Reduce, Reuse, Recycle! How to Easily Become Environmentally Friendly

Now more than ever an emphasis is being put on "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle." It is a basic principle that unfortunately gets overlooked far too often. Reduce the amount of trash you make by buying in bulk, limiting over-packaging and choosing products that are durable and long lasting. Reusing is made easier by programs such as Freecycle and Craigslist's free section. If using the internet isn't appealing to you, find new ways to make the old usable again, or see if your local waste management center has a drop-off area for usable goods.

Of course that leaves us with recycle. Nothing is easier to do if you have a proper set up, and most of those things you throw away daily can be recycled. In 2006 alone recycling saved about 82 million tons of waste from being put into landfills. Some feel that recycling is for hippies and environmental zealots, but it most definitely is for everyone. Recycling can save money on trash costs as well as saving the environment.

Most recyclable goods can be found in the kitchen. From milk cartons to juice bottles and even the plastic bags you bring them home in, the kitchen is ripe with items that can be reused. If you are unsure of an item's ability to be recycled, check for the recycling label, usually located on the side of large plastic containers and on the bottoms of smaller ones, such as yogurt containers. Even the emptied and rinsed cans that once held fruits and vegetables can be recycled.

Another way to reduce your waste in the kitchen is to start a compost pile. Most items that cannot be recycled traditionally, such as soiled napkins and paper towels, can be put into a compost pile along with food scraps of every kind. Even coffee grounds and filters can be composted. Many waste management centers will have a community compost pile if you live in an apartment or just have no reason to keep a compost pile at home. Once composted the material becomes an amazing fertilizer which can aid in "Reduce" if used in your garden! If you grow your vegetables instead of buying them, no plastic bag is needed! And you can be sure that your food is being grown without pesticides being used - instant organic!

If you have an infant or toddler in diapers, you can consider a switch to cloth diapers. Not only are they more eco-friendly (unless your area is facing a water shortage) but children who use cloth diapers are potty trained 6 months earlier on average - double bonus! If you want to go even further, look into "elimination communication" which is a method of potty training nearly from birth. Some parents and doctors are strong advocates while others feel a child cannot be potty trained at such a young age. Either way, both methods can reduce the 27 billion disposable diapers that eventually end up in a landfill each year.

In order to be a successful recycler, some time will be needed to set up. Many waste management centers will give plastic bins away for sorting, but you can take it one step further by "reusing" large cardboard boxes, such as television boxes, that have an uncanny knack for stacking up in our basement. Also check and see if your recycling center requires items to be sorted or if they will accept mixed recyclables. Also check and see if any centers near you have weekly or bi-weekly curbside pickup or if you will have to take your recyclables down to the center yourself.

"Reduce, reuse, recycle" is a easy thing to teach children, as well. Check with your child's school to see if they have a recycling program in place, and if they don't, help to start one. With textbooks, drawing paper, scratch paper, and old tests there is plenty in a school to be recycled and involving children in the process will instill the importance in them from an early age. If our children are raised to recycle, it is something that will more likely be carried on into their adult lives.

Even though we are just starting to see the negative effects of global warming (No, I am no zealot. It is a valid issue) our children will be seeing more of it if we don't begin to change. The good thing is we don'thave to take drastic measures right now. Simply using the three R's will bring our planet back to where it needs to be. Limiting the toxins that are released into the earth is one more part of the cycle. I cannot say how many bonfires I have seen where people freely toss plastics in, even though they know plastic becomes toxic when burned. It is that kind of thinking and actions that need to be changed.

And it can benefit you in more ways than just environmentally. When you stop putting all those recyclables in your trash cans, something funny will happen. You will notice your bags fill much slower than normal, especially if you add composting to the mix. Less trash in the bag means fewer trips to the dump. Some states give a refund on bottles of soda, juice, and other plastics, as well as on aluminum cans. Check recycling centers to see your states policy.

Implementing the strategies of "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" is easier than most think. You don't have to go all-in right away and in fact, lasting changes are more often made little by little. Take the time to look at your current actions and see where improvement can be made. Recycling can be fun as well as beneficial, so make it a family act and have fun with it!