Earth Day is this Sunday April 22nd, it's one time of year that more people than normal are thinking about our planet and what they could do to help save it. Outside of recommitting to recycling I've pulled together 5 things you can do to help reduce your environmental impact on the planet and improve your health and your families health - ready to take the challenge? I'm providing links in Amazon to make it super easy to make the change to safer, environmentally friendlier solutions to things that you already use every day.
Challenge #1 - Plastic Food Bags
Reduce the amount of plastic bags you use! Grab my favorite reusable bags, from Lunchskins here on Amazon for packing snacks for you or your kids! These are really durable, and easy to wash too. We use them for dry snacks and things like apple slices or dried fruit. I've also found these at Wegmans, check that middle section, I grab another set anytime they are on sale.
LunchSkins are made from a sturdy, quick-drying fabric that was originally manufactured for pastry bags. Fun fact: one LunchSkins bag replaces 500 plastic sandwich bags.
Challenge #2 - Plastic Wrap
I'll bet you're already seeing a theme here, instead of plastic wrap consider trying reusable beeswax wraps. You can use these to cover bowls, wrap cheese, a sandwich, or whatever you might use plastic wrap for. I just got my first set and I've found them easy to use, just wipe clean (cold water will help them last longer) and reduce your exposure to plastic, along with reducing your waste!
Grab a set here from Amazon, I suggest getting a few sizes and see how they work for you before investing in more.
Challenge #3 - Cleaner Cleaners
Reduce your waste & clean your house with a great non-toxic cleaner! I use both this all purpose peppermint cleaner by Truce, you add your own water to the concentrate and you can buy a refill to continue to use the same bottle instead of buying a new bottle every time
I also use the Truce wood cleaner for our hardwood floors, I just purchased the refill bottle since I add it to a bucket anyway.
These cleaners are safe, non-toxic, actually work, are good for you and the environment and smell great!
Challenge #4 - Laundry
Make your laundry room kinder to the earth - reduce your waste and be kinder on your water treatment systems, along with upgrading to a safe, non-toxic, detergent that really gets your laundry clean. Opt for powder, don't pay the extra money for the water added to make a liquid detergent! I have a high-efficiency washer and I use this version of Mollys Suds and put the powder right in with the clothes per the recommendations on the bag! This bag will last you 120 loads, as a potty-training mom I know that's a great deal. For more info about cleaning up your laundry room, check out my Cleaner Laundry post.
Challenge #5 - At Home Composting
Yes you can do it, you can start composting at home! You don't need a lot to compost, and can start with a mix of green (think raw fruits & veggie scraps) and brown (like shredded leaves) and a dedicated pile. I found that to enable me actually saving things like onion tops, apple cores, carrot peels, coffee grounds, etc that I needed a dedicated bucket to collect it in. I started with a bowl but that got gross fast, get this stainless steel bucket that has a lid with a carbon filter and never smells and looks nice on the counter too. I take it out to my dedicated compost pile about once a week.
To learn more about composting at home, check out this resource from the EPA - https://www.epa.gov/recycle/composting-home
Well there you go, 5 challenges for Earth Week or any day really. Take the initiative this week and do something that is good for your health and the planet and make one or all of these swaps!
Note: This post contains affiliate links