Every year for the last 10 years, the first week of September has acknowledged the importance of minimising the things we throw away by challenging what we, as a global community, define as ‘waste’. This is known as Zero Waste Week. This year, this wonderful waste-less week spanned from the 3rd until the 7th of the month and encouraged not only the public, but large corporations, social influencers and international governments to spread the word in an effort to reduce the rubbish we rid our homes of every day.
In today’s post, we’re celebrating the Earth-friendly ethos that Zero Waste Week hopes to spread by exploring the many small yet smart changes you can implement into your daily routine to help reduce your household waste. From swapping your morning Starbucks for one in a reusable coffee cup to making your weekly food shop last longer, creating zero waste is difficult, but minimising it is a lot easier than you might think.
Plan your meals
When it comes to our food, it’s estimated that over a third of this world produce goes into our bins. That’s why, when it comes to reducing your rubbish, portion control is key. Remember to write a list before your weekly shopping trip and consider how much of the fresh food that you want to buy will realistically be used in the week before it goes out of date - in other words, become waste.
So much of the food we eat is produced and sold to us wrapped in the types of plastic we don’t think to recycle - and in some cases, these materials aren’t recyclable at all. Bring your own reusable, eco-friendly bags and fill them with loose items free of their plastic coat or alternatively, opt for products contained within eco-friendly packaging - not only will this save your bin some room, but it’ll help save the planet in the process.
Repurpose your waste
On average, the typical working person spends £10.59 per day on drinks, snacks and lunch while at work. Make use of your leftover dinner from the night before by preparing it for you and your family for lunch the next day, as not only will this minimise your waste contribution but will put pennies back into your pocket.
Don’t limit yourself to eating the same foods four or five times in a row by sticking to what the plastic packaging labelling your carrots and onions ‘out of date’ stamp is telling you, either. The slightly browning skin on your vegetables can be easily transformed into a whole new meal with a stock cube and water, boiled in a saucepan and made into soup that’s sure to please your taste buds long into the cold winter months.
Upcycle your clothes
At the end of 2016, the UK alone was estimated to have sent an astonishing 300,000 tonnes of clothing waste to landfill sites all over the country. Clothing can sit in landfill sites for anywhere between five months and 50 years before decomposing - so why not take measures in your own home to reduce the amount of clothing waste that you create by thinking up new ways to dispose of your old clothes?
Do you have that out of season, out of mind mentality? While throwing away your tired and faded pair of flared jeans seems like the easy fix, instead, why not rework and infuse new life into the clothes you once loved by getting creative with a pair of scissors? Alternatively, make some money from items of clothing that no longer have a place in your wardrobe by selling them on popular retail apps such as Depop and eBay and watch the money roll in as your bin stays empty.
Reduce your use of plastic
It typically takes plastic up to 1,000 years to fully decompose. With the government's recent proposal of banning single-use plastic products in the UK circulating the media recently, there’s never been a better time to start thinking about how you can reduce the amount of plastic you use in your day-to-day life than right now.
Consider buying your food produce from businesses that use biodegradable packaging such as takeaway boxes made from cornstarch and edible drinking straws. While plastic equivalents of these items are cheap to purchase, they are extremely harmful to the surrounding environment and if they can easily be swapped for recyclable and reusable alternatives, then why not?
Zero Waste Week may be over, but that doesn’t mean your efforts to reduce the amount of rubbish you put in your bin has to be over too. Remember the three Rs - reduce, reuse, recycle and discover new ways that you can implement a waste-free zone into your home for the future.
