How do we save the earth

1) Stop Junk Mail

2) Participate in your community's curbside recycling

3) Make recycling easier by putting recycle bins in

the rooms where you use the product

4) Save large amounts of paper by using your spell checker

5) Use both sides of your paper

6) Smaller children don't need clean paper to color on

7) Reduce how much you throw away

8) Inflate your tires

9) Recycle your motor oil

10) Don't dump oil, grease, antifreeze, pesticides, fertilizers, paints,

cleaners, and other toxic household products down the storm drain or

street gutter.

11) Restrict use of plastic shopping bags

12) Purchase products that are recycled. Make sure it says "recycled."

13) Purchase CFC free products

14) Shop for durable, long-lasting products.

15) Use silverware and dishes instead of plastic and paper

12 ways to save the earth

You turn out the lights when you leave the room, and diligently set your bundles of newspapers and rinsed bottles on the curb. But are you doing everything you could to reduce waste? Allen Hershkowitz, PhD, a senior scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council, says that living an eco-friendly life is easier than you might think. "If you operate efficiently, you both reduce waste and save money. There's really no reason not to do it," says Hershkowitz. Convinced? Here are 12 great ways to get started.

1. Buy a battery recharger. "Batteries contain dangerous metals that aren't combustible and shouldn't go in a landfill," says Hershkowitz. Over time, the charger will pay for itself, since you'll no longer shell out for new batteries every time your Walkman runs out of juice.
2. Ditch the paper towels and napkins. Hershkowitz says that the paper industry is the number-one consumer of fresh water and the number-one industrial cause of deforestation. Do your part by using cloth napkins, dishtowels and sponges in the kitchen and dining room.
3. Keep your tires properly inflated. Your car will run more efficiently, using less gas and emitting fewer pollutants.
4. Patronize local businesses. When you buy from stores that get their products locally, like farmers markets and food co-ops, you're supporting companies that don't waste precious natural resources by shipping products across the country. "You're also supporting your local economy," says Jim Merkle, author of Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite Earth (New Society Publishers, 2003).
5. Pack refillable juice boxes in your kids' lunches. "You can buy them for $1 at bargain stores, instead of using disposable juice boxes," says Hershkowitz. "It saves paper, plastic and money." Set a good example for the kids by bringing a coffee cup to work, or finding a coffee shop that will refill a travel mug.
6. Keep your lawn pesticide free. You won't pollute water, and you may safeguard your children's health. "There's a documented increase in child leukemia in homes that use pesticides on their lawn, and there is an even greater incidence in homes that use them indoors," says Hershkowitz, who has maintained a healthy lawn for 15 years without pesticides.
7. Shop at thrift stores and tag sales. Whenever you opt for used clothing, appliances or furniture, you're not just saving cash. You're also reducing the demand for newly manufactured products. "We're a wasteful society, and it's good to make use of that waste," says Merkle.
8. Install a low-flow showerhead. "This is a high-efficiency showerhead," says Hershkowitz. "It will perform as well as a standard showerhead but uses less water."
9. Reduce the office paper jam. One-third of all our garbage is paper, says Hershkowitz. Making double-sided photocopies and printing on the back side of used paper goes a long way.
10. Get a bike. Do you drive five minutes to pick up a loaf of bread at the supermarket? Hershkowitz says that 25 percent of all car trips are less than a mile. By riding a bike or ‑- egads! ‑- walking for short trips, you'll save energy and money, and you just might slim down in time for swimsuit season.
11. Put a big shade tree in front of your house. "It will keep your home cooler, and you won't need to use the air conditioning as much," says Merkle.
12. Look for the recycling symbol on toilet paper and tissues. The manufacturing process for making paper from other paper products is less wasteful than making it straight from trees. "Don't buy Kleenex that's made from 100 percent virgin trees," says Hershkowitz, who points out that Marcal, Seventh Generation and CVS are all made from post-consumer recycled paper.

Reuse

Reuse is to use an item more than once. This includes conventional reuse where the item is used again for the same function, and new-life reuse where it is used for a new function. In contrast, recycling is the breaking down of the used item into raw materials which are used to make new items. By taking useful products and exchanging them, without reprocessing, reuse help us save time, money, energy and resources. In broader economic terms, reuse offers quality products to people and organizations with limited means, while generating jobs and business activity that contribute to the economy.
Historically, financial motivation was one of the main drivers of reuse. In the developing world this driver can lead lead to very high levels of reuse, however rising wages and consequent consumer demand for the convenience of disposable products has made the reuse of low value items such as packaging uneconomic in richer countries, leading to the demise of many reuse programs. Current environmental awareness is gradually changing attitudes and regulations, such as the new packaging regulations, are gradually beginning to reverse the situation.
The classic example of conventional reuse is the doorstep delivery of milk in refillable bottles; other examples include the retreading of tires and the use of reusable plastic boxes (transit packing) instead of single-use cardboard cartons.

Reduce

When you avoid making garbage in the first place, you don't have to worry about disposing of waste or recycling it later. Changing your habits is the key — think about ways you can reduce your waste when you shop, work and play. There's a ton of ways for you to reduce waste, save yourself some time and money, and be good to the Earth at the same time

Recycle

Recycling involves processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution (from incineration) and water pollution (from landfilling) by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse gas emissions as compared to virgin production.[1][2] Recycling is a key component of modern waste management and is the third component of the "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" waste hierarchy.
Recyclable materials include many kinds of glass, paper, metal, plastic, textiles, and electronics. Although similar in effect, the composting or other reuse of biodegradable waste – such as food or garden waste – is not typically considered recycling.[2] Materials to be recycled are either brought to a collection center or picked up from the curbside, then sorted, cleaned, and reprocessed into new materials bound for manufacturing.