Reduce and reuse

Reduce and reuse

Reducing and reusing your waste can save you money and helps the environment by reducing the amount of rubbish we send for incineration (to generate electricity).

Reduce

The best thing we can do with waste is not to produce it in the first place!

Reducing our waste by not producing so much is something each one of us can do.

As consumers we can use our purchasing power and choose products which are produced sustainably, use little or no packaging and are durable. Buying only what we really need also helps to reverse the trend of today’s throw-away society.

See the Recycle Western Riverside webpages for tips to reduce your rubbish:

Bottled water (opens in new window)
Food waste (opens in new window)
Green shopping (opens in new window)
Junk mail (opens in new window)
Packaging (opens in new window)
Plastic bags (opens in new window)

Reuse

Reuse means passing something you no longer want on to others, or giving an item a new lease of life as something completely different.

Either way, reusing your waste can save you money and help the environment, by reducing the amount of rubbish you send to landfill.

Here are some ideas of how you can reuse your rubbish:

» Furniture, white goods and electrical appliance reuse - find out how to book a collection with the London Reuse Network

» Garden waste and composting - find out how to claim a £20 compost bin

» Real nappies - find out how to claim a £45 voucher by coming to one of our Nappy Natters

» Clothes, shoes and textile reuse and recycling - swap til you drop at our Swishing party

» On-line exchange (opens in new window)

Visit the Recycle Western Riverside website (opens in new window) to find out what can be reused at the Reuse and Recycling Centres.

A to Z of materials

Search for reuse and reduction tips by material - visit the A to Z on the Recycle Western Riverside website (opens in new window).