Going Green at Home.

In celebration of the long awaited arrival of spring, I thought I'd share some of the benefits of making your home "greener". The changes you can make to go green at home can be large or very small. It's not only an environmental benefit, but it can also be good for your wallet. Making an effort to make your home greener doesn’t have to mean making major lifestyle changes. In fact the changes discussed here are ones that would simply mean swapping one product you use for an eco-friendlier version.

One of the most effective changes you can make is to reduce the amount of energy used in your home. Efficiency Nova Scotia has been doing a lot of work to try and educate Nova Scotians about making their homes more efficient. They have developed an assessment and rebate program to encourage people to make these changes. The rebate program is helpful to mitigate the initial cost of making upgrades to your home. There is also a long term financial benefit to making your home more efficient: your bills are lower.  Something as simple as adding a pellet stove ran reduce your heating bill up to 60%*.
These rebates are available on upgrades of many types: energy efficient appliances; pellet stoves; windows and doors; insulation. You can find more details about the rebate program HERE: 

There are also small changes you can make by changing some of your everyday habits, or using different items. Most of these are available at your local grocery or department stores. Some examples:

• Energy efficient or LED light bulbs.

• Turn of your lights when you leave a room.

• Use timers.

• Rags instead of paper towels.

• Use eco-friendly cleaning products.

Another easy way to "go green" is to recycle and compost your family's waste. The Halifax Regional Municipality has made great strides in promoting this type of change. For many residents recyclables, paper waste and compost are all collected at the end of your driveway, the same way the garbage would be. This drastically reduces the amount of garbage going to landfills.  If you have any questions about what constitutes compost, or what is recyclable HRM has provided a helpful guide on their website. There is even a search bar for you to search a specific product to find its classification.

If you have any questions about going green at home you can call us at (902) 826-3070 or email us at info@highlanderlaw.ca to set up a meeting with one of our lawyers at our Tantallon law firm. You can also schedule a no commitment Issue Review Consult for $250+HST where you have the opportunity to explain your situation to a lawyer and get basic advice before deciding whether or not you'd like to retain us.  

By: Briana O'Grady, JD  - Associate Lawyer

** Over Electric Heat. (Figure from Efficiency NS website.)

The information and materials on this blog are provided for general informational purposes only and are not intended to be legal advice. Nothing contained on this blog is legal advice or constitutes a legal opinion. While it is our goal to provide information which is current, legislative changes and court decisions, among other matters, may result in some information no longer being current or accurate. You should consult a lawyer before relying on any information. The views expressed herein by individual contributing lawyers posting entries to the blog are solely those of the authors and should not necessarily be attributed to or considered representative of the firm of Highlander Law Group Lawyers