Popular Excuses Not to Conserve
Do you hear these excuses from your family? Do you make excuses sometimes? It’s not always easy to conserve, in fact, I’ve been known to say or think a few of these myself (I won’t give away which ones). In general, it’s helpful to be honest about why you don’t conserve because maybe there are ways to make it easier and remove that barrier. Maybe there is just one of these that if changed could save you a substantial amount of money and make you feel more conservative.
It’s too time consuming
They don’t recycle these 100% anyway
It clutters up the house
America’s economy relies on energy investments
I’m too tired to get up and turn off the light
I’m running late for work and don’t have time to turn down the thermostat
No one else in house conserves, so why do I bother
The grass isn’t as green with organic fertilizer
Green products cost more
Vinegar stinks
Disposable water bottles are more convenient
Who’s gonna notice if I don’t recycle this time
There is no curbside recycling
I missed the hazardous waste disposal day
I missed the electronic pickup day
Why do I have to pay for electronics disposal?
Just as an example, here’s how you can remove a few of these barriers. Take “I like using disposable water bottles”; you could start by reducing your water bottle usage by half by just refilling each water bottle once. Also, you could find a few non-disposable water bottles that have the features of disposable bottles you like, fill them from a filtered tap, and have the ready to go in the refrigerator. Convenience is key!
How about the excuse “I’m too tired to get up and turn off the light”? We use X10 remotes to turn off many lights throughout the house. You can also use motion activated lights in places where it won’t annoy you, like the bathroom, the laundry room, the cellar and once you get used to those, perhaps incorporate them in the heavily used areas like the living room, the hall, etc.
Got any other original excuses or ways to remove barriers? I’m sure you’ve got more! Send ‘em on in via comments or email…