Simple Ways to Reduce Plastic Waste – Powerful Daily Green Habits I Adopted for an Eco-Friendly Lifestyle – Series 9

Welcome to series 9 of my Daily Green Habits blog posts!

As an extension of the existing series, this post is dedicated to simple ways to reduce plastic waste which is hidden in plain view in almost all our daily products.

I think, in our generation, we all know that plastic waste is one of the most dangerous wastes impacting our environment. From overflowing landfills to polluted oceans and polluted air, the impact of single-use plastics on our environment is huge.

Over the past few years, since I have started my green habits to follow a sustainable lifestyle, I have started focusing on the plastic waste I generate. In the past few years, I have generated almost 60-70% less plastic waste than my earlier years. I am quite proud to say that I started alone but along the way, several people have joined me in my journey including my family. Most of the people have been quite supportive of my initiatives and started cooperating even though they had some hesitation in the beginning.

Recently when I started writing about my experiences, I had so much to write that I decided to break that into a series and here you go. This is the first series in my blogpost world where I am writing all about my journey towards a sustainable lifestyle.

In this post, I will give you actionable tips on simple ways to reduce plastic waste which gets generated unknowingly and is difficult to remove from our busy lives.

Several people struggle with the most common question “How to implement powerful daily green habits for a sustainable lifestyle?”. You can follow my series for real-time actionable tips.

Several of my friends have asked me the same question “How to make powerful daily green habits a part of your routine? or how to live more sustainably”. I gave them the exact practice I followed, start small but be consistent. Consistency is the only way to turn anything into a habit.

Simple Ways to Reduce Plastic Waste- Identify the source

After sorting almost all the major areas of plastic waste generation I am still generating quite a bit of plastic waste. When I did the deep dive into my plastic waste majority of the culprits came out as Chip-pack, Cookie Bags, bread, grain packets, and other necessary items that are a must-have in any human’s life.

I love my chips, and cookies way too much to give them up to reduce plastic waste, I tried doing it but it never lasted more than a few days.  Even I tried along with my kids but the outcome was worse, our cravings were way stronger than our resolve to reduce plastic waste. We ended up buying more chips and cookies than normal days when starved of these life pleasures for a few days.

After considerable analysis of the situation and spending quite a bit of time thinking of alternative solutions, I found that it’s almost impossible for me to eliminate these products from my routine but there are ways to reduce their environmental impact by reusing and recycling the packaging. Here’s how I minimize my plastic waste from these unavoidable items and put them to good use.

I just ensure that bigger-size packs of Lay’s chips or instant ramen noodles are ordered from Amazon instead of regular-size packs so they can be reused.

You can live without them but still, there are ways to reduce their environmental impact by reusing and recycling the packaging. Here’s how I minimize my plastic waste from these unavoidable items and put them to good use.

Reduce Plastic Waste- Creative Ways to Reuse Empty Wrappers

Snack packets are often made of durable, shiny plastic that can’t easily be recycled. Instead of tossing them in the trash, here are a few clever ways to repurpose them, I do this all the time:

• Snack Wrappers as DIY Gift Wrap:
  • The shiny side of chip packets makes them perfect for small gift wraps for all occasions. It adds a unique and colorful touch, plus it’s a great way to reuse plastic. Almost all my birthday, anniversary, housewarming, and even Christmas gifts are packed in empty wrappers of my favorite chips and cookies.  I stopped buying gift wrapping paper a long time ago. I have gone to the lengths to add a small handwritten note about how the receiving party can reuse it again for another gift wrapping.

• Craft Projects for Kids:
  • My younger one is always doing some craft work either for school or with friends, It’s her favorite pastime activity. I wash and clean all the chip and snack wrappers for her to use. It adds a lot of fun, and excitement for her to add them into her craft works.  It also saves me a few dollars as I don’t have to buy extra stuff for her and this perfect zero-cost material is readily available for her craft projects. She has made several creative mosaics, and bookmarks and even made small purses for almost all her dolls.
  • Her creativity is at the next level, she has even made dresses for some of her dolls using these wrappers and they do look extremely pretty. Below is what she made using the snack wrappers from a few flights we took in the past.

• Waterproof Pouches for Travel:
  • I like to go trekking all over the world and most of my trekker friends have bought little pouches from Decathlon (A famous sports shop) but instead of buying these little plastic pouches and increasing my plastic purchases, I made myself several small cute pouches from Lay’s chips packets or Spicy ramen noodle and other empty snack wrappers.
  • These pouches are also waterproof and based on the need different sizes can be made using different sizes of bags. I use these pouches to keep small items like cash, tissues, or electronics, these pouches protect them from water and are also easy to maintain.
• Snack Packet Planters:
  • You can also reuse these wrappers by turning them into tiny planters for starting seeds or growing herbs. Just poke a few holes at the bottom for drainage, fill with soil, and plant a seed. Once the plant grows, you can transfer it to a larger pot and reuse the old ones again. I make the planters and my partner uses them all the time. He is quite happy using them as these are quite easy to use and don’t need additional purchases resulting in saving some cash.

Reduce Plastic Waste- Reuse Plastic Drink Bottles and Juice Containers

Plastic bottles from water, soda, or juice are some of the most common household plastic waste items. The best solution is to avoid buying them totally or replace all plastic water bottles with stainless steel reusable water bottles. But in real life, it’s not 100% doable, as there are times when we do end up buying disposable plastic bottles but there are ways you can still reduce plastic waste:

• Turn Bottles into Planters:
  • Instead of buying new pots for your plants, cut plastic drink bottles in different shapes and use them to grow small plants or herbs.

• Create a DIY Bird Feeder:
  • I turned a few of the big-sized juice bottles, and cans into a bird feeder. I made a few holes for birds to access the food, filled it with birdseed, and hung it on my balcony. Every day morning I was woken up by beautiful birds and it worked well but as per my society’s rules, I had to remove this but I would sincerely advise everyone to do it if possible.

• Make a Watering Can:
  • I used most of my big empty bottles, especially the ones I buy for my forever-happening parties. I just poke small holes in the cap of a plastic bottle, and I’ve got myself an instant watering can for my garden. This way, I am cutting down on plastic waste and getting a useful gardening tool in the process.I have also made very small holes in the bottom of the bottle, filled the bottle with water, and put the bottle in the pot. This is especially useful when I am going out on holiday for a week or so. Water seeps in very slowly and depending on the size of the bottle it has lasted up to 2 weeks.

• But I don’t need so many watering cans as one of them lasts for quite a few years. I just give them away in my society and I also give them to all my friends whoever I know have any plants. Most people appreciate it as it doesn’t cost them anything and, in their hearts, all humans want to reduce plastic waste but just don’t want to put in any effort. So, they are happy to accept a solution if it’s readily available and doesn’t cost them any time or money.
• Reusable Storage for Liquid Products:
  • I buy almost all my household necessary items in bulk in the largest available quantities; hence I need small bottles to use regularly. I reuse empty juice bottles for storing homemade cleaners, detergent, or liquid soap. Most of these bottles are transparent, hence easier to identify what is stored in them. It saves me from buying more plastic containers and helps me organize my household better.

Reduce Plastic Waste- Reusing Bread, Grain, and Cereal Bags

The plastic bags that come with bread, grains, cereals, and several other kitchen necessities are often thick and durable. Instead of discarding them, here are a few ways you can reuse them around the house:

• Reuse as Freezer Bags:
  • I use washed and cleaned bread and grain bags as freezer bags for storing fruits, vegetables, or leftovers. Almost all my meat, sausages, bacon, green peas, and corn go in individual portions in these bags in the freezer. This saves a lot of time and I can pull out one bag each time for cooking. This reduces my need to buy new freezer bags, saving both plastic and money.
• Organize Small Items:
  • I have a big collection of screws, batteries, and loads of small craft items for my younger one. I use these empty plastic bags for organizing all these small household items and all her craft supplies. Instead of buying new organizer bags or boxes, I reuse cereal or grain bags to keep things arranged. The issue comes if these bags are not transparent and it becomes difficult to find things on time so I put small labels on each of the bags to sort them out.
• Reusable Shopping or Produce Bags:
  • Larger grain bags can be used as reusable grocery bags for your weekly shopping trips. Bread bags are great for carrying fruits and vegetables when you don’t want to use new plastic bags. Though i prefer to use reusable bags for almost all my shopping needs.
• Use for Food Storage:
  • Bread bags are ideal for keeping your homemade sandwiches fresh. Simply clean the bags and reuse them for packing lunches or storing snacks. I put any cardboard box lined with a bread bag to put the stuff out in the open. This helps in reusing both cardboard box and bread bag.

• Use them as bin liners:
  • We all need bin liners and generally buy those easily available black disposable bags at the supermarket but it has been a few years since I bought them instead, I just use the empty bags from the usual grocery shopping as bin liners and if the bags are small, I just place them next to my sink and fill all my kitchen waste and dispose in the big bin. Even the small instant noodles bags are being reused in my house. I just ensure to tie up the end to avoid spilling the waste.

Reduce Plastic Waste: Recycle Correctly

How much ever we reuse, there is still some plastic left which can’t be reused or repurposed. Recycling is my last resort to ensure that it doesn’t go to dump yards.

• I participate in recycling programs run by the local community to ensure that we don’t mix up incorrect types of plastic or add stuff that can’t be recycled.
• To aid this entire process, I have set up multiple recycling boxes at home (again made of waste cardboard/plastic boxes) and we all put the different types of plastic in the appropriate boxes.

There is so much more we can do to reduce plastic waste, please feel free to leave any questions you have in the comments box and I will be more than happy to answer them. If I don’t know the solution, maybe we can work it out together. Two heads are always better than one individual.

Making Small Efforts to Make a Big Impact

While we may not be able to avoid plastic altogether, making small efforts to reuse, recycle, and reduce its consumption can have a big impact. Whether it’s reusing chip packets as storage bags or turning juice bottles into plant pots, every action counts. It’s about being mindful of our plastic use and finding creative ways to extend the life of these items. By doing so, we’re contributing to a greener and more sustainable future, one plastic packet at a time. Never underestimate the power of a single action, it might trigger a chain reaction in the entire community. Keep doing the good stuff and eventually, you will see the difference.

You can check out other posts here.