There are simple things you can do every day to help protect the environment. The following links are intended to get you started. 

At Home, what you can do to help the environment

In your house...

• Drink Tap Water – here are 10 reasons why you should drink tap water instead of buying bottled water.
  
  
• Conserve water and energy by cutting on shower time and temperature. Saving Water has an extensive list of additional things you can do indoors to save water and money.
  
  
• Curious about your energy usage? Use the DIY Home Energy Audit to identify where you can improve your home's energy efficiency.
  
  
• Conserve energy by turning down your A/C during the day and use blackout curtains.  For more energy savings ideas, check out energy.gov's EnergySaver website.

• Green Cleaning - Clean your home using environmentally safe products.

• Don’t Pour Grease Down Your Drain – Here’s some fast facts about fats, oils and grease (FOG) and why you should not put these items down the drain.

• Properly dispose of hazardous household waste -- such as motor oil, gasoline, leftover paint, herbicides / pesticides -- by taking it to a Loudoun County Hazardous Waste Collection Event.

In your yard...

• Participate in the Loudoun County Master Gardeners My Backyard program - a self-guided program that helps you create an environmentally sustainable yard.

• Plant native plants. The Plant NoVa Natives Campaigns plant guide includes all types of native northern Virginia plants, including perennials, trees, shrubs, vines, and grasses.

• Would you like more bees, butterflies, and birds?  Here's some things you can do to attract pollinators to your yard.  You can also create a Butterfly Way-Station for Monarch butterflies.

• Treat or remove diseased trees (e.g., Ash Borer).

• Compost yard and garden waste.  For more information, check out this Compost Guide.

• Harvest rain water with a rain barrel.

• Yard Landscape Management  - Virginia Cooperative Extension.

• Plant a Tree – Leesburg Tree Selection Guide.

During the Day, what you can do when you are out and about to help the environment

• Carpool, bike, or walk to your destination.  Check out Loudoun County's free ride-matching to help you find someone to carpool with.

• Scoop Your Poop – Pick Up Pet Waste   Do your part to eliminate pet fecal waste from polluting our waterways by cleaning up after your pet. Town code requires you to immediately pick up pet waste or risk a fine.  For more information, check out this Town of Leesburg brochure on picking up pet waste. 

• Take the Leesburg PAWS for Clean Water Pledge.

• Throw trash into its proper receptacle. If you see litter, pick it up and dispose of it properly. Use the Litterati app to challenge others to help keep our community clean.

• Buy locally grown fruits and vegetables at a local Farmers’ Market.

• Use a reusable shopping bag.

In Your Community, what you can do with to help the environment

• Get involved with local groups -- some things you can volunteer to help with:
  • create butterfly way stations;
  • monitor stream health;
  • participate in community clean-ups

• Become a Community gardener with your own Community Garden Plot

• Alert the Town if you see invasive plants.  Check out the Virginia Invasive Plant Species List for more information.

• Participate in government - attend an EAC meeting.