Green Living Guide

Green Home

Everyday is a good day to practice earth friendly habits! 

• This handy guide will help you Recycle Right.
• Choose reusable bags for grocery shopping and lunches.
• Properly dispose of household hazardous waste and electronics.

Green at Work

• Print less, print on both sides, and use misprints as scrap paper
• Set up a recycling team in your office. Get information and presentations from Keep Norfolk Beautiful to help educate your co-workers on proper recycling.
• Bike to work. Every day, once a week, or once a month. Stay active, save gas, and reduce carbon emissions.

Green Garden

Composting is a process. Organic materials like yard waste breakdown in the composting process, which can then be used to add nutrients back into soil. It is great for flower and vegetable gardens, and, most importantly, it protects our local waterways.

• Check out the KNB Composting Guide to learn how easy it is to compost yard waste.
• Mulch mow leaves instead of bagging them. Leaves contain all the nutrients your soil needs, will help retain moisture and heat, and mulch mowing will help you save money on yard waste bags. Learn more about mulching vs. not mulching and grass-cycling.
• Make zero waste bird feeders! Reuse plastic bottles, collect pine cones from the yard, or reuse that Halloween pumpkin.

Green Holidays and Events

Don't let the holidays and your next special event overflow with trash or recycling! Challenge yourself to go reusable more often and buy gifts and supplies that cut down on the amount of waste you produce. 

• Holiday Challenge: Buy experience gifts!
  • Movie gift card, date night box, Escape Room, river tours, adventure course, Zoo or Aquarium tickets, dance lessons, hatchet throwing, kayaking, cooking lessons, and more.
  • Think about what activities the recipient enjoys and find ways to give, or help fund, the activity. 
  • Create a Bingo Card or Scavenger Hunt for a particular activity.
• Don't throw away those Halloween pumpkins. They are super easy to compost! Smash them and scatter them in the garden or flower beds, then cover them with leaves. 

Green Resources

• AskHRGreen.org is a regional resource for green living and green education. 
• Become a Bay Star Home or Bay Star Business.
• Keep America Beautiful offers resources for individuals, groups, families, and educators who want to take part in litter reduction, beautification, and recycling right.
• Grove Collaborative has more information on all things green living. From what green cleaning is and why it is important, to DIY cleaning products and more resources on hard to recycle and dispose of items.