Earth Day is just around the corner, but why not start early this year! We challenge you to start today and make your garbage lighter by the Earth Day, that’s April 22nd, you have nearly 2 weeks from today (April 9th). We promise it won’t be that hard. It just takes a little focus and dedication.
- Audit your trash. Go through your week like you normally would. Throw out your normal items, but when you go to throw the bag out, weigh it. Then you have to get dirty. Go through the bag and determine what could be recycled, composted, or reused.
- Repurpose your waste. Think again before you throw something out. There are tons of ways to repurpose nearly anything. For instance, tin cans, you can turn those tin cans into vases, centerpieces, outdoor lanterns. Nearly anything can be repurposed, all you need is a little time and creativity.
- Change your bills to paperless. Bills end up in the trash once they’re paid, sometimes even before they are paid. Save some paper and switch to paperless.
- Use your scraps to create a garden. It’s possible, save some of your garbage for gardening. We aren’t going to get into the details but here is an article that does. http://earth911.com/home-garden/grow-food-from-scraps/
- Stop using plastic bags for groceries, switch to reusable. Plastic bags from grocery stores accumulate everywhere. Instead of throwing them away or trying to find space for them, take a reusable bag to the grocery store next time.
- Reuse paper. Instead of trashing junk mail, or printed-paper, reuse it. Most of it will be single sided so you can use the back as drawing paper for your kids, or for you to take notes on.
- Switch from paper towels to cloth towels. We go through tons of paper towels while wiping things down and cleaning. Instead of using paper towels, invest in some cloth rags. Use the rags then throw them in your washing machine in cold water.
- Donate. Think before you throw out those old clothes, shoes, or decorations. There are several places you can donate those items, including Goodwill, and donation boxes.
- Use tap or filtered water. Ditch the bottled water.
- Compost. Everyone has food waste so instead of throwing your left over or spoiled food out, compost it. We found directions on how to create your own compost bin for just $15! Now start composting! http://theartofsimple.net/how-to-make-a-compost-bin/
- Recycle. This one is a given. But still necessary to make your garbage lighter and greener. Find an approved list of recyclables to ensure you are recycling everything you can.
Now if only we had a Pay-As-You-Throw method to make this project even more beneficial. But, whether you’re saving money from less waste or not, we want to know how much weight your trash bag loses with these 11 tips. So, put your trash bag on a crash diet and let us know how much it loses in the next 2 weeks! But don’t stop there. Make this a routine. Make Earth Day everyday.
Refuse Specialists 