Whether it’s at home, at work, at school or OSHC, we can all play a part in reducing waste.

Use these six strategies to do your bit to care for the environment:

DITCH THE DISPOSABLES

Use a reusable coffee cup for your morning coffee instead of opting for a takeaway cup. Always make sure you have a few reusable bags in the car, in your bag or in your drawer at work so you’ll never need a plastic shopping bag again.

If you eat out at lunchtime, consider taking your cutlery, straw and reusable containers with you too.

START COMPOSTING

One way to reduce the amount of waste we send to landfill is to compost organic waste. In 2016-17 around 6.7 million tonnes of organic waste was sent to landfill in Australia. This waste, when placed into a landfill, creates landfill gas which is 55% methane – a damaging greenhouse gas.

Start composting at home and encourage your school and workplace to do the same. There are many composting systems available – even small ones for inside use. Otherwise, bring food scraps home from work or school to compost at home.

UNDERSTAND HOW TO RECYCLE

Recycling items saves them from going to landfill. Know and understand the rules about what you can and can’t include in your household recycling bin.

Did you know about these items which can also be recycled?

• Soft plastics can be recycled at most local supermarkets
• Batteries can be recycled at Aldi supermarkets and other retailers
• E-Waste such as old computers, televisions and phones can be recycled (find out where here)

CHOOSE MINIMAL PACKAGING

The best way to reduce waste is to choose minimal or no packaging when purchasing products. Buy loose fruit and vegetables and bring your reusable bags to put them in rather than using plastic bags. You can also use cakes of soap rather than liquid soap in plastic containers, buy items in large sizes of bulk quantity, and ditch coffee pods or capsule machines for ones that use whole beans.

REPAIR OR BORROW RATHER THAN BUY

Before you go out and buy that new thing, think about whether you could borrow it instead. Friends and family will be happy to help you out with your need, or you can check to see if there’s a tool lending or toy library service in your area.

Rather than throwing out broken items, see if they can be fixed first. You’ll find all kinds of instructions for fixing items on the internet, or you could pass it on to someone else who has the right skills.

Doing our part to reduce waste is a great way to care for the planet. You can take these simple steps at home, school, work or at OSHC to help reduce the amount of rubbish we send to landfill each year.