Best way to shorten captured clips?

Sorry if this has been asked a thousand times, but I didn't see it in the FAQs.
I have a Canon Vixia camcorder capturing HD and stored in AVCHD format once I drag the video clips to my computer. They look great on a 30" Apple Cinema Display.
I am looking for the best way to go through my keeper video clips and clipping each end of the segment to get rid of the unnecessary footage and keeping the part of the clip I think I might ever use. Actually, I know how to clip the image, I am looking for the best workflow to go through a lot of long clips and cut them down and save them for long term storage without losing any image quality.
If I have 100 saved clips that could each be shortened, what is the best workflow in Premiere Elements 8? Which output format and settings would be best?
The original Canon files were saved with MTS extensions on a PC. My few tests tonight saved the shortened files as M2T. On the initial run through, they appear to have the same image quality when viewed on my screen.
Any help would be appreciated.
M. Jackson

Hi Steve,
I think that is exactly what I did on my initial tests. I only opened one raw clip, trimmed it in the timeline, and then saved it as an MPEG. There were a few different quality options in the list and I wasn't sure which one would give me the best quality image (no image quality loss).
So, if I created a new project, dragged thirty clips into the import field, I could then put one at a time in the timeline, trim and save? Then remove the first clip from the timeline and put in another one, trim and save? I'd only need one Project and would continually be adding and deleting files in it. Seems logical with my limited experience with Premiere.
I sometimes set up a tripod with the video camera and start filming a moose resting under a fall tree. I set up another tripod and photograph him with a still camera. The video might run for 5 minutes, but have essentially nothing unique on it but maybe him shaking the leaves off his antlers. I'd only want to save that little segment and dump the other 4 and a half minutes. As another example, I might have five minutes of an Oxbow Bend sunrise in Grand Teton National Park. The only part I might want to keep is the shortened clip where a flock of geese fly through the scene.
Thanks again,
M. Jackson

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