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Drive a hybrid, electric, or alternative fuel vehicle

A hybrid electric vehicle contains an electric engine which allows a smaller and more efficient combustion engine to be used. Hybrids emit fewer tailpipe pollutants than vehicles with traditional combustion engines, and they use less fuel.

An electric vehicle uses an electric engine powered by a rechargeable battery pack. While electric vehicles often use electricity that is generated by burning coal and other fossil fuels, they do not emit tailpipe pollutants, and they have the potential to run on electricity generated by renewable sources, such as solar, wind, and geothermal.

Other alternatives to traditional gasoline fuel include: diesel, biofuel, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas, and hydrogen fuel cells (still in developmental stages).

Click for more information on efficient and alternative fuel vehicles, fuel economy and labeling, and the carbon footprints of different vehicle types.

Buy minimally processed foods

Foods such as whole grains, fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables, and fresh meats and fish retain their nutritional value if eaten right away, while most processed and boxed foods contain undesired preservatives and may contain fewer nutrients. Make sure that, when you purchase fresh foods, you only purchase what you can consume in a short period of time. Also consider preserving excess food at home by freezing, drying, or canning.

Preserve foods by freezing, drying, or canning

By freezing, drying, or canning home-grown or local foods during growing seasons, you can reduce your consumption of non-local produce in the winter. Learn more about do-it-yourself food preservation.

Despite worldwide food shortages, 40% of all food produced in the U.S. ends up in the trash. The average American wastes 253 lbs of food each year! Preserving your food is a great way to reduce your household’s food waste. To learn more about food waste, check out these articles: 253 Pounds, Why Massive Food Waste is a Cause for Global Concern, The Impact of Food Waste on Climate Change.

Purchase sustainable seafood and/or wild-caught salmon

An estimated 90% of large fish, such as shark, swordfish, and cod, has been removed from the world’s oceans. The Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch, Blue Ocean Institute, and Marine Stewardship Council offer guidelines that help consumers and businesses make informed choices about seafood purchases. Sustainable fishing allows the consumer to purchase seafood from sources, either fished or farmed, that can exist over the long-term without compromising species' survival or the health of the surrounding ecosystem. Also check out this guide for sustainably-caught sashimi/sushi.

Check the “Country of Origin” label when you’re at the grocery store. Farm raised salmon has ten times the amount of dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls (carcinogens) than their wild-caught counterparts. Wild salmon bear less environmental stress because they are not concentrated in a small area that has hazardous nitrogen levels and do not transfer diseases as rapidly as farmed salmon. Most Atlantic salmon is farm-raised. The best choice is wild Alaskan salmon while good alternatives are wild salmon from Washington, Oregon, and California. Check out this video on salmon choices to learn more.

Replace meat-based meals with vegetarian meals at least once a week

The benefits of eating vegetarian for just one day can be startling, especially if everyone in the U.S. does it! Collectively, the environmental benefits include saving 100 billion gallons of water, 70 million gallons of gasoline, 1.2 million tons of CO₂ emissions, and much more. According to Environmental Defense, if every American skipped one meal of chicken per week and substituted vegetarian foods instead, the carbon dioxide savings would be the same as taking more than half a million cars off of U.S. roads! Other benefits include reductions in solid waste pollution and methane production related to industrial meat production. To learn more, check out this article on the effect of going vegetarian for one day, or read more about vegetarianism.

One or more household members eat a vegetarian or vegan diet

Eating a vegetarian or vegan diet helps reduce the negative impacts of industrial animal production, such as excessive energy use, animal waste pollution, methane emissions, and animal cruelty. There can also be health benefits including lower body mass indices, lower levels of cholesterol, lower blood pressure, and less incidence of heart disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, renal disease, osteoporosis, metabolic syndrome, and dementias such as Alzheimer’s disease. Studies have shown significant differences between vegetarians and non-vegetarians in mortality from cerebrovascular disease, stomach cancer, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, and prostate cancer. Learn more about vegetarianism.

Looking for tasty vegetarian cuisine in Frederick County? Check out VegFrederick.com for information on local vegetarian restaurants and grocery stores.