Most people think about energy efficiency in the winter when they are cold, but energy inefficiency is just as important in the warm weather months! Especially with such high electricity costs!
Here are a few tips to help prepare you for the warm summer months:
Have your AC serviced to ensure it is ready for summer.
Use a programmable thermostat and set the temperature higher when you are not home, to conserve energy.
Remember that ceiling fans cool people, not spaces, so do not leave them on in unoccupied rooms.
Does the second floor of your house feel significantly warmer? In the summer, warm air sinks down into your house from the attic. Ensure the entrance to your attic, either a door or a hatch, is well insulated. The EAC recommends attaching several layers of rigid foamboard to the attic-facing side of the door/panel.
Bloomington-Normal residents can get a home energy audit from the Ecology Action Center and we will help identify areas for increase efficiency. You can register at BNEnergyBright.org.
Car Seat Trade-in Event Happening Now
The local Target, at 301 Veterans Pkwy, is accepting used car seats between now and Saturday, April 29th. There are drop-boxes near guest services where people can drop off unwanted car seats, including convertible car seats, car seat bases, harness or booster car seats, as well as expired or damaged car seats. Signs will be placed near the drop box for participants to scan from their mobile device to receive a 20% off coupon toward a new car seat, stroller or select baby gear. Materials from the old car seats will be recycled by Target’s partners to create new products such as pallets, plastic buckets and construction materials.
Upcoming Workshops Help Reduce Your Water Bill
Summer is fast approaching and many are worried about high water bills from watering the garden. The EAC has solutions! Harvesting rain water and composting are both great ways to make your gardens fruitful without the high water bills.
The water that comes from your hose is treated drinking water, but plants prefer rain water. So why not collect the rain in a rain barrel, making your garden and wallet happy? Believe it or not, for every inch of rain that falls on a catchment area of 1,000 square feet, you can expect to collect approximately 600 gallons of rainwater! If you are interested in harvesting rain water for your garden, while also preventing storm water runoff pollution, register for the EAC’s rain barrel workshop on May 1 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. Rain barrel workshops cost $45 for general public and $38 for EAC members. Register online! You will build your own rain barrel with the EAC's guidance, and you will leave confident about installing, using, and caring for your new rain barrel.
Harvesting rain water isn’t the only way to make your garden happy without the extra price of water. Using compost on your garden increases soil’s water-holding capacity and reduces the water demand of plants by improving the texture, water retention, and drainage of the soil. Composting also helps with soil aeration, controlling soil erosion, and it acts as a natural fertilizer reducing the need for chemicals. The EAC is having a backyard composting workshop on May 8 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. This workshop covers backyard composting basics and costs $10 for the workshop and composter, or $85 for the workshop and composter plus a thermometer and stirrer to help keep out invasive jumping worms. Register online!
By the end of these workshops you will have all the tools and knowledge you need to make your garden blossom while also reducing your summer water bill!
Yard Smart Spring Garden Prep
Yard Smartrefers to ecologically sustainable garden management practices, in order to reduce synthetic pesticide and fertilizer use, conserve water, and encourage healthy natural ecosystems for crucial native species and pollinators! The EAC’s Yard Smart goals include:
Preserving healthy watersheds
Storm water runoff is responsible for approximately 70% of watershed pollution.
Synthetic pesticide exposure is linked to serious health issues, including various forms of cancer.
Synthetic ammonia fertilizers kill beneficial microorganisms in the soil and can contaminate groundwater.
The EAC has alternatives! See our guide to organic yard products here, and consider attending our composting workshops to reduce landfill groundwater contamination and for a natural fertilizer alternatives.
Conserving natural resources
Excess water and fossil fuel use creates major problems for the environment.
The average family uses 400 gallons of water a day–1/3 of which is used for landscape irrigation (US EPA).
According to a study in California, mower emissions per year equaled that produced by 3,500,000 automobiles driven 16,000 miles each.
Fortunately, the EAC hosts “build your own rain barrel” workshops in the spring and fall!
Illinois boasts a diverse local wildlife population, and these species have habitat needs!
Yard Smart gardening encourages choosing native plants for your garden. These provide natural food, water, and shelter to native wildlife that have evolved alongside them.
Native Illinois perennials (such as prairie grasses, wildflowers, and shrubs) are naturally drought resistant, and do not require additional watering, pesticides, or fertilizers.
Bee nice! A diverse selection of native plants is also crucial for supporting pollinators.
Be thoughtful when choosing mulches–make sure it is lightweight and permeable for native ground-nesting bees (Wheeler, “5 Ways To Increase Nesting Habitat For Native Bees”).
Leaf piles and stems from last year's blooms can be necessary shelter for pollinators and should be utilized as such, so when you clean out those garden beds, leave the leaf litter and stems in a pile in the corner until at least mid-May.
For advice on shopping from native nurseries to gardening in a drought, the EAC’s resources have got you covered! See our best Yard Smart tips yardsmart.org.
Spring Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Collection Events in Central Illinois
The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency has announced several one-day HHW collection locations for the spring of 2023. The IEPA offers these collection events for free to IL residents for the safe disposal of unused or leftover hazardous products commonly found in homes.
One-day collections are open to all Illinois residents and operate from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00p.m. on the day of the event. Pre-registration is required for all spring 2023 collection events. Residents participating are encouraged to bring chemical cleaners, oil-based paints, thinners, antifreeze, motor oil, gasoline, kerosene, weed killers, insecticides, and pesticides, old or outdated medication, and similar hazardous household products. Fluorescent and other high-intensity discharge lamps may also be brought to the collections. ITEMS NOT ACCEPTED include latex paint, explosives, propane tanks, fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, agricultural chemicals, and business wastes.
