7 Tips on How to Be Green in Your Everyday Life

Tiago Zegur

 

Sometimes people want to do something to save the planet but don`t really know how to start. We are providing you with seven infallible tips of how to find easy ways to lead an eco-friendly and eco-conscious life. We suggest you try one each day of the week and by the end of the week you will have done 7 good things without even making much of an effort. Go for it!

MONDAY: Practice Eco-Mobility: This would be the best way of moving from place to place and especially those among you who drive frequently should start thinking about some alternatives whenever this is possible. However, sometimes we are dependent on our car and we cannot afford a hybrid or an electric car or use any other type of eco-mobile. In those cases, we can still be “green”. You should make sure your car is always in a good condition as this can directly affect the amount of CO² emitted. Don't leave the car running when picking someone up or are waiting for something or someone. The 30 seconds rule applies here. If your car runs more than half a minute without being used, it is already worth stopping the engine. Another option would be making your car fuel-efficient by getting an engine tune-up which can improve your mileage by up to 4%. You might also consider replacing the air filter, aligning your tires, pumping up your tires, checking the condition of your gas cap and if necessary replacing it to avoid the release of smog-causing compounds, driving smoothly and taking any unnecessary load from the car. By doing this, you can additionally reduce fuel costs. Fuel-efficient cars will release less harmful substances and you can travel a greater distance on a tank of gas. When looking to buy a new car, opt for a more fuel-efficient car than your old one. Joining a carpool to go to work, school or somewhere else is also a wise and eco-friendly choice. This will lead to one less polluting car on the roads. 

Eco-Friendly Cruise Ships

Cruise ships are powered with heavy crude
oil. According to the environment
association NABU, a cruise ship emits
the same quantity of pollutants during one
cruise as 5 million cars on the same route.
That definitely does not make them
“eco-friendly”. The US Federal
Environmental Protection Agency estimates
that in a single day, passengers on a
typical cruise ship will cause

·         “21,000 gallons of sewage

·         one ton of garbage

·         170,000 gallons of wastewater from sinks, showers and laundry

·         More than 25 pounds of batteries, fluorescent lights, medical wastes and expired chemicals

·         Up to 6,400 gallons of oily bilge water from engines

·         Four plastic bottles per passenger – about 8,500 bottles per day”

The EPA further states that ships incinerate the majority of their garbage, thus contributing to the pollution of the air, especially in coastal regions and on the ocean.

The bad news is that the cruising industry is huge, generating billions of dollars every year. In 1970, ships were only accommodating 600-700 people while nowadays, 5000 people find room on the luxury cruise liners which are growing rapidly due to the strong demand.