Eliminate and Reduce

This should be your priority!
Please don’t approach carbon offsetting as a way of paying-off easily avoidable damage
that you cause as a carbon guzzling citizen.
Have you considered any of the following measures that you could take? If so, have you
acted on any of them?
Many of the changes you can take will save you money and some will make you fitter and
healthier, as well as giving you a clearer conscience.

Green travel
- Try car sharing if you can.
- Walk or bicycle to work or to school, and for short trips from home.

Energy reduction in your home
- Switch to Ecotricity for ‘green’ electricity.
- Use low energy light bulbs and ‘A’ rated appliances such as fridge and dishwasher
- Wash on 40c programme rather than 60c
- Turn down your heating a notch
- Ensure that you have thermostats fitted to every radiator
- Turn off your TV rather than leaving it on standby
- Use a computer and printer that meets Energy Star standards with automatic ‘sleep mode’
- Insulate against draughts and heat loss

Reduce, re-use and recycle waste
- Think about where you can reduce waste – can you buy your veg and fruit loose from a
  greengrocer or market stall instead of pre-packaged from the supermarket?
- Don’t throw away when you could re-use, plastic bags for example
- Ensure that unavoidable waste is recycled, eg bottles, paper, inkjet cartridges

Purchase sustainable goods
- Make your purchases as locally as possible to minimise transport emissions, use a farmer’s
  market if you have one for example.
- Choose green products, ensure all your computer printing paper is 100% recycled content
- Use rechargeable batteries
- Use ‘green’ detergents and cleaning products