Top Ten Tips For Texas Environment This Earth Day

As Texans celebrate the 30th anniversary of Earth Day on Saturday, the Texas office of Environmental Defense offers the following suggestions to help protect our planet. Even adding one or two changes to your daily habits can make a difference.

1. Park the car and walk. It’s good for your heart, your health and the environment.

2. Landscape with native plants, which require less water than non-natives and attract butterflies, birds and other wildlife.

3. When relocating, choose a neighborhood where shopping, restaurants, schools and, if possible, work are within walking or biking distance from home.

4. Carpool to work as often as possible, to reduce air pollution from your car.

5. Recycle old newspapers, office paper, cans, glasses, and plastic.

6. Put away your gas-powered lawn mower. Landscape with ground covers that don’t require mowing or replace your gas mower with an electric or manual lawn mower.

7. When filling backyard birdfeeders, use birdseed such as black oil sunflower seeds that will attract native birds.

8. Turn off your air conditioner, or at least turn up the thermostat, when you’re going to be out of the house for more than 4 hours.

9. Avoid building new homes in suburban areas that have a sensitive habitat for native wildlife. Consider instead renovating a home near a city or building on a vacant city lot.

10. Next time you purchase an automobile, consider one of the new hybrids - part electric, part gas powered. You’ll get from 57-68 miles per gallon and save precious pennies at the pump.