When dealing with your waste, it is important to think of the waste hierarchy principles of Avoid, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, in order to preserve our community resources for as long as possible.
Live it. Love it. Look after it!
One of the best ways that you can do this is by reducing the amount of waste being sent to landfill. Below are some simple tips to help you.
Tips to Reduce Your Waste in General
- think about your everyday activities that create waste
- really look at your waste to see what you are throwing away
- identify the materials you are throwing away and how much of each there is
- of these waste items, is there a way to avoid, reduce, reuse or recycle them
- review your purchases and your shopping habits
At Home
- avoiding plastic bags where possible and take your own backpack or green bags or reusable bags
- reuse plastic containers or glass jars for storage purposes
- food waste disposal alternatives - composting or worm farming
- food waste disposal alternatives - feeding appropriate foods to a pet (dog, chicken or pig)
- repairing items instead of getting rid of them
- try to reduce the amount of packaging that you get when you purchase items (ie buying in bulk and sharing with family and friends if it is too much for just you)
- keep a 'disposal diary' for one day to see exactly what you throw in the bin
- don't impulse buy, you may spend more money than you wanted and get something you don't really need
- eliminate wastefulness - if you have too much of something and you're not going to use it before it spoils, share with family and friends
- homes use lots of batteries - buy rechargeable batteries (i.e. TV remotes, computer games, children’s toys) or recycle the ones that you do use
At the Office
- do you regularly buy a cup of takeaway coffee or tea? Why not take your own cup and if they won’t make it in your cup, have them make it in one of their non disposable cups and pour it into your cup
- do you buy milk or biscuits for the office? Avoiding plastic bags where possible and take green bags or reusable bags
- buy reusable products where possible
- buy items that are made from recycled products (ie. recycled paper, recycled pens or plastic folders)
- offices use batteries for a variety of items - buy rechargeable batteries or recycle the batteries that are used
- does your office recycle paper and cardboard
- do you take recyclable containers home and put in your recycling at home instead of the garbage bin at work?
- pack your own lunch in a lunch box and save money and packaging
At School
- use a lunch box instead of plastic wrap or foil
- use a reusable drink bottle for your drink instead of throw away ones
- at the end of the day make sure the lights are turned off
- does your school recycle paper and cardboard in the classrooms or office or library
- does your school have a compost bin
- does your school have a worm farm
- does your school recycle drink containers and other plastic containers?
- if you school doesn't recycle drink containers or plastic containers take them home and put them in your home recycling
General Information
The following are PDF documentsare available to provide you with some general information and guides on: