We all tend to create more household waste at this time of year. But, could we all be ‘doing our bit’ a little bit more to reduce the amount we produce?

It’s hard not to get carried away with shopping for presents, for food, stocking up on wrapping paper, greetings cards and all the other ‘must-have’ items that we feel obliged to buy in the lead up to Christmas.

If you, like many of us, wish to make a difference and reduce our impact on the environment you may wish to try out some of these suggestions:

1. Make your own advent calendar or invest in a reusable one.

Cardboard and plastic from your advent calendars can be recycled in your clear bag. If parts of the calendar are made of a multi-layer material consisting of plastic and foil, these can’t be recycled; place them in your non-recyclable black bin waste.

2. Stay clear of heavily-packaged gift sets.

Gift sets can be deceiving as they often contain only a couple of products hidden in serval layers of packaging which will get discarded immediately after unwrapping. Why not try buying the items separately or look for the products in reusable containers.

Remember, clean foil, cardboard, paper, and most types of plastic can all go in your clear recycling bag collected weekly.

3. Plan ahead for meal times.

Several thousand tonnes of food goes to waste in the UK, even more so during the festive season so let’s all try and be a bit more organised, and save money at the same time. Resist the urge to impulse buy, check the use-by dates, and consider freezing leftovers.

We collect your food waste weekly. Food waste should only be presented in the tied food waste liners inside the large food waste container, both of which are provided by us. All unpackaged food waste, whether cooked or uncooked, can be recycled in your food waste container. One lorry load of food waste can generate enough electricity to power 20,000 TV’s for an hour – just think that Christmas special you’re watching on TV may be powered by all the Brussel sprouts left uneaten!

4. Cheers!

Remember whether it’s a cocktail, mocktail, or a bottle of your favourite, don’t put glass bottles and jars in your non-recyclable black waste bag – pop them in your glass collection box instead which we collect every three weeks.

5. It’s a wrap

Some wrapping paper is recyclable whilst others are not. The shiny variety that tends to bounce back into shape cannot be recycled. Brown paper with string is a chic alternative to shop-bought wrapping paper and can be reused, and can also be recycled.

Inevitably there will still be a lot of waste for you to deal with during the festive season. Try to sort through it and recycle as much as possible. Or, keep things for next year if you can reuse them. If you’re unsure of how to dispose of some household items, we have a handy A-Z of items on our website, along with information on what happens to your recycling once we’ve collected it: www.ceredigion.gov.uk/resident/bins-recycling/a-z-of-waste/

01/12/2021