Waste reduction – Page 3 – The Waste Management & Recycling Blog

10 eco-friendly balloon alternatives

Helium balloons are a lot of fun, whether they’re bobbing on the end of a piece of string tied to a child’s wrist, or turning people’s voices squeaky at a grown-up party.

But balloons can be harmful to the environment and helium is a very, very limited resource – and we can’t make more of it.

If you’re concerned about protecting the environment, helium balloons are a definite no-no. In this article we’ll take a look at why, and list some of the environmentally friendly alternatives to balloon release and helium balloon decorations for your next party.

Continue reading 10 eco-friendly balloon alternatives

Zero waste makeup: A beginner’s guide

Makeup is something that many of us use, often on a daily basis. Although sometimes we weigh up whether the cost is too expensive for certain products, we need to start understanding the environmental cost that makeup is having on the world.

Cosmetic packaging can take hundreds of years to break down in landfill, which puts many aspects of nature at risk.

This article will delve into the impact cosmetic products have on the environment and how to switch to zero waste makeup.

Continue reading Zero waste makeup: A beginner’s guide

Why food waste should be prevented

Food waste is a huge ongoing global problem that is not discussed often enough in the media. Not only can food waste end up costing you more money, but it can also negatively impact the environment in several ways.

Whether you’ve bought too much from the supermarket, have eyes bigger than your belly when you cook, or have products in your fridge and cupboards that have gone out of date — all that food ends up being wasted.

Likewise, if you run a kitchen in a café or restaurant.

Keep reading for more information on why food waste should be prevented and the ways you can battle the waste.

How to dispose of unwanted soil

When you’re completing a gardening or renovation project, you often end up with excess soil. When soil gets wet, it can become more hassle to work with and could result in a lot of mess.

With garden waste and soil, you cannot just dump it anywhere. It is crucial to dispose of your unwanted soil safely and legally.

There is a common misunderstanding that soil can go in your general waste wheelie bin – this is incorrect.

Garden waste cannot be mixed with your domestic waste and, on bin day, your bin will remain unemptied if it contains any kind of garden waste.

Throughout this article, we will discuss some of the most common ways to dispose of your unwanted soil.

How to dispose of bulky waste

Whether you’re having a house clearance, an office clearance or a garden waste clearance, it is crucial that you correctly dispose of your waste.

If waste is incorrectly disposed of, it can negatively impact the environment and harm wildlife, too.

There are a plethora of waste disposal rules, so it can get quite confusing for individuals and businesses alike.

Keep reading to discover what is classed as bulky waste and how you can correctly dispose of it.

Can the zero-waste movement survive the coronavirus pandemic?

Before the outbreak of COVID-19, the UK public was taking steps towards living a less wasteful existence.

These steps included the plastic bag charge at supermarkets and large shops, and the rise of reusable coffee cups.

Unfortunately, 2020 has delivered an unexpected health crisis to the country (and the world), with a novel coronavirus that spreads itself through close contact between humans.

At the start of March, Starbucks announced that it was temporarily banning reusable cups to help contain the spread of the virus.

Many cafes across the country have since made the same switch for their takeaway services, too.

With the containment of the virus being a bigger priority than the environment right now in the eyes of most, we’re seeing many other changes taking place in society as well.

While the changes are temporary, none of us really know exactly how long ‘temporary’ will end up having to be.

How to reduce your restaurant or cafe’s plastic waste

Research suggests that one-quarter of all waste in England is created by its businesses. This waste is composed of general waste, food waste, plastic, cardboard, and glass – although, if not properly sorted and collected by a reputable waste management company, it could all be classed as general waste and sent to landfill.

As a restaurant or cafe owner, you are well-placed to make a difference when it comes to waste — not only for the planet but for your business’s budget, too.

When running an establishment that serves food and drink, there are plenty of really simple switches you can make in order to eliminate plastic from the menu; particularly single-use plastic which gets binned after just one use.

Let’s take a look at some of the changes you can make – from table to takeaways.

A guide to cloth menstrual pads

We recently published a guide to menstrual cups, but not everyone can use menstrual cups or likes the idea of them.

Another more sustainable alternative to single-use menstrual products is the cloth pad, and so this blog post takes a look at that — what cloth pads are, how to use them, and all of the benefits and drawbacks of them.

Let’s start at the start with what they are.

A guide to menstrual cups

In this guide, we’ll take a look at what menstrual cups are, how you use them, and the pros and cons of their use.

What is a menstrual cup?

A menstrual cup is a period product that fits inside the vagina and collects period blood. They are made from soft, flexible materials such as silicone and rubber, making them reusable, unlike tampons and pads.

Eco-friendly alternatives to disposable nappies

If you have recently given birth to a little bundle of joy or are currently parenting a toddler, then you’ll definitely know your way around a nappy by now!

If you are pregnant with a little one on the way, then you may have started researching all the bits and bobs that are part of life with a baby, too.

Nappies account for 2-3 per cent of all household waste in the UK, according to Wrap, and each baby gets through between 4,000 and 6,000 before they are potty trained.