Sustainable Living - Part 1 continued

In this article I hope that one can discover ways to live sustainable no matter what or where their current living situation happens to be.

How can I start to live a sustainable lifestyle in an apartment in the city?

Here are some suggestions that might help as you answer that question.

1. Although I am not a big fan of florescent tube technology, a first step might be to replace all of your incandescent light bulbs with low voltage florescent bulbs. They are a bit more expensive to buy but will last much longer then incandescent, and will reduce total household wattage.

LED lighting technology is also making huge strides into the residential market. LED technology is being used to replace many of the nations signal lights because of the low wattage requirements and bright light output.

2. Have as many plants as possible within your living spaces and bedrooms. Plants will thrive on the CO2 build up in your apartment and act as a natural air purifier.

3. Buy ECO-friendly dish, laundry, and household cleaners. Use recycled paper products. Where possible use (washable) cloth products over paper. When shopping use your own cloth bags and carriers.

4. Buy only organic or local fruit, vegetables and dairy when possible. Support all organic farming and local farms by your purchasing power.

During the spring and summer seasons support your local Farmers Market and its Vendors. Artisan foods, local honey, maple syrup, preserved jams, and breads all support families that are providing good, wholesome natural products for all of us while trying to maintain a sustainable business.

5. Most New Yorkers are already great walkers. My brother has lived in NYC for many years and has never owned an automobile while living there. But if you are an apartment dweller and not living in a "walking" city, see if it's possible for you to use public transportation, bicycle, or creative carpooling for shopping and work.

6. I often suggest (even if you don't cook) of having at least a months worth of food basics in a pantry in case of any emergency. Even if your normal routine is take-out or dining out, having these food products requires no refrigeration and can be used to build basic meals in an emergency with just water.

Keep all of these "emergency" products in one cabinet or in a single box and at the end of a year cycle the canned goods through food shelters and food give-aways and purchase new.

Also, if you learn to, or already make homemade breads, cycle the flour and dry products when baking and replace with new.

20 cans of Soup (different varieties) (include a manual can opener)
1 box of Instant or Dried Milk
1 bottle of Olive Oil
1 bottle of Vegetable Oil
2 boxes of Protein Bars
5 lb bags of (dried) Lentil Beans
5 lb bags of (dried) Black Beans
10 lb bag of Rice
10 lb bag of All-Purpose Flour (in airtight container)
10 lb bag of Sugar (in airtight container)
1 box of Bakers Yeast
1 bottle of Honey
3 boxes (10 in a box) Oatmeal (instant)
Packages of dried Fruit
Assorted boxes dried tea
2 lbs vacuum-sealed Coffee (pre-ground)
Hot Chocolate dried mix
Box of salt/Pepper

Remember that we also talked about having at least 2 gallons of water per person per day stashed in a closet. The easiest way to do this is to buy the 2 1/2 gallon plastic water containers and have at least 6. This equates to 15 gallons of fresh water stashed or about 4 days water for two people.

Buy and stash a (camping style) two-burner cooker (small propane containers-keep six containers stashed)

Buy and stash (camping style) pot and fry pan and metal utensils.

So living in an apartment in the middle of a city is no excuse not to think sustainability or not to be prepared to feed yourself for a short period of time in an emergency.

Brett