We live in a world of convenience, and we don’t often stop to consider how all of that convenience contributes to growing landfills. Every piece of rubbish you produce has to go somewhere. While you can take steps to recycle as much as possible it can feel almost impossible to reduce your footprint. In 2020, Australia produced over 61 million tonnes of waste.
What Is Zero Waste?
The core idea of the movement is for participants to eliminate rubbish of all sorts. They aim to produce as little waste as possible by changing their habits, from shopping to cooking. It isn’t just applicable to plastic packaging either it encompasses food waste as well. How you choose to embark on a zero-waste journey is up to you, and people have diverse approaches. While some segments of the movement refuse to consume a vast array of products, others aim to recycle everything before they make new purchases. It includes food, packaging, cosmetics, and electrical appliances too.
Live Cleaner in 7 Days
Day One. Plastic Reduction
You can eliminate the need for disposable plastic bottles by investing in a reusable bottle you refill.
Invest in canvas totes to pack your shopping.
Buy more loose fruits and veg, and butcher meats. Focus on eating a healthy balanced diet and avoid all the pre-packaged foods. Pay attention to just how much waste you create making a single meal. Our need for convenience has massively contributed to this, but you can break the cycle by making more frequent shops for fresh products. When cooking, you should endeavour to use exact ingredients as not to create food waste. If you do have waste, then you should compost. Organic waste in a landfill contributes to greenhouse gases. But, if you compost it you can use it in the garden.
Day Two. Reduce Chemical Use
While you can make your own home cleaning solutions, there are plenty of organic brands on the market. If you do choose to make your own, be sure that you find a tried and tested formula and store it in glass spray bottles rather than using more plastic.
Day Three. Reduce Water Consumption
The quickest and easiest way to reduce your water consumption is to collect your bath or shower water and use it to water your plants. As lovely as a bath is, by cutting back on those and opting for showers instead you can save around 15 gallons of water. Install an eco shower head for even more savings. If you run the tap while you brush your teeth, that habit wastes around five gallons more water than necessary. Multiply that across your family, and that’s a quick way to make massive savings.
There are ways to reduce water consumption in the kitchen as well. A dishwasher uses half as much water as washing dishes by hand. And, you can take it a step further by only running it when it’s full.
Day Four. Eliminate Paper Waste
Rather than using paper towels in the kitchen, swap them for microfibre cloths. Keep a basket of cloths and rags handy and grab one of them when you need to clean a spill.
There are compostable tea bags, or you can opt for loose leaf tea. Either way, ditching traditional teabags is a great way to reduce waste. If you have a coffee machine, certain brands produce compostable pods so you can keep your favourite appliance without contributing to the growing waste problem.
Eliminate paper bills and statements for your life by opting for e-statements and paperless bills instead. The more online banking you can do the better.
A more challenging one for braver souls would be to eliminate traditional tissues for handkerchiefs. You can reuse them after a quick wash.
Day Five. Clearing the Air
You might think an air freshener is improving your indoor air quality, but it’s packed with chemicals and doing the opposite. Not only is it not clearing the air, but it’s also coating your nasal packages and blocking your sense of smell. If you can’t let go, make your own potpourri using old fruit peels and dried flowers.
You can improve the quality of your air by dotting a few select plants throughout your house. Spider plants, aloe vera, English Ivy, and Chrysanthemums are a few excellent options.
Day Six. Skincare Detox
Your skincare products are filled with chemicals and synthetics and the packaging is no better. Start by addressing the products you use most often. You can search out sustainable products or try making your own at home. For makeup, there are plenty of eco-friendly brands you can make the switch to.
Day Seven. Desert Disposables
If it’s in a plastic bottle, you can easily decant it into a glass bottle. Just be sure to clearly label what’s in each.
Instead of buying individually wrapped snacks, buy the larger option and use reusable sandwich bags to create individual portions. You can wash and reuse them time and time again.
If you need a disposable item, such as wax paper, look for reusable options like silicone. Beeswax wrap can replace plastic wrap and silicone bags are a better option than freezer bags. Any plastic storage containers should be converted to glass. For straw lovers, opt for bamboo, silicone, or stainless steel straws you can reuse.
Call Cheapest Load of Rubbish For Rubbish Removal Help
At Cheapest Load of Rubbish, we pride ourselves on ensuring everything that is recyclable ends up in the right place. If you need rubbish removal Sydney, then a professional rubbish removal company like Cheapest Load of Rubbish can handle the heavy lifting and let you focus on the nitty-gritty of going zero waste. We can be with you as quickly as today.