Recycling Easy Enough for a Caveman

Did you know that in America we dispose more than 700 billion pounds of paper, glass, plastic, wood, food, metal, clothing, electronics and other refuse each and every year. When you consider this, imagine how hard it is to manage the mountains of waste that are being piled up. There are ways that you can help. They are simple, inexpensive and will help ensure a healthy planet for your family and friends.

The most difficult thing for most people is just getting started. When we first start out trying to recycle we constantly forget to put the can in the aluminum bin and the papers we end up putting out with the trash but as we struggle to break free of our old habits there are other things we can do to cut down on waste like buying concentrated household products or buying in bulk.

Here are a few tips that will help you to reduce, recycle and reuse the waste you create:

• Don’t buy pre-packaged items – When you purchase things like nails, screwdrivers, tools or any other product that is pre-packaged, see if the have the same product in a loose bin. This will keep the plastic from these items out of the trash and help our environment.
• Reuse bags and containers – Try to keep a supply of bags for shopping trips or even keep canvas totes on hand so when you make a trip to the store you don’t have to take another bag, you can use your own.
• Choose reusable products – When at the store purchase items that can be reused numerous times. Things like cloth napkins instead of paper, sponges instead of paper towels or containers instead of plastic wrap.
• Use rechargeable batteries – Buy rechargeable batteries and recycle all of your old batteries. This will help keep toxic metals out of our environment
• Buy energy efficient products – Appliances, light bulbs, and a host of other products now have information on their energy efficiency and life expectancy. Purchase those that are long-lasting and energy-saving. On appliances look for the Energy Star label and seek out good warranties on your electronic equipment
• Buy in concentration – Usually concentrated products require less packaging which means less plastic to recycle. Concentrated detergents will last your family much longer and sometimes contain less water than other convention detergent products.
• Reuse paper products – You can save paper, ribbon, gift boxes, cardboard boxes, etc. and reuse them for craft projects or reuse them for packing, wrapping, mailing, etc.
• Donate clothing – Rather than throwing away old clothes donate them to charitable organization or if they are in good shape you could even sell them in a consignment store. You might even have family, friends or neighbors that could use them.

The point is to look for ways to recycle. There are plenty of things you can do and they don’t cost you a thing but will yield a great reward to our planet and future inhabitants.

What kind of things do you do to recycle? Do you have any tips for the rest of us?

Emilee Gallagher is a blogger who enjoys writing about environmental products, services, people and solutions to help make a more sustainable world.

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