To make this real, I aim to publish one tip per day. These will include many ongoing actions I already do, or already intend to do; most will be minor actions that become habitual, but some tips will look at one-off major lifestyle choices.
1/1/2020 1: Reducing (hot) water usage 1: don't wash under a free flowing tap, instead always use the plug.
2/1/2020 2: Reducing (hot) water usage 2: if your basin has a long pipe run from the hot water tank, running the tap for small amounts of hot water will waste both water and heating. Either use cold water or (if in kitchen) heat the water in a kettle or electric jug.
3/1/2020 3: Reducing (hot) water usage 3: Buy a kettle/hot jug with a water level indicator and mark it with cups (or mugs) so that you only heat what you need.
4/1/2020 4: Reducing (hot) water usage 4: Shower instead of bathing - uses 1/3(?) of the water.
5/1/2020 5: Fit a 5 function, water-saver shower head from Mitre 10; Consumer magazine rated its usability as being above full flow heads.
6/1/2020 6: Don't use a hose as a broom - use a broom!
7/1/2020 7: Wash house, car etc. in or after the rain, so the dirt is already softened. Hosing or water-blasting house is not enough - it needs a physical wipe over. Use a soft brush, sponge or an extendable brush cum hose cum soap dispenser. A mixture of washing up liquid and bleach is good, sprayed on via water-blaster or garden spray.
8/1/2020 8: Water the veggie garden in evening, so water has maximum time to soak in. (Don't forget to slug-bait round seedlings afterwards.)
9/1/2020 9: Use a water timer on sprinkler hose to remove the risk of forgetting and over-watering.
10/1/2020 10: A good layer of mulch reduces water needed, keeps weeds down, and improves the soil. Water ground before mulching if not already damp. A quality garden shreder/mulcher is a good investment if you have trees to prune/trim. It converts branches/twigs to useful mulch/brown material for compost heap.
11/1/2020 11: If possible, run electricity heavy appliances overnight (e.g. dishwasher, washing machine, bread maker, car-battery charging.) This should use renewable power, reducing need for fossil fuel electric generation.
12/1/2020 12: Fit and use a dual flush toilet, adjusted to minimum necessary flush volumes for each.
Lifestyle choices
1. Stop at 2 children. This is the single most effective choice for global sustainability. The world population is huge and still increasing. Every sustainability problem is made worse by excessive population. We are already way past a sustainable level, and this will probably become worse as populations become more prosperous and as life expectancy goes up. Continuing to advocate unrestricted breeding (i.e. banning contraceptives) is, I believe, nowadays pretty much a crime against humanity.
2. When buying/renting a house, check for good public transport, shops, library, doctor, takeaway, liquor store etc. in walking/biking distance etc.
3. Make your next car electric or hybrid if at all possible. If you must have petrol, look for good mileage; avoid SUVs, utes etc unless you need to e.g. tow a boat, or for work.
4. Aim for maximum efficiency/minimal waste when shopping. This is likely to mean good quality new or second-hand, and avoidance of cheap short-lived or unnecessary items.
5. Buy energy efficient appliances and tools, and (especially) heat-pumps.
6. Avoid flying if possible; if unavoidable, consider fuel efficientcy of airline/aircraft when booking, and buy carbon emission offsets.
7. Plan trips and holiday travel to minimise energy use and maximise benefit gained. E.g. fewer but longer holidays.
Action plan
- Review, record, compare and reduce household energy use.
- Check and move savings to ethical, sustainable investment funds.
Questions I need to find answers for:
Is it worthwhile (i.e. energy efficient) and practicable:
- adding more loft or underfloor insulation
- switching flouroescent lights to LEDs
- switching gas water heating to mix of solar and electrical
- switching gas hob to electric
- retrofitting double glazing or secondary double glazing
- fitting photo-voltaic panels. Has efficiency gone up and price gone down enough yet?
- fitting heat-exchanger in shower waste water flow
- making use of grey water
- making more use of rainwater
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