Tips to reduce household waste
There are many ways you can cut down on the amount of rubbish you produce and also save money. You can:
Reduce – cut down on waste in your bin and the 'energy' you consume:
Batteries – don't buy disposable ones, buy a charger and rechargeable batteries as they are much cheaper. It takes 50 times the energy contained within batteries to make them.
Compost – Garden waste and kitchen
scraps can be composted at home to reduce the amount of waste your
household sends for landfill or recycing. Composting also gives you
a free nutrient-rich soil imporover for your garden. Order a
subsidised compost bin today for as little as £8 by calling 0845
0770757 or visit
www.recyclenow.com/compost
Water botttles - why not use a water filter instead of buying
lots of water bottles. This will not only hope to reduce your
waste, but will also save you money.
Water bottles - why not purchase a water filter to get taint-free drinking water, instead of buying bottles of water. This will not only help to reduce your waste, and the transport burden on the environment, but will save you money. The filters can be recycled, by sending back to Britta by freepost.
Junk mail – reduce paper waste by registering with the national Mailing Preference Service. This is a free service to enable customers to have their individual names and home addresses in the UK removed from lists used by the industry. To register, visit www.mpsonline.org.uk or call 0845 703 4599. To get a free 'no junkmail' sticker, email: recyclingteam@ealing.gov.uk.
'Buy one get one free' offers – don't buy unless you really will use them, or better for your pocket - share these offers with a friend.
Fruit and vegetables– buy loose from a local market or grocer rather than highly-packaged goods from supermarkets – saves packaging. This can be cheaper and produce is more likely to be locally grown.
Carrier bags - refuse bags when you're out shopping if you do not need them. Why not buy a bag for life?
Herbs – grow your own! Herbs sold in shops are expensive, buy a pack of seeds and grow them fresh on your window sill – it's easy.
Washing detergents – buy with combined conditioner. It saves packaging and money.
Kitchen spills - use cotton cloths instead of disposable kitchen roll.
Refills - for sturdy packs of washing powders, liquids, salt, etc as they contain less packaging.
Single-use cameras – a lot of plastic just to throw away, invest in a digital camera or share one with friends.
Reuseable nappies for your baby – save yourself a fortune and provide greater comfort for your baby. 15% of parents now use them. For general information visit www.wen.org.uk/nappies/.
Magazine subscription – Do you really read them? Save yourself a few pounds and buy them only when you need them, or agree with friends to swap magazines when you've read them. Don't forget to recycle them once you've read them.
Computer printing - print from your PC only when you really need to. If you do print, use both sides of the paper. Get your employer to make it standard practice.
Paper – reduce printing waste by visiting www.software-partners.co.uk for details of Fineprint which could save you 25 per cent to 50% of your paper and toner usage.
Don't leave your PC or TV on standby - a PC or TV uses 90% of the energy on standby as they would if fully turned on.
Make your own lunch - instead of buying from a sandwich shop save money on packaging and costs of more than £4 a day or about £1,000 a year.
Toys - join a toy library to borrow toys and give old ones to other families. Visit www.natll.org.uk/.
Videos and DVDs – hire them instead of buying them new, great services are available online and can be cheaper than hiring them from the highstreet. Your local library may have a good stock too.
Cinema or concert tickets – give as gifts instead of disposable or short-life goods.
Tools - hire or borrow from friends or family for odd jobs, rather than buying your own. Tools for Self Reliance will send your unwanted tools to Africa, website: www.tfsr.org, tel: 02380 869 697.
Attic clearance - Various ways you can cut down on the amount of rubbish you produce and also save money. Reuse is better than recycling! Check out local or online auction sites.
DIY - try reclamation yards, skips, auctions, and second-hand shops for materials. Mend, re-upholster, or restore old furniture before buying new.
Lightbulbs – use energy efficient bulbs – they can last eight times longer.
Reuse – think about items to use more than once:
Give or take days - Ealing residents are being encouraged to swap their trash for treasure in a bid to reduce the number of useful items ending up in landfill sites.
Rag and bone website - this website enables you give a new home to unwanted, but still usable, large household items. Everything listed here is free-of-charge when you collect it. You can also post items you would like to get rid of but that are too good to throw away.
Storage containers - use re-usable plastic containers for storing leftover food – instead of clingfilm and foil.
Unwanted furniture - if you have any unwanted furniture that is still in good useable condition, you could donate this to a charity. Furnish is a community furniture store that will collect any good quality furniture to pass onto those less fortunate. Please call (020) 8969 3332 to check suitability for collection.
Carrier bag for life - Purchase strong bags for life to use when you go shopping. These can be reused time and time again. If they break or tear, just take them back to where you first purchased it and the store should replace them for free.
Electrical appliances - buy reconditioned items from organisations such as CREATE (London office), tel: (020) 8885 6209. Take finished appliances to Greenford Re-use and Recycling Centre for reconditioning or recycling.
Paint - take your unwanted left-over paint to Greenford re-use and recycling centre. Charities, schools, youth groups and those on low income can make use of it. If you would like to know more about collecting some paint, please call ECT Recycling on (020) 8813 3181.
Inkjet cartridges – take them to one of many emerging outlets that will refill cartridges with new ink that offer the same quality but cost less than new. For example, Cartridge World in Hanwell or Ealing.
Greetings cards - You could make gift tags from old cards, or save cards to return to the sender next time and create a card chain.
Old computers – don't dump them, sell them online, donate them to charity ( www.digital-links.org), donate to someone else ( www.donateapc.org.uk) or recycle them ( www.wasteonline.org.uk).
Recycle – some things can be recycled at home, place other items in your green box :
Old clothes - can be shredded and rewoven. If they're in good condition that's even better. Donate to charity shops or place them in your green box.
Old curtains – recycle the fabric or exchange them. Visit the website: www.thecurtainexchange.net.
Inkjet cartridges – send them for recycling and raise money for charity at the same time. Try ActionAid, cartridges for charity, Computer Aid International or the RSPB.
Mobile phone/printer cartridges – don't send them to landfill, contact Oxfam, ActionAid, Rainforest Concern or Computer Aid International who will recycle and re-sell them. Or take them to any re-use and recycling centres.
Old computers - Computer Aid is a registered charity that refurbishes IT equipment for reuse in schools, hospitals and community organisations in developing countries. They offer a free decommissioning service to organisations in the UK for their old IT equipment. They take individual donations of computers as well as donations from large corporates. They offer free data wiping, take full legal liabilities, hold the Environment Agency certificates on handling hazardous waste and by donating to them, the donor will be fully complying with the forthcoming WEEE directive.
Spectacles – give old pairs to high-street opticians to be donated to people around the world. Visit Vision Aid overseas for more information. Alternatively, take them to Greenford re-use and recycling centre for donation.
Unwanted CDs - you can send your CDs for recycling to Polymer Reprocessors Ltd, Peninsula Business park, Reeds Lane, Moreton, Wirral, CH46 1DW.
Polythene wrappers and bags – recycle by sending to Polyprint Mailing Films who will accept clean materials. Email: info@polyprint.co.uk.
Greetings cards -WHSmith and Tesco stores, in association with The Woodland Trust have dedicated containers during January. You could make gift tags from old cards, or save cards to return to the sender next time and create a card chain.
Recycled materials – buy products made with recycled material content such as toilet roll. In case you wondered recycled toilet paper is made from used high quality printer paper.
We would like to thank Friends of the Earth for many of these suggestions.