Reducing plastic waste can be tricky. Last year student Elina set out to reduce her plastic waste and shares her top tips in the latest Greener Futures blog.
This blog is part of a series written by Surrey residents who will be sharing their personal experiences of making changes to reduce their carbon footprint. We hope the blogs will provide other people with inspiration and guidance to make changes of their own. If you think you would like to contribute, please submit an expression of interest via this form.
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No more plastic wasteOver the past year I became more aware of my environmental impact and decided to minimize it as much as possible. So, I began looking into ways of having a more sustainable lifestyle and decided to start off this journey by reducing the amount of plastic waste I produce.
I went through my bathroom and kitchen products and discovered that over 90% of them were packed in bulky plastic containers. I then decided to consume the ones I had already purchased and to start looking for more environmentally-friendly alternatives. Here is what I did and how I went from all-plastic-everything to close-to-zero-waste:
I changed my toothbrush from a plastic one to a bamboo one. I also switched to bamboo cotton swabs and reusable makeup remover cotton pads.I stopped buying liquid soap and started using solid one instead. I used to think this would dry my hands but most of the newer formulas contain hydrating ingredients and, frankly, I cannot tell a difference. While researching online, I noticed a trend in using solid shampoo and conditioner. Personally, I have not tried that yet, as I feel I would still prefer the liquid versions. So, I started to look into sustainable ways of getting liquid shampoo without the plastic waste. I soon found shops that would offer re-fills so you only need to buy a bottle once (and does not even need to be a plastic one!) and then re-fill it. Bare + Fair is one shop that I found in Woking, but I am sure there are plenty out there. They offer a great variety of products and refills for skincare products, toiletries, general household items and even food! I also try to shop at places that recycle their packaging. Superdrug has a bin where you can leave your empty makeup products and at Lush you can recycle every plastic container you buy from them! Plus, when you bring in five empty plastic pots for recycling, you get a free fresh face mask! Win-win situation. For cleaning, I found a company called Smol which delivers laundry detergent in your letterbox, completely plastic-free. They also sell surface cleansers that require you to buy the bottles once (glass ones) and then you can use them for life! You only need to repurchase their extra-concentrated tablets that you dissolve in water in the glass bottles and voila- plastic free cleaning products. This can help save up to 25 plastic bottles a year and the best part is that it also helps you save A LOT of money in the process. I also noticed how in my kitchen I have a large plastic bag filled with multiple small ones which I would never re-use so I decided to get into the habit of always carrying a reusable bag with me. It does not take much space and it’s a life-saver for unexpected shopping. You can get one from many places, but I would suggest supporting a charity in the process and getting one from there. On the same note, I stopped buying fruits and vegetables that are wrapped in plastic and decided to shop in my local farmer’s market with my own reusable shopping bag on hand. Also, I discovered Oddbox, a great online business that rescues fresh fruits and vegetables directly from farms and delivers them to your door. You can read more on their website, but personally, I think it’s a great idea and everything I purchased from them was delicious and fresh:
For water, I bought a water filter and stopped purchasing individual bottles weekly. There are many kinds of filters, for all budgets, and you can find them pretty much anywhere.Lastly, you can also find plastic-free toilet paper that lasts for one whole year on this article. These are some changes that I made to reduce the plastic I send to landfill and I can definitely say that not only do I feel better as a consumer but I also saved a lot of pocket money in the process.
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