Food

When buying food and to help reduce food waste you can do the following:

• Shop local and seasonally - Barnsley Markets are a great place to start. Supermarket produce can travel thousands of miles to get to you.

• Reduce the amount of food you throw away by only buying the food you need and storing fruit in the fridge to make it last longer. Check Love Food Hate Waste for ideas on how to make the most of the food you buy.

• Reduce the amount of meat and dairy you eat. 

• Grow your own vegetables. If you don’t have a garden, consider an allotment or search LiveWell Barnsley to see if there's a community garden in your area.

Gardening

There are lots of things you can do in your garden to look after the environment and wildlife. Ideas could be to:

• choose wildlife-friendly plants and those suited to the climate to make your garden more wildlife friendly

• make your own compost by composting your garden and food waste

• avoid paving or concrete – paving over gardens can create localised flooding

• plant trees – trees help tackle climate change by absorbing CO2

• garden on a budget by sharing seeds, plants and cuttings with friends and neighbours

In the community

Think about ways you could: 

• get your friends and family involved

• set up a group to suggest ways to make your school, college or workplace more eco-friendly

• get involved in a litter pick or community clean-up day - check your area council Facebook page to find out what’s going on in your area that you could get involved with

• volunteer – check the opportunities available locally with Barnsley CVS

• get involved in other community projects - check our Love Where You Live webpage

If you’re involved in a community group and want to set up an environmental project, check South Yorkshire Funding Advice Bureau. 

Reduce your energy use

A large proportion of emissions come from heating, lighting and running appliances in our homes. Reducing the amount of energy you use should also save you money on your bills. Things to help reduce energy use and save money could be to: 

• insulate your home and make sure your heating system is efficient; find out about making your home warmer and cheaper to run

• set your heating controls to heat your home around your schedule, and heat your home to 18 to 21 degrees

• consider a smart thermostat, which lets you turn your heating on and off using your smartphone

• make sure you switch off appliances when not in use, use energy-saving light bulbs and turn the lights off when you leave a room, and use a washing line to dry your clothes on sunny days rather than using a tumble dryer

• buy energy efficient appliances

• switch your energy supplier to a green energy supplier

Reduce your waste

The average Barnsley household in the UK produces almost a tonne of rubbish per year.  There's a lot we can do to reduce the amount we throw away and reduce emissions including:

• choosing good quality products which will last a long time, for example clothing made from cotton tends to be better quality and is easier to recycle

• repairing old or broken items if possible, buying second hand, or borrowing items from friends and neighbours

• using your local library - you can borrow books, e-books and digital magazines for free from our libraries

• replacing disposable, single-use items such as coffee cups, baby wipes, razors, cling film and nappies with reusable and waste-free alternatives

• taking unwanted good quality furniture, clothes and electrical items to charity shops

• checking what you can recycle in your bins and using your local household waste recycling centre

• reducing fly-tipping by using a licensed waste removal company

Find out more about the Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham Waste Partnership.

Save water

A lot of energy is used to make water safe to drink; piping it to our homes, heating it, and disposing of it afterwards. Climate change may mean higher temperatures and more droughts. Maintaining our water supplies, using water wisely and protecting it from pollution is very important. Things you can do to help save water are: 

• not leaving taps running

• fixing any leaks

• taking a short shower instead of a bath

• only boiling as much water as you need in the kettle

• using dishwashers and washing machines on full loads and use the eco setting

• avoiding using hosepipes

• getting a water butt to collect rainwater to water plants or wash your car

Take a look at Yorkshire Water’s tips to save water and visit the Connected by Water website to find out how they're working across South Yorkshire to increase resilience to flooding and the changing climate.

Travel

The majority of trips in England are made by car, even for journeys of between one and two miles. If you're able to walk or cycle, you can easily reduce your emissions, do your bit for the environment, and get healthy at the same time. Things you can do to help are:

• walking and cycling more often – Barnsley Bike Works can help get you started with cycling, and you can find more ways to get active on the What's Your Move website

• check to see if your employer offers a cycle to work scheme which could help you pay for a new bike

• use public transport – you can plan your journey using the Travel South Yorkshire journey planner

• consider car sharing

• consider an electric car if you're buying a car

• take a staycation instead of flying and visit all the great things to do in Barnsley, but if you do need to fly think about carbon offsetting