Help with reducing waste

• Avoid single use plastic bags, bottles, straws - consider the reusable options instead
• Don't forget your reusable bags and containers when visiting the shops
• Reduce the amount of packaging you buy. Look for products without packaging and avoid individually wrapped portions
• Favour products made from recyclable material, or with a high recycled content (recycled paper, clothing, furniture)
• Buy in bulk or choose concentrated products in reusable containers.
• Donate unwanted clothes and or household goods to charities or your local Transfer Station to be resold at the Buyback Shop.
• Give old magazines and books to nursing, charities, schools, hospitals etc
• Compost your food waste to create a mulch. This will improve soil structure and texture and promote aeration which increases the soil's water-holding capacity.

For further steps to good recycling and what items can and can't go in your recycling bin please access related documents for the Waste and Recycling flyer and the "Which bin do I put it in" Pantry card.

Copy to come

Though recycling material correctly is a fantastic way to make the most of our resources, we have another important step we can take to making the most of these materials. Buying Recycled! That’s right, when purchasing items new from stores we should be looking for items made from this same ‘post-consumer’ waste plastics and materials. Many well known companies now prominently display that their items are “made from recycled plastic, paper, glass, aluminium” (some companies boast as much as 100% of the material in their new products is made from post-consumer waste materials). This is how we can all play our part in ‘closing the loop’ of the recycling process.

With more being added regularly, here’s a snapshot of product manufacturers using recycled material, available in Cairns stores:

• Pamolive – Colgate -  Home Care
• Reflex - Paper Products
• Uncle Tobys - specific packaging
• OC Naturals - Shampoos, Soap & Condition
• Coca-Cola - cans & bottles
• 3M - Post It range
• Ajax Eco range
• Multix waste & recycling products
• Modo - Stationary
• Glad – waste & recycling products
• Carmans – Cereal Boxes
• Earth Choice – Cleaning range
• Jordans – Cereal boxes
• Breeders Choice – Kitty Litter range

Essano – Shampoo & Conditioner