Summer means a couple of things depending on where you live. If you live inland or in the valleys -- you're likely to see your energy bills go up as we all try to stay cool. Of course, hot weather demands that we must use more water to keep our gardens and lawns green. But like everything else these days, the price to cool our homes and water our lawns has gone up. So what can you do to help the planet and save money?
More and more cities are now pitching in. Many have developed give-away programs, like Burbank Water & Power which provides customers with free aerators to cut water consumption and compact florescent light bulbs which save energy. They are simple things to do, and even better, it doesn't cost you anything to install them. Most power companies and cities offer free written material on other ways to cut power and water use.
We hooked up with a Burbank family who tested out some of these freebies. We will find out just how easy they are to install and what the family liked and disliked about them. One thing we learned -- it doesn't take much time or effort to become more green at home. Working to conserve ultimately cuts demand. By cutting demand, we can not only work to provide a greener planet, but that could help keep the rising cost in check because as demand decreases, prices for things like electricity, gasoline and water tend to go down.
So why not do your part? It's as simple as calling your local water and/or power company or local city government to see what type of program they have in place.
