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Reduce the waste you produce

Woman using a clothing bankYou can find advice and information on how you can recycle more, and produce less waste on this page.

Reducing the amount of waste that we all produce has now become one of the most important challenges facing our society.

This is because our country's landfill sites contain a higher proportion of bio-degradable waste than most other European countries.

Ways to reduce the amount of waste you produce

Think about the waste that you produce while you shop. When you have finished with it ask yourself these questions:

Real nappies for Lewisham

Using real (washable) nappies rather than disposables can save hundreds of pounds and reduce the amount of rubbish going to landfill.

Compost your garden waste

You can obtain a low cost compost bin to compost your garden waste. Or, you can also use our garden waste collection service.

Separating your garden waste from your other household rubbish in one of these ways really helps to reduce the amount of waste that gets sent to landfill sites.

Find out more in our garden waste and composting pages.

Reduce the amount of 'junk' mail you receive

Direct mail (often referred to as junk mail) is relied on by many companies and charities to tell people about their products, services and appeals.

The Mailing Preference Service can help to prevent unwanted direct mail.

Visit their website to register (follow the link on the right) and to find further details of this service.

Work out your carbon footprint

Your carbon footprint is a measure of the impact your activities have on the environment in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases produced, measured in units of carbon dioxide. You can find out how to measure your carbon footprint by using the carbon footprint calculator (external link).

Further information

Visit our recycling - useful websites page for further information and resources to help you recycle more, and reduce the amount of waste you produce.

Contact us
Environment and community development
Tel: 020 8314 2245