E-CHALLENGE #1:

Challenge yourself and your friends to learn six new habits that will help make the planet a better place.

#1 Flip the Switch!
Turn off the lights when you leave the room and switch off the telly and the computer when you are through with them. Whenever we use electricity, we help put greenhouse gases into the air. Using less electricity means less greenhouse gases.

#2 Work those Legs!
You can save energy and reduce air pollution by riding your bike or walking more. Helps keep you fit too.

#3 Dig It!
Plant a tree or grow a garden. Plants turn carbon dioxide (a greenhouse gas) into the oxygen we need to breathe. Trees also help keep the soil from eroding away, and they give birds and insects a place to live.

#4 Don’t Run Away!
Turn off the tap while you are brushing your teeth, don’t run a tap to rinse dishes (fill the sink instead), and in the summer keep a jug of water in the fridge (to save running the tap until it gets cool enough to drink).

#5 Be a Pooper Scooper!
Dispose of your pet’s waste properly so it doesn’t wash into the gutter and then into nearby storm drains and streams. Dog waste adds bugs and fertiliser to streams that can be harmful to humans, pets and wildlife.

#6 Spot the Dumper!
Rubbish should be recycled or taken to the transfer station or landfill. If you or your family see anyone dumping rubbish onto riverbanks or storm drains, call and tell the pollution busters on Horizons Pollution Hotline - freephone 0508 476 558.