What You Can Do to Help the Environment

The choices you make every day impact how clean Kirkland's lakes, creeks, and air are. Each of our environmental choices adds up, so we need your help to keep Kirkland's water clean and air healthy!

Upgrade to a heat pump with Energy Smart Eastside, a program offered by the City of Kirkland and five other cities.

At Home

• Recycle right and compost food
• Choose reusable products over single-use items (like napkins and paper towels)
• Buy used items, or buy fewer new items to reduce packaging
• Repair broken items
• Clean your home more safely
• Save energy and conserve water
• Generate your own electricity

In Your Yard

• Practice natural yard care and use less pesticides and fertilizer
• Create a wildlife-friendly landscape(PDF, 6MB) with native trees(PDF, 8MB) and plants that are helpful for birds
• Let the rain soak in or install a rain garden
• Pick up pet waste
• Pledge to protect birds in your yard

On the Go

• Ride your bike, walk, skate, scoot, or roll
• Walk (or bike) your kid to school
• Take the bus or carpool, and use the Community Van for group trips
• Sign up for Kirkland Green Trip to earn rewards for alternative commuting
• Combine errands and trips
• Fix vehicle leaks and wash right
• Report potholes and sidewalk damage

In Your Neighborhood

• Restore natural areas with Green Kirkland Partnership
• Visit the demonstration garden at McAuliffe Park or take a class with Tilth Alliance to learn to grow your own food
• Report spills so the City's crews can clean up pollution before it reaches a stream or Lake Washington
• Learn about native birds and wildlife with Eastside Audubon

Community Project Highlight

Anti-Idling Public Awareness Campaign

The Anti-Idling Public Awareness Campaign is a community-led effort fully supported by the City Council. This campaign directly aligns with Action ES 1.2: Work with community members to create public/private partnerships to reduce emissions, in the City’s Sustainability Strategic Plan.

Why is idling bad?

1. Contributes to unhealthy air quality and related health risks
2. Generates CO₂ greenhouse gas emissions
3. Wastes fuel and money
4. Bad for the vehicle’s engine

Learn more about the impacts of idling

About the campaign

The purpose of this campaign is to increase public awareness of the effects of idling and encourage all who can limit their time spent idling to do so.

The community-led effort will involve outreach to local businesses, churches, neighborhood associations, schools, and at local public events. Campaign volunteers will have participated in City Hall for All's Sustainability Showcase programming and have installed a travelling anti-idling banner to many of Kirkland's parks.

Get involved

To get involved, contact the campaign volunteers Susan Vossler and Judy Beto.