Clearly it is time for all of Bermuda to roll up our sleeves, take steps to reduce emissions, prepare for climate change and encourage others to do the same. Start with these quick and easy steps.

1. Conduct an energy audit of your home or office. Consider implementing basic energy conservation techniques to help generate operational cost savings while improving the overall health of your office or home space.
2. Check your lights. Identify frequently used light fixtures with incandescent bulbs and replace them with energy-saving compact fluorescent bulbs. Download a PDF info sheet (190 kb)
3. Check the temperature setting on your water heater. Reduce the setting to 120°F – typically the ‘warm’ setting or halfway between the low and medium settings.
4. Check the settings on your appliances. Where the option is available, select the energy-saving setting on your refrigerator, dishwasher, washing machine and other major appliances.
5. Check your thermostat settings. During the heating season, set your thermostat one or two degrees lower, especially at night or when rooms are unoccupied. During the cooling season, set the temperatures higher. If you have a programmable thermostat you can automate the daily settings.
6. Check your showerheads and faucets. Determine whether any of your showerheads are models that use more than 2.5 gallons per minute. If so, replace them with low-flow showerheads. Similarly, verify that your bathroom and kitchen water taps have aerators. Purchase an aerator for each tap that can accommodate one. These steps will reduce your use of water – and the energy needed to heat that water.
7. Turn off appliances when you’re not using them. Switch off TVs, computers, lights, etc. that are not being used. Unplug items on ‘standby’ – the ones that use electricity even when turned off – including TVs, video and audio systems, computers, and chargers for cell phones, laptops and other electronic equipment.
8. Check your car tires for proper inflation. This can improve gas mileage. The appropriate air pressure typically is listed on the door pillar on the driver’s side, on the inside of the glove-compartment door or in the vehicle manual.

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