What little steps could an average or non-average Pakistani take to decrease energy usage, use less resources, decrease dangerous gases output and do more for the enviromment?
Somethings I can think of:-
Plant native trees - trees provide shade, suck in carbon dioxide, provide homes for animals..
Use less of those polystyrene bags for shopping - not biodegradable..
what else could people in Pakistan do as individuals to reverse environmental damage?
I'm not sure about saving rain water, may be it can be done somehow???
Yep. you can use impounding reservoirs, and do neat stuff with it, for instance using the toilet flushing mechanism to draw water from that reservoir rather than from your main fresh water supply. That'll save ALOT of water.
Are these quick and easy steps? Most people dont want to take a more time consuming option and one that costs them more. Also, Pakistanis use less resources than people in the west.
Fabric bags is a good idea. What type of fabrics will be good for long-lasting bags? Those plastic bags are a huge problem and they litter everywhere in Pakistan. Tesco claim that theyhave cut the number of carrier bags they are giving out by half because they have created awareness and encourage people to recycle bags or buy long-lasting bags. We always re-use our shopping bags anyway. I may even take those back to pakistan on my next visit.
Veggie and fruit skins in rural areas are fed to domestic livestock. Plus they are biodegradable so not a big problem.
Rain water can be cached in water tanks and re-used for gardening, washing the car,
Spock is that mechanism expensive to install? Most rural Pakistanis may not even have toilets at home still.
I always thought that the water used up by performing ablution should be channelled off to irrigate plants or add to a local pond.
Anything else? Think of basic day to day steps...and long term ones......especially cheap and simple ones..