The zero waste movement has been fast gaining momentum in recent times, however it’s not a new notion. One of the best points of reference for a zero waste lifestyle is Bea Johnson’s book entitled Zero Waste Home. In it, she references not the regular 3 “R’s” we’re all familiar with, but Five R’s: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Rot.

Looking at these R’s, here we give you some really simple actions you can take today without impacting your life too much, but that will actually help make a difference to your waste output.

Refuse

It’s very easy to just say yes when something is offered to you, and up until recently items like plastic straws and carrier bags were part of this throw-away culture. Thankfully, these have now been banned however there are still other items you can think about refusing to help minimise your waste: think about signing up to mpsonline.org.uk to help eliminate junk mail sent to your house; next time you are at a show or event rather than grabbing the goodie bag with all its freebies, think about whether you really need or want the contents or whether the free pens and promotional literature will just go to waste.

Reduce

Some easy ways to reduce your waste are to boycott all single use items – coffee cups and cutlery (more on this in a minute!), shop local and request plastic-free packaging, be mindful with your use of cleaning and beauty products, perhaps even turning to making your own or at least using refillables.

Reuse

Following on from the boycotting of single use items, look to replace these with reusables. Carry your own water bottle, keep a set of cutlery in your handbag (wrapped in a tissue, or perhaps even a WaxWrap!), and always carry a foldaway shopping tote in your handbag. At home, WaxWrap can replace your reliance on cling film/plastic wrap as well as plastic food storage bags.

Recycle

As well as your regular recycling, consider a clothes swap to recycle your clothing. Most people only wear about 20% of their wardrobe, and if you haven’t worn an item in over a year, chances are you won’t miss it. Fast fashion is a real contributor to pollution and environmental issues, as fabrics are often created from petroleum, and many dyes used are toxic to the environment. Clothes swaps are a great way to contribute to the circular economy idea, keeping items in circulation for as long as possible and getting the most use out of them.

Rot

In other words, get composting! 2020 saw many of us get into gardening and as a result more people were composting their kitchen waste (where possible!) However, did you know that a lot of your bathroom waste can also be composted too: cotton wool, paper towels, bath tissue, cotton buds (which now have to be plastic-free) can all go in the compost, so you might want to consider a compost bin in your bathroom as well. Composting rather than sending your food waste to landfill helps reduce methane emissions whilst creating fertiliser to use on your soil, improving the quality of your soil and helping increase drought resistance.

In the 1950s, the “Better Living Through Chemistry” movement started to take off across most industries: households saw never-seen before ingredients in clothing, cleaning, beauty and even food. This of course saw a rise in the production of manmade chemicals and materials, and it is estimated that since the 1950s over 9.1 billion tonnes of plastic have been produced, many of which are single-use items.

Made from fossil fuels, plastics end up in landfill and oceans and are causing terrible problems for ecosystems. For instance, birds mistake plastic bag debris for food, sea turtles think floating bags are jellyfish, and fish eat tiny pieces, known as microplastics; all end up filling their stomachs with this toxic material. It is known that at least 267 species have been affected by plastic pollution in the ocean[1], and that one in three leatherback sea turtles have plastic in their stomachs[2] and 100,000 marine animals are killed by plastic bags annually[3]. A 2015 study stated that around 8 million tons of plastic waste ended up in the ocean in 2010[4], and a 2016 study by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation estimated that by 2050 the ocean will contain more plastic than it does fish[5].

Plastics take at least 500 years to decompose, and even then they don’t completely breakdown but photo-degrade, which means they break down into smaller compounds, or microplastics. These microplastics also contaminate soil and water and continue to absorb toxins. The presence of microplastics in the water table and soil means it’s not just marine life eating plastics, but cattle and other animals, and sadly microplastics have even been found in the fruit and vegetables we eat[6].

Thankfully, some steps are being taken to reduce single-use plastics, and over 60 nations have either imposed bans or placed taxes on these items. The EU voted to ban the top 10 single-use plastic items found on European beaches by 2021, and is also calling for 90% of plastic bottles to be recycled by the year 2025. If 90% sounds like a low target to you, read this: in 2017, one million water bottles were purchased every minute, and 91% of these were not recycled[7].

So before you use that plastic bag, buy that plastic bottle or wrap your food in cling film, take a moment to think about what impact your actions may be having on the environment and how simple steps can be taken to reduce your plastic dependence:

1.

Instead of using plastic carrier bags (which are used on average for just 12 minutes and only 1% of which are recycled)
Pack a reusable tote shopper when you go shopping. There are so many different designs, and some fold up into a handy portable sized item that will fit in your handbag or rucksack.

2.

Invest in reusables:

3.

Replace your cling film/plastic wrap habits with WaxWrap

A reusable, eco-friendly alternative to single-use cling film. WaxWrap bags are made from 100% natural materials: organic cotton cloth coated in a mixture of beeswax, pine resin and jojoba oil, which all work together to keep your food fresh.

References

[1]  http://www.worldwatch.org/node/5565

[2] http://ecowatch.com/2013/08/06/the-danger-of-plastic-bags-to-marine-life

[3] http://www.wmnorthwest.com/guidelines/plasticvspaper.htm

[4] https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/02/150212-ocean-debris-plastic-garbage-patches-science/

[5] https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/news/new-plastics-economy-report-offers-blueprint-to-design-a-circular-future-for-plastics