Eden Prairie needs your help to meet our Climate Action Plan goals, use this checklist to join the effort and help reduce your carbon footprint!

Conserve Energy and Water

• Schedule a Home Energy Audit
• Insulate and air-seal your home
• Use LED lighting
• Use a smart thermostat to help conserve energy
• Use low-flow faucets and showers, smart-irrigation controllers
• Replace old appliances with EnergySmart or WaterSense-certified models
• Use EyeOnWater app to track water use in your home

Consume Responsibly

• Reduce unnecessary purchases and avoid using single-use plastics and packaging, including bags
• Fix or mend items, or take them to a fix-it clinic for repair instead of buying new
• Reuse, repurpose or donate items no longer used
• Shop secondhand stores or "buy nothing" groups first
• Buy local to reduce shipping
• Recycle your cans, jars, containers, cardboard and paper
• Use Hennepin County hazardous waste facilities for safe disposal of paint, chemicals and more
• Create a meal plan to reduce food waste, and eat a plant-rich diet
• Use organics recycling service for food waste and other compostables

Green Your Neighborhood

• Plant new native trees and bushes
• Replace turf grass lawn with pollinator-friendly alternatives, including no/low-mow groundcover and grasses
• Use a rain barrel to water outdoor plants with rainwater
• Remove invasive species like buckthorn
• Salt sparingly or use other methods to remove ice in winter to protect our lakes and streams

Reduce Fossil-Fuel Use

• Make your next vehicle electric
• Upgrade the HVAC systems in your home; swap out an inefficient AC with a cold-climate air-source heat pump that can cool and heat your home, then use your furnace only as backup heat during extremely cold temperatures
• Replace your gas water heater with a heat-pump version
• Replace your gas clothes dryer with heat-pump or electric version
• Replace your gas stovetop with an induction version
• Use electric lawn equipment, such as mowers, snowblowers and leaf blowers

Travel Efficiently

• Walk, bike, use transit or carpool
• Reduce unnecessary extra trips

Use Renewable Energy

• Subscribe to a utility renewable energy program(s)
• Subscribe to a community solar garden
• Install rooftop solar

*Bold indicates highest-impact actions

Curious what your household carbon footprint is? CoolClimate Network's household calculator helps you better understand where your emissions are coming from.