Woohoo! Wish everyday was Earth Day.
Here’s an easy idea you can implement: purchase a rain barrel and start harvesting rainwater for your garden use. Conserve water, save on water bills, and your plants will reward you for it (they do better with pH neutral rainwater than municipal water). In many cities, you can even get a rebate for your purchase. Here in Austin, you simply fill out a short form for a $30 per barrel rebate. Here’s the link:
http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/watercon/rbrebates.htm
Several years ago, we purchased a couple of simple rain barrels through the city for about $60 each. It sits on top of concrete blocks below our gutter spout. Water flow is gravity fed.