Vancouver Green Living

Here's some tips for living a little greener and taking better care of our environment

BUY LOCAL FOOD

It is squash, apple and pear season! Buy lots, freeze, learn how to can. Local produce has been picked fresh, and in the case of farmers markets, inside of 24 hours. It comes to you ripe and with its full flavor, unlike the shipped in food and most supermarkets that may have been picked weeks or months before. Plus, buying local supports our BC farmers.

Check out the local farmers markets in Vancouver - they are open until mid to late October - http://www.eatlocal.org Look for these in-season foods in your grocery store - www.eatlocal.org/BuySeason.html Check out the labels. Ask the produce manager to bring in local foods.

WASH IN COLD WATER

Between 80 and 90% of the energy used to wash clothes is used for heating the water.

By switching from warm to cold water washing, you could save around $50/year in water heating costs. Plus, clothes washed in cold water retain their colour longer. And don't worry about the clothes not being cleaned properly - new detergents have been developed to work in specifically cold water, such as Tide Coldwater. For more information visit www.switchtocold.com.

And if you're really hard core...shower in cold water.

DON'T SIT IDLING

Be idle-free! Turn off your car when you will be parked for more than 10 seconds. If you are in a friend's car that is idling - let them know.

And why would you sit idle when parked, anyways? Idling for more than 10 seconds wastes more fuel than restarting your car. Check out idlefree.ca for more information, including the myths, about idling.

SWITCH TO ENERGY EFFICIENT LIGHTING

Take one day this week to replace the most used light bulbs in your home with compact fluorescent light bulbs (those twisty ones).

Did you know almost 90% of the energy used by a conventional light bulb (incandescent light bulb) is not even used to produce light but is wasted as heat? Halogen torchiere lamps are even more inefficient, releasing so much heat they could be a fire hazard if an object comes in contact with the bulb.

Compact fluorescents use one-sixth of the energy of incandescents and last up to 10 times longer.

CHECK YOUR TIRES

Did you know that over 70% of people in Vancouver have one or more of their tires improperly inflated?

If you own a vehicle, take one day this week to make sure your tires are properly inflated. Properly inflated tires allow your car to run more fuel efficiently. Your correct tire pressure is located on the inside of the door frame or on the fuel cap.

For best results get a tire gauge - they are cheap! And check it when the tires are cold (i.e. the car has been stationary for at least 3 hours or has not been driven for more than 2 km).

CHECK OUT YOUR ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT

The Mountain Equipment Co-op website has a quiz you can take to figure out your 'ecological footprint', which is a measure the amount of nature's resources an individual, a community, or a country consumes in a given year.

The concept and process was developed by a professor at the University of British Columbia. Check it out on the MEC website

CHANGE YOUR SHOWERHEAD

Take one day this week to switch your shower heads to low-flow ones. It is a one-time effort that pays off for years to come. Hot water requires a lot of energy and therefore money. A family of three that showers daily can save $200 per year by making the switch.

The City of Vancouver offers residents subsidized water saver kits (costing only $12) that include not only a multi setting low-flow shower head, but also a kitchen and bathroom faucet aerators, and a toilet tank displacement bag (which decreases the amount of water being flushed). Water saver kits are available at City Hall (Cambie and 12th, main floor). Did we mention they are only $12?

If you don't live in Vancouver or you can't make it to City Hall, you can get low flow showerheads at hardware and household retailers (anywhere from $8 to $40). 2.5 gallons or less is considered low flow.

Also....we have been doing some research and have come across a pesky urban myth - that low flow is no flow. This is just not so - today's "low flow" showerheads are remarkably better than those of years past.

Please note, if you live in a newer home or apartment you likely already have a low flow showerhead. The Plumbing Code was changed in 1995, making low flow fixtures a requirement

TURN DOWN THE HEAT

Turn the temperature down in your home at night and when you are out of the house. You could also install a programmable thermostat to do it for you, available at most hardware stores for around $50.

Recommended temperatures:

16ºC = when away for an extended period of time;
18ºC = when sleeping or away during the day;
20ºC = when working or exercising; and
21ºC = when watching TV, reading or other light activities.

Lowering your thermostat by 3 degrees at night and while you're away from home is one of the simplest yet most effective ways to save money and make your home more energy efficient. For every 1 degree you lower your thermostat, you save 2-3% on your heating bill.

Invest in some thick blankets, cuddle a little closer, conserve energy, and save money all at the same time.

Some people think that regularly lowering and raising a thermostat wastes fuel. In fact, the energy required to reheat your home to a comfortable temperature is roughly equal to the fuel saved as your home drops to the lower temperature. You save energy while the temperature is stabilized at the lower level. The key is to turn the thermostat down for four hours or more.

DRAFT PROOF YOUR HOME

50% of the energy used in your home goes to heating. Get ready for the colder weather by taking one day this week to weatherstrip or caulk drafty areas and/or put window film over single paned windows.

Did you know that combined, the number of holes that heat is escaping out of the average home is equal to the size of a football?

These quick fixes are inexpensive and the Natural Resource Canada's Office of Energy Efficiency website provides detailed instructions on tackling this job.

Often though, people seek professional help. Vancouver is participating in the Provincial Energy Savings Plan (ESP), where residents can receive grants and rebates for energy efficient renovations, including draft proofing - check out the website for information about the steps to take on this limited time offer.

To put it in perspective here is how energy use is broken down in the home:

Space heating 51%
Water heating 27%
Appliances 16%
Lighting 6%

OFFSET YOUR AIR TRAVEL EMISSIONS

Air travel has a significant impact and releases huge amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Try to avoid flying if you don't need to. Drive, go on a rail adventure.

If you do fly, consider purchasing green house gas offsets which are essentially an inexpensive emission reduction credit.

People can purchase offsets through an organization like offsetters.ca or climatecare.org, who invest in projects that take greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere or stop them from being emitted in the first place.

If your work flies a lot let them know they can offset all the flights taken by employees.

SHARE A RIDE

Sit back and enjoy a coffee while someone else does the driving. Try ride-sharing (car-pooling) to and from work One Day this week. Chat with a co-worker and arrange a driving swap. If you don't know anyone at work that lives close by, check out Jack Bell's Online Ride-Sharing Database. It is a service where you can find other people who have a similar commute and schedule to your own.

There are 5 easy steps -

1 - Sign up with your email address
2 - Enter home and work addresses and schedule
3 - Search for matches
4 - Send (or receive) suggestions to ride-share
5 - Work out the details and start ride-sharing!

The website displays matches on maps and emails you when you have ride-share suggestions or new matches

BE MEAT FREE (even one day a week)

Meat production requires a tremendous amount of resources, specifically water and fossil fuels. Don't worry about having to give it all up - remember, small steps, big change: you don't have to become a full time vegan to make a difference - by designating even just one day a week to be meat-free, you'll be conserving valuable water, energy and land resources.

Besides, Canadians tend to eat significantly more protein than we need and Plant-based sources of protein are lower in saturated fats--and often lower in total fat--than animal protein.

Check out local restaurants that serve up vegetarian food available at the Veggie Directory.

Not sure what to cook? Check out some fantastic vegetarian recipes at vegweb.com or google "vegetarian recipes" - there are thousands of delicious dishes to make.

IMPROVE YOUR CONDO BUILDING EFFIENCY

Live in a condo unit? There are lots of opportunities through stratas to improve the energy efficiency of your building.

Terason Gas has an on-line energy efficiency evaluation targeted towards condominium strata councils. You can download it, fill out the form send it to them. An energy expert with analyze it and send it back.

Other tips include installing CFL bulbs in hallways, foyers and other high use areas. Look for the ENERGY STAR label when replacing your appliances, such as the common area washing machines. Take these tips to your next strata meeting.

GET AN ENERGY EFFICIENCY EVALUATION

Residents from Vancouver (and other participating municipalities) living in single family or row houses, qualify for a $1500 Energy Savings Plan grant plus over $800 in other financial incentives for energy efficiency improvements. Funding is limited so first come, first served and it is a limited time offer.

Go to the Energy Saving website for the details on the required steps and register for a free initial home energy evaluation.

Don't own a single family or row house? The Energy Savings Plan has a limited time offer for incentives for Multi-family units, so if your strata is thinking about making some upgrades, such as new windows or insulation, check out their website.

HOME OFFICE, WORK AND/OR SCHOOL

Turn computer monitors off when not being used. A PC and monitor left on continuously consume between $75 and $120 worth of electricity a year. In standby mode, this can be reduced to $15. For PCs, go to the Start menu, select Settings, then choose Control Panel, click on Display, and then set the Energy Star settings under the Screen Saver tab. "Sleep" or stand-by is not the same as "off" though, as equipment in sleep mode still uses some electricity, so always turn your equipment off if it will not be in use for long periods of time.

And don't be fooled by screen savers! They are not an energy-efficient feature.

Turn off printers and other office machines when not in use, as they can idle as much as 90% of the workday and are often left running at night and on weekends.

If you don't have the access to do these things yourself or let someone know

Green tips courtesy of onedayvancouver.ca