Eliminating waste is one of the best ways to go green - if we use resources wisely we are greener and saving money too in most cases. 

Ideas on eliminating waste:
1) Don't replace something if you can repair it, borrow it (especially one time or limited use items), do without it. 


2) If you buy something if it is feasible buy the item second hand, and if not, research for an item that is good quality rather than a product that will break in short order...often buying cheap puts more items in the landfill.


3) Don't buy it unless you need it. 


4) From an electricity point of view - if you aren't using it, turn it off and unplug it...phantom power (using power even when it isn't turned on, just plugged in) is a true waste of resources and the electricity costs add up over the year.


5) Do you need a second car, really? Really look at your transportation usage and decide if you could take a bus, cab, borrow a ride occasionally, car pool, use a carshare program, or rent on occasion.  The cost of two cars going to similar areas can really add up financially and add to the pollution. We have been married almost 30 years and have never had two cars. A car can cost approximately $5,000/year or more a year to operate (Registration $100, Gas $300/month, Insurance $100/month, car loan?, Maintenance?) and add "A typical passenger vehicle emits about 5.1 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year." http://www.epa.gov/otaq/climate/documents/420f11041.pdf Check out Car Share PEI http://renewableenergypei.weebly.com/1/post/2013/11/car-sharing-coming-to-pei-sign-up-now.html


6) Use mother nature's resources like the sun to heat your home rather than oil or even electricity.  See cheap and simple solar air heater http://renewableenergypei.weebly.com/1/post/2013/11/cheap-and-simple-solar-air-heater-championed-in-tignish.html

On PEI and elsewhere the 3 R's are often recited but rarely fully practised.  The recycling part, well we are all getting there...since it is pretty well mandated that we do so by law in many ways.  The reuse one might get some practise with the number of re-stores around from Value Village or Goodwills for my USA friends and of course we have all been doing the 'yard sale' thing since we were born!

So 2014 to me should be the Year of Reduce: 

1. Reduce our spending - most will need to reduce their spending anyway with all the other increasing costs).
2. Reduce our consumption - Food, we eat too much, Consumerism - we consume/buy too much, Electric - we waste so much and so on.
3. Reduce our dependence on Stuff - we have too much, we are cluttering our lives, depleting our pocket books, and creating a sea of waste in the process.  Purge and cleanse of a different kind.
   
   
   This the challenge for 2014 try to do one of more of these things:

This year the challenge is to reduce - even if you do one thing you will make a difference.  Get a group together and start to chart your progress.  Will you start a budget? Will you carefully examine every purchase- buy a quality product from a local retail store rather than multiple items you will replace over and over in short order? Will you reduce your shopping trips, look at replacing your CFL bulbs with LED or do an energy review of your home...do you 'need' three TVs in your house? Do you really have 'no space' or is it an illusion and really you have 'too much stuff'.... Purge, clean, examine your spending and your waste and see how you can REDUCE your spending, consumption and stuff in 2014.

My husband and I took a short vacation to the south shore of Nova Scotia...me being celiac - the trip is through the eyes of a celiac.  We stayed at Alicion Bed & Breakfast where their concern for the environment was appreciated - organic gluten-free shampoo and breakfast friendly for celiacs - yum, just watch the hand soap as it has oatmeal in it...body wash was gluten-free though.  Kate's Café had wonderful coffee and gluten-free raspberry squares.  Then off to Mahone Bay where we ate at Biscuit Eater Café - the best grilled gluten-free sandwich anywhere! Also a trip to Eil's Expresso for a Florentine cookie (gluten-free)!  In Chester the Kiwi Café had triple chocolate chips cookies...worth the stop.  We then stayed at Inn on the Lake in Fall River, NS - I was given gluten-free crackers for my soup - also gluten-free....what a treat.  It seemed that eating gluten-free wasn't a problem anywhere we went...one of the best gluten-free adventures I've been on.