Managing waste sustainably is important for keeping our living spaces clean and healthy. Using simple and effective waste management solutions helps reduce harm to the environment and makes better use of resources. This article will share the top 6 easy ways to manage waste in your housing society, making it a cleaner and greener place to live.
Segregate at the source
- Use two bins at home, one for dry (recyclable) waste and one for wet (organic) waste. This makes recycling and composting easier.
- Colour-code the bins and put up simple posters to show what goes in each bin. This helps everyone understand how to sort their waste.
- Many countries use this system and have successfully reduced waste. We should follow these good examples.
- Sort your waste into things that can rot (like food scraps) and things that cannot (like plastic).
- You can also compost food leftovers, fruit, and vegetable peels at home. This makes recycling easier and keeps our surroundings clean and healthy.
Promote reusing
- Avoid using single-use items like plastic bags, cups, and cutlery.
- Use reusable items like cloth bags, water bottles, and steel containers instead.
- Encourage everyone in your community to use these reusable alternatives.
- Organise swap meets where people can trade items they no longer need instead of throwing them away.
- This helps reduce waste and promotes a culture of reusing and recycling.
Start composting
- Food scraps and yard waste are a big part of household trash.
- Encourage people to compost kitchen scraps and yard trimmings.
- Set up a community composting pit or get a composting machine for your society.
- Composting turns wet waste into rich fertiliser for gardens.
- If you have a garden or want to start one, you’ll get homemade, eco-friendly fertiliser for your plants.
Educate your surrounding
- Hold workshops to teach people about waste management.
- Run awareness campaigns to show the benefits of recycling and composting.
- Send newsletters to residents with helpful waste management tips.
- Put up simple posters in common areas to keep everyone informed.
- Keeping everyone educated helps improve waste management in the community.
Reduce plastic usage
- Animals often choke on plastic waste, and marine life gets stuck in it. This shows we need to use less plastic.
- Don’t buy plastic water bottles. Carry your own reusable bottle.
- Stop using plastic straws. Drink straight from the glass.
- Use steel or glass cups instead of plastic ones. Always take a cloth bag when you go shopping.
- You can even make bags from old jeans or denim.
Say yes to online payments
- Ask for soft copies of your bills by email instead of paper copies.
- Tell store employees not to print your receipts while shopping.
- Transfer money online via NEFT or RTGS to avoid using cheque books.
- This helps reduce paper waste at home.
- It also teaches your kids basic waste management skills.
FAQs
Separating waste at home (dry/recyclable & wet/organic) allows for easier recycling, composting, and proper disposal of non-biodegradable waste.
Paper products (cardboard, newspapers), plastic bottles & containers, metal cans, and glass bottles.
Food scraps, vegetable peels, yard trimmings, and tea bags.
Buy reusable items like shopping bags and water bottles, avoid excessive packaging, and opt for long-lasting products.
No, there are small-scale composting bins and machines suitable for societies with limited space.
Organise workshops on composting benefits and techniques, and offer convenient drop-off locations for kitchen scraps. Why do we need to segregate waste?
What goes in the dry waste bin?
What goes in the wet waste bin?
How can we reduce household waste?
Do we need a lot of space for composting?
How can residents be encouraged to participate in composting?
| Got any questions or point of view on our article? We would love to hear from you. Write to our Editor-in-Chief Jhumur Ghosh at jhumur.ghosh1@housing.com |