Bring Plastic-Free July Into Your Rental Home
As we come out of the high of the most daring Wave of Change victory (Maltese swimmer Neil Agius swam from Sicily to Malta) we’ve now moved into plastic-free July! Here are some tips on running a plastic-free home. Do you think it’s impossible to live a plastic-free lifestyle? Well, starting off with just a few changes will help you get started and make it seem a little more doable whilst still leaving less of an impact on our environment.
You may assume that converting to a more eco-friendly lifestyle is difficult especially when renting out property in Malta. There are many less permanent but still effective ways of saving money and the planet.
The most important rule to stick to in any household is to REDUCE! Whether it’s reducing what you buy or what you throw away it’s the easiest method when trying to leave less of a carbon footprint.
No more water bottles! Let’s be honest, they’re a thing of the past. Investing in an osmosis tap may be pricey when renting a flat, although a great alternative could be investing in a water filter jug. It’s portable, allowing you to take it with you to your next abode and it’s an alternative that won’t break the bank. A great next step if you’ve already implemented this in your life is encouraging others to do the same. This could be a simple gesture like bringing your own reusable bottle out with you or supporting local businesses to provide refillable water stations. This prevents thousands of plastic bottles ending up in landfills or worse - in our oceans.
Reusing is also a great way to cut down on the amount of single-use plastics that are left to eventually end up in our oceans. Being cautious and choosing to refuse veggies and fruits that use single-use plastic packaging is a great start! Bulk and lose foods are a great alternative -it’s just a matter of remembering to carry your glass jars and reusable containers with you to your local bulk food store. If the fast-paced lifestyle catches up to you and you wind up eating out or getting takeaways often, consider carrying reusable cutlery. That way you can proudly refuse the pack of plastic cutlery normally provided. You could also go one step further and take your reusable container and ask for your takeaway to be paced in that instead. Replacing single-use plastics like disposable cups, plastic bags and cutlery that are cluttering up your rental apartment with reusable materials such as metal containers, cups and dishes is a great step.
When renting out a property, buying furniture may seem unnecessary, especially when living in a rental home. Rather than spending money on buying brand new furniture, why not try visiting some vintage stores or looking to furnish your flat with recycled furniture? Doing so will help contribute to less waste and will help save the world and your wallet.
Replacing your normal light bulbs with LED ones is a quick and easy method to help reduce electricity bills in your rental apartment. This will help to save electricity and help the bulbs last longer. By installing LEDs, you can save an average of €150 per month.
Finally as a last resort - recycling what cannot be used anymore and providing adequate bins to do so. Providing well labelled respective garbage, paper, plastic and glass bins leaves you and your guests with no choice but to properly dispose of materials in the correct manner. Composting is a thing and more people need to learn about it. If you need more information on composting, Garbage to Garbage offers great resources that you can look to for help.
Nowadays there are many alternatives for landfill fated materials and plenty of eco-friendly substitutes that will have sufficiently less of impact on the environment. Visit Plastic-Free July for more tips and aids if you would like to start your journey into a more sustainable lifestyle.