Need Small Steps To Reduce Your Footprint?

Dear Umbra,

This year my family is not in the position to make any major CO2-reducing changes. We will not be purchasing a new car, a smaller house, or more efficient appliances. And honestly, with two small children living in a suburb, public transportation is not a realistic option. Still, we'd like to reduce our carbon footprint and help the environment. Would you be able to point out other meaningful, smaller changes we could make? Thanks for your guidance.

Tara H.
Indianapolis, Ind.

Dearest Tara,

Don't abandon hope for significant greenhouse-gas reductions. If your life is anything approaching the typical American's, there are at least two major CO2-reducing changes still within your grasp. You can't drive less, buy a better car, or make any major home investments, but you can probably eat less meat and avoid the airport. Conventional meats and air travel are two personal climate impact behemoths.

Read the full story here

-OR-

Read about one blogger's attempt at eating less meat

Comments

[KarateKid]

Hey, that looks like Rerun all grown up.

[LitDr2B]

In all fairness, the accompanying photo should be the new flag of the United States.

[hypnotoad72]

Wasn't the chap who won last year's wiener eating competition from Japan?

[joebiz]

Should we get rid of our pets since they also leave a carbon footprint?

[DanSmith]

Check out this article about how a factory farm producing more pollution than Houston, Texas.
http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/eat-safe/factory-farms-47092401?src=syn&dom=yah_buzz&mag=tdg&ha=1&kw=ist

[DanSmith]

Great advice from this article. Just go vegan.

[hypnotoad72]

Eat all the plants and there's nothing left for photosynthesis... besides, it can be argued plants are intelligent too. Having some fun here; many vegan causes are ironically nixed by the same rules they apply to animal products. If a vegan/vegetarian said "NO!" to anything that was made from an animal, they'd starve to death -- animal feces is used as fertilizer. To coin a word, "overrationalization". :D