Earth Day Actions
Take action at home. Below, find four things you can do now to make your household more sustainable.
Switch to CleanStart Power
Clean Power Sonoma is our community choice program formed to provide a choice beyond for-profit, investor-owned utilities (e.g., PG&E). Sonoma Clean Power sources clean energy from renewable resources: geothermal, water, wind, solar, and biomass throughout Sonoma and Mendocino counties. All new customers are automatically enrolled in its CleanStart Power, which is 91% carbon free. Customers may opt out; however, the standard PG&E offer is about the same cost but more carbon intensive. Why not save the planet by optingback in. Visit the Sonoma Clean Power website for details.
Plan a Pollinator-Friendly Habitat for your Yard
Pollinators, including bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, are vital to creating and maintaining native habitats and ecosystems. And, pollinators are critical for food crops including berries, melons, cucumbers, squash, apples, pears, almonds, apricots, cherries, peaches, and beans. While you can devote your backyard to a pollinator habitat, you can also enhance your lot with pollinator-friendly container and edge plants.
Here are some websites to help you start planning for pollinators:
- UC Berkeley’s Urban Bee Lab
- Gardening for Butterflies – The California Native Plant Society
- Hummingbird Gardening - The California Native Plant Society
Also, after the SIP, be sure to visit two of Sonoma’s pollinator demonstration gardens: the Sonoma Garden Park and the First Congregational Church on W. 252 Spain Street.
Conduct a Food Waste Audit
On average, about 35% of our trash is composed of food waste. When food waste is landfilled, it produces methane. As a greenhouse gas, each pound of methane is equal to 25 pounds of carbon dioxide in its ability to trap heat in the earth’s atmosphere. The best action is to reduce the generation of food waste. This is followed by composting food waste whenever possible. To reduce food waste, you first need to understand when and how it is created in your own home. During the SIP, why not conduct a food waste audit, which is an easy approach for the entire family to understand food waste generation in your home?
Energy Reduction at Home
Save money and reduce your carbon footprint by using energy smarter. Click here to learn about and adopt energy savings and energy efficiency improvements in your home.