17 most effective actions are:

Action For all individuals and households Immediate low-cost/ no-cost actions Transportation Energy Saved (percent) 1. Carpool to work with one other person Up to 4.2 2. Get frequent tune-ups , including air filter changes 3.9 3. Alter driving (avoid sudden acceleration and stops Up to 3.2 4. Combine errand trips to one-half current mileage Up to 2.7 5. Cut highway speeds from 70 to 60 mph Up to 2.4 6. Maintain correct tire pressure 1.2 Potential Savings subtotal Up to 17.6 Inside the home 1. Lighting: Replace 85% of all incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent 4.0 2. Space conditioning: Heat: Turn down thermostat from 72F to 68F during the day and 65F at night A/C: Turn up the thermostat from 73F to 78F 3.4 3. Clothes washing: Use only warm water (or cold) wash , cold rinse setting 1.2 Potential savings subtotal 8.6 For all individuals and households Longer term , higher-cost actions Transportation 1. Buying low-rolling resistance tires 1.5 2. Buy a more fuel-efficient automobile (30.7 vs. 20 mpg EPA average adjusted composite) 13.5 Potential savings subtotal for two actions listed 15.0 For homeowners: Inside the home Immediate low-cost action 1. Space conditioning: Caulk/ weather strip home Up to 2.5 Immediate higher-cost action Space conditioning: Install/upgrade attic insulation and ventilation Up to 7.0 Potential savings subtotal for two actions listed Up to 9.5 Long-term , higher-cost actions Space conditioning: Install a more efficient heating unit (92 percent efficiency) 2.9 2. Space conditioning: Install a more efficient A/C unit (Seer 13 or EER 12 units) 2.2 3. Refrigeration/freezing: Install a more efficient unit (replace a 19-21.4 cubic foot top-freezer unit bought between 1993 and 2000 with a new Energy Star unit 1.9 4. Water heating: Install a more efficient water heater (EFS .7 unit) 1.5 Potential savings subtotal for four actions listed 8.5 Total potential savings for all six homeowner actions listed Up to 18.0

Given this information, we could save a whopping 59.2% of energy. That’s a staggering figure when you consider that this doesn’t involve a hybrid. It doesn’t involve solar panels, wind farms, or anything very different than what we do today. Some of these are high dollar items and you should not consider those options unless they are necessary, but you can save a lot of energy by doing a lot of low cost actions. Based on the table above from Gerald Gardner and Paul Stern, you could follow through on 7 of the items and do all of them at little to no cost and save up to 20.1% in energy. In addition, a lot of these energy saving tips can also save you some dough such as cutting highway speed from 70 to 60 mph or maintaining tire pressure which both save money on gas.

Have you already been implementing some of these actions into your life? I was actually shocked how little of an effect a new heating unit or cooling unit for your house had on energy reduction.

If you enjoyed this article, please leave me a comment. I love comments :).

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