Newsletter Issue 4, January 2008

With interest rates, petrol and the cost of food on the rise, we are all looking for ways to save money while aspiring to help combat global warming.

The following actions continue from the previous email "Save Money and the Environment - Sept 2007" and follow the second year of the Brown famiy's three year program to reduce their impact on the environment by over 50%.

The program requires that savings are reinvested to create a virtuous loop by investing in year two in the purchase and installation of energy and water products…

Invest in energy and water efficiency and generation.

Actions	Invest	Cost (p.a.)	Savings (p.a.)
Continued savings from action from year 1	-	-	$ 5,080
Install Solar Hot Water	$3500a	-	$ 325
Install Efficient Appliances and Fixtures	$3,500b	-	$ 350
Embrace Energy Efficiency	$ 200	-	$ 175
Use Water Efficiently	$ 200	-	$ 90
Harvest and Use you Rainwater	$2700c	-	$ 75
Water Efficient Gardening | Grow an Indigenous Garden | Mulch Your Patch	-	$ 150	$ 150
Buy Renewable Electricity	-	$ 200	(enviro)
Buy Organic Produce	-	$ 200	(health)
Use Plants to Remove Toxins (from your home)	-	$ 200	(health)
Reduce & Offset your Car Emissions	-	$ 50	$ 500
Reduce & Offset your Air Travel Emissions	-	$ 50	-
Estimated total second year	$10,100	$ 950	$ 6,745

a - Approximate cost of a family size (315 litres) evacuated tube (30 tubes) solar hot water system, installed.
b - Approximate cost of 10,000 litre water tank, installed.
c - 5 Star refrigerator plus 3.5 star energy and 5 star water rated dishwasher.

The above ten Actions have savings calculated using Australian average consumption data (from the ABS) rounded down to a simple estimated saving. Your actual savings could vary depending on your situation and starting point...

Have fun.

 

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