Green in 2017 : Make Recycling Your New Year's Resolution

We all make New Year’s resolutions. Whether it’s to lose weight, quit smoking, or exercise more. But what about making a resolution to be kinder to the environment? If we all made a few small manageable changes to how we deal with our household waste, it would make a big difference. Here’s some tips on how to reduce waste, recycle, reuse and donate your way to a greener 2017.

Why recycle?

A lot of the waste we throw away is recyclable. When you reduce the waste you throw away, reuse items or recycle them it can help to:

Reduce the amount of materials sent to landfill

Saves natural resources like timber and minerals

Reduces the emissions of greenhouse gases like methane

Contribute materials towards producing new products 

Help others in need

Recycling resolutions       

Go paperless

Sign up for online bills and bank statements to save paper and take your name off mailing lists so you won’t receive junk mail that just ends up being thrown out.

Start a compost heap

Food waste makes up a lot of the waste that ends up in landfill when it could be put to better use. It makes excellent food for the plants in your garden.

Save on plastic bags

Take plastic bags with you when you go shopping so you don’t have to buy any extra. Buy a reusable bag for life which is a much better choice than plastic bags which take 1,000 years to degrade!

Buy in bulk to save on packaging

Buy snacks, juices and other items in bulk and take them to work or school for lunch in reusable containers.

Buy smaller quantities of perishable foods

The supermarkets will tempt you into buying more, but how much will you eat? Save the food from landfill and save your money.         

Don’t leave devices on standby

Unplug devices that aren’t being used so they aren’t eating up electricity all day.

Donate unwanted items to others

Items that are in good condition can be donated to charity or passed onto friends and family.

Make recycling easy

Making a resolution to recycle more doesn’t have to be difficult. Even if you focus on being better at recycling a few more items, it’s better than nothing. Start simple; tin cans and glass bottles or paper and plastic, every little helps.