Lessen Your Load

As we are all guests of Mother Nature we would (as a nature-loving organisation) like to encourage everyone to lessen their load. Each month we will publish tips and tricks, good ideas, and handy information to help you on your mission to lessen the load on the environment (should you accept). Some you may have heard of, some you may not. We also welcome any ideas that you have that we may not have heard about.

Reducing Waste

Imagine if we had no garbage trucks to pull up each week to magically make all your landfill disappear. Out of sight out of mind right? All your garbage guilt taken away.

If it was our individual responsibility to get rid of our own waste I imagine a few things would change.

In no particular order the following might happen.

You would start getting very creative with re-using stuff

  • What can I use that container for now that it’s empty?
  • I can use that old cotton t/shirt as weed mat
  • I can re-use that bottle for my kombucha

You would possibly think more carefully about what you are purchasing.

  • How much packaging is it in?
  • Do you really need that shiny new thing
  • Is there a more sustainable version of the same thing

You would seek recycling alternatives

  • Local businesses that are recycling specific products. For example, did you know that Officeworks recycle desktop computers, laptops, computer mice, monitors, printers, scanners, multifunction printers, keyboards, computer power supplies, printed circuit boards, motherboards, network cards, disks and CD drives

You might start sharing your excess

  • Give your extra cucumbers to your neighbours (there are only so many cucumbers one family can eat)
  • Give your veggies scraps to your neighbour’s chickens if you are not composting

In a nutshell, the best way to reduce waste is don’t create it in the first place…

How?

Reducing Food Waste

  • Make a meal plan for the week and put it on your fridge.
  • Write your shopping list according to what you need on your meal plan. Don’t just buy because it’s on special.
  • Stick to the plan and eat what you’ve bought.
  • Make your food last longer by chilling it properly.
  • Use your leftovers
  • Freeze your dodgy vegetables until you have enough to make a stock

Reduce what you use and buy

Reuse as much as you can

  • reusable containers are great
  • Beeswax wraps
  • Get a keep-cup and take it everywhere
  • Reuse gift wrapping and gift bags and tissue paper (if it’s torn and doesn’t have plastic in it put it aside for when you want weed matting.)

Recycling is the last resort

Repair things– an art we need to relearn

Join buy and sell groups

Cancel unnecessary mail (especially phone books)