6 Habits I Made to Reduce Trash (Surprisingly Simple).
When I first began diving into how to live a low waste lifestyle, I was intimidated. I saw people with minimalist homes showing off how all their trash from the year fit into a tiny mason jar. Honestly, I thought they were full of shit. I did not believe someone could just not … make any trash. How?
I still decided to give it a try and while our household of two (+3 pets) has not yet gotten to the point of having our yearly trash fit into a mason jar, we have made enormous amounts of progress over the years. The hardest part was figuring out where to start.
These are some of the things that helped our household get to the point that we have to take our trash out around every two months:
Switch to reusable items - Some of these things I already did just from being cheap. Things like napkins and paper towels are not something you need to buy. You can cut up old t-shirts, or buy reusable handmade ones. I would be lying if I said I never buy paper towels - I have some reserved for when the pets get sick.
Start Composting - This eliminated so much of our trash! Our trash now has no food waste at all. Most paper products can also be composted. Mindfully shopping and considering whether or not packaging is compostable has helped out too. I am obsessed with how easy it is to begin composting and think everyone should do it.
Grocery shop in the bulk bins - We are lucky where we live, we have multiple options of grocery stores that have bulk bins. And trust me - we utilize them! Our local grocery store cashiers know us as the people with all the jars. I no longer buy coffee, spices, beans, nuts, or tea in packaging on a regular basis. Very little food packaging comes into our house.
Support zero waste/refill shops - If you are lucky enough to have a zero waste shop near you, support it! These are shops where you can bring your own jar or container and refill household cleaning items and other essentials like dish soap, laundry detergent
Buy plastic-free alternatives - If you use things frequently that are disposable and plastic, there is most likely a plastic-free alternative. Razors, toothbrushes, toothpaste, mouthwash, shampoo - all have an alternative.
Get in the habit of bringing your own - This takes time. I actually had to start by taping a checklist at our front door of things to bring. Or, at least, a reminder to ask myself if I would need any of these things where I was going: reusable bag, coffee cup, water bottle, cutlery. Now it is mostly second nature to me. Sure, I slip up sometimes (nobody is perfect)
While I now do see that it is possible to reduce your yearly trash into a mason jar with a lot of effort, it is also not practical for the average person. That does not mean you should give up on trying to reduce your trash, small efforts really do add up.
