Tips to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle

REDUCE the amount of rubbish you produce

Think before you buy.

• It is just as important to REDUCE your waste as to RECYCLE it.
• It will save you money in the long term
• Buy only as much as you need.
• Use refillable containers.
• Avoid over-packaging. 
• Buy in bulk when it makes sense and if you can afford it!
• Use mains electricity instead of batteries when possible.
• Buy rechargeable batteries and low energy light bulbs. They may cost more to buy but last much longer!
• Avoid buying items that cannot be recycled.
• Buy goods with a minimum amount of packaging or better still, with no packaging!
• Try to buy goods made from recycled materials.
• Compost your kitchen waste where possible 
• Repair and reuse items rather than throw them away.
• Use both sides of a piece of paper.
• Cancel unwanted catalogues.
• Cancel unwanted junk mail - contact the Mail Preference Service

REUSE what you cannot reduce!

• Reuse carrier bags when shopping, or use your own shopping bag.
• Use cloth nappies instead of disposables.   
• Buy secondhand whenever possible.
• Use scrap paper for notes.
• Give gifts in re-usable bags/boxes.
• Pack your lunch in re-useable containers.
• Donate books and magazines to charities, doctors surgeries, hospitals, etc.
• Donate good quality items and furniture to local charity shops, some shops can collect/deliver donated items.  Another way of disposing of items that you no longer need, but someone else may be able to use, is by visiting one of the following websites to donate your item www.snaffleup.co.uk or www.freecycle.org
• Schools - find out about free fundraising with clothing collections, such as the Bag2School scheme and the Salvation Army, where second hand clothes are collected by the school and paid per tonne, the clothes are then sold to emerging nations.      

RECYCLE only what you cannot reduce or reuse!

We all want to keep the environment healthy and pleasant to live in both now and in the future. However, modern society can cause damage to the environment and use resources in an unsustainable manner. But recycling has the following benefits;

• Conserves natural resources - less mining and quarrying helps preserve the landscape and causes less damage to vegetation and animal life.
• Saves energy.
• Creates less waste and pollution.
• We are rapidly exhausting our valuable landfill space.
• Benefits the economy by creating jobs and reducing the need to import raw materials.
• Recycling helps divert potentially valuable materials away from landfill sites.
• Your rubbish becomes the raw materials that manufacturers use to produce new items.

Real Nappies

Cloth nappies provide comfort for your baby and reliability for you.  Modern cloth nappies are made from the latest high performance, breathable but leak-proof material and are durable enough to last for several children.  This means that you can save hundreds of pounds by using cloth nappies instead of disposables.

In Kent, almost 5% of household waste collected is disposable nappy waste.  By using cloth nappies, you could see a real difference in the amount of rubbish your household throws away each week.

Both cloth and disposable nappies have an impact on the environment, but in different ways. You can reduce the impact of cloth nappies by:

• Buying nappies made from organic cotton hemp or even bamboo
• Wash the nappies at no hotter than 60 degrees and avoid tumble-drying when possible.