How can we reduce, reuse and recycle in everyday life?

Using reusable shopping bags reduces the need for disposable bags. There is a string bag that lives in my handbag so if I ever feel like popping into a shop on my way home from work I have a means of carrying it back. At one stage, I had many plastic bags that would live in a storage cupboard waiting for when I went shopping, but so often I would find myself without one. Also, I don’t own a car and walk to the shops, so realistically I’m never going to need twenty bags at once. If you drive to the shops, do you keep bags in the boot for when you need them?

I have recently decided to stop buying teabags. You might have thought that your waste from a cup of tea would biodegrade, but my parents found that little pieces remained in the compost heap. Apparently, most teabags have a plastic additive in them to stop them breaking apart when hit by the boiling water. If you have a green waste bin, it will still be collected and broken down in the industrial process. However, I’d rather avoid unnecessary plastic waste. I think that loose leaf tea makes a better cup of tea anyway.

There is no need to buy herbs from the supermarket with all the associated packing waste if you have grown your own! My mum gifted me a packet of basil seeds several weeks ago. I planted and left them on a sunny window sill, and with daily watering, they have grown into healthy plants. The scent they release when you brush the leaves is lovely, and it’s a joy to see them turning their leaves towards the sun. I’m now looking forward to planting some chives and parsley seeds in the coming weeks. Growing food yourself is an excellent way of reducing waste since you’re reducing the need for transportation and packaging. Some things will thrive inside if you don’t have any outdoor space.

Zero Waste shops allow you to reduce your unnecessary packaging waste by bringing and filling containers from home. Fortunately, I have a Zero Waste shop close to my flat. During the lockdown, I have been staying with my boyfriend, and he has even more choice with two Zero Waste shops, two butchers, a fishmonger, grocer and cheesemonger all in walking distance! Not many people will have the luxury of these conveniences, but it is worth checking whether there is a Zero Waste shop near you. Two of the shops I use have only opened in the last year. These stores stock essentials such as sugar and flour and some much much more! An alternative would be to find a bulk buy store which would have the effect of reducing the amount of packaging per kilo of product.

I have a stainless-steel vacuum flask which is useful to help me keep hydrated throughout the day. I was never a fan of buying bottled water since the tap water in the UK is perfectly safe to drink. Using my flask, my water stays cold, and I can also use it to take away hot drinks when the weather is cold. Like my string bag, I always take it with me in case I fancy a drink. I reduce my waste by avoiding disposable alternatives.

One of the most common pieces of packaging waste in my kitchen is the plastic tray. Nearly everything in the supermarket seems to come in a slightly flimsy, translucent container. In some areas, the council collects these to be recycled but not here, so I wash them out and find other uses for them. With a bit of compost in them, they have been great seed trays for my basil growing experiment.

Going to the Zero Waste shop for my essential supplies means I must find containers for everything. Sometimes a Tupperware container is too big; it’s a bit excessive to get a whole box of turmeric! That’s where old plastic containers which have lids can come in handy. Just be sure that you wash them out very thoroughly and that the top stays on securely.

Ever since I was young, I have opened presents painstakingly slowly making my family very impatient! I love unwrapping things slowly and have never liked to tear the paper. The plus side of taking care is that you can use the wrapping paper again. However, I know that for some people excitedly ripping open a present is part of the fun. One thing that it is easy for everyone to reuse is the ribbon and bow. If you use it on a smaller parcel or the front of a card, it doesn’t matter if you cut it.

I have a subscription to several magazines as part of my membership of organisations. I am going to look into whether I can have a digital subscription instead, but if you have fliers, junk mail or newspapers you’re about to throw away, consider whether you can cut them up. There are several styles of artwork which you can create from a collage of old papers. I tend to look for lettering I can repurpose and blocks of solid colour from which I can make shapes. I have seen examples of people making very humorous cards with the clever placing of cut out objects or adding witty speech bubbles or captions.

Toothbrushes tend to wear out after about three months, but they still have a use. They can reach into awkward corners and tackle grouting, so consider keeping them in your cleaning cupboard. I have been doing this for a long time. If you share a flat or live with others, like me, do be careful to make it clear that they are for cleaning!

During the last few months, if this apartment building is anything to go by, people have been getting a lot more deliveries. The post room is always full of cardboard boxes. Fortunately, these can all be recycled if the tape and plastic padding inside is removed. Even pizza boxes can be recycled as long as no food is left inside.

Most of my paper waste comes in the post. This is all recyclable and collected by the council. I have often wondered whether you can recycle envelopes with windows in, but according to www.recyclenow.com staples and plastic bits are filtered out in the recycling process. You need not spend your time tearing out the film!

Plastic bottles are recyclable! I remember being slightly surprised that not everyone knew this. It took a leaking black bag and the discovery, to my amazement, that my housemate had thrown away a bottle half drunk. If emptied and rinsed, you can squash bottles and add them to the recycling. Leave the lids on because they can be recycled too.

I rinse my tin foil before recycling and also food trays made from foil. Have you ever wondered whether a chocolate wrapper was foil or plastic? Another thing that I learnt from www.recyclenow.com is that if you scrunch them up and it stays in a ball, then it’s foil, and it also makes it easier to be recycled – the bigger the ball, the better!

Glass bottles can also be recycled with the lids on as they’re removed in the process. If you don’t have a collection, in most areas, you can go to bottle banks. However, if you accidentally break a glass, don’t add that to the recycling as it’s a different type.