Your Easy Guide To RECYCLING

Did you know that Australians consume more per person than any other country?

We send over a tonne of waste PER HOUSEHOLD, per year into landfill. Wow.

Reduce, reuse, recycle. Yeah, yeah, yeah, we’ve all heard it a million times, but what does it actually mean? I am going to break it down for you and give you some easy tips for how to get recycling like a pro!

REDUCE

Let’s just go back to basics for a minute.

Think about what we actually NEED as humans to survive.

Now think about how many times you have bought something and then thrown it in the bin having not even used it. Whether that be that cute top you realllyyyy needed or even the bag of baby spinach you thought you were going to use and didn’t - no judgement, we’ve all found that soggy bag of leaves lurking in the back of the fridge.

There must be some middle ground between living like cave people and just straight out being wasteful right?

·         Be more aware of purchases and only buy what you need

·         Buy your staples in bulk

·         Reduce the amount of non-recyclable packaging purchases

·         Reduce unnecessary water and electricity usage – saves you money aswell!

·         Reduce landfill by starting a compost bin for food scraps

REUSE

This is the fun one! Start getting creative with the things you do already have and find a new purpose for them. From upcycling old furniture to keep cups, the sky is the limit here. I love using glass jars from things like spaghetti sauce or coconut oil as chic smoothie jars. The trend of 2019 was using preserving jars as vases or candle jars at weddings.

·         Bring a refillable water bottle when you go out

·         Repurpose glass jars for food storage in the pantry

·         Buy a metal straw and refuse plastic ones when out

·         Bring your own produce bags to the market or grocery store

·         Don’t forget the reusable bags for your shopping

RECYCLE

This is where things get a little complicated as there is a lot of conflicting information about this. Each council also has different rules regarding what they can and can’t accept. So, let’s break it down:

Paper and Cardboard

Recycled paper uses waaayyyy less energy to create than starting fresh. So, save the trees and put it in your yellow bin. This includes:

·         Butcher/deli paper

·         Milk and juice cartons

·         Cereal boxes

·         Envelopes

·         Paper plates

·         Pizza boxes

·         Wrapping paper

Glass

Glass is 100% recyclable and can be reused forever without any loss in quality. The lids off the jars and bottles can be recycled aswell but be sure the remove them and put them into your yellow bin separately. This EXCLUDES heat resistant glass like Pyrex and broken glass.

 Aluminium/Metals

Just like glass, aluminium can be recycled endlessly with no compromise to its quality. Its unique lifecycle saves 95% of the energy it would take to create new aluminium metal.

All cans from soft drink or alcohol can go into your yellow bin, or if you want to be really savvy, you can find a can recycling centre like Return and Earn and get paid to recycle. Other items safe to go into the yellow bin are:

·         Fruit and vegetable tins or other canned food

·         Aerosol cans including deodorant

·         Foil baking trays

·         Baby formula tins

·         Pet food cans

·         Cooking oil tins

 Plastics (some)

All plastic packaging will be marked with a number. This will tell you the type of plastic it is made from. Plastics marked with codes 1,2, and 3 can be recycled in your yellow bin. Some councils will also accept codes 4-7 but be sure to check with your local council. You should find most of these items will be safe to recycle:

·         Berry punnets

·         Take away food containers

·         Yoghurt containers

·         Milk and juice bottles

·         Cleaning product bottles

·         Cake and biscuit trays

Things that should NOT go into your recycling bin at home:

·         Clothes and toys – donate these to your local Smith Family or Vinnie’s

·         Nappies – pop these in your red bin

·         Pens and markers – Officeworks can recycle these for you

·         Rubber – donate to a local recycling centre

·         Foam/Polystyrene – Find your local drop point here

·         Batteries – these can be recycled at your local Officeworks or battery world

·         Soft Plastics such as plastic bags – drop these in your local Coles or Woollies soft plastics recycling bins

Source: waster.com.au, aliminium.org.au, wwf.org.au, gpi.org