1

Save glass jars and bottles, paper, and cans and take then to a recycling bank. Recycling saves energy and causes less pollution than making new things from raw materials. Some places also recycle plastic bottles and other items. You can find out where the nearest recycling banks are and what things they are for from your local council. If you live in an area that has a scheme for you to recycle at home, for example a blue bin in Belfast or a Kerbside box in Armagh, make sure everyone in your house uses it.

2

Buy things that are made from recycled materials, for example recycled paper. This is very important because when things are recycled, people have to buy the finished product.

3

To reduce the amount of waste you produce in the first place, try to buy things with less packaging.

Take old clothes, toys and books to a charity shop or jumble sale so they can be reused, or give them to someone else.

Take a shopping bag or reuse plastic bags with you when you go to the shops. If you don’t have a bag with you, only take a new plastic bag if you really need one. You don’t need a plastic bag for one bag of sweets or packet of crisps.

Try not to buy as much take away food like pizzas, fish and chips and burgers as they often use lots of packaging. This way you will reduce the amount of rubbish you produce and be more healthy through eating food that is better for you.

Save glass or plastic containers. They can be decorated or painted and then reused for storing things or given to people as presents.

Reuse envelopes by covering the old address with a sticker.

Put food scraps and garden waste into a wormery or onto a compost heap. These will recycle your waste into compost and plant food, which can then be used to grow new flowers and food. You can also contact your local council, as many have a composting scheme.

If you buy milk from the milkman in glass bottles rather than in cartons from the shop, you will reduce your rubbish as milk bottles are reused, but cartons are thrown in the bin.