Moving Green – Offsetting Your Long Distance Move

Moving Green - Offsetting Your Long Distance Move

While long distance moving companies have been around for a few hundred years, the moving industry is just now beginning to focus on moving green. There are many ways you can make a difference with your moving strategy, but one great way to help is to offset the environmental impact of your move.

Environmental Impact?

Every aspect of your long distance move, from packing to unpacking, can have some type of impact on the environment. The first cause of environmental impact that moving creates is from packing materials such as tape, boxes, bubble wrap, and loose foam materials.

The production of these packing materials consume valuable resources like trees and fossil fuels. Many are not biodegradable and will eventually end up in a landfill. When it comes to long distance moving packing materials, try to reuse and recycle when possible.

The next environmental impact that long distance moving creates comes from the items you no longer wish to keep. Instead of renting a dumpster and discarding those items, try to find other homes for them. Consider having a yard sale or just putting them out by the curb with a "Free" sign attached. If that does not get rid of everything, donate items to a local shelter, Salvation Army, or Goodwill.

Another impact moving long distances can have on the environment is from using valuable resources like oil to produce the gasoline used in moving trucks. If you are moving from New York to Los Angeles, or vice versa, this can leave a large footprint. Fortunately, times are changing and more fuel-efficient vehicles are being produced.

Making a Difference

If you are feeling a bit overwhelmed, don't get too discouraged. Many of these environmental impacts are not in your direct control. There are, however, some easy things that you can do to offset the carbon footprint of your long distance move.