8 THINK BEYOND RECYCLING AND MOVE TOWARDS ZERO WASTE
The simplest and most effective way to manage your waste is not creating it in the first place. Prioritize waste reduction and reuse efforts within your space and set a Zero Waste goal for your workplace. Making a new product requires extensive materials and energy – raw materials must be extracted from the earth, the extracted materials fabricated, then the final product transported to wherever it is sold. Reduction and reuse strategies promote opportunities to limit the creation of new products – saving natural resources, saving money, and reducing environmental impacts!
Reduction and Reuse Strategies include:
• Setting double-sided printing as the default. When buying printer paper, prioritize recycled content.
• Switching from disposable plates and cutlery to chinaware and metal (durable) cutlery to reduce single-use wastes.
• Bringing a travel mug for coffee to minimize the generation of single-use cups.
• Developing and/or implementing an Environmentally
Preferable Purchasing (EPP) policy that follows the waste hierarchy (supplying rechargeable batteries for electronic devices, for example).
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