Five Ways to Reduce Pollution

Let’s start with one of the most obvious sources of air pollution–cars. We rely on our vehicles to take us almost anywhere these days, with many households boasting two or more cars between them. Not only does this create more emissions on the road, but it has the other negative side effect of making traffic jams and causing more accidents. Hop on your bicycle and reduce your carbon footprint while getting some exercise in or explore the public transport options in your area wherever possible. And, if you are just popping to the corner shop to get some milk, you could maybe even walk…!

Leaving lights on when you are no longer in the room, radios blaring or computer screens on adds up to a huge waste of electricity. Not only could you save a significant amount of money by ensuring things are only on when you need them, you could also reduce your impact on the world by lessening your dependence on fossil fuels.

This is a slightly trickier tip for some, but there are chemical in many of the products we use around the home. From your cleaning products to your toiletries, make-up and your food, these chemicals are not good for your body and terrible for the environment. By looking for organic, natural options wherever possible, you will reduce the amount of chemicals that make their way into our waters and soils, which will allow the earth to be a little bit less polluted.

We don’t often consider the impact of food waste on the environment, but when left in a landfill situation, most remnants are unable to decompose in the correct way. Instead, they degrade much more slowly and release methane, which is a significant greenhouse gas. When placed in a compost bin, food scraps quickly break down and provide a good, healthy soil for your garden, allotment or flowerpots. Make sure the food is raw and doesn’t include any animal products. You can also compost paper, cardboard, eggshell sand lots of other things that will reduce your household waste and create great soil!

Food miles are surprisingly high for supermarkets, which is why you should support your local butcher, baker and greengrocer. Most will have kept their entire operation in the surrounding area, so you know that the amount of pollution created to feed your family is far less that that of a supermarket, who has probably flown food in from far away countries. Pollution is one of the biggest issues facing the world right now, with major corporations being responsible for a lot of it. While we cannot force these brands to change their actions, we can be mindful of where we shop and make small changes that might add up to make a big difference