English
Earth day April 22nd: What can you do to help?
We can all work together to do the following:
- Turning up the air conditioning or turning down the heating by 1º can reduce energy consumption up to 10%. Try to maintain a temperature between 21 and 24ºC to manage as much comfort during the winter as during the summer.
- Use the washing machine and dishwasher only when they are fully loaded, and when possible with a short program.
- Switching off electric equipment by pressing the off button instead of leaving it on stand-by reduces your electricity bill by 10%. The stand-by mode of the TV, video or DVD player emits 120 kg of CO2 every year, which is the same as the consumption of three light bulbs in two years.
- Wash your car at a car wash or by hand, but NOT with a hose.
- Low-consumption light bulbs last eight times longer and use 80% less energy. They are highly recommended to use in rooms where the light is on for a long time, like in the living room, offices or the kitchen.
- Use isolating elements (blinds, curtains, etc) because they reduce heating/air-conditioning use by 20%.
- The fridge is the electrical appliance which is used the most. A temperature between 3 and 5ºC is recommended for the refrigerator and -15º for the freeze. When the fridge is bigger, its energy consumption is also more, therefore, choose a fridge that is enough for what you need (350 liter for four people).
- Unplug the charger for your mobile telephone after using it to avoid wasting 2 Kg of CO2 annually.
- Do not print any e-mails or documents when it is not necessary. And when you do print, print on both sides. One ton of recycled paper avoids the waste of 3.14 tons of trees, the emission of 1.5 tons of CO2, or half of the emissions of one car in a year.
- Turn off the water when brushing your teeth and don't use the toilet as a trash can!
And one extra that should be pretty obvious—RECYCLE!! And not just the usual cans, bottles, and newspapers— sell or donate used books, clothing, household appliances… if you don’t need it, someone else might!
The EARTH is our International House
Make a difference
Barcelona, October 15th 2010
