When we talk about environment one of the first things that comes to mind is fossil fuel and cars. There are 254 million cars registered in the US alone. It is almost one auto per person as 316 million people lives in the US (which includes children and people who cannot drive). Automobiles are important part of modern life today there is no argument about it.
It is encouraging to see technological developments that help in production of more environmentally friendly cars. Lately, there is substantial increase in the numbers of hybrid and electric cars. Yet only 0.62% of cars in the US are electric, not even full 1%. And the USA is the leader in the sales of these vehicles. The truth is that almost every car in the US is using fossil fuel one way or another.
There are a few initiatives across the world to reduce the fuel consumption. For example, The UK government is offering tax initiatives to encourage people buy autos with smaller engines. And the US government is pressuring auto manufacturers to produce more environmentally friendly autos in more ways than one. Here is a press release from Whitehouse detailing these improvements and expectations. Note the money saving emphasises of the press release, along with reducing greenhouse gas emissions and dependence in foreign oil.
Money Saving Driving Habits
Probably, we would have a much better success if we could persuade every motorist to make small changes. The real impact may be achieved by getting everybody do a few adjustments in driving habits to save fuel. No matter how small the fuel savings are when it is done by millions of drivers the overall effect would be huge.
There are claims online that some motorists achieved 50% fuel economy by making these and similar changes to their driving habits. This may be over ambitious but even 10% fuel economy would be great and it is not really too hard to achieve. Cutting out aggressive driving alone should be enough to get significant gas savings. Also, calm drivers are less likely to have accidents and more likely to get better car insurance dealsStepping on brakes and accelerator often isn’t good for your car and fuel consumption. It is best to learn how to let a vehicle run in a nice stride.
No doubt a few people would do their best to minimize fuel consumption in order to reduce their effect on the environment. However, motorists would be saving money as well in the process. This may be a better motivator for many people than pure environmental benefits of using less petrol. Then, it doesn’t matter that some people are sceptical about the effects of fossil fuel usage on the ozone layer. They will do their bit anyway because they are benefiting directly from their actions.
It is also important to point out that motorists wouldn’t be giving up much. We don’t need to stop driving but just mind the way we drive. Fuel savings are achieved by minding the way you drive instead of giving up driving. For example, making sure that your automobile is in good shape, has the right tire pressure and you don’t carry unnecessary load have nothing to do with how much you drive per year. We don’t need to give up on driving the types of cars we like too. But we can look at the alternatives and go for similar automobiles with smaller engines. In addition, owning a car doesn’t forbid us from taking the public transport wherever possible.
What Else Can Be Done for a more Considerate Lifestyle?
The point is that there are many things we can do now that can improve the air we breathe, reduce our footprints and save money. Here are some of thethings everybody can do to contribute to other efforts for greener living. Perhaps it is time to look at our own footprints and see if there is anything we should/could do.
It is not just about environment. The amount of wasted food in modern world is more than enough to solve food shortages in the rest of the world. The beauty of it is that we don’t need to give up on good life. We can eat whatever we want and whenever we want. All we have to do is to make sure that we don’t waste. We don’t buy more food than we can eat and throw some of them. Imagine how much effort is gone to producing wasted food and how much petrol is used to bring them to us.
Benefits of being a little mindful in everything we do can be enjoyed by everyone now and in the future. It can save the environment. It can leave more money in our pockets so that we can live a better life ourselves and afford helping others. Being wasteful is one of the worst habits to have whichever way we look at it. The earlier we quit it the better.