The amount of rubbish sent to landfills has reduced steadily over the past several years. However, it is estimated that as much as half a tonne of household rubbish per person is thrown in to landfills annually. This number shows that there is still a lot of work to do in order to lower the amount of waste produced in the UK.
How eco-friendly are you? Are you doing everything you can to reduce the amount of rubbish your household produces? If you feel like you could be doing more, implement one or more of the following strategies at your home.
Recycle Everything You Can
In 2015, UK households recycled approximately 44.3 per cent of their unwanted rubbish. While this number may seem huge, it still falls short of the goal to recycle at least 50 per cent of household waste by 2020. If you’re not recycling at least 50 per cent of your waste, there’s room for improvement.
The best strategy to recycle more is to make recycling easy. Place clearly marked bins for your recyclables in your home and make those bins more accessible than your rubbish bin. If your family has to walk further or do more work to reach the rubbish bin, they will likely put their items in the nearest recycle bin.
Find a New Use for Your Stuff
Instead of throwing out large items, look for ways that you can reuse them. Wood reclaimed from furniture can be used for craft projects or used to make new, updated furniture. An old bookshelf can increase the amount of shelving and storage in your pantry. You can cut worn, stained linens up into cleaning cloths. There really isn’t a limit to the number of things that you can find new uses for.
Donate What You Can’t Find a Use for
If you absolutely cannot find a new use for an old object, maybe there’s someone who can. Rather than throwing the item out, why not donate it and let someone else get some good use out of it? Furniture, clothing, books, toys, and cooking utensils can all be donated if they’re in good, usable shape. Perishable items, such as food and hygiene products can also be donated if they’re not expired.
Always call your local charities to see what items they can accept. If you can’t find a charity that can accept a particular item, think about selling the item online and donating the cash to charity.
Allow the Professionals to Clear Your Home
If you’re overwhelmed by the sheer number of things you wish or need to get rid of, don’t let the amount of work involved turn you off of the project. Hire an environmentally-friendly rubbish clearance service to do the work for you. A clearance service is ideal for clearing out storage buildings, cleaning up the garden, or reducing the amount of stuff you have in your home. The clearance service will recycle or donate your items as well as use green cleaning products to get the job done.
If you’re first inclination is to throw every item that you no longer have use for in the rubbish bin, it’s time to change. You can start by establishing a fail-proof recycling system in your home. Whenever an item can’t be recycled, come up with other ways that you can use it or look for a charity that will accept it. If you’re overwhelmed, ask for help.
