by David Burnett

Created on: July 26, 2009   Last Updated: July 27, 2009

Going green is such a simple switch and everyone can do it. It doesn't have to cost much at all to make small changes in your life which will hopefully benefit the earth. When you mention going green to most people they suddenly shriek and think of the expenses which can come with some of the methods; for example, fitting solar panels on your property to use green power. The fact is that we don't need to go to these extremes if we are on a tight budget. Doing simple little things can make a difference no matter how small it seems.

When you go shopping if you decided on buying from a local market or a local farm you are stopping pollution straight away. If the farm or market is local the produce is more likely to be local and this means it hasn't been transported hundreds of miles letting off tons of emissions. The amount of pollution that is developed from the country the produce is grown in and transporting it all the way to our country is unbelievable and doing something so simple as buying local can help stop this obscene amount of pollution. Also home grown and local food usually has a much better taste as it hasn't been sat around in the back of a lorry for hundreds of miles.

Of course everyone would have heard the nation wide government appeal to turn switches off when we aren't using them and well it's true that this can help reduce our own carbon footprint. If we switch off the things we aren't using this will stop them using electricity and will also help to keep our electricity bills down. So remember if you are at home and have finished watching the TV be sure to switch it off properly and not leave it in stand by mode.

Purchasing energy saving bulbs is also a good idea and they are supposed to have a high lifetime guarantee. If you cant afford to purchase them to kit your home out some electricity companies are offering a pack for free if you log on to their websites and look around. I recently got delivered a pack of 8 from a company which I found on the Internet and they are just as bright as normal light bulbs, but you know it's reducing your carbon footprint and helping your electricity costs.

In some ways going green can also save you a small bit of money. You may need the small amount of money to invest in these solutions ie. the energy saving light bulbs but it will help the environment and cut your electricity bills. In some ways though I think what's the point in doing all these small and simple steps at home because it can't really be making that much of a difference. The only way it will truly make a difference which can be seen will be when everyone goes green and when the governments of the world start to realise that lighting up huge areas of land 24/7 is not helping the planet one bit either. For instance Las Vegas is lit up all the time, so until places like this resort to energy saving techniques I don't think us switching off our TV's from stand by will make much difference. That is only my opinion but I do believe you can go green on a tight budget.

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