Green Tips from the Green Committee
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- 27/07 Consider using a green internet search engine. You may have noticed that within your favourites centre on Internet Explorer there is a folder called 'search sites', which contains a link to the site 'Ecosearch'. Ecosearch is a search engine that helps to reforest treesand safeguard water resources in the Amazon region. Have a look and consider using this site when you next need to search for something.
- 04/08 Cars obviously have a huge impact on the environment. However, there are a number of things you can do to reduce this impact. The link below contains a number of eco-driving tips that will not only reduce the extent to which driving a car affects the environment, but will also save you money on fuel bills: http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice/fuels-and-environment/drive-smart.html
- 12/08 Switch your oven off a few minutes before your food is ready. It will stay hot enough to finish cooking the food. Also avoid opening the oven door too often to check whether your dinner is ready. By allowing heat to escape it will end up taking longer, and more energy, to cook.
- 19/08 Just switch off your monitor while not at the computer, even for 10 minutes. It will make a difference.
- 24/08 Eco-cleaning tip: prepare a mixture of lemon juice and water in a bowl and then heat it in the microwave for a few seconds. Use the hot liquid to wipe clean the inside of your oven. It'll loosen stubborn stains and leave the interior smelling naturally fresh.
- Be sure to unplug mobile phone/laptop/camera chargers when the appliance has fully charged. The energy still comes out of the plug socket but is wasted into the atmosphere. (This will save money too!)
- Swapping 4 regular light bulbs at home for Compact Fluorescent (CFL) bulbs will save you £20 a year. Start by choosing the places you have the lights on most frequently and change these bulbs first.
- 21/09 Ensure all photocopiers are switched off at the end of each working day. Leaving a photocopier on standby overnight and at weekends instead of switching it off costs £42 per year in electricity bills and emits 183kgs of CO2.
- 05/10 This weeks green tip is for people thinking of buying a new car, or if you want to check how green you current car is. This site gives a green scores for most cars on the market, based on the mpg (or litre/100km), and emissions over the lifecycle of the car. They also provide quick search categories such as the Top 50 cars with the best fuel economy or lowest emissions cars. There is also a section explaining the differences between the different types of fuels and the pros and cons of each.
http://www.whatgreencar.com/index.php
- 12/10 Electrical equipment standby (or vampire power as its also known) accounts for up to 10% of home electricity use. This can be seen in the home when you turn off the lights and see an array of red and blue lights from your electrical equipment. Turn off equipment when not is use at the socket and don't leave on standby to reduce your electricity usage and also save you money.
Eco-town in the UK