There are a number of small areas where you can make some significant changes to the way you live to start living greener. The ideas are very easy, easy enough that anyone can implement them right away. You won’t even have to give up anything you really need in order to give the environment a big break.

Here are three ideas.

Drinking Water
Our drinking water is really important to us as we drink a lot of it each day. Many people are not comfortable with what comes out of the tap. This is evident as you often see people carrying around plastic bottles of water. This is because the manufacturers of bottled water want you to think there is a difference between bottled water and what comes out of the tap. Most of the time though it doesn’t taste any better than the tap water and is no more pure.

If you do live in an area where it isn’t safe to drink the tap water then you need to make sure you recycle those plastic bottles so they don’t end up in landfills. You can also get bottled water in large containers for use in your home.

That way instead of getting a new bottle each time you need to drink some water all you need to get are some reusable containers. You can fill them up with water and even ice if you prefer and drink them everywhere you go. There are several sizes, colors, and designs that you can choose from. This process will significantly reduce the amount of plastic that is in our environment.

This is a great way to get healthy water and to eliminate waste at the same time. You will also find that getting bottled water this way is cheaper than buying those individual bottles at the store and from the vending machines.

Working on your car
It is common for people to change their oil at home to save money and to get the job done quickly. But you need to make sure you dispose of any pollutants properly as they can be very detrimental to our environment. Find a place where you can drop off your old oil to be reused for another purpose. Never pour that oil on the ground as it will get into the soil. The soil will be contaminated and make it very difficult to grow anything there.

The oil could also get into the water which can result in aquatic life dying. This is very serious as it will upset the balance of things. It is also possible for the oil to get into drinking water if you are on a well. It can result in problems in that part of the water decades after this has happened.

Home remodeling
When you have a painting project in your home you will likely have left over supplies. You may not know what to do with most of it. One thing you need to know is paint is a substance you don’t want to send to landfills due to the chemicals found in them. They can get into the ground and do a lot of damage.

A better alternative is to donate that left over paint and supplies to organizations that collect such items to help others. This can be Church groups, community organizations, and specific programs so find out what is available in your area. You can even search online to find out how to donate such items to a worthy cause.

Another alternative is to take it to a hazardous waste facility. We have these collections around here a couple of times a year.

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