Plan Before You Drive
A painless way to reduce your driving- and the fuel consumption, pollution, and greenhouse gas generation that it entails- is to think about all the errands you need to take care of before you get behind the wheel and plan accordingly. One ride covering a half-dozen stops can cut out five additional trips.

Weedkillers...
There's no need to resort to commercial herbicides to get rid of weeds awakened by warmer spring weather. Squirt them with lemon juice or vinegar, or scald them with boiling water. (The toughest ones may need two applications.)

Call It Off...
Credit card companies and banks often sell customer names and personal information to direct marketers; it's one of the reasons your mailbox is constantly stuffed with junk. Call your credit providers and tell them you don't want your information sold; it will cut down on the amount of unwanted mail you receive and toss.

Do your parts: Go to www.optoutprescreen.com or call the toll-free number 1-888-5optout to have the national credit bureaus remove your name from the lists they offer lenders.

Quality Lasts...
When purchasing non-disposable materials, it can be worth your while to invest a bit more for longevity's sake. Look for well-made tools, furniture, appliances and clothing. A cheap item might save you money in the short run, but when it wears out and repeatedly needs replacing over a ten-year period, the savings tend to evaporate (as the landfill gets fuller and fuller).

Just the Fax...
Create a template to print stickers for faxes in place of the cover sheet you normally send. Slap a sticker on the first sheet of the actual message and save a page every time you use the machine.

Power Down...
Contrary to office legend, turning off your computer when you go home at night does no harm. The good it does, according to a study from Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, is substantial- one workstation (computer and monitor) left on all night for a year is responsible for one ton of carbon dioxide emissions. Switching it off at night and setting it to sleep when idle during the day can reduce energy use by 80 percent.

After you tear it in half....
Although telephone books can be recycled, they shouldn't be mingled with other paper bound for the mill. The paper used to make their thin pages is manufactured from very short fibers and isn't easily repurposed at conventional recycling plants. Call your phone company or municipal government to find local drop-off points that will ferry the books to their reincarnation-- as phone books.

Refill Flexibility...
Many beauty and cleaning products are now available in dispensers that you purchase once and then refill from flexible pouches. You can reduce packaging waste by as much as 80 percent when you buy shampoo, hand soap, lotions and detergent this way.