Quick, easy, painless, everyday ways to save cash and go green

MSE_Rhiannon wrote: »

... and save on coffee with a
reusable cup.

Or save even more on coffee by making it yourself.

Greenenergy wrote: »

What I want to know is about energy companies.

For example British Gas have green tariffs - but 40% of their electric generation is from Biomass - which I dont think is really what I would class as green.

Whereas Scottish Power only generate 100% wind energy , but for example like today over 50% of electric is currently generated from gas. So im wondering if it even makes a difference going with a company that only generates 100% fully green energy as there are times this isnt possible? So I might as well go with the cheapest and hope that everyone goes greener in the future?

I think you've answered your own question.

As soon as you dig a bit deeper into many of these 'Green' claims, the wheels start to come off.

The electricity supply companies sell power to consumers and have to buy the same amount of power from generators. On a green tariff the company buys as much 'green' generated electricity as they sell to the customer no the green tariff. But electricity is fungible, the stuff coming out of your plug socket is not electrons bought specifically for you by your supplier. So a 100% green tariff just means that the supplier is buying the same amount of power that you use form a green supply overall, at any one moment the actual power you are using might be generated anywhere.

However that doesn't mean that you choosing a green tariff makes no difference, the more people who choose only green electricity, the more green power the suppliers have to find to buy and thus the more demand there is for green generation and thus the more solar panels, wind farms (and biomass ) get built.

GreatApe wrote: »

Buy more energy dense foods which have multiple economic and environmental benefits

A 1kg bag of granola (which costs £1.60) is much more packaging and fossil fuel efficient per calorie than most of anything else in a typically shopping trolley

Not that I recommend doing this but for context if that is all you ate your yearly food packaging waste would fit inside a shoe box and it would only cos you £300 and you can guesstimate less than 10% of that cost is fossil fuel usage in producing and transporting that to you.

Do I do this, hell no I am a fan of take away pizza and then driving my 2 ton car 1 mile to the gym so I can spend an hour on the treadmill :rotfl: got to support those fossil fuel companies they got employees with kids that need feeding. Screw the planet if you cant live a proper life, where is my CO2 emitting beer :beer:

This isn't aimed at you GreatApe but your reply prompted me. It does make me laugh when people have 'morals' about niche subject areas but then do not even look at the big picture. Things like boycotting Nestle or mondelez but popping to macdonalds for their lunch in their cars eating from packaging that is single use and has dubious recycling credentials then drinking through their single use plastic straws - but its ok because they boycott Nestle...