If you are not familiar with chlorophyll, read on and learn why it is important for plants.

What Is Chlorophyll?

A green pigment molecule found in plants, chlorophyll is crucial for photosynthesis because it absorbs energy from the sun. Chlorophyll helps convert water into glucose and carbon dioxide into oxygen. During photosynthesis, chlorophyll creates energy in the form of sugary carbohydrates, which is important for the growth and development of plants.

Chlorophyll is made of a porphyrin ring.

This is a circular and enclosed atom arrangement that allows electrons to “freely” float around, instead of being captured by a certain atom. These electrons are energy that can be absorbed by plant cells to help them grow.

To better understand how chlorophyll functions for plants, try to imagine how a person’s digestive system operates - it takes the raw materials and converts them into elements that can provide energy in the form of glucose. The only difference is that all that a plant needs is light from the sun, air absorbed through its pores, and water siphoned through its roots. The glucose produced during photosynthesis is absorbed into the cells of the plant and used to grow another bud or leaf. Sometimes, there is leftover glucose. In this case, the plant stores this glucose away as starch to be used for later.

Chlorophyll Turns Plants Green, Too!

Here’s another interesting fact:

Chlorophyll gives plants their beautiful color.

Ever wonder why most plants are green? This is also because of chlorophyll. If a plant has sufficient chlorophyll, it will have a lush, green color.

Try to observe some trees. Most of the year, they show off a certain green color, whether it’s teal, sage, or lime. However, when autumn comes, the plants turn into varying shades of red or golden-brown. This is because the plant loses the chlorophyll pigment, but gains other types of pigment. For example, the carotenoid pigment makes leaves look orange or yellow.

Can Humans Use Chlorophyll?

Due to its usefulness for plants, chlorophyll is now generating interest in the health community. Can this useful plant pigment work on people, too? No one knows for sure, but if you are looking for sources of chlorophyll, here are some possible options you can try:

• “Green” chlorophyll drinks. These are made from powdered green veggies.
• Chlorophyll supplements. These are available in a concentrated liquid form. Most chlorophyll supplements are dense and tasteless, and can be added to any type of drink. Try mixing it in water, smoothie or fruit shakes, or juice. When purchasing a liquid chlorophyll supplement, though, make sure that it is not refined and highly processed or loaded with additives and sweeteners. Only buy from a trustworthy source.
• Raw green foods. Eat plenty of greens! Salads and a wide variety of veggies like Asian greens, spinach, lettuce, green capsicum, broccoli, asparagus, peas, kale, and beans are good chlorophyll sources. Any plant-derived food is okay, as long as it is green in color. This means that it contains chlorophyll.

The next time you see a plant or tree looking lush and green, think of chlorophyll and how it works its magic. You will definitely appreciate this unique pigment!

About the Author

Mishka Thomas is a blogger and a freelance writer. She is an avid gardener and is fascinated by the workings of the botanical world. At present, she is currently researching about chlorophyll in algae, including seaweed and chlorella. When she is not busy tending to her backyard garden, she loves to go parasailing, mountain climbing, and scuba diving. She lives with her family in Florida.

ELVIN (Electric Vehicle with Interactive Noise). Photo from the Warwick Manufacturing Group website

And what can be done about this?

Electric cars, so their manufacturers tell us, will be the cars of the future. There is much justification for this claim – electric cars have the potential to reduce harmful gas emissions and should mean that many countries could reduce their dependence on oil.

These vehicles are also incredibly silent – a feature which advertisers market as a selling point but which in fact could be considered a design flaw…

So surely the world would be a better place if cars produced less loud noises? Well, yes and no. Yes as everyone wants a quieter living environment. And no because if, like me, you often find yourself nearly stepping into the path of a cyclist because you haven’t heard them coming you will know how essential the noise of vehicles is.

Vehicle noise helps all road users judge the speed of other traffic and their proximity to us. It can also help our brains quickly process information about the direction from which a vehicle is approaching and whether the vehicle is accelerating or slowing.

Internal car noise can also help drivers ascertain the state of their car; has the engine conked out, what speed are they travelling, is the car ‘under pressure’? It is always reassuring to hear some noise when you put your foot on the pedal.

As electric vehicles generally remain quiet at low speeds, their drivers do not have these audio prompts to sharpen their senses. In a way, electric car drivers cannot call on all their senses to drive safely.

And road safety experts are starting to get more vocal about the safety implications of cars which are very quiet at low speed.

At a recent road safety conference, research organisation Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) highlighted evidence which shows that hybrid electric vehicles are twice as likely to be involved in an accident when:

• Stopping or slowing
• Entering or leaving a parking space

Electric cars could also pose safety risks to blind and partially-sighted groups.

It is clear that there is a demand for electric cars to have the sound put back into them. This could be ‘inherent’ sound (by adapting the machinery so that it produces real sound) or ‘synthesised’ sound.

The idea of synthesised sound in a vehicle might seem a strange concept but then many electric tills are designed to mimic the sound of ‘old-school’ tills opening and shutting – a great help for letting shop assistants know when a transaction has gone through and whether the till has been left open or not.

And a rather dinky looking green van called ELVIN is the vehicle world’s equivalent of an electric shop till. ELVIN stands for ‘electric vehicle with interactive noise’ and ‘he’ has been modified by his manufacturer WMG to emit different sounds dependent on his speed and state.

Much publicity surrounded ELVIN’S unveiling in 2011 and motoring journalists were clearly impressed with the fact that the green vehicle is capable of producing white noise and UFO sounds depending on the situation he finds himself in.

BBC News, reporting on the issue of silent electric vehicles, posed the question: “What noise should an electric car make?”

Personally, I’d be in favour of them sounding like a real car rather than a UFO, police car or crazy frog. But then maybe that’s just me!

Nissan has the same idea and is already started fitting noise-emitting speakers beneath the bonnets of the electric cars which roll off its production lines.

Hopefully you will see – and, of course, hear – more ELVIN-style vehicles on a road near you soon.

James Christie writes for road safety association GEM Motoring Assist. Check out the GEM website to find some great breakdown cover deals.

Get a load of this fact, for instance: New York City’s Midtown area has an average 7.1 metric tons of carbon emissions per person, whereas the United States average is 24.5 metric tons. That means urban dwellers in New York use about a quarter of the average carbon output for United States citizens in general, according to NewYorkWaste.org.

So how can you watch your carbon footprint and reduce your environmental impact while living in the city? Here are six tips to help you go green while dwelling in the city:

1. Walk, Bike, or Use Public Transportation

Of course, the number one way to go green in the city is to cut down dramatically on your fuel consumption by walking, biking, or using public transportation whenever possible. Many city dwellers do this already, since their workplaces and retail and entertainment spots are close by. Plus, with all that traffic from the suburbanites driving into their urban offices, who wants to drive?

While many city dwellers don’t own a car at all, if you do much travel outside of your city, you may need to keep a car for occasional use. If this is the case, you can make your travel greener by checking out gas credit cards that allow you to use your accumulated points to donate money to green charities and initiatives. This can help offset your carbon footprint when you are using fuel to travel to someplace out of walking or public transportation range.

2. Choose an Apartment Wisely

Many of today’s cities feature green apartment buildings that are made with sustainable materials or that simply feature energy-efficient appliances and insulation. Even if this type of apartment building isn’t an option for you, you can cut back on your carbon footprint by thinking small. Living in a small, efficient space rather than a sprawling home or apartment can drastically cut back on your energy usage.
When looking for the perfect apartment to buy or rent, also consider how close your home will be to the key places you need or want to visit on a regular basis. Living within walking distance of your office, if possible, can help you cut back on your carbon footprint even more by avoiding even public transportation.

3. Plant a Garden

Even in the city, it’s completely possible to grow some of your own food, or to at least keep a few plants around to improve your apartment’s air quality. The web is full of resources for urban gardeners, and several great books have been published on the topic during the recent popularization of green living, as well.

When you’re in the city, it’s important to think vertically for your gardens, and your access to sunlight also makes a big difference. If you want to live downtown but grow some of your own herbs and vegetables, find an apartment with a balcony or patio that faces west or south, and then take advantage of stacking pots and other vertical gardening options so that you can make the most of the space allotted to you.

4. Shop Locally

Often times, local shops and farmer’s markets congregate in inner-city areas, rather than in the suburbs, where chains and big box stores are more common. According to sustainableconnections.org, shopping locally reduces your environmental impact in several ways. For one, local businesses tend to source their supplies locally, which means there is less transportation and use of fossil fuels involved in getting products to you.

Shopping locally for your food has even more environmental impact, since local farmers tend to be better stewards of the local earth and environment, as they rely on it for generations’ worth of sustainable farming. Even local farms that are not certified organic use more sustainable farming practices than sprawling farming conglomerates that grow produce for chain supermarkets and box stores.

5. Recycle

Because more cities are focusing on green initiatives, it’s often easier for urban dwellers to recycle than it is for suburbanites or individuals who live in the country to do the same. If you aren’t already recycling whenever possible, find out more about your city’s recycling initiatives, and take advantage of them.

One advantage of apartment living is that urban apartments often offer recycling pick-up services. Even if this isn’t the case with your apartment, check for recycling drop-off points within easy walking distance of your home. You can seriously reduce your environmental footprint simply by recycling whatever and whenever you can.

6. Support Your Local Parks

As today’s cities strive to become more environmentally friendly, more of them are putting environmental initiatives into practice by cultivating green spaces for the communities in the form of local parks. These green spaces help clean up the air in cities, and can even help clean up the water supply that is often contaminated by run-off from the city’s asphalt and concrete services.

By supporting your local parks systems through voting for city initiatives that support and expand city parks, volunteering in your local park, or simply enjoying what the parks system has to offer on a regular basis, you can ensure that your city continues to expand and promote the parks system.

Going green even when you live in the city isn’t actually that difficult. Sure, you probably can’t raise chickens or grow all your own produce, but you can buy locally-raised poultry and vegetables and grow your own herbs instead. These six simple steps can help you reduce your carbon footprint and have a positive impact for the environment, even when you live in the city.

This article was contributed by Daniela Baker from http://www.creditdonkey.com/frugal-commuter.html

There are many benefits to having a home is powered using green sources. In the long run there are definite cost savings which will come from the transition; but maybe more important is the preservation of the earth for the generations that will come in to the future. Rather than use up all the earth’s limited resources, it makes sense to instead switch, when possible, to greener energy sources. Going green is all about using energy sources which are renewable and not in jeopardy of being depleted.

Take a look at 2 ways families are using green power to heat their home in non-traditional ways:

Wind

Though a large enough turbine would quite easily power a houses power requirements these large wind turbines are normally difficult to get planning permission for without a large area of space away from neighbours. Normally local planning departments require 1/2 an acre.

It is always best to check and get planning long before buying any products.

A normal family size house to would be able to install a much smaller wind turbine, though small these can power a couple of rooms in a home but require a higher wind speeds.

Solar

Solar energy is another popular option to power today’s home. Solar power can be used to both create electricity and heat water making it perfect for home use. Of the three energy sources listed, solar energy is probably the most commonly thought of when an everyday person thinks of green energy sources.

Solar panels can be attached to the roof of a home or to a standalone shed (depending on which product is selected). The sun is an abundant source of energy which can be harnessed and stored to either create hot water or otherwise power a home. Again, there will be an upfront monetary investment, but in the end it will more than pay for itself with energy savings in the long run.

As many reports by the UN and energy companies have reported, average power usage across the world will rapidly increase in the coming years. With temperatures increasing across the world air cooling devices could be much more common, increasing the dependence on electricity. It is important that
the houses of the future factor in for the expected changes in climate reported by the IPCC report (2004). Many leading designers are now looking to incorporate architectural design of Mediterranean countries to future proof their designs against climate change.

WDSgreenenergy.co.uk are leading specialists in green energy technologies, installing solar panels in Cardiff to reduce building dependency on fossil fuels. WDS support many efforts to future proof lots of our civic building and company premises.

If so, even the smallest details of your life, such as decorating your home, probably have changed. You can no longer go to the store and purchase just any home décor products. The products that you choose must have a positive impact on the environment.

Listed below are 12 eco friendly alternatives to home décor products. Being eco friendly doesn’t mean that your home can’t be beautiful.

• Out with the silk flowers! Instead of buying costly silk flowers that will only collect dust, choose to use what nature has to offer. During the spring, fill you home with the beautiful scent and color of flowers from your garden. Wild flowers also make a beautiful addition to your home décor.
• Reuse what you already have. Instead of going out and buying home décor products, reuse what you already have. A can of paint can transform something that you thought you no longer liked into something that you love. And best of all, it will be eco friendly!
• Make the commitment to never buy new. To truly be eco friendly, you must first make the commitment to never buy new. Choose to frequent garage sales or use websites that offer second hand home décor products for very little money.
• Get crafty! An eco friendly alternative to home décor products is to make your own. Use things from nature to create beautiful, one of a kind home décor products. This will be fun and will help adorn your home for very little money.
• Know where to shop. It is important that you know where to find inexpensive home décor products that will be eco friendly and also fit into your budget. Choose products that are on sale and that are made of natural materials.
• Take advantage of Pinterest. Pinterest is a new website where people share creative ideas. Sign up to receive great ideas on how you can decorate your home using eco friendly home décor. Do you have a Pinterest account? If so start researching creative ideas today.
• Choose a natural look. An eco friendly alternative to expensive home décor is to choose a natural look. Choosing a natural look for your home will allow you to decorate with things that are in more of abundance.
• Repurposed pillows. Another eco friendly option for decorating your home is to repurpose your couch pillows. Once your pillows are out of date or no longer match you décor, get creative and repurpose them yourself. Find eco friendly fabric that will be durable and last a long time.
• Decorating with baskets. Baskets are also eco friendly home décor products that are inexpensive and can add a decorative touch to your home. Made of natural materials, you can never have too many decorative baskets. Baskets can hold flowers, magazines, and even hair bows!
• Consider how it is made. When purchasing home décor products, don’t make a purchase until you consider how it is made. Choose products that will express your love for the earth, that will be friendly to you budget, and that will match the rest of your décor.
• Mosaic touches are beautiful. Choose to create your own mosaics to add a beautiful, earth friendly touch to your home. These handmade home décor products are eco friendly and very inexpensive to make. You can make mosaics for your garden or for a kitchen countertop. This is an eco friendly idea that can be used throughout your entire home.
• Natural window coverings. Instead of choosing expensive window coverings that are made from harmful products, choose to leave your window bare. If you have neighbors and want something over your windows, choose bamboo blinds that are budget friendly and will be better for the earth.

When decorating your home, you can still stick to your eco friendly lifestyle. Use the tips above to help you find eco friendly alternatives to home décor products. Many of these tips will be easy on your budget and will also be good for the earth.

This article is contributed by Victor from Jute Rug Shop, an online store to buy eco-friendly bamboo mats, jute rugs and lot more.

Solar panels in the Utah Desert. As C.G. Abbott predicted back in 1928, “In time, manufacturing will to a great extent follow the sun.”

When I was growing up in the 1970s I can’t remember anyone talking about solar power or environmental issues. So it is surprising to learn that so many forward-thinking people in the 19th and early 20th century were eloquently trying to raise the topic of the environment.

The topic is discussed far more openly today – and people really have started to listen.

Here are some great old and new quotes about man’s attempts to harness nature and produce energy.

1. Henry David Thoreau: “Thank God men cannot fly, and lay waste the sky as well as the earth.”
American philosophical writer Thoreau lived in the 19th century before the age of the aeroplane increased mankind’s already-sizeable carbon footprints. He would surely have approved of attempts to promote clean and renewable forms of energy.

2. Frank Shuman: “The human race must finally utilise direct sun power or revert to barbarism.”
Shuman’s quote comes from a letter he wrote to the Scientific American magazine in 1913.
The American engineer invented curved solar mirrors which reflected the heat of the Egyptian sun and heated water; producing steam to power pumps which irrigated cotton fields.

3. C.G. Abbott: “In time, manufacturing will to a great extent follow the sun.”
In 1928, American astrophysicist C.G. Abbot raised the possibility of deserts becoming great industrial areas through the development of solar power.
Today, his vision does not seem to be a mirage. The world’s biggest solar power installation is located in the Mojave Desert in the United States and a 12-square-kilometre solar farm is due to be constructed in a desert city in Morocco.

4. Albert Einstein: “The environment is everything that isn’t me.”
This concept is far simpler that e=mc squared!

5. Sir George Porter: “I have no doubt that we will be successful in harnessing the sun’s energy… if sunbeams were weapons of war, we would have had solar energy centuries ago.”
British scientist Sir George Porter made this claim in 1973. He would go on to be a major contributor to the public understanding of science through being president of the influential Royal Society scientific organisation.

6. Jimmy Carter: “Because we are now running out of gas and oil, we must prepare quickly for a third change, to strict conservation and to the use of coal and permanent renewable energy sources, like solar power.”
US President Jimmy Carter made this statement in a televised speech in April 1977. He might not have been a particularly successful President but this quote shows his foresight. You can’t imagine his successor, Ronald Reagan, issuing a similar warning.

7. Warren Christopher: “Environmental degradation – like overpopulation, refugees, narcotics, terrorism and organised crime – is a worldwide problem that doesn’t stop at a nation’s borders.”
Warren Christopher served as US Secretary of State under Bill Clinton and clearly saw protecting the environment as a global, rather than a national, problem.

8. Al Gore: “Our world faces a true planetary emergency. I know the phrase sounds shrill, and I know it’s a challenge to the moral imagination.”
US politician Al Gore might have lost a presidential election contest against George W. Bush Jnr but he was a lot more successful at educating the public about environmental issues.

9. Robert Redford: “I think the environment should be put in the category of our national security. Defence of our resources is just as important as defence abroad. Otherwise what is there to defend?”
The American actor, who starred in films such as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, has long been an advocate of green living. His comments show that he is as articulate without a film script as he is with one.

10. Let’s end this article on a note of hope with a quote from Roger Tory Peterson: an educator who was one of the leading inspirations for the 20th century environmental movement. “Not all is doom and gloom. We are beginning to understand the natural world and are gaining a reverence for life – all life.”

James Christie writes for Strenson Solar: provider of solar panels in Brighton.

Wooden furniture may have got scratched or a bit battered through the years. If it’s real wood, you can restore it or renovate relatively simply. You’ll only need a few bits of equipment. Some wire wool can be gently applied over the entire top surface – this lifts out the scratches and will also remove any stains from ink or wine. Next, apply a mix of olive oil and vinegar with a soft cloth. The vinegar will clean the wood, removing ingrained dirt and grease. The oil helps replenish the wood and restore its shine (all wood dries out and loses its lustre over time).

With furnishings like a fabric sofa from Harveys for instance, there are different ways you can make them feel like new. The easiest way is to put a throw over the sofa, but if this feels too temporary, you could get the sofa recovered. This is often worthwhile if your sofa is well-made and would be expensive to replace. If you’re confident in using material, you can even do this yourself.

Examine the sofa to see how the material is attached (usually the joins are underneath or at the back). Remove it carefully and take photos to remind you of the sequence. Choose a replacement fabric and buy more than enough to allow for mistake cuts and overlaps.

Use the old cover as a template and cut out all new sections with an inch to spare around each piece. Fit the new pieces in reverse order. A staple gun is the best way to fix the material in place. Attach one side and then stretch the material before stapling the other side. Then do the same at each end. Repeat this for each piece of material. It should be wrinkle-free, but leave a little room for the material to give.

It should be pretty straightforward, and if you don’t like the result, you’ll only have wasted the material costs, and you can always replace it with a new sofa. At least you will have tried to be green.

This post was contributed by Celia Roche on behalf of http://www.harveysfurniture.co.uk/

‘Thermal Imaging’ with the help of infrared radiations, helps us to notice the density differences and temperature fluctuations in any tangible thing around us. Till today, this method has been generally used to detect biological upsets in delicate body organs and sometimes by property owners to track out the hidden causes of safety issues within the house. The temperature fluctuations or the structure tempering detected by a thermal imaging camera are not possible to be noticed with bare eyes.

Now assuming that seventy percent of the world population understands the catastrophic effects that global warming is having on the earth, we have come up with diverse ways to seek out solutions to this problem. And the solution is not just about using air, water and sun for primary energy needs, it embodies every particular aspect of the way we live in and behave. Here we introduce the very new concept of thermal imaging.

But the new benefit that is credited to this technology is being beneficial to the environment. Of course, on close scrutiny, we find that thermal imaging points out sources of abnormal heat loss in a particular area that is different from its surrounding area. We all know that heat radiated out from constructions is a potent source of global warming. Any unwanted source of heat due to an unseen leakage could be an additional cause that would aggravate the problem although with utter paucity.

Secondly, the technology is a potent application for those who wish to buy themselves a piece of livable property. Remember, thermal imaging cameras help to detect flaws which go unseen by human eyesight? So now, before you start working on your dream house, you have all the resources to make sure that the same does not become a liability to your pocket in the future. Any kind of construction mishap could not only need to be repaired urgently in the future, thus adding to your costs, it could also pose to be a threat to the safety of the residents of the house. For example, a weak insulation in the wall could lead to short circuit. It would remain unnoticed, but it cannot be ignored via a thermal imaging camera.

Thirdly, thermal imaging facilities provided by many companies, keeps the user informed about the leakages in the building structure. Still, if you have not switched to the advance thermal imaging facility, then it is the right time to do so. It is always better to bear a few additional costs rather than facing innumerable difficulties and repeated expenditures in the future. This will result in long term gain in terms of peaceful and hassle free life-style. Moreover, it will also contribute a lot in sustaining the atmosphere and the planet resistant with many global warming related issues.

About the author: Alia Haley is a blogger who is a tech freak. She has a weak side for gadgets and bikes. Beside this she is trying her hands on two totally different topics i.e. In vitro fertilization and Gi Joe Action Figures.

It is basically a way to help homeowners to comprehend the benefits of installing a solar system at home as well as to intimate them about the history of the solar power.

It is an interesting initiative taken by Sun Power to improve one’s knowledge regarding solar energy and convince maximum people to get a solar power system installed in their homes regardless of the high cost of its installation and management.

Steps to Follow While Playing the Solar Discovery Game:

Facebook has it all. It offers people to participate in “the reduce use of exhaustible energy” and make use of renewable and inexhaustible ones. One just needs to visit the web page of the Solar Discovery Game from the search engine provided in Facebook.

One needs to accept the promotion application present in the page and fill up the on screen registration form. This makes one eligible for an entry in a single sweepstake.

Next, one needs to answer a list of questions to accumulate points to be eligible for the mega prize.

Players can unlock achievements at each successive stage and hence receive “badges” as reward which can be posted to one’s Facebook wall.

Sun Power will add a list of new questions each week along with new prizes to be fetched. Contestants may be lucky enough to grab the grand prize which is a complete solar energy system manufactured by Sun Power. The total value of the system is around twenty five thousand dollars. Regular players can also be eligible to win more featured prizes such as video cameras, event tickets, gift cards, plane tickets and many more such attractive surprises.

The winner has the option of getting the system installed in his or her home or can choose to gift it to a relative or friend instead. Another great and charitable option is to donate the system to a local community building or a recreation center.

The eligibility criteria to be a part of this solar game competition is restricted to only U.S and D.C permanent residents. They can participate if they belong to the legal age of the particular state. People who have any sort of link with the Sun Power Corporation are not eligible to participate in this solar discovery game. One does not need to purchase participation and a purchase does not make someone have greater chances of winning.

About the author: Alia Haley is a blogger by profession. She loves writing on technology and luxury. Beside this she is fond of cell phones, fancy accessories and watches. She recently added two Gold Bracelets to her collection. These days she is busy in writing articles on world’s most expensive cars and on 3d racing games.

In fact, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found that in 2008, only about 6.8 percent of the total amount of plastic generated was actually recycled, which is significantly lower than other materials such as metal, paper, and glass.

Furthermore, plastic bags are so widely used everywhere, everyday, that according to the EPA, around 100 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are used and disposed of every year. That means we’ve used almost 3 trillion plastic bags from 2009-2011 alone.

The problem is, since plastic is non-biodegradable, these plastic bags and other plastic products stay in waste areas and landfills for hundreds of years, strongly contributing to the problematic pollution we already have.

This is why we should all start recycling plastic, even in little ingenious ways. Take the trusty black garbage bags we all know and, er, love, for one.

What makes these garbage bags special is that they’re made to be so strong and durable to hold trash in, and it’s these very same characteristics that make them so useful for a lot of other tasks and things. Garbage bags also make a cheaper alternative for some other everyday items.

There are dozens of ways to use, reuse, and recycle this household item, and here are some of them:

• Covers for basically anything. The great thing about garbage bags is how resistant they are. These plastic bags work well as covering — you can cover pretty much anything with them, and the garbage bag keeps the covered item clean and dry. You can keep your barbecue grill under there until after the next cookout, or pull a garbage bag over a synthetic Christmas tree you have so it’ll look nice and dust-free by the next Yuletide season. You can also use these garbage bags as dropcloths for when you’re painting and renovating around the house, keeping the furniture, floors and other surfaces free from paint and debris.
• Windshield protectors for snowy days. Keep your car’s windshield from frosting over by spreading a garbage bag over it, tucking the bag’s edges between the car doors and the wipers. This saves you a lot of time from defrosting and minimizes ice and water damage to your car, too!
• Sheets in case of roadside car repair emergencies. So you end up pulling over the side of the road due to car trouble, and you need to take a peek under the vehicle. You can pull out a garbage bag out of the trunk, spread it out on the road, and you can shimmy under the car without having to worry about getting your clothes wet or dirty, or both.
• Lining for luggage. We normally use garbage bags to line our wastebaskets and bins, so why can’t we do the same for our luggage? Going on camping and hiking trips exposes us and our things to the elements, so we need to make sure our bags can withstand practically anything. Keep your clothes and other knick-knacks dry and grime-free by lining your backpacks and other traveling bags with this handy plastic material.
• Storage. You can store pretty much anything in garbage bags, too. If you’re moving on short notice and you run out of boxes, you can use garbage bags instead. Just throw in all your stuff in there (but make sure to keep away any sharp object that could tear or puncture the bags) and you’re good to go. You can also keep seasonal clothes in good condition by storing them in these makeshift garment bags. Just make sure to keep the air out of the bag and maybe throw in a couple of moth balls in there before securing the end of the bag with a twist tie or string.
• Emergency rain or winter gear. This trick is commonly used by outdoor enthusiasts, and they’ve found that garbage bags make good rain coats, ponchos, and you can even improvise a winter coat of sorts from it by adding the garbage bag to your existing layer of clothes as a moisture barrier, and stuffing the bag with dry material like leaves and lichens for insulation.
• Repurposed ‘new’ things. You can use garbage bags in an assortment of craft projects and other items. Strips of the garbage bags can be coiled, knitted, pleated, or even stitched into baskets, rugs, and mats. You can even fashion a small bit of knitted plastic into a durable and effective scouring pad for cleaning around the house.
• Temporary patches. You can patch up your tent or any other similar camping gear with a piece of plastic cut out of the garbage bag. Just secure the plastic with some strong duct tape and you’re set. You can also use the garbage bag for covering up broken windows or any other openings during a storm to keep the wind and the water out of the house.
• Medical emergency items. You would need proper first aid training for this, of course, but clean garbage bags can actually save someone’s life! You can cut out a part of the plastic to secure wounds and keep them dry, maybe even hold vital body parts in place or even help deal with a collapsed lung.

These are only some of the things you can do with plastic garbage bags, so maybe you can choose to explore your options the next time you’re thinking of simply throwing them out with the trash. Who knows, you might even come up with other uses to fit your household needs. You’ll not only help lessen the massive amount of plastic pollution, but you’ll also have inexpensive yet effective alternatives for other everyday items.

May Flores is a freelance writer who occasionally does work for PlasticPlace.com, a wholesaler of trash bags, can liners and contractor bags. In her spare time, she also likes to create handmade items from recycled material.