It’s summer time and you know you’re going to want to have a party one of these hot summer days. Whether it’s a barbecue or a picnic, there are ways you can make your summer party greener.

Don’t use charcoal. Switch to a gas grill. You’re going to release much less carbon dioxide into the air, and the lighter fluid you use with charcoal is toxic. Fast lighting charcoal is soaked in cancer causing chemicals as well. You don’t want to eat that, and you don’t want to feed it to your loved ones.

Eat local foods. Hit your local Farmer’s Market and enjoy fresh summer fruits and vegetables. Purchasing local foods is one of the best ways to ensure that you keep pesticides out of your food, and reduce energy consumption. If there’s no shipping, less fuel is used. And what tastes better than fresh vegetables?

Don’t use throwaway dishes and utensils. Don’t use plastic or paper plates, glasses, or utensils. It’s the easiest thing you can do to stay green. If you’re picnicking or barbecuing, avoiding those throwaway dishes and utensils keeps tons of trash out of landfills. And if you use washable napkins and tablecloths, you’ve just made your summer party even greener.

Compost your scraps. Take all that leftover food and corn cobs and make rich soil for your garden. It’s easy to make a compost heap. Keeping leftover food out of our landfills is a wonderful, easy way to go green. It also means much less methane gas released into the atmosphere.

Another handy green tip for summer parties:
If you’re having a party at home and your fold-up chairs are squeaky after being stored all winter, the WD-40 No Mess Pen is one of the best ways to lubricate and protect without waste.

We take green ideas seriously at StocknGo. That’s why we have the Buy in Bulk section. One large purchase instead of several small ones means less energy expended on fuel, and that’s a good thing. You’ll save money, too.

Do you have any green summer party tips? Let me know on twitter, facebook, or just leave me a comment here on the blog.