Reducing Waste at Home: Tips to Make it Happen
Reducing waste is one of the most important things we can do to protect our environment. Some people think living a waste-free lifestyle is an impossible task. While not producing any waste at all is hard to do, merely reducing your waste can significantly impact your carbon footprint. You do not need to uproot your everyday routine to reduce your waste either. By making some simple changes in your lifestyle, you can drastically reduce your waste. By combining traditional tried and true methods with modern technological solutions, anyone and everyone can live a greener life through reduced waste production.
Delivery
For years, if you wanted to buy something, you had to go to a physical store. Some people walk to the store and walk home to contribute to pollution, but that is a lot of effort. Instead of having to choose between walking to the store or driving, opt for home delivery. Amazon has standardized fast and cheap home delivery, with many items arriving in only two days. It is more eco-efficient, and less work for you to order the things you need online then have them all delivered to your door. With the addition of shipping and tracking APIs, you always know when your packages will arrive. You can even combine your orders into one box that will be delivered on your area’s Amazon day, so you are reducing waste by not driving and using fewer packing materials.
Ordering online also ensures the items you want are in stock, and you know when they will arrive, which makes for easier household planning. Third-party shipping insurance is another way you can ensure your items will arrive exactly how you expect them. While ordering groceries and supplies online is a relatively new idea, it is a painless way to reduce waste in your household.
Buy What You Need And Consider What You Buy
One of the best ways to reduce waste is not to buy more than you need. The world is going through turbulent times, and it may be tempting to stock up or overbuy, but that is a surefire way to create waste. Understand what you are buying and how long that product will last. Do not buy more milk than you can drink before it goes bad, and this rule applies to all perishable goods. There is nothing wrong with treating yourself every so often, but to cut down on waste, only buy what you need.
Only buying what you need is one way to reduce waste, but you can further reduce waste by purchasing eco-friendly or low-waste products. What you bring into your home affects how much waste your household produces. Look at the ingredients list on your products and compare brands to find the most eco-friendly option. Products that use eco-friendly, generally biodegradable, packaging are also ideal for limiting waste. You can also reuse packing, so it does not end up in a landfill. Reuse bottles, break down boxes for arts and crafts and flatten bigger boxes to use for a move in the future.
Use Fewer Utilities
Physical waste is undoubtedly a significant issue worldwide, but many people are also using more water and energy than they need. Using fewer utilities not only helps the planet, but it will also help you save money. Consider these quick changes you can make to use fewer utilities and reduce waste.
When it comes to cleaning clothes and dishes, you might think washing them by hand is the least wasteful option, but that is not the case. It is more efficient to wash your clothes and dishes in appliances when you have a full load. A whole load of dishes in your dishwasher and a full load of clothes in your washing machine use less water than washing the same quantity by hand. To make your dishwasher more energy efficient, turn off heated dry; you can set your dishwasher to run overnight, and you will wake up with clean, dry dishes without wasting the extra energy on heated dry. Wash your clothes in cold water to use less energy and avoid using your dryer if possible. You can hang your clothes to dry overnight and wake up to fresh clothes without using your dryer.
Energy vampires is a new term that refers to devices that consume energy even while turned off. These devices, often TVs, computers, and game consoles, passively use every while plugged in, even if they are turned off. To combat these vampires, plug all the offending devices into a power strip and unplug the power strip. Using a power strip means you don’t need to unplug each vampire individually, and you can cut off their energy supply with one cord.
Reducing waste at home might feel impossible, but you can lessen your carbon footprint with some simple changes. These are just a few small tips and tricks to help, but there are even more ways you can limit waste in your life. Evaluate your lifestyle and see where you can make changes to help the planet.