Christmas is often the most indulgent time of the year. A lot of us go all out on decorations, presents and food this time of year. Although it is a wonderful time of the year to treat ourselves and the ones we love, it inevitably means that we are creating a lot of waste. Here we discuss how to minimise Christmas waste
Plan ahead
One of the best ways to minimise Christmas waste is by planning ahead. Always have plenty of bags with you to avoid having to buy additional ones in shops. Have a thorough list of what you need to avoid buying what you don't need. It's common to forget what you already have in your home in terms of Christmas decorations, wrapping paper, Christmas cards, etc. Before you buy anything new, do a stocktake of what you already own to avoid unnecessary or duplicate purchases. Stick to your list at all times and try to avoid impulse purchases.
Reuse Christmas wrapping
When it comes to choosing Christmas wrapping, stick to plainer options that are recyclable. Consider an alternative to the traditional wrapping paper. Could you perhaps wrap a present in a nice scarf or use a newspaper? There are plenty of options that help minimise waste. Always reuse gift bags and ribbons each year as well to reduce waste as well as save money.
Recycle old Christmas cards
It’s sometimes a shame to get rid of your Christmas cards at the end of the season. Why not reuse them? Keep special Christmas cards from close friends and family in a scrapbook. Alternatively, keep the cards you love the design of and use them to create gift tags for next year. Just make sure you remember you have done this to avoid buying new ones unnecessarily next December.
Don’t be wasteful with your food
One of the simplest ways to reduce your waste is by choosing food that comes loose such as fruit and veg rather than opting for the same items covered in plastic packaging.
Try and stick to only the food you think you will actually eat. This time of year we normally end up with tons of unopened food or leftovers that can be extremely wasteful. Plan ahead and ensure you have ways to use these leftovers up. For example, make a turkey curry with the leftovers from your Christmas day meat. It reduces your food waste and tastes delicious.
Check ahead with your guests
If you are the host this year, ensure your guests know what exactly they are expected to bring food-wise. If you do not plan this in advance you could end up with duplicates of dishes and way too much food to eat which will just end up going to waste.
Don’t use disposable cutlery
If possible, avoid disposable cutlery, plates, and napkins wherever possible. Material napkins often look nicer and last for years. Disposable cutlery and plates are ideal when you are expecting a few guests, however, they create a huge amount of waste. Instead, ask if you can borrow cutlery and plates that you need from your guests.
Donate or sell items
Once Christmas Day is over and all the presents are opened, people tend to want to get rid of older items to make way for their new gifts. Before you throw anything away, ensure you no longer have any use for it. See if you can upcycle it, donate it to a local charity, give it to a friend or family member, or sell it. If all of these options have been tried, then you can perhaps hire a skip to get rid of all the old items you no longer need in one go.
Make your own Christmas decorations
A homemade Christmas decoration can mean so much more and also means you are not creating as much waste as there will be no packaging. There are many tutorials to help you get started. If you are tired of your old Christmas baubles, think about giving them a makeover rather than simply throwing them away. Traditional round baubles for example can have a crocheted or knitted cover created or be covered in fabric which can give them a whole new lease of life.
Dispose of your waste correctly
Despite us being able to significantly reduce our waste, we will still create some waste that we cannot avoid. The waste we do create during this time must be disposed of correctly. Always check your local council and local recycling centre so that you fully understand the best way to dispose of your Christmas waste such as your wrapping paper, plastic packaging, and Christmas tree.
If you are a large household you may even want to hire a skip in order to get rid of your waste. This has the benefit of getting rid of your waste in one go and reassures you that as much as possible will be correctly recycled to avoid landfill.
Minimising Christmas waste doesn’t mean that we can't enjoy the festive season in the same way. The methods above are just small, simple changes that we can all be making. Collectively, we can all minimise our waste meaning we can enjoy the festive season, even more, knowing that we are not causing the environment as much damage as we have perhaps done in previous years.
How to Minimise Christmas Waste
How long does our waste take to break down?
We are now more aware than ever that we need to get rid of our waste in the most responsible way as possible. This is important as there are many materials that take years, decades, or even centuries to decompose. Here, we answer the question “how long does our waste take to break down?"
Under a year
Train tickets
Cotton gloves
Cardboard
Thread
Rope
Newspaper
Up to 5 Years
Plywood
Wool clothing
Up to 15 years
Lumber
Painted board
Cigarettes
Between 20 and 100 years
Leather (25-40 years)
Nylon clothes (25-40 years)
Tin cans (up to 50 years)
Foamed plastic cups (up to 50 years)
Rubber-soled boots (50-80 years)
Up to 500 years
Batteries (up to 100 years)
Batteries are one of the most dangerous items to be left in a landfill. As the thin metal casing will decompose in approximately 100 years, the heavy metals inside will be left exposed. Unfortunately, these metals will never decompose and are toxic.
Aluminium cans (200 years)
Sanitary pads (at least 500 years)
plastic bags (at least 500 years)
plastic bottles (up to 450 years)
Over 500 years
Glass bottles (up to 2 million years)
Styrofoam (DOES NOT DEGRADE)
Tin Foil (DOES NOT DEGRADE)
It is important to note that although glass bottles can take a staggering 2 million years to naturally decompose, they are easy to recycle due to the fact that they are mostly made out of sand.
Food Waste
It is reasonable to believe that because food waste comes from the ground, it should decompose quickly. However, this is not actually the case. Different food items decay at different rates. Whilst something like a banana peel may take up to a month to decay, orange peels can take six months. Surprisingly lettuce leaves that are in landfills can stay up to a quarter of a century before they decompose completely. This is another reason why food waste should also be kept to an absolute minimum.
Although this list is not comprehensive, it is a scary concept to consider the fact that a lot of the rubbish we personally create in our lifetime could still be around centuries after. However, it is not all doom and gloom. There are many little changes we can all make to our everyday routines that can help reduce the amount of waste we produce. From cutting back on plastic in our beauty routines, to using reusable coffee cups, avoiding plastic bags for shopping, and keeping our clothes for longer.
Some of the figures shared above are truly shocking. They highlight the vital need to reduce using these materials where possible and if we do use them, check to see if they can be recycled first. Hiring a skip is an efficient way to ensure as much as your waste is being recycled as possible.
Garden Maintenance Tips for Autumn
The Autumn months are the perfect time to get your garden in order. No matter what size garden you have, the amount of rubbish that can build up can be surprising. You can quickly end up having more waste than your wheelie bin can handle and this is when you should consider hiring a skip. Doing so now and tidying up your garden means that your garden will be sorted for the Winter months and ready for Spring. Here are some gardening maintenance tips for Autumn.
Keep on top of Autumn leaves
Although not all trees shed their leaves, the majority do and you can quickly find your garden overwhelmed by them. Although keeping some of them to one side can help create important habitats for wildlife to shelter in during the cold winter months, the rest can be bagged when they are dry and thrown away into a garden waste skip. The same applies to branches. Although you can keep some around your garden for wildlife, you may have too many and need them to be removed.
Next, you should look at your flower beds. If you have flowers that have died and will not return next year, have these removed to keep your flower beds neat and provide you room to plant some more bulbs for next Spring. As there are usually restrictions on the amount of soil you can place in domestic wheelie bins, hiring a skip can be a great option.
Trim hedges
As you get into Autumn, it is time to think about trimming hedges to keep growth under control. Depending on the size of your garden, this can be a mammoth task. Before you start, you must know where you are going to place your waste. Also, you must check for birds' nests before you start. It is illegal to disturb nests until the chicks have grown up and flown away from the nest.
Landscaping
Autumn is also the perfect time to get landscaping jobs done ready for you to enjoy next year. Before the weather takes a turn for the worst, you can try and sort out the patio, raised beds, or any other projects you have been putting off doing. Having a skip at hand is perfect to help you get these jobs completed quickly and efficiently, leaving you with no mess to clear up.
Tidy out the shed
Now the Summer is over, a lot of the garden furniture will have to be covered and stored away. This is often in the shed or the garage. Before you store everything away, take the time to tidy out your shed and garages. They gather unwanted items and rubbish quickly, sometimes taking up valuable space that you now need. With gardening jobs minimal for the next few months, you will be grateful in Spring that you have taken the time to sort everything out now. Anything you no longer need, find an alternative home. If that fails, your skip will be at hand to help you dispose of the waste.
Fix your fencing
If you notice there are weak areas of your fence, it is always a good idea to get them fixed before the colder, windier weather arrives. Fences can often end up damaged or even blown away, making the job even bigger and also leaving your property insecure. By dealing with it now, you can ensure you have sturdy fencing before Winter arrives.
The jobs discussed above show how hiring a skip for your garden needs can be a worthy seasonal investment. Whilst the weather is still mild enough to spend outside, it’s the perfect time to organise your garden and finish any jobs you were intending to do during the Summer. Before hiring your skip, ensure you check for any restrictions. If you know what you are intending to throw away, check with the skip hire company that they accept all of those materials.
The negative effects of fly-tipping
Because we pay council tax, we receive the benefit of a regular, free rubbish collection service. Although this is perfect for our everyday waste, there will inevitably be times where our waste exceeds the capacity of our regular household bins and we need to find an alternative way to remove this waste. Despite there being many methods to do this, some, unfortunately, turn to the unethical option of fly-tipping instead. Here, we discuss the negative effects of fly-tipping.
What is fly-tipping?
The term fly tipping refers to the practice of illegally dumping your waste. Rather than taking the rubbish to the tip or hiring a skip or professional waste disposal company, some people dump their rubbish where they hope it cannot be traced back to them, or wherever they seem fit. This can sometimes be on the street, in neighbour’s gardens, or in the countryside.
Not only is this behaviour rude and unsightly, but the effects can also be long term and disastrous.
The negative effects of fly-tipping
• Some people believe fly-tipping is the only answer as it's free. However, this isn't technically true. Although the fly-tipper doesn’t directly pay anything to get rid of the rubbish, someone has to pay for it. The local authorities and councils are those that end up footing the bill. To raise the required funds, this could end up in an increase in council tax. Not only is this frustrating for the majority of people who dispose of their rubbish legally, but it also puts unnecessary financial pressure on local authorities and means that the designated funds do not go towards other projects that can benefit the community.
• Fly-tipping makes areas look unsightly and this can have a huge impact on the surrounding area. In some cases, it has been shown to devalue the price of houses surrounding the fly-tipping hotspots.
• It is illegal and therefore if anyone is actively caught doing it they can end up with a fine or even a prison sentence.
• It impacts wildlife, especially as a lot of fly-tipping occurs in the countryside. It is common for wildlife to be severely impacted by fly-tipping. Household waste can contain many toxic ingredients and harmful plastics that can be fatal to wildlife if ingested.
• These toxic ingredients can also harm people, especially children if they accidentally ingest something.
• The health impact can become widespread as well, which some people do not take into consideration. Toxic substances can sink into the earth which can stop plants growing in the nearby area and also impact nearby creatures and ecosystems.
• If the waste disposed of through fly-tipping is general household rubbish such as rotting food, this over time can attract rats, flies and other undesirable creatures that the local neighbourhood will not like having close to their homes
Fly-tipping is a criminal act that affects many people. With so many easy waste disposal options nowadays, there is no reason fly-tipping should still be happening at the rate it is. Although it is only the minority of people that turn to fly-tipping as a viable option, people must understand the true damage fly-tipping can cause - both environmentally and financially. If you ever have waste to get rid of that is bulky then invest in hiring a skip. There are many sizes available to meet your needs and you do not even need to have space to store the skip. If you have nowhere for the skip to go, there are wait and load services as well to get around this. Alternatively, there are waste management companies that can come and pick up specific items you are struggling to dispose of.
Items NOT to put in a skip- Dangerous Items
Hiring a skip is a convenient way of disposing of household waste. Although skips can accommodate a huge range of items, there are some materials and items that should never be placed in a skip. Here we give you more information about which items you should avoid putting in a skip and some alternative disposal methods.
Skip hire is cheap and convenient. Although much of the waste is recycled there are some items that require particular disposal methods. These are not the responsibility of skip hire. Hazardous items that could cause harm to others are not allowed to be placed in a skip.
Asbestos
Asbestos is harmful and cannot be recycled so it needs to be disposed of by specialist companies. Under no circumstances can you place asbestos in your skip. There are specialist companies you can contact instead to deal with this waste. Specialist companies know how to remove asbestos in the safest way and will dispose of it accordingly. It is illegal to recycle or reuse asbestos, so qualified people should be called to remove the substance and ensure it is being disposed of correctly. Visit https://www.gov.uk/asbestos-in-home to find out how to contact your local council to organize the disposal.
Batteries
You should not place any types of battery into a skip. They contain metals and chemicals that can be harmful and therefore need to be disposed of with care. There are many hazardous materials within a battery, including lead which can be extremely poisonous. Luckily, it is easy to recycle batteries as many supermarkets and DIY stores have containers for old batteries.
Fluorescent Light Bulbs
Fluorescent light bulbs contain mercury which is a harmful substance and therefore not suitable for skip waste. Contact your local council or recycling centre to find out the best place to dispose of them.
Fridges and Freezers
Some local councils will collect your fridge or freezer for free, so it is worth exploring this option. If this is not possible you might need to pay for a specialist collection or take it to your local recycling plant.
Gas Cylinders
Not all skip hire companies are licensed to take gas cylinders, therefore you should always check in advance. Your local recycling centres may be able to recycle them so it is worth contacting them to find out. It does not matter if the gas cylinder is full, half full or empty, you should avoid placing in a skip. In many cases, you can return gas cylinders to the place of purchase and they can reuse and refill them.
Medical Waste
It is understandable that medical waste should not be placed in a skip as it could increase the risk of spreading infection and increased contamination. Get in touch with your local council who can point you to a company that will dispose medical waste on your behalf.
Paint
Paint tins cannot be placed in a skip unless they are completely empty. Contact your local council if you have filled paint tins you need to dispose of. The same rules apply for other solvents, fuels, oils and bleach.
Tyres
Tyres also need to be disposed of separately to general waste. There are organisations that collect tyres. Alternatively, contact your local car garage to see if they can suggest a place that will take them. They may even be able to dispose of them for you.
If you do not adhere to these rules, the skip hire company could refuse to remove the skip from your property or apply an additional charge. If you are unsure about any item you want to dispose of in a skip, please contact us to ensure it is acceptable.
Skip hire is extremely convenient and practical however it is not a one-stop-shop for all of your waste. For legal or practical reasons, some materials are not suitable for skips and so you need to plan ahead and know the correct ways to dispose of your rubbish before choosing your skip size. By being aware of the correct way to dispose of items can help you avoid any additional charges and will also save you time.
To find out more about how we can help you with your waste disposal and recycling needs, please contact us on 0800 083 7807 or visit our website for further information.
UK urged to do more to improve household recycling figures
In the ‘UK Statistics on Waste’ report by DEFRA, figures show that while the amount of waste sent for recycling from UK homes crept above 45% for the first time in 2016, progress has been too slow to have a realistic chance of meeting binding EU targets set for 2020.
Recycling rates among UK households differed between nations, with Wales the best performing country with a rate of 57% and Scotland, the worst with 42.8%. The recycling rate overall increased only marginally from 44.6% in 2015, to 45.2% in 2016.
These fractional improvements have been condemned by environmental groups such as the Environmental Services Association (ESA) who commented that UK recycling rates “remain in the doldrums” and that it was unlikely that we would reach targets set by the EU of 50% home recycling by 2020. He went on to encourage DEFRA to turn their resources and waste strategy towards the issue of sustainable markets for recyclable materials, and the residual waste capacity gap.
This year the UK government, launched a comprehensive 25-year plan aimed at protecting the environment and cracking down on so-called “avoidable” plastic waste - a move welcomed by green groups who pointed out that over half a million tonnes of plastic was collected from UK homes in 2017. However, some groups such as Greenpeace voiced scepticism as to whether the government would follow through with their plans and criticized them for not tackling other environmental issues.
Here at LSPS, recycling is of great importance to us and we help businesses and individuals all across Leicestershire to reduce the amount of their waste that ends up at landfill sites. Our Waste Transfer Station is open to traders and has an extensive range of state of the art equipment.
To find out how about we can help with your waste disposal needs please contact us on 0800 083 7807, or visit our website for further information.
Medicine Wastage: The Facts
Why is medicine wasted?
The reasons for not using medicine and returning it to the pharmacy or GP can vary. It could be that a patient has recovered and no longer needs the medicine, their condition might have progressed and they now need a different treatment, a patient might over order medicine “just in case” they need it, or a patient might sadly pass away and then the medicine is returned by relatives or carers.
What happens to wasted medicine?
Sadly, more often than not the unwanted medicine cannot be reused or given to another patient for safety reasons. So if wasted medicine actually makes it back to the pharmacy or doctors, rather than sitting in a cupboard, then it tends to just be destroyed by means of an incinerator.
How can we reduce medicine wastage?
Stockpiling medicine is one of the biggest contributors to the £300million loss as people will sometimes order more of a product than they actually need because they fear running out. This is why the NHS launched the ‘Only Order What You Need’ campaign to combat waste. You can read more about it here: http://www.medicinewaste.com/campaign.
Another reason for wastage is caused when a patient fails to stick to their course of prescription. Often, medication works the quickest and most effectively when it is used for a consistent period of time. If a patient forgets to take their prescription and stops and starts their course, they are more likely to have to begin a course again or for the course to take longer to work – thus driving up the cost.
Here at LSPS recycling is of great importance to us and we help businesses and individuals all across Leicestershire to reduce the amount of their waste that ends up at landfill sites. Our Waste Transfer Station is open to traders and has an extensive range of state of the art equipment.
To find out how about we can help with your waste disposal needs please contact us on 0800 083 7807, or visit our website for further information.
Coffee pods – a headache for sustainability?
Take the German port city of Hamburg, where the problem with coffee pods became so great that they have put a ban in place specifically targeting coffee capsules and pods. A report from the department of Environment & Energy determined that the pods can cause “unnecessary resource consumption and waste generation”.
Why are coffee pods such a nuisance?
The problem lies in the complexity of their packaging. Coffee pods tend to be made up of a combination of various different materials, mainly plastics and aluminium, which can take between 150-500 years to naturally degrade in the environment and are hard to process at a recycling plant.
If they are so difficult to recycle why are they used?
The reason for the use of these materials rather than something which is more biodegradable is that coffee pods need to be able to withstand immense pressure and heat when brewing. Coffee pods hold a large amount of coffee in a small amount of packaging which allows for a powerful and consistent brew for consumers.
Is there a solution out there?
Some leading coffee pod producers like Nespresso have begun to take responsibility for recycling their own capsules, placing collection points in convenient areas such as supermarkets, while other companies like Phillips have begun producing machines which use recyclable coffee bags rather than pods.
What should I do with my coffee pods?
In general, most recycling companies advise that you avoid using coffee pods all together and instead choose another method of brewing your coffee. However, if you do decide to use them then you are unable to place them in your recycling collections at home.
Here at LSPS we take recycling very seriously. To find out how about we can help with your waste disposal needs please contact us on 0800 083 7807, or visit our website for further information.
