You my think that one person can't do anything to help, but you may be surprised at what you can do. Whenever you save energy, you not only save money you also reduce the demand for coal and natural gas. The burning of these fuels makes carbon dioxide, one of the major contributors to global warming. Every person in the U.S. uses about 40,000 pounds of  carbon dioxide every year. If we can reduce the use of energy in 10 years we can lose about 7,000 pounds of carbon dioxide  per person.

                                         here are twenty small ways we can help
 

1. Ask your utility company for a energy audit to find out where your home is poorly insulated or energy inefficient.

2. Run your dishwasher only with a full load. Use the energy saving setting to dry the dishes. Don't use heat when drying the dishes either.

3. Wash clothes in warm or cold water, not hot.
 
4. Turn down the water heater thermostat; 120 degrees is usually high enough .

5. Don't overheat or overcool rooms. Lower your thermostat.

6. Clean or replace air filters as recommended. cleaning a dirty air conditioner filter can can save 5% of energy used.

7. Buy energy efficient compact florescent bulbs for your most used lights.

8. Warp your water heater in an insulated jacket.

9. Install low flow shower heads to use less hot water.

10. Chalk and whether strip around doors and widows to plug air leaks.

11. Whenever possible, walk, bike, use a carpool or mass transit.

12. When buying a car choose one that gets good gas mileage.

13. Reduce waste: buy minimally packaged goods; choose reusable products over disposable ones; recycle.

14. If your car has air conditioning, make sure its coolant is recycled whenever you have it serviced .

15. Insulate  your walls and ceilings, which can save about 25 percent of your home heating bill .

16. If you need to replace windows, use the best energy saving model.

17. Plant trees next to your home and paint your house a light color if you live in a warm climate or a dark color in a cooled climate.

18. As you replace home appliances, select the most energy efficient models.

19. Work in your community to set up a recycling program.

20. Be informed about environmental issues. Keep track of candidates' voting records and write or call to express concerns.
 
 
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