And when the sale is done, box up anything that didn’t sell and donate what’s left to a local charity - many of them will come to your house to make a pickup. A garage sale is a great way to clean out your space and help reuse all the items you don’t want. You know that dining room set, exercise equipment, knick-knacks, blender and other things around the house you no longer use? There’s someone out there who would love to have them. And the toothbrush you’re replacing is the perfect scrub brush for hard-to-reach areas. Make a woven basket or tray out of old magazines. Plastic pop bottles take on a new life as bird feeders. Old bath towels can be cut up and used as wash rags. Glass jars, for example, can become storage for your crafting area or shop. When it’s time to throw something out, think about other possible ways to use it. The more you share, the less you waste.įind a new use for an old item. You can also donate them to local charity. Do you have a bunch of old toys you don’t need anymore? Donate them to a local daycare provider, preschool or family with kids. You can also donate your clothes to any number of charitable organizations - they give your clothes a good home, you get a nice tax deduction. If you have a box of toddler clothes, for example, and your “baby” is now in grade school, give the clothes to a friend with a young child.

Instead of throwing away clothes you don’t want anymore, give them to someone who will want them. There are all sorts of ways you can reuse items to help reduce your trash footprint:Ĭlean out your closet. Reusing is taking old or unwanted items you might otherwise throw away and finding a new use for them.

Can the container be cleaned out and used for something else? And when comparing two similar products, if one has less packaging, consider making that your selection. When you’re in the supermarket, pay attention to the packaging. Instead of buying bottled water, use a reusable water bottle. Some grocery stores even give you a little money off at the checkstand when you BYOB - bring your own bags. Most stores sell canvas or durable plastic shopping bags that can be used again and again. Instead of plastic baggies, try reusable containers.īring reusable bags to the grocery store. Ditto for what goes inside your lunchbox. Try a durable lunchbox or reusable lunch bag instead. Paper and plastic bags create a huge amount of waste - and plastic bags take hundreds of years to decompose. Here are some easy ways you can reduce the amount of waste you make: Making less waste to begin with means there’s less waste to clean up. By reducing, you stop the problem at the source. It’s the best method for keeping the environment clean, so it’s the first of the 3 Rs. Recycle means to turn something old and useless (like plastic milk jugs) into something new and useful (like picnic benches, playground equipment and recycling bins).Reuse means to find new ways to use things that otherwise would have been thrown out.Reduce means to cut back on the amount of trash we generate.One of the ways to put that plan into action is through the 3 Rs of waste management - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. In order to keep as much material out of the landfill as possible, it’s important for each of us to do our part.

Garbage toys