Green Living: Sustainable Purchasing
Every day, we purchase goods and services to fulfil our needs. Our purchasing decisions can have a huge impact on the environment, greenhouse emissions from production and transportation, and waste. The following tips can help you make environmentally friendly purchasing decisions.
Sharing economy
A sharing economy allows people to borrow or rent items instead of buying them. The oldest and most popular example of a sharing economy is the library, where one book is read by hundreds of people over the course of its life. A newer example of the sharing economy is car sharing, where a fleet of cars are shared by people who pay just for the time they use them. Another example is tool lending libraries, where you can borrow a drill to use for a day or two instead of having to buy one.
Decide what you really need
Before purchasing a product, ask yourself the following questions: Are there alternatives to purchasing the product? Can something you already own be used instead? For example, you may be able to use a cleaning chemical for more than one purpose, or make a product from ingredients you have around the house.
Here are some other tips from the Green Living Guide:
- Look for an Eco Label
- Choose less paper and packaging
- Buy local
- Buy used or second-hand
- Make your own
For more details on these and other tips, check out the Sustainable Purchasing section of the Green Living Guide.
For More Information
You're Gonna Love Green
8th Floor, HSBC Bank Place
10250-101 Street NW
Edmonton, Alberta
T5J 3P4
| Telephone |
In Edmonton: 311 |
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| lovegreen@edmonton.ca | |
| Website | (http://www.edmonton.ca/LoveGreen) |
