The 5 R’s are very important to living a zero-waste lifestyle. Refuse what you do not need, reduce what you do need, reuse what you consume, recycle what you cannot refuse, reduce, or reuse, and rot (compost) the rest. Each of these can be applied in everyday life. Click here for an introduction to a zero-waste lifestyle.
Refuse:
Many times throughout the day you will be offered a disposable item. Refusing a disposable or wasteful item means the item won’t end up at the local landfill after being thrown away.
Some items you can refuse include the following:
Using straws at a restaurant
Grabbing extra napkins
Using plastic utensils
Wrapping produce in plastic produce bags
Reduce:
Reducing the amount of waste used on a daily or weekly basis includes any of the following:
Reduce the amount of water and electricity you use
Reduce the amount of traveling done per week and attempting to carpool/use public transportation as much as possible
Reduce the amount of plastic used in packaged items by buying in bulk as much as possible or shopping at a zero-waste grocery store
Reuse:
Many disposable items have non-disposable counterparts. It can be expensive to replace all of your disposable products at once, so make sure to use those products; then switch to sustainable products. This process does not happen overnight and takes time to fully stop using disposable products.
Some ways to implement reusable items include the following:
Using reusable canvas shopping bags at grocery stores
Providing your own coffee mug or tumbler to use at a coffee shop
Using reusable glass storage containers instead of plastic disposable storage containers
Recycle:
Recycling is important; however, when “recycled” plastic enters the recycling facility, it gets repurposed into a weaker version of plastic. When that version of plastic gets recycled, it gets repurposed into an even weaker version of that plastic. Once the plastic has been down-cycled to a material that can no longer be used, it ends up in the landfill. Therefore, plastic can be recycled, but will still end up in a landfill or water supply. The most important items to recycle are glass, aluminum, and paper products; these materials can be continually recycled without deteriorating the material.
Rot:
Composting is an easy way to help the environment and is easy to do; it is defined as the natural process that occurs when organic materials are broken down during the decomposition process. Composting is the most natural way to dispose of organic ingredients. If you have a backyard, you can use a tumbler to grind organic materials into compost. Some places, such as a community garden, will take leftover organic materials and turn them into compost to use.
Utilizing the 5 R’s throughout the day will allow you to live a more sustainable lifestyle. Did you learn any new tips? Let us know in the comments below and make sure to follow our Instagram for more information.
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