Moving is never easy, but it becomes even more difficult when you’re trying to move across the country in an eco-friendly way. Not only does moving require the use of cars, trucks, and other modes of transportation that have been deemed unhealthy for the environment, but several ways moving across the country can quickly increase your carbon footprint. Here’s how you can move across the country and stay green.

Don’t Toss Out Items You No Longer Want

While one method for having a sustainable move is to have less stuff, you should never throw anything out, especially if it can be used by someone else. When you have fewer items, you’ll need fewer modes of transportation, use fewer boxes, and keep your carbon footprint from increasing.

Making a big move requires you to purge your excess belongings so you don’t have to schlep them. For most people, this purge means multiple trash bags full to the point of exploding. However, instead of throwing items into the bin, you can donate, gift, and sell them.

Many of the items you don’t need might be useful to someone else, especially those in need. You should practice responsible recycling throughout the entire moving process, which can be in the form of gifting, donating, and selling the items you don’t want to take with you to your new home.

Pack with Used Moving Supplies

Instead of going out and buying boxes and bags, ask family and friends if they have any moving materials they don’t need. You can start collecting all of the Amazon boxes that have recently been delivered to your home instead of recycling or throwing them out. By moving with used supplies, you won’t have to buy anything, which will help you save money, and ensure nothing goes to waste.

Find Eco-Friendly Packing Materials

Eco-friendly packing materials allow you to cut down on plastic, including bubble wrap that has no other use except moving. Instead, use items you already have in your home like dishcloths, towels, and blankets instead of packing materials that will just get thrown out after you unpack.

Get Reusable Bins

Instead of stressing about finding boxes, you can pack with reusable boxes and bins. If you’ve run out of used packing materials, you can still be green by purchasing reusable bins. Then, instead of throwing these bins out after your move, you can store them so they can be used for other things, like organizing your closet.

Correctly Dispose of Chemicals

As you start cleaning your home in preparation for packing, dispose of hazardous materials and cleaning chemicals like bleach in an eco-friendly way. Many cleaning products are harmful to the environment when they end up in landfills. You should be able to find instructions for safe disposal on the packaging or bottles to help you correctly dispose of them.

Recycle Moving Supplies

Once your move is over, avoid throwing moving materials in the trash. Instead, see if anyone else you know needs them so you can put them to good use without letting them end up in a landfill.

Avoid Unnecessary Trips

Burning fuel is bad for the environment, but it’s unavoidable when moving across the country. The more trips you take back and forth to your new home, the more your carbon footprint will grow. You can avoid unnecessary trips by doing a final sweep of the house before you officially move out or asking a family member to stay behind the rest of the movers just in case something has been forgotten.

While you may not have an option for eco-friendly transportation, you can keep your fuel use low by keeping the number of trips to a minimum or using fewer vehicles.

Hire Eco-Conscious Movers

Many moving companies out there care about the environment, which will make having a green move much easier. In addition, companies that prioritize green moving practices have better equipment and knowledge to help you move your stuff without increasing your carbon footprint. You can find green movers in your area with a quick online search.

Make Your New Home Sustainable

If you want to reduce your carbon footprint after your move to even out your environmental impact, consider making your new home more sustainable than the last. There are many creative ways you can make your new home environmentally friendly, such as:

  • Installing LED bulbs
  • Investing in a recycling can
  • Unplugging and turning off appliances when not in use
  • Sealing air cracks
  • Improving insulation
  • Investing in green appliances

Pack the Kitchen Last

When you pack up your kitchen, you no longer have eating utensils like plates, cups, and silverware, which will force you to use plastic utensils and create more waste. As an alternative, you can either pack the kitchen on your last day in the home or leave just enough supplies to eat your food so you don’t have to rely on plastic plates, forks, and cups.

If you are forced to pack your kitchen up while you’re still in the home, invest in reusable utensils and cups you can take with you to your new home and store for camping trips or outdoor eating utensils.

Consciously Toss Unwanted Food

When you move, you’re going to have to throw away a lot of your fridge contents. While some food, especially spoiled food, will need to be thrown away immediately, other things can be donated or taken with you to your new home. Items like unopened goods, canned food, and even sauces can be donated to your local shelter or food bank. Instead of throwing out non-perishable food items because you don’t want to take them to your new home, start packing your food before you pack up the kitchen.

You should also consciously grocery shop. Before you move, plan meals for every day so you don’t over-purchase any food and be forced to throw it out.

By understanding what supplies can and cannot be reused, you can become more eco-friendly during your move. Even if you can’t have everything eco-friendly, a simple start of reusing boxes and rags for packing is helping our environment stay clean and green.

 

Matt Casadona

Matt Casadona has a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, with a concentration in Marketing and a minor in Psychology. Matt is passionate about marketing and business strategy and enjoys San Diego life, traveling, and music.