How can I be less wasteful?

Question

It seems like me and my gf produce about 10 pounds of garbage in a given day. We do recycle, but does anyone else have any suggestions as to how we can conserve more resources?

Answer 1

If you have a yard, consider starting a compost pile for converting kitchen waste to good black compost for gardening.

change your light bulbs to compact florescent lite bulbs for saving energy and carbon dioxide generation.

weather permitting, walk or bicycle for short errands. try taking public transport when possible.

take your own bags when shopping so that you use less of these when shopping.

ask your utility if you can subscribe to solar or wind energy for use at your home.

Answer 2

First, buy less prepared food - produce and fresh meats usually don't come with a lot of packaging, so cooking that way will naturally produce less garbage. Try to refrain from using paper towels - washcloths and sponges are reusable and may be cleaned and reused almost indefinitely by boiling them in a saucepan. Get some cloth grocery bags to take to the store with you and cut out paper/plastic grocery bags all together. Composting, as someone else suggested, is a good idea - even if you don't use your compost, you can probably donate it to the city, and someone will.

Finally, bear in mind that besides the trash you see, there's a lot you don't. So - buy local foods instead of food grown halfway across the world. Eat less meat (preferably none) and more vegetables, since meat uses way more resources. Use less of items that are energy-intensive - wax paper or plastic wrap is by far preferable to aluminum foil, which takes a tremendous amount of energy to produce.

This is a creative process - figure out what kind of waste you're producing and see what you can do to avoid it.

Answer 3

The first thing I would do is to stop buying trash bags.I did.I realized that it was silly to buy something just to throw it away.I use dog food bags and grocery bags instead.It's working really well.Recycle everything you can and try to buy things with minimal packaging.Anything styrofoam is bad.Cereal bags can be used as small trash bags and you can use bread wrappers instead of sandwich bags.I never buy plastic wrap or foil,or anything like that.I use very few paper towels.I use baking soda and vinegar to make natural cleaners,so I don't have cans that aren't recyclable.We put out one trash barrel each week,at the most,most of the time,and we have a baby that wears disposable diapers.I am going to cut that back even more.Good luck.It can be done.

Answer 4

Spend less - save more. Money saved cannot be spent on garbage producing consumer items. And, money saved will help ensure your future!

Answer 5

Join a cult! they are so much better managed :)