Most of us receive unsolicited mail every day without the knowledge that we have the ability and the right to stop it. A hundred million trees are used to produce this unwanted junk mail each year. So get yourself removed from junk mail lists. Two Websites that can help: New American Dream (www.newdream.org) is a do-it-yourself approach that takes about 20 minutes of your time and can remove your name from commercial lists for three to five years. Green Dimes charges 10 cents per day to professionally get you off the lists and keep you off. (It makes a great gift for your favorite eco-conscious friend who's drowning in unwanted catalogues.)

Additional steps you can take:

1.  Whenever you give a company your address for any reason whether you're ordering a pair of shoes online or filling out a survey at the mall expect that your address will be sold. Be sure to specifically request (in writing is best): "Please do not sell my name or address."

2.  Do not send in product warranty cards they're actually unnecessary. Warranty cards are used by companies to collect information about your habits and income for the purpose of targeting direct mail.

3.  Call your credit card company and tell them to stop selling your information. These companies are generally the worst offenders.

4.  Beware of any contests or sweepstakes you enter. Unless you know and trust the organization and their ethics regarding use of information, your personal information might be sold.

5.  Finally, be sure to sign up for paperless billing. Ask your bank, utility company and credit card company if you can sign up to receive and pay your monthly statement online.

Source:  The Green Machine