WHY: Reusing items by sharing them with neighbours, donating them to charity and community groups, selling them on eBay or repairing them all reduces waste. Use a product more than once, either for the same purpose or a different one. Reusing is preferable to recycling because the item does not need to be reprocessed before it can be used again.
A comprehensive A-Z of reuse guides can be found on the West London Waste website, but for a few ideas read on…
WHAT CAN I REUSE:
- Plastic bags
- Glass and plastic containers
- Nappies
- Furniture
- Clothes…..
HOW:
- Using durable coffee mugs
- Using cloth napkins or towels
- Refilling bottles
- Donating old magazines or surplus equipment
- Reusing boxes
- Turning empty jars into containers
- Purchasing refillable pens and pencils
- Participating in a paint collection and reuse programme
- Bringing your own old carrier bags when shopping or even better a canvas shopping bag or basket
- Using your old shopping bags as a bin liner
- Using organic waste as compost
- Buying recycled paper
- Taking old clothes to a charity shop (e.g. Age UK, Alexandra House)
- Sharing items (e.g. tools and DVDs) with neighbours through StreetBank
- Donating good quality furniture that you no longer require to local charities e.g. William Wilberforce Trust or Hounslow Furniture Recycling Project (020 8744 0615)
- Using modern washable nappies. Find out more about the Real Nappy Scheme and you can save money and the environment.
- Giving away that special something for free rather than throw it away: Hounslow Freecycle and Hounslow Freegle.
- Swapping or giving away old books by Book Crossing at Docking Station or using the Read It Swap It! – Book Swap Shop
- Visiting Reuze to find out more about how, what and where to recycle in the UK
- Taking unwanted paint to pass onto schools and community groups Community Re-paint (020 8813 3181)
