When it comes to wrapping up a package to send in the mail, you might wonder if there are greener options for packing tape. Traditional tape is plastic-based and not recyclable or biodegradable. A greener option is paper tape with an adhesive that's activated by water; this variety is common in mass retail shipping operations and can easily be purchased for home use. There are also brands making biodegradable tape from plant-based ingredients; look for these options in stores. Finally, if you do use plastic tape, just buy the roll and skip the plastic components that usually come with it.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

Unless you are absolutely, positively sure how to do it, let the pros change your car's motor oil. The waste oil from just one oil change, if disposed of improperly, can contaminate a whole lot of water. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates up to a million gallons of fresh water can be affected by just a single oil change. This dirty water can end up in our drinking water and waterways, which can have an adverse effect on our health and wildlife. If you change your own oil, be sure to have your old oil properly recycled.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

A product's packaging may proclaim that it's "recyclable," but that doesn't make it Earth-friendly, and in actuality it may be next to impossible to recycle. The real question you should ask when you see a recycling symbol is: Is it easily recyclable? Items like aluminum, paperboard, glass and some plastics that are accepted in your curbside recycling would qualify as easily recyclable. Other items -- those made from Styrofoam, for example -- may have a recycling mark, but are nearly impossible to recycle.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION