Whether you are moving yourself or sending a kid off to college, there are steps you can take to reduce your impact on the environment – some obvious, some not so.

1. First set this goal: nothing goes into the landfill.

2. Don’t have so much stuff. OK, that’s the obvious one, but the first part in moving is deciding what you don’t need and getting rid of it appropriately, ie. not in the garbage. Donate, sell, recycle. Drop stuff off at Goodwill, Community Thrift, or a local church – get a receipt and take the tax write-off. Sell on craigslist.com. If you have something decent, you can often unload it in a few hours. Got something big you can’t move – list that on craigslist.com under free stuff. An email from the “buyer” and you can leave it on your driveway for them. Remember what is e-waste – don’t toss computer stuff – call the garbage company for e-waste pick up.

3. Boxes. You’re going to use them once, don’t buy and toss – get used ones. You can find these on the web, or again on craigslist.com. When you’re done with your move, list your moving boxes under free stuff with an address (you could even list a generic address like 400 block of Main St). Then put your boxes out on the street and odds are they’ll be picked up that evening.

4. Packing material. Same deal as with boxes – get them used on craigslist.com – often in the boxes you get from someone else. You know you’re going to wash your dishes again at the other end anyway. Or, save up newspapers for a few months before your move date.

5. Tape. Buy paper tape instead of the plastic packing tape – works just as well, even for boxes with books.

6. Rent boxes. A few national moving companies will drop off reusable packing crates a few days before your move. Earth Friendly Moving. Rent-a-crate.

7. Moving Companies. Look for green companies that use biodiesel trucks and recycled cotton moving pads.

8. Cleaning. Environmentally friendly cleaning supplies on both ends. Don’t leave your old place smelling like a swimming pool. Instead, look for Seventh Generation, Method, or Mrs. Meyers.

9. When you get to the new place – keep the green momentum going and take the time to plan your recycling/green waste areas in your kitchen.

10. Option 2, don’t move.

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A billboard I saw this weekend – it made me thing about front yards. On the politically correct spectrum these days, a brown dried up lawn probably beats out a manicured green patch. The next best thing on the PC spectrum, would have to be removing the lawn altogether. I’ve seen so many homes, where folks have given up on the water-needy outdoor carpet – opting for bay friendly, drought resistant grasses, plants and succulents. I love my neighbor who, this Spring, took out his front lawn, and installed an array of wooden raised garden beds interspersed with fruit trees. If you’re going to water something, why not be able to eat it?

So how do you take the step to removing your lawn?

Option one: Shovel and pick axe – Water the lawn, wait a day or so for it to drain, then dig it out in clumps, shaking out the dirt as you go. Make sure you dig down enough to get the roots if you’ve got weeds in your lawn.

Option two: Sod cutter – these peel a 12 inch section of grass, reaching 3-4 inches down. Operated like a lawn mower, a sod cutter would be a better way to go if you have a decent amount of grass to pull up. You may be able to check out one for free at your local library with just a library card.

Option three: Rototiller – only if you have a huge amount of lawn to remove and the idea of hauling it off doesn’t sound appealing. Problem with a rototiller is how deep it rips into the ground – it’ll chew up your sprinklers, pipes, and perhaps that meddling water main. Rototillers are also available from the tool library, but make sure you know about the area your tilling, and beware of tilling weed seeds into your soil.

Option four: Sheet mulch – I tried this in one area of my yard with great success. Lay out huge pieces of thick paper or cardboard over the grass, then cover with 4-6 inches of mulch. Call a local tree service to see about getting yards of mulch dropped off for free. My backyard has someone’s old pine tree from a few blocks away. Before you mulch, make sure you deal with your sprinkler heads – add extensions and cap them off, until you’re ready for the next iteration of your yard.

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Back in January, PGE connected my new solar panels, a 3.2 kilowatt system installed by REC Solar. The 18 panels went up easily over two days, as though they were connecting a new dryer. Since then, I’ve found myself many a night out reading my new two-way electric meter – to see what I’ve used since the connection.

When solar is installed in your home, your regular electric meter gets replaced with a new digital meter that runs in both directions. During the day, when you’re making electricity, and using very little, the juice gets fed outward onto the grid. Your home becomes a small electric plant, feeding the grid like any other plant. My kids say our panels make the electricity for all the digital clocks and microwaves on our block while everyone is at work.

At night, when you’re not producing, and your lights and stuff are turned on, the meter spins in the other direction, drawing juice from the grid. The numbers on your meter move forward again, after they went backward all day. The goal is to have very little by the end of the year, when you get your one annualized bill. No, PGE won’t cut you a check if you over produce.

By the second month after installation, we’d consumed a total of about 650 kilowatt hours of electricity, but it was the rainy season and the days were short. Around the summer solstice, I was hoping to make up some ground – producing much more than we were using. With all these overcast days, we’ve made less than I had hoped; however, in the past 60 days our total use for the year has dropped from 870 kwh to 837 kwh, meaning in two months, we’ve made 30 kwh of electricity more than we’ve consumed. At this rate, I’m hoping we end the year at about 1600 kwh – not bad considering the average home might use 600-900 kwh per month – sounds like 10 months of free juice. Actually, it’s even more savings because the electricity I am using is all billed at the 100% price – not the 200% or 300% pricing tiers.

When I first researched solar, I wanted a system that would zero me out – cover all my electric use for the year. However, even with the 30% tax credit, these larger installations still cost too much. With a smaller system installed, I get off the higher pricing tiers, earning me more return on my investment. These panels will be generating electricity for at least the next 25 years – think about how many efficiency gains will be made during that time. LED bulbs alone promise to cut our energy use for lighting by over 75%. I’m convinced that before my kids go to college, those panels on the roof will be coming a lot closer to 100% of my usage.

If you’re thinking about solar, think about the efficiency gains you’ll experience over the next decade. Install a smaller system to get you off the high tiers, and I’ll bet your usage will drop closer to the level that you’ll be producing. And, then, when your kids move out…

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Let’s start with the major reality – eating meat contributes a ton to global warming. Worldwide, livestock production accounts for as much as one fifth of the world’s carbon emissions. When cows and sheep pass wind, they are passing methane, a gas that is 25 times as damaging to the atmosphere than carbon dioxide. So, the first step in greening your barbeque, is cut down on the meat you eat. Doesn’t mean you can’t grill vegetables and fruits. Over the 4th of July weekend, we had grilled peaches with vanilla ice cream – awesome.

Gas or charcoal? Propane emits about half as much CO2 per hour than charcoal, yet with a shorter time to get started, and the fact that you turn it off when done, the real CO2 savings is even more. But the flavor? Some purists feel charcoal makes a better barbeque. If you are one of these folks, make sure the flavor you are craving isn’t the sawdust, borax, petroleum solvents and sodium nitrate that are all added to briquettes you buy at the store. If you’re burning it under your food, you’re eating it. Lump charcoal or natural charcoal doesn’t contain additives, it burns cleaner and produces less ash – and you can find it everywhere. There are even some companies offering FSC certified natural charcoal. That instant light stuff – convenient, maybe, but it’s quite toxic – avoid it. Personally, I prefer propane – it costs less, it’s faster, and you don’t smoke out your neighbor getting it lit.

Greener still – solar cookers – my next goal. There are a number of companies, mostly in Europe, producing solar cookers that could replace your outdoor barbeque. Odds are you’re not using your BBQ on a rainy day. The sun’s already there, and cooking with it releases no carbon. These cookers are basically fancy mirrors concentrating the heat to a small tray – a step up from the pizza box your kids made in school, but they work on the same principal. What is most surprising is the heat they can generate – it’s not like using a slow cooker to cook beef stew all day. A few other bonuses for solar cooking – it’s free; there’s no smoke, so no burning; it’s healthy; and, of course, there’s the cool factor. Check out youtube for some movies on home-made versions you can bring to the beach.

Tip: Rub an onion on the grill to clean it rather than use any spray chemicals. Cut off the dirty slice, throw it in the green bin, and then grill the onion.

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