All dedicated homesteaders know the value of a self-sufficient lifestyle. You won’t find many homesteaders waiting in line at the supermarket. Many homesteaders don’t take their trash to the dump. The homesteading way means that we never buy when we can make, never shop when we can grow and never throw away when we can reuse or repurpose. This is a simple reality for homesteaders. It’s a lesson that people of all lifestyles should abide by. In the digital age, we’re increasingly aware of the damage that our consumerist behaviors and disposable lifestyle have on the planet. We can no longer plead ignorance! After all, prior to his death, even Professor Stephen Hawking estimated that unless we changed our ways we’d render this planet uninhabitable in less than a century. Therefore, you need to reduce your waste!
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Whether you live on a homestead in the sticks, an apartment in Manhattan or are in the market for luxury homes for sale Scarsdale NY we all can and should do our part to ensure the sustainability of our planet. Here are a few ways you can reduce your waste and lead a greener life wherever you call home.
How To Reduce Your Waste in 2019
Cut out single-use plastics
This is a biggie and a great way to reduce your waste. While it may seem both easy and obvious, the ubiquity of non-recyclable single-use plastics makes it more challenging than you may suspect. From non-recyclable plastic packaging to disposable ballpoint pens, single-use plastics are woven into the fabric of our society. While those who grow their own fruits and veggies, make their own dairy products and source their own eggs are insulated from this somewhat, it doesn’t take much to significantly cut single-use plastics out of your life;
- Refuse freebies and disposable plastic materials
- Bring your own shopping bag to the grocery store
- Carry your own bamboo fork and spork wherever you go should you be tempted to eat street food
- Keep dry foods like beans and pasta stored in mason jars. Fill them at weigh bins to eliminate the need for single-use plastic packaging.
- Invest in a reusable water canteen rather than buying plastic water bottles.
- Cut down on ready meals and prepackaged TV dinners. It’s better for your health and the planet.
Never recycle when you can reuse or repurpose
Recycling is a good step forward but unfortunately, the damage we’ve done to our planet is such that it’s simply not enough on its own. Moreover, many recycling plants around the world are simply not equipped to deal with the sheer volume of recycling that they receive. This means that the vast majority (a shocking 91%) goes into landfill anyway as a result. You can buy everything from reusable straws and more on Amazon.
Thus, you should never recycle when you can reuse and repurpose. This is yet another way to reduce your waste.
Always compost your food waste
Ideally, you should only need one garbage can and this should be for food waste to be converted into compost. Why pack your food waste into a plastic bag to sit in a landfill when it can be used to grow healthy and beautiful plants either for ornamentation or to grow fruits and vegetables. Check out this useful guide on how to compost your food waste. Using those scraps for composting is a great way to reduce your waste and it is healthy for the planet and you.
Wherever you call home and whether you want to live self-sufficiently or not, we should all do our bit to eliminate landfill waste before it’s too late. Reduce your waste in 2019 and make the earth a better place to live.
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