Five actions to reduce environmental impact

Everything we do today leaves a carbon footprint. It may sound unbelievable, but every action we take costs the environment a small or large amount of CO2, contributing to pollution and global warming. Added together, all the small footprints left by our daily actions form our environmental impact, the measure of personal responsibility each of us has every day for climate change.

There are actions we cannot scale back, things we cannot do without, but there are also many others we can give up to reduce our environmental impact. In fact, by making a few simple changes to our habits, we can significantly reduce the carbon footprint we emit every day, pollute less, and contribute, little by little, to combating global warming.

To learn how to avoid harming the environment, follow these small good habits to reduce your environmental impact.

1. Sustainable choices at the table

We expect most carbon emissions to come from industry or transport. These sectors undoubtedly contribute to pollution, and choosing the least polluting mode of transport or a production line with a green policy can certainly make a difference. What we do not expect, however, is that the food we put on the table is equally responsible for global warming.

Food choices can really make a difference. It is now well known that the production of food of animal origin contributes to increasing the environmental impact of anyone who consumes it. In particular, meat production has the worst consequences. In fact, it appears that the meat industry is responsible for 14% of greenhouse gas emissions, and first place is held by red meat, particularly that of beef origin.

The high amount of carbon produced by meat consumption depends on several factors. First, meat requires a processing method that is much more energy-intensive and polluting than other food products. To this already significant factor, we add the fertilization of the crops needed to feed the animals: just think that intensive farming is responsible for 80% of Amazon deforestation. The last factor, greatly underestimated but incredibly polluting, is the methane gas produced by the digestion of cattle raised in intensive farms.

If everyone chose a vegetarian or even vegan lifestyle, it would be much easier to contain global warming. But it is possible not to completely give up animal-based food products, reducing their consumption, to make the Earth a better place – and also lead a healthier lifestyle. For example, it would be enough to reduce red meat consumption to 100 grams a week and limit the consumption of milk and dairy products to help reduce the environmental impact.

2. Taking care of yourself and the environment

Most of the polluting chemicals and single-use products responsible for polluting the seas and water in general are personal hygiene and care products. From toothbrushes to cotton swabs, from detergents to bubble baths, and even clothing, the amount of chemicals that end up dispersed in the environment, non-recyclable waste, and microplastics is staggering. These are especially the ones that represent a major problem for the health of the environment – and all living beings, including humans. In fact, microplastics can be released not only from products we identify as being made of plastic, but from many other objects we do not expect to have this origin. For example, the fibers released by synthetic and low-quality clothing items release a small amount every time we wash them.

Microplastics are tiny fragments that end up in water and soil, are ingested by the animals we eat, and even enter our bodies. Significant traces of these fragments have recently been found even in human blood, proving that the health of living beings is at risk of being compromised by the presence of these tiny but extremely harmful foreign bodies.

To reduce the spread of microplastics in the environment, we must limit the consumption of synthetic products as much as possible. As for bathroom products, there are toothbrushes made of completely biodegradable bamboo fibers. Cotton swabs are available in an eco-friendly wooden version or a washable and reusable rubber version. There are biodegradable pads and diapers and products designed to replace single-use items. The choice of clothing, on the other hand, should focus mainly on high-quality, non-synthetic materials that do not release particles into the environment.

The actions just listed may seem trivial, but if everyone takes them, they can make a difference and significantly reduce the environmental impact.

3. Not just planting, but choosing the right plants

To safeguard the health of the planet, we must necessarily surround ourselves with plants. In fact, they are able to absorb large amounts of CO2, effectively reducing the carbon footprint. If, on the one hand, planting trees can only represent a sustainable action, on the other hand plant maintenance requires a great deal of water and energy, resources that are increasingly scarce. How, then, can we end this vicious cycle? The solution is inevitably represented by low-water-use plants. These are plants, trees, and lawns that are particularly drought-resistant, which grow lushly even with very little irrigation per year and allow us to save about 80% of the water resources required for ordinary plants.

By choosing this solution, we can help reduce the environmental impact without further contributing to the widespread drought.

4. Slowing down technological replacement

There are things that are beyond our control. The planned obsolescence of electronic devices, for example, is something we cannot do much about. Most of our smartphones and other technological products are designed to stop performing well after a few years of use, so as to induce consumers to always buy new ones. This continuous technological replacement contributes to pollution because some of the components in our phones contain substances that are toxic to the environment, are difficult to dispose of, and extremely difficult to recycle.

However, there are some actions we can take to reduce the environmental impact. For example, learn not to be tempted by the newly released model and do not buy it if our device still works well. And, above all, find tricks to make our devices last longer. Choose devices and brands that offer repair services and, above all, spare parts availability. Buy a portable external battery to allow your device to last even when its battery life starts to decline. And regularly clean the memory, which when full contributes to slowing down and making devices less efficient.

5. Repairing instead of throwing away

It is the number one rule of an eco-friendly lifestyle. Reduce the consumption and replacement of objects, repairing what is broken instead of throwing it away and buying another. It may seem like a small gesture, but it actually makes a big difference: our society is driven by consumerism, which tells us that everything new is better. What we get, however, is a greater and often useless use of energy for the production of objects that are actually superfluous and, above all, an ever-increasing amount of waste that is difficult to recycle. Instead of buying perishable objects and buying new ones as soon as they break, carefully analyze the quality of the products you buy and always prefer what can be repaired and what can be replaced.