Reduce Waste, Save The Planet

Coal, oil and natural gases are all used in the process of manufacturing plastic containers. When these eventually breakdown (100's of years later) gases are released into the atmosphere, mostly methane.

Australians use 1.3 million tonnes of plastic every year and almost half is recycled but the other half ends up in all the wrong places having a negative impact on the environment. so, how can you reduce waste and save the planet? Below are some key facts (that might surprise you) and recycling tips to get you started.

Keys facts:

• It can take 12x 5ltr empty plastic containers to make one adult fleece jacket.
• It takes 3 times the amount of water to produce just one plastic bottle than to fill it.
• Bottled water costs 1000 times more than tap water.
• Nearly all tap water is more heavily regulated than bottled water.

Reduce Waste - Recycling Tips:

• Take your own bags to the supermarket.

• Tie the bag in a knot  so it has less chance of blowing around in the wind
• Remove the rings on plastic bottles
• All plastic bags can be returned to the supermarket.
• Plastic bags should not go into the recycling bin, this usually clogs the system slowing down the process of what really should be recycled.
• Bags full of plastic bottles will not be separated into recycling. For safety reasons, it will end up in the normal rubbish. To avoid this, make sure to throw loose bottles into the recycling or earn and return station.

I hope this blog has not depressed you too much and you think twice about buying bottled water. You can talk to your local council about having plastic bags banned completely.

At Bio Hygiene the minimisation of our carbon footprint is of the utmost importance.  We are always looking at ways to reduce our impact, whether it is providing our products in larger 5 litre containers, so that our customers have less plastic bottles to dispose of, or hopefully recycle, to educating nurses and staff of ways to reduce their carbon footprint.