Happy Earth Day!!

Happy
Earth Day 2009
Everyone!

I am happy you could join us here at GreenSpot-On! A lot of things have been going on for the last week in West Michigan and other places in the United States to celebrate Earth Day and to educate people about helping make our planet better for our descendants.

I took my family to our local Zoo’s “Party for the Planet” and we had a great time! Not only did we get to enjoy the animals, but we were able to receive information on various conservation methods, educational information and even talk to vendors that had energy saving products. My sons and niece were able to participate in various activities, including: plant sunflowers in a cup, plant a tree that we could plant for a small donation, make hats out of scrap materials and more! If you ever get a chance to go to one of these events, you should. It is a wonderful family activity that can be an educational experience for you and your children!

Let’s face it… We live in a throw away society, but it doesn’t have to be. Some people say they do not have time or the motivation to recycle. Even the busiest people on earth can find time to do their part for the environment and wildlife. If you are one of those people, my advice to you is to start small.

New Years Resolutions made by many of us have to do with weight, money, personal lives and family.

Why not make an Earth Day Resolution instead?

Challenge yourself to find ways to reduce waste in your household or neighborhood. There are many ways you can do this. Such as:

1. Take the extra few minutes to sort & clean your recyclables. See if your city has a recycling pick-up program. Some cities offer this service for free. If your city doesn’t have a program that picks up the recycling at your home, find a recycling center in your area and just take your recyclables in every so often. You can save A LOT of money by recycling. I have personal experience in this. Instead of needing a larger trash can or trash service, I was able to opt for a smaller container which has saved my family money. All because I take the extra time to recycle our glass, plastic and papers/boxes.

2. Get frustrated at the amount of trash blowing down your street or into your lawn? Do you exercise or want to start? Go for walks with a bag and some gloves. You can even have your children help. While getting some great exercise, you could pick up the trash on your street and recycle what you can. Put it in with your trash (You could set a limit of 1 grocery bag full of trash a week so you aren’t filling your trash totally up). I have done this before and not only does it clean your neighborhood up a bit, but it will eliminate the amount of trash that blows into your yard. You could even chat with your neighbors and organize a larger scale cleanup of your street (this could greatly help your elderly neighbors too).

3. Reuse. Use second-hand sources for clothing, items you need and more! Find a local Freecycle online at http://www.freecycle.org/ There you can find items that other people are cleaning out of their garages or houses that don’t want them to go to landfills. Some things I have seen offered: Scrap Lumber, appliances, clothing, books, furniture and even electronics.

4. Maintain your home and yard which can save you in energy costs, make your neighborhood a greener space and stop erosion. Even small repairs or changes can make a big difference. It doesn’t have to cost you big money either. Find a local on-line group, or start one on Yahoo Groups that can make a flower/plant exchange or even offer them for free. There is one in my area that constantly has people posting free flowers and plants or even seeds (If you live in West Michigan, contact me for the link).

5. Donate time to a local environmental group or items for animal rescue shelters.

6. Spay and Neuter your pets!

7. Adopt pets from your local humane society or animal shelter!

These are very simple ways to get started and do your part to keep things out of landfills when they could be reused or recycled and to help wildlife and domesticated animals thrive and find homes.

Question for all of you:
After reading this, do you plan to make an Earth Day Resolution? In what way are you going to help our planet if you have not already? Those of you already doing your part, what new things are you going to try?

Any tips for people or comments you would like to make is encouraged. Please do leave a comment!