Waste
Over the last two or three years there has been a growing awareness of the problems associated with plastic waste, to the extent that even the large supermarkets are making efforts to reduce single use plastic packaging. We have all been encouraged to follow the 'Reduce, Reuse, Recycle' mantra as put forward in this jolly song...
Refuse
Here in Devizes we now have two shops where you can take your own containers when you buy grocery or cleaning products. Please check out and support The Little Eco Shop and Healthy Life. Consider also switching back to a traditional milk delivery service using glass bottles - as provided by Planks Dairies.
Reuse
Local charity KFR make excelent use of unwanted furniture and white goods by collecting, repairing and reselling them. Their mission is to provide affordable home furnishing and appliances to those on a low income, but they sell to anyone and so their warehouse is a good place to start if you need any of these things.
Our Repair Cafe initiative is also aimed at encouraging people in Devizes to repair and continue to use goods, whilst also passing on repair skills to the next generation.
Recycle
Wiltshire Council have been striving to increase the proportion of household waste that is recycled. In the last year several changes have been made to the recycling and collection arrangements. Please check out their latest advice here.
The Circular Economy
Despite all our efforts at a personal level waste continues to be a huge problem. Whilst manufacturers continue to churn out 'disposable' packaging and goods this will continue to be the case. This is an inescapable consequence of the linear way in which our economy drives the extraction of materials, processing into goods and then end of life disposal. Whereas in nature there is always something that makes use of any waste, recycling the nutrients from it. This short video from the Ellen Macarthur Foundation explains how moving to a nature inspired circular economy could finally solve the problem of waste.