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The picture shows what Al Gore said about 10 simple things to do to help stop global warming.
While most of what he said is really going to have an impact if done in a global scale, some of the steps might not be applicable here in our beloved country Malaysia as we don't use thermostat in our houses and the lousy public transportation means that we will always be late no matter where our destination is. Anyway, what he presented in the picture above is based on his background living in the United States and it is made for his American folks.
So here is my version of the 10 simple steps to top up the ones presented by Al Gore to suit the lifestyles of us Malaysians.
1. Just say, "Tak payah plastik", whenever you go shopping.
- Bring your own 'Tote Bag' (or shopping bag or just simply a used plastic bag tucked in the boot of your car) whenever you go shopping.
- Refuse to receive plastic bags (especially small ones which would usually end up in the garbage bins and not reused) if you buy things in a small quantity that you can hold in your hand (e.g. 1loaf of bread or 1 can of pet food).
- If you shop at a hypermarket, try to reduce the amount of plastic bags used by using the ‘paid’ sticker instead of multiple bags for bulky items such as rice, watermelons and other stuffs.
2. Have the habit to switch off the lights after you use them.
- This is a habit usually stressed by the older generation especially those who were born before the electricity comes to Malaysia.
- They did that because they really appreciate the electricity that lights their house and doesn't want it to just go to waste.
So turn off the lights! Turn off the lights!
3. If you can't turn it off, put a timer to it.
- Installing a timer is a good way to save on electricity. It doesn’t have to be the expensive built-in ones. The cheap one that you can get at most hypermarkets would do. You can get one for as cheap RM 12. (Also sold at IKEA for about the same price).
- A properly set timer allows the light to be turned on and off at the designated time. This saves electricity as it only turns on at certain times instead of the whole day especially when no one is at around. This is ideal for those who travel frequently.
- The timer also adds the sense of security to the house by mimicking the action of turning the lights on and off as if someone is in the house.
4. Drive less.
- Walk, bike, carpool or take public transport more often. You'll save 1.5kg of carbon dioxide for every 5km you don't drive!
5. If you really can’t live without driving, drive sensibly.
- If you don’t believe me you can try it by yourself.
- Driving at 130 km/h consumes ¼ more fuel than at the speed of 100 km/h.
- Avoid hard acceleration as it puts a huge burden on your engine.
6. Eat less meat or just be a vegetarian.
- It is estimated that farming produces 15% of the world’s greenhouse gasses.
- The 1.3 billion cattle farmed throughout the world can produce over 100 million tonnes of methane in a year!
7. Plant trees or build a garden
- Malaysia is blessed with the tropical climate which means that trees can grow rapidly without much care and can be planted all year round.
- We are also blessed with a vast variety of trees and plants that are suitable to grow in the hot climate.
- A single tree will absorb one tonne of carbon dioxide over its lifetime
- Gardens can be made at almost every corner around the house as long as there is sunlight.
- A small plant absorbs less carbon dioxide than a tree but it does help.
- Plus, it’s a very healthy past time too.
8. Save rainwater
- Malaysia receives a lot of rain in a year but most urban rainfall is wasted into the storm sewer.
- It didn’t get into the ground water system causing flash floods above the ground.
- Saving rainwater have many benefits towards the environment.
- It puts fewer burdens onto the storm sewer.
- The water can be used for washings and to water plants.
- It causes less dependency on the tap water thus causing less burden to the water treatment plant.
9. Take short showers instead of a bath.
- Showers use less water than a bath-tub.
- Use a shower head with fewer and smaller holes that jets out water.
- This enables you to have tour shower quicker and saves more water.
10. Pee in the sink... ( I totally have a rational reason behind this!!)
- This might sound crazy and is strictly for males.
- If you have an option between a urinal and a flushed toilet, go for the urinal.
- At home, opt to use the sink instead!
- The reason behind the suggestion is simply because it uses much less water to thoroughly clean the sink than to flush the toilet.
- It uses an average of 500 ml to 1 litre of water to clean the sink while flushing uses at least 4 gallon if water (equivalent to 15.14 litres).
- That would be a savings of 14.14 litres of water for every visit to the toilet.
- Imagine that you visit the toilet (to pass out urine) 3 times a day. You’ll save 15483.3 litres of water per year.
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