What steps do you take to lessen your impact on Earth?

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   summerclark7387posted 12 years ago

   Do you consider yourself "green?"  Do you make an attempt at living a sustainable lifestyle?  Please share the steps you take whether they be small or large.  Composting, car pooling, recycling, use renewable energy etc...  My hope is to share good green ideas with eachother, and to gain some knowledge.
   
   I recycle religiously, purchace renewable energy from my power company, and police our lightswitches.  I also only run full loads of dishes in the dishwasher and I avoid chemicals like they're the plague, using only green cleaners.  I try use my consumer influence by purchacing green products whenever possible.
   
   Don't be shy, how do you live green?

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2. 61

   paradigmsearchposted 12 years ago

   I periodically leave.

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   Emile Rposted 12 years ago

   I have actually (I highly advise against this) done the following:
   
   Raised my own meat. This includes separate pastures for pigs, three cows and a goat. I did this because it was the most drastic way to reduce my carbon footprint.
   
   Believe me. Everything they say about farm animals is true. Pigs are pigs. Cows make a very large number of cow patties. And if you ever wondered how the myth of the satyr came about, own a billy goat. They are bizarre and sexually deviant creatures.
   
   Now, having accepted that some things are worse than a heavy carbon footprint; I use a push mower instead of a riding one. I take my own bags to the store and I fantasize about starting to recycle.

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   1. 66

      Ivorwenposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I'd love to be raising my own meat!  But I guess we do the next best thing by buying directly from the rancher. 
      
      And yes, billy goats are crazy!  I would hate to own one.
      
      As to being 'green' -- I prefer to think of it as frugal -- we compost, garden, recycle some things, walk when we can, take our own bags to the store most of the time and use very little disposable or heavily packaged items.

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         klarawieckposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         I could never raise my own meat. I would get attached to the animals and end up living with them till death do us apart!

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            Randy Godwinposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            Only if you had something else to eat, KW. 

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   paradigmsearchposted 12 years ago

   I can also testify as to the pigs and cows. I didn't know about the goats.
   
   And, amazingly, I actually do recycle.

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   klarawieckposted 12 years ago

   I take my bags to the supermarket, whenever I forget them I get paper because it's cheaper to recycle, and I use those paper bags to recycle in the house and I also use them to create the gardening beds where I plant so that I don't have to use chemicals to kill the grass. I also try to plant a lot of native plants, and I do grow my own herbs.

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   Randy Godwinposted 12 years ago

   I always use a parachute! 

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      paradigmsearchposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I wished I'd thought of that....
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      

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7. 70

   summerclark7387posted 12 years ago

   Awesome!  Someday I hope to raise some chickens, maybe a cow and definately have a garden, but that someday is not yet.  Anyone compost?  I always tell myself that I need a compost pile, but I never start one.

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   1. 66

      Ivorwenposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      We compost all of our grass clippings and vegetable scraps to improve the garden soil.  I also have collected saw dust from a local saw mill to improve the ph balance of our soil.
      If you don't have a place to use the compost or quite a bit of stuff to compost, it is not really worth your time.  To get things to break down properly and kill all weed seeds, your pile needs to be fairly large.

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8. 81

   classicalgeekposted 12 years ago

   I compost, recycle, grow stuff in my parents' yard (5 miles away), buy renewable energy, buy used things rather than new where I can, conserve energy, work from home, hypermile and combine trips, keep car maintained, try not to fly, use public transportation where I can, make my own cosmetics, use only natural cleaning products, make my own clothing, handbags, and curtains/home decor stuff, installed untreated cork underlayment for my flooring, and probably way more than I have listed here. I also filter all the water that comes into my house and dispose of the filters in the hazardous waste program (to keep lead and mercury out of the landfill) where they are not recyclable. I took steps to stop all junk mail and catalogues, use fans instead of air conditioning when weather permits, freshen the house naturally, and of course I take my own bags (which I made myself from unwearable clothing) not just to the grocery store, but everywhere. I use everything until it is completely worn out.

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9. 60

   knolyourselfposted 12 years ago

   I am poor.

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10. 65

    2uesdayposted 12 years ago

    We grow our own fruit and vegetables,but are not totally self sufficient.
    
    I compost as much kitchen waste as I can and use the compost on the land that we grow the vegetables on.
    
    Use re-usable shopping bags.
    
    Use the dishwasher and washing machine on economy cycle whenever it is feasible to do so.
    
    I do not own a tumble dryer, i.e. dry washing outside on line.
    
    If we are discarding clothes that are no longer suitable but are in good condition they are given to a charity to resell.
    
    We have days when we do not eat meat.
    
    Rarely waste food as I make sure nothing goes out of date and is wasted that way, this and the composting helps with cutting down what goes in the bin to landfill.
    
    The not so green behaviour that I have to confess to is flying, when going on holiday to Europe.

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11. 66

    awareposted 12 years ago

    earth  will step on us like a  cigarette butt. the impact will  sound like extinction
    ray

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       Randy Godwinposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       What does an "extinction ray" sound like?  It could certainly sound no worse than Billy Ray!

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    awareposted 12 years ago

    its the sound of silence . of course music to natures ear im sure.
    lol ray

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       Randy Godwinposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       No big deal, Ray.  Mass extinctions are minor phases of life in the universe.  Ask any passenger pigeon. 

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13. 66

    awareposted 12 years ago

    extinction makes way for new life . yet we try to stop it .  now is that green? 
    ray

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