There are several easy, money-saving ways to help the environment, some of them you might already be doing.

Do you have your paycheck deposited directly into your checking or savings account? That practice is good for the environment.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the amount of money and greenhouse gases saved with online bill pay. Direct Deposit also saves money and greenhouse gases.

The American Payroll Association reports that  by opting for Direct Deposit, you not only save the paper the check is printed on, you also save the gas used idling in your car at the bank drive-thru. And you are assured that your money is always in your account on payday, even if you are out of the office.

ElectronicPayments.org reports that each year paper checks use over 674 million gallons of fuel and add 3.6 million tons of carbon dioxide into the environment.  And 145 million Americans use Direct Deposit!

Many employers offer Direct Deposit, because it saves them money as well. The government stands to save a good bit of money if all of the people receiving Social Security and Veterans’ Affairs checks each year would switch to Direct Deposit.  According to GoDirect.org, the Treasury could save $130 million annually — the money saved would stay in the Social Security Trust Fund.