Save Energy/Stop Global Warming

Here are some tips from the Environmental Protection Agency, the Sierra Club, the World Wildlife Fund and the Alliance to Save Energy:

• Drive smarter. Live as close to your job as possible to reduce your commute and cut down on the amount of gasoline you burn. The burning of gasoline and other fossil fuels contributes to global warming and air pollution. If you can't live close to work, use public transportation or car pools. Keep your car's tires well inflated and your vehicle tuned up to run more efficiently.

• Switch light bulbs. Switch from traditional incandescent light bulbs to compact fluorescent bulbs to save energy. If every household in America switched just five bulbs, the energy savings would be equivalent to taking 8 million cars off the road, according to the Sierra Club.

• Save energy at home. Buy energy-efficient appliances and electronics that carry the Energy Star label. Make sure your doors and windows are well sealed. Buy a programmable thermostat that allows you to set your heating and air conditioning to use less energy when you're not home. Turn off your computer and monitor when they're not in use. Computer screen savers and slide shows use a great deal of energy. Unplug your TV whenever you leave town. TVs suck up energy even when turned off.

• Use cleaner energy. Many utility companies allow customers to buy "green power" generated by renewable energy such as wind and solar. To find out what's available in your area, go to http://zoomer.sierraclub.org and click on "efficiency/renewables."

• Recycle. Make sure to recycle aluminum cans, glass bottles and paper. Creating a new aluminum soda can from recycled materials consumes just 5% of the energy it takes to make one from scratch.

Endangered Species

• Live in a "recycled" home. Buy or rent an existing home rather than contributing to suburban sprawl by buying in a new housing tract away from the city center. The loss of habitat is the major threat to endangered species.

• Save trees. Make sure to recycle all your paper products. Recycling a 4-foot-tall stack of newspapers will save a mature tree that is home to birds and other species.

• Create less garbage. Buy products with the least amount of packaging. Recycle everything you can. Don't litter. Bring cloth bags to the grocery store so you won't be throwing away paper or plastic sacks. Donate used clothes, toys and household items to charity rather than throwing them away. Trash creates the need to use up more land for dumps rather than preserving it for wildlife.

Clean Water

• Don't pour pollution down the drain. Take unwanted household chemicals such as cleaning solvents, paint and varnishes to hazardous waste collection centers. If you pour them down the drain, you will make it harder for sewage treatment plants to clean the water before it flows back into rivers, lakes and bays.

• Make your lawn "greener." Don't use chemical fertilizers or pesticides on your lawn and flower beds and don't hire lawn-care services that use them. Those chemicals wash into waterways and harm endangered wildlife. Use organic alternatives instead. Compost your yard trimmings and use them to feed nutrients to your lawn and gardens. Conserve water by collecting rainwater in barrels placed at downspouts to your house and using it for your plants.

• Pick up pet droppings. Waste from dogs and cats runs off yards and streets into storm drains and contaminates waterways.

Clean Air

• Go farther on a gallon of gas. Choose cars that are energy efficient and pollute less. For more information, check out the EPA's Green Vehicles Guide at www.epa.gov/greenvehicles.

• Get out of the car. Combine as many errands as possible into one car trip. Avoid waiting in long lines at fast-food restaurants and drive-through banks. Park the car and go inside instead. Work from home at least one day a week if your employer will allow it. Shop on the Internet instead of driving from store to store.

• Rake your leaves. Gas-powered lawn mowers, leaf blowers, weed trimmers, chainsaws and snow blowers contribute to air pollution. Consider trading them in for rakes, shovels, handsaws, clippers and push mowers.

~ 50 Ways to Save Water - from ConsumerReports.org

~ 101 Easy Ways to Save Energy - from PowerHouseTV.com
~ Stop Global Warming - list of few things that we can do to make a difference.