Recycling: Throwing less into dumps

April 18th, 2006

I am discovering many ways to recycle, reuse and conserve as I become more and more earth friendly. For the last year or so I have been living in a primarily “green” town. When I use the word “green” I am referring to “the natural ways” or earth friendly ways many people choose to live their lives. Eating organic foods, using naturopathic medicine, organic gardening, herbal therapies, recycling and composting are part of “the natural way” I am referring to.

This way of life is something I am buying into more and more everyday. With Earth Day just around the corner I thought I would discuss some great ways to recycle, reuse and compost your everyday wastes.

I try to find ways to reuse everyday household items instead of just throwing them away. I keep things like milk jugs, grocery bags, cardboard boxes, plastic kitty litter bins, beer/ wine bottles, corks/ bottle caps and more. These items can be reused or can be manipulated to serve other purposes depending on your needs.

q Use plastic detergent or kitty litter bins for planting or composting.

* Use old wine corks to make your very own corkboard.

* Use milk jugs for plant watering and liquid storage.

* Use the top portion of a milk jug as a funnel and the bottom portion to plant in.

q Grocery bags and cardboard boxes can be reused for several times.

q Cardboard egg cartons can be used to grow seeds.

q Glass baby food jars can be used to store small items like thumbtacks, paperclips, nails/ screws, dried herbs, seeds and much more!

I have also found that most kitchen waste is great for composting and replenishing garden soil. Things like coffee grounds, tea bags, milk, vegetables, fruits, egg shells, paper towels and egg cartons can be composted and later added to garden soil. I set aside one of my old plastic kitty litter bins (with a lid of course) for all my chosen compost items.
I also set aside a separate trash can for my recyclable items such as: basic paper products and plastics.

If you have old clothes, appliances, or any other reusable items you can always donate them to charity, goodwill or just give them away! As a last resort you can even set the items out next to or near the trash can with a note that says “free”. Anything is better than throwing them away…

-Visit http://www.freecycle.org/ if you are looking for stuff or if you have stuff to give away. Here in my town all you have to do is post what you have to get rid of and all the members of freecycle in your area will get emailed. If someone is interested they will contact you, you can set up a meeting or you can simply have them come to pick up the stuff you are giving away. It is super easy, convenient and best of all FREE!!

-Also http://craigslist.org/ is a great resource for getting or giving away stuff.

The majority of everyday household items can be either be recycled, reused, composed or given away to cut down on wastes. Try it, you will be surprised how much you really can cut down on wastes. A small change can make a big difference!