8/30/09

This weekend, shop around for a new refrigerator if you have one that is more than 10 years old. Newer models use around half the energy as older ones. By replacing it with an Energy Star-rated model, you could save up to $75 annually on your electric bill. Make sure the store you buy your new fridge from will take your old one, too, and have it recycled.

8/29/09

If you can't finish that bowl of pasta salad you made and plan on saving it for later, don't cover the bowl with plastic cling wrap. Plastic wrap is made from polyvinyl chloride, which when incinerated (most cling wrap goes from our homes to the trash to the incinerator) emits toxins into the air. There's also a risk of toxins leaching into food when cling wrap is microwaved at high temperatures. The simplest solution? Place a slightly larger dish on top of the bowl in the fridge. It'll still keep your food fresh.

8/28/09

Organic cotton can be found beyond bed sheets and comfy T-shirts. Cotton is one of the most heavily toxic crops grown on the Earth, using 23 percent of the world's supply of insecticides. Organic cotton is grown without toxic chemicals. When shopping for cotton balls or cosmetic rounds, go organic; after all, doesn't your skin (and the planet) deserve the purest, cleanest choice?