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 Smarter Living Tips

Plan Meals!- buy the right ingredients in the right quantities for your planned meals to avoid waste - and why not try cooking a double portion and freezing a meal.

Shop Local! - walking to shops saves energy - as does walking to recycling banks.

Junk the junk mail!- unwanted mail is wasteful - reduce it by signing up to the Mailing Preference Service (www.mpsonline.org.uk)

Buy right! - Only buy as much as you can eat while food is fresh - Rob often throws out flat drinks, old food and stale bread because he buys more than he can eat.

Cook smart! - heating up the oven for one portion wastes energy - if Rob cooked his potato in the microwave he would use around twenty times less energy than doing so in the oven.

Cut the commute! - working from home cuts transport - Rob works from home which reduces his car use although being at home all day increases his energy costs. We can't all choose to work from home, but we can avoid using the car for short journeys.

Reuse bags! - eighty per cent of carrier bags are re-used as rubbish bin liners - Rob takes his old carrier bags to re-use when shopping. Nancy uses them to wrap rubbish.

Buy smart! - when old appliances break down, buy the most energy efficient new ones you can afford - they may cost a little more but they save on power bills.

Measure clean! - most people use too much detergent in their washing machine - always measure the amount - over use doesn't make things extra clean.

Drive Smart! - when you next change your car, choose one with lower fuel consumption and emissions.

Balance your act! - if you choose to do something with higher environmental impact balance that by doing better in another area - for example, if you turn up your home heating, balance that by driving more gently so you use less petrol and create fewer emissions.

Shower! - Every time you shower instead of taking a bath you save 50 litres of water.

Wear it again, Sam! - wearing that jumper for a second day will reduce the number of washing machine loads each week.

Stop the flood! - don't run the tap while cleaning your teeth, rinsing vegetables or washing your hands - if you let a tap run for ten minutes you use as much water as taking three showers.