Pledge for individuals

Bronze energy actions - I will:

Use cold wash and full loads when doing laundry and dry clothes on the line

Have shorter showers

Turn appliances off at the wall rather than leaving them on standby

Turn off beer fridge during the week

Pull curtains at dusk in winter

Fit draught stoppers

Turn off lights when not in use

Open windows instead of using air conditioning

Talk to Council’s free Eco Building Design Advisor if building or renovating

Attend a Sustainable Living Programme seminar on energy

Check your hot water thermostat set at 60degrees (no less, no more)

Switch to a carbon-neutral electricity company

Cut down on meat and try some vegetarian meals

Bronze transport actions - I will:

Drive efficiently

Replace one short car journey per week with walking, public transport or cycling

Encourage children to walk to school or join a walking school bus

Join the Transition Nelson Transport Group

Do a Sustainable Living Programme transport course

Bronze water actions - I will:

Not leave tap running when brushing teeth

Talk to Council's Eco Building Design Advisor about designing buildings and renovations to conserve water

Water your garden early morning or evening to reduce water loss

Learn about water conservation

Bronze nature actions - I will:

Attend a Nelson City Council Create Your Own Eden or a Tasman District Council Create Your Own Eden composting programme

Use your compost to grow plants

Eat local and seasonal organically grown food

Join a local garden club

Get rid of garden pests (Weedbusters)

Join a Transition Nelson Group

Join and/ or volunteer with an ECO organisation

Silver energy actions - I will:

Change my five most used lightbulbs to low energy compact fluorescent bulbs

Buy local food and products, eg, veggie boxes from local growers, Nelson Farmers Market or the Marlborough Farmers Market

Choose organic food products where possible as production methods involve a lower energy footprint

Use a Power Monitor to monitor and reduce your energy use

Do a home energy audit

Insulate your hot water cylinder (unless it’s a Grade A)

Insulate your hot water pipes (especially first 2.5m)

Use a push mower rather than an electric or petrol one

Silver transport actions - I will:

Have my car regularly serviced

Cycle, walk or take The Bus in Nelson or The Bus in Blenheim three times per week

Use your Super Gold Card for off-peak bus travel in Nelson or use your Super Gold Card for bus travel in Blenheim

Carpool every day to work (there's free parking up for grabs!) or have a search Jayride for trips around your home town and the rest of New Zealand

Combine all shopping into one weekly car trip

Silver waste actions - I will:

Compost, Bokashi or wormfarm your organic and garden waste

Get together with my neighbours to chip fresh prunings and branches to make garden mulch

Use re-usable nappies

Re-use by buying second-hand gifts and goods

If using a large wheelie bin – swap for smaller bin or change collections to fortnightly rather than weekly

Not print documents unless necessary, or print double-sided

Silver water actions - I will:

Develop strategies to reduce watering in my garden

Use low maintenance planting and mulch to create a water efficient garden

Install a rainwater barrel for garden watering

Install a low flow shower head

Buy a shower timer to ensure shorter showers

Silver nature actions - I will:

Start a vegetable garden

Plant a fruit tree

Choose plants and trees for your garden which are eco-sourced from your region and appropriate for your area

Gold energy actions - I will:

Install solar hot water heating (funding information here)

Upgrade or install insulation in my ceiling, walls and floors (get existing insulation checked out by an expert for effectiveness)

Use energy-efficient heating (eg, heatpumps or approved solid fuel burners

Buy energy-efficient appliances

Grow some of my own food

Gold transport actions - I will:

Cycle, walk or take The Bus in Nelson or The Bus in Blenheim five times per week

Cycle any trip less than 3km distance

Use my Super Gold Card for off-peak bus travel in Nelson or use my Super Gold Card for bus travel in Blenheim

Start a Carpool group with your friends, colleagues or neighbours and carpool every day to work (there's free parking up for grabs!) or have a search Jayride for trips around your home town and the rest of New Zealand

Investigate teleworking with your employer

Gold waste actions - I will:

Use my Compost to start a veggie garden or an open orchard

Join a local garden club

Attend a free Nelson City Council Create Your Own Eden or a Tasman District Council Create Your Own Eden composting programme on how to grow vegetables

Take garden waste to Council Green Waste hopper at Transfer Station

Preserve and store excess vegetables/fruit

Gold water actions - I will:

Choose water efficient appliances

Install greywater and/or rainwater systems

Design and plant a ‘rain garden' to conserve water

Go off mains and use rainwater for household uses

Gold nature actions - I will:

Join the Transition Nelson Seedsavers Group

Set up an open orchard in my neighbourhood

Help my neighbours/community set up a vegetable garden

Turn my lawn into a no-dig garden

Write to my MP to ask for national action on climate change

Pledge for individuals

CODE RED

Search

Actions for...