Fairfax County is joining communities around the world in celebrating Earth Day, an annual observance that highlights the need for environmental stewardship and sustainability for a healthier planet. While Earth Day occurs on April 22 every year, it’s important to remember that there are climate actions we can take every day to reduce our environmental impact and help invest in our planet.

Here are 10 small actions you can take to make a big impact:

1. Bike, walk, take public transit, or carpool instead of driving. Cars and trucks are one of the biggest sources of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Fairfax County, accounting for nearly 40 percent of total emissions. Walking and biking are two of the cleanest forms of transportation around, and public transportation (like buses or trains) or carpooling helps reduce total GHG emissions. If teleworking (working from home) is an option, that is another great way to reduce GHGs.  
2. Never idle your car. Anytime you idle your car’s engine, you burn through gasoline and release GHGs into the atmosphere. Just two minutes of idling can consume as much gas as a mile of driving.  
3. Turn off the lights when you leave a room. Every time you flip the switch on, you pull power from the grid. That power is often generated by burning fossil fuels. Flip the switch off to help conserve energy and reduce demand.  
4. Reprogram your thermostat. Adjusting your thermostat set point down by a few degrees in the winter and up by a few degrees in the summer can make a significant impact on your overall home energy use. 
5. Embrace natural ventilation and lighting. Taking advantage of daylight and cool breezes is a delightful way to reduce your energy use as the days get longer and the temperatures get warmer. When opening your windows, open ones opposite each other in a building to create a cross breeze and turn off your central air.  
6. Clean and/or change out your air filters. Keeping your HVAC system running at peak performance is a great way to save energy and lower your greenhouse gas emissions.  
7. Switch to LEDs. Light emitting diodes (LEDs) are extremely efficient compared to other commonly available bulbs like incandescent and compact fluorescent light bulbs. 
8. Turn off and/or unplug devices you’re not using and invest in smart power strips to help manage your energy load. Smart strips can turn themselves off when the devices plugged into them go into standby mode. In addition to having smart strips for devices that pull power when they’re in standby mode, be sure to actively turn off or unplug those devices you’re not using. This also helps reduce vampire energy.  
9. Wash your laundry on cold when possible and hang clothes to dry. Most of the energy used by washing machines goes to heating water. Using warm water instead of hot can cut energy use in half. Using cold water with a cold-water detergent can mean even greater savings. And, if you have the time and ability to air dry your items, you can cut back on your need to run the dryer.  
10. Recycle and compost! This seems simple, and it is! By recycling plastic, glass, paper and cardboard you can reduce the amount of energy needed to create new products. For composting, food waste has one of two options, it can either go to a landfill or waste-to-energy facility, or it can be repurposed to create rich soil for your garden. The latter option puts money in your pocket and reduces the waste being processed by private and municipal organizations.  
     

If you want to make an even bigger impact, here are 5 more things you can do:  

1. Conduct a home energy audit. You can’t manage what you don’t measure. Look around your home and make note of the ways you can start saving energy. Or hire a professional home energy auditor to give you a full assessment. 
2. Buy or build a rain barrel. By collecting rainwater in a rain barrel and repurposing it to water your garden or wash your car, you can reduce the amount of water pulled from the municipal system. A good deal of energy goes into processing water for drinking and delivering it to your tap, so any reduction is a good reduction. 
3. Switch to ENERGYSTAR appliances.  If your dishwasher or washing machine need an upgrade, consider buying an ENERGYSTAR rated appliance. These energy efficient appliances save loads of energy over their conventional counterparts.  
4. Install solar panels or elect to purchase renewable energy certificates from your utility provider. Just under 50 percent of the GHG emissions in Fairfax County are due to the use of electricity, and the use of renewable energy can greatly reduce these emissions. There are two ways to adopt renewable energy at home: install solar panels in your home, or review your electric utility provider’s website and consider participating in programs or offerings that allow you to match your monthly electricity usage with renewable energy certificates (RECs). 
5. Drive an electric vehicle. This is a big (and sometimes expensive) step but can have a great reduction on GHG emissions if biking, walking, or using public transit don’t work for you. Electric vehicles (EVs) don’t use gasoline and have no tail pipe emissions, and even when you factor in the emissions from producing electricity, EVs produce less GHGs than gas-powered cars. 

And make plans now to participate in county events on April 22 that will provide awareness, education and opportunities for positive actions.

Upcoming Earth Day (April 22) Events:

• Earth Day Fairfax, Sully Historic Site, Chantilly, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Mount Vernon District Environmental Expo, Fort Hunt Park, Alexandria, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• McLean Earth Day, McLean Community Center, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. (open to residents of Dranesville Small District 1 A only)