Introduction

If you have heard of something called the waste hierarchy you may be wondering what that
means. It is the order of priority of actions to be taken to reduce the amount of waste generated,
and to improve overall waste management processes and programs. The waste hierarchy consists
of 3 Rs as follows:

Reduce

Reuse

Recycle

Called the three Rs of waste management, this waste hierarchy is the guidance suggested for
creating a sustainable life. You might be wondering as to how can you incorporate these
principles in your daily life. They are not hard to implement. All you need is to bring a small
change in your daily lifestyle to reduce waste so that less amount of it goes to the landfill that
can reduce your carbon footprint.

REDUCE
The best way to manage waste is to not produce it. This can be done by shopping carefully and
being aware of a few guidelines:

Buy products in bulk. Larger, economy-size products or ones in concentrated form use
less packaging and usually cost less per ounce.

Avoid over-packaged goods, especially ones packed with several materials such as foil,
paper, and plastic. They are difficult to recycle, plus you pay more for the package.

Avoid disposable goods, such as paper plates, cups, napkins, razors, and lighters.
Throwaways contribute to the problem, and cost more because they must be replaced
again and again.

Buy durable goods - ones that are well-built or that carry good warranties. They will last
longer, save money in the long run and save landfill space.

At work, make two-sided copies when ever possible.

Maintain central files rather than using several files for individuals.

Use electronic mail or main bulletin board.

Remove your name from the mailing lists of materials you no longer want to receive:
write to Mail Preference Service, c/o Direct Marketing Assoc., P.O. Box 90008,
Farmingdale, NY 11735.

Use cloth napkins instead of paper napkins.

Use a dish cloth instead of paper towels.

Instead of buying something you're not going to use very often, see if you can borrow it
from someone you know.

Cars use up energy and cause pollution. Some ways to reduce the environmental damage
caused by cars include carpooling with friends, walking, taking the bus, or riding your bike
instead of driving.
Start a compost bin. Some people set aside a place in their yard where they can dispose of
certain food and plant materials. Over time, the materials will break down through a natural
process called decomposition. The compost is good for the soil in your yard and means that less
garbage will go to the landfill.
You can reduce waste by using a computer! Many newspapers and magazines are online now.
Instead of buying the paper versions, you can find them on the Internet. Also remember that you
should print out only what you need. Everything you print that you don't really need is a waste of
paper.
Save energy by turning off lights that you are not using.
Save water by turning off the faucet while you brush your teeth.

Lots of families receive a large amount of advertisements and other junk mail that
they do not want. You can stop the mailings and reduce waste by writing to the following
address and requesting that they take your name off of their distribution list:

REUSE
It makes economic and environmental sense to reuse products. Sometimes it
takes creativity:

Reuse products for the same purpose. Save paper and plastic bags, and repair broken
appliances, furniture and toys.

Reuse products in different ways. Use a coffee can to pack a lunch; use plastic
microwave dinner trays as picnic dishes.

Sell old clothes, appliances, toys, and furniture in garage sales or ads, or donate them to
charities.

Use resealable containers rather than plastic wrap.

Use a ceramic coffee mug instead of paper cups.

Reuse grocery bags or bring your own cloth bags to the store. Do not take a bag from the
store unless you need one.

Bring cloth sacks to the store with you instead of taking home new paper or plastic bags.
You can use these sacks again and again. You'll be saving some trees!

Plastic containers and reusable lunch bags are great ways to take your lunch to school
without creating waste.

Coffee cans, shoe boxes, margarine containers, and other types of containers people
throw away can be used to store things or can become fun arts and crafts projects. Use
your imagination!

Don't throw out clothes, toys, furniture, and other things that you don't want anymore.
Somebody else can probably use them. You can bring them to a center that collects
donations, give them to friends, or even have a yard sale.

Use all writing paper on both sides.

Use paper grocery bags to make book covers rather than buying new ones.

Use silverware and dishes instead of disposable plastic utensils and plates.

Store food in reusable plastic containers.

1. Old jars and pots: Old jars and pots can be used to store items in kitchen. They can also
be used to store loose items together such as computer wires.
2. Tyres: Old tyres can either be sent to recycling station or can be used to make tyreswing.
3. Used wood: Used wood can be used as firewood or can be used woodcrafts.
4. Newspaper: Old newspapers can be used to pack items when youre planning to move
to another home or store old items.
5. Envelopes: Old and waste envelopes can be used by children to make short notes.
6. Waste paper: Waste paper can be used to make notes and sketches and can be send to
recycling center when you dont need them anymore.
Items that can be donated to others include:
1. Old books: Your old books can be used by poor children or can be donated to public
libraries.
2. Old clothes: Your unwanted clothes can be used by street children or can be donated to
charity institutions.
3. Old electric equipment: Old electric equipment can be donated to schools or NGOs so
that they can use them.
4. Rechargeable batteries: Rechargeable batteries can be used again and again and helps
to reduce unnecessary wastage as opposed to regular batteries.

RECYCLE
Recycling is a series of steps that takes a used material and processes,
remanufactures, and sells it as a new product. Begin recycling at home and at
work:

Buy products made from recycled material. Look for the recycling symbol or ask store
managers or salesmen. The recycling symbol means one of two things - either the product
is made of recycled material, or the item can be recycled. For instance, many plastic
containers have a recycling symbol with a numbered code the identifies what type of
plastic resin it is made from. However, just because the container has this code does not
mean it can be easily recycled locally.

Check collection centers and curbside pickup services to see what they accept, and begin
collecting those materials. These can include metal cans, newspapers, paper products,
glass, plastics and oil.

Consider purchasing recycled materials at work when purchasing material for office
supply, office equipment or manufacturing.

Speak to store managers and ask for products and packaging that help cut down on waste,
such as recycled products and products that are not over packaged.

Buy products made from material that is collected for recycling in your community.

Use recycled paper for letterhead, copier paper and newsletters.

BENIFITS
Reduce the Size of Landfills: One of the biggest reasons why recycling has been promoted is
that it does reduce the strain on our environment. By utilizing waste products in a constructive
way, we can slowly decrease the size of our landfills. As the population grows, it will become
difficult for the landfills to hold so much and trash. When this happens, our cities and beautiful
landscapes will face pollution, poisoning and many health problems. The benefits of recycling
are that it helps to keep the pollution in check and decrease it little by little.
Conserve Natural Resources: Scrap cars, old bottles, junk mail and used rubber tyres are
becoming common features of our landfills. All of these may seem endless, but the resources
required to make them are finishing off quickly. Recycling allows all of these junk items to be

used over and over again so that new resources do not have to be exploited. It conserves natural
resources such as water, minerals, coal, oil, gas and timber. Another one of the benefits of
recycling is that it allows more emphasis to be put on creating technology to utilize what already
exists. This is why a number of industries support programs where they can receive large
quantities of recyclable material to convert into new items.
More Employment Opportunities: While you may feel that recycling is each person for
himself, in reality it is a huge industry within itself. After you do the basic sorting out and deposit
your trash for recycling, it has to be sorted and shipped off to the right places. This is done by
thousands of workers, who are newly employed by the growing industry. Certainly, one of the
major benefits of recycling is that it creates more jobs in the community and provides stability to
the entire process. Throwing the trash away creates some six to seven jobs at best, where
recycling can help create close to thirty jobs.
Offers Cash Benefits: Recycling is not all about being charitable and doing what is good for the
environment. If it were so, everybody would recycle out of the goodness of their hearts. Most
governments have policies in place which give financial benefits to those who recycle. People
that take the aluminum cans or glass bottles to the recycling plant, get a cash benefit in return. In
fact, many teenagers can pick up recycling as a way to make extra money on the side. Old
newspapers, appliances, plastic, rubber, steel, copper and even beer cans can be sold for money.
Saves Money: An unexpected place where the benefits of recycling can be seen is our economy.
A strong economy is one that is efficient in nature. What drags it down is having to pay for
resources that are growing scarce in the country. Every bit of recycling counts when the economy
does not have to pay for planting more forests, mining iron ore or purchasing fossil fuels from
other countries. When the jobs increase, the economy gets a boost. As the cost of maintaining the
current waste disposal system go down, all the money saved is diverted to where it is need the
most.
Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions: When you recycle products, you tend to save energy
which results in less greenhouse gas emissions. Greenhouse gases are primarily responsible for
increase in global warming. It helps to reduce air and water pollution by cutting down the
number of pollutants that are released into the environment. A recycling rate of 30% can is
almost equivalent of removing 30 million cars from the roads.
Saves Energy: When you recycle aluminum cans, you can save 95% of the energy required to
produce those cans from raw materials, energy saved from recycling one glass bottle is enough to
light a light bulb for four hours. This clearly shows how much energy can be saved if recycling is
taken on a larger scale. With this, the reliance on foreign oil is reduced which also helps you to
save money in long run.
Stimulate the Use of Greener Technologies: With use of more recycling products, it has pushed
people towards more greener technologies. Use of renewable energy sources like solar, wind,
geothermal is on rise which has helped to conserve energy and reduce pollution.

Bring Different Groups and Communities Together: At the end of the day, recycling is an act
that can bring a community together. Whether it is by picking up trash from the roads or
collecting waste materials to raise money for schools and colleges. Many simple programs that
make a community stronger can be built upon the many benefits of recycling. Many people have
found that their collective efforts in proper waste disposal have made their towns cleaner and
happier. Others have found friends and supporters in their mission to change the world. In fact, it
is one the best ways to teach children about responsibility and taking an initiative.
Prevents Loss of Biodiversity: Less raw material is needed when you engage yourself in
recycling products. The beauty of recycling is that it will help you to conserve resources and
prevents loss of biodiversity, ecosystems and rainforests. Mining activities will reduce which is
considered as dangerous for mine workers. Soil erosion and water pollution will be reduced
which in turn will protect native plants and animals to survive in forests. Deforestation, which is
on rise these days will significantly reduce if recycling is considered seriously by majority of
people.