Info about reducing waste

Doing your bit for the environment, saving money and reducing the amount of waste going to landfill has become a whole lot easier.

The Council has put together a series of brochures with step-by-step information about different ways to reduce household waste.

Your Household A-Z Guide for Reuse and Recycling provides a directory of items found around the home and explains what you can do with them when you no longer have a use for them. Keep the guide handy to refer to.

Research has shown that an average black rubbish bag contains 46 per cent, by weight, of organic waste.

Composting is a cost-effective way of converting organic waste into something useful for your garden and reducing the number of rubbish bags you need to use.

Replicating nature’s recycling system, composting gathers together organic waste material and mixes it so that worms and other micro-organisms can do their work.

There are several ways to compost suiting different lifestyles and space.

Kitchen waste (food scraps) makes up more than 70% of the organic waste found in an average black rubbish bag or, in other words, is about a third, by weight, of the contents of the average bag.

An effective way of composting kitchen waste is in an airtight container using Bokashi. This is a bran-based material which has been fermented with EM liquid and dried for storage. EM stands for effective micro-organisms and consists of mixed cultures of beneficial naturally occurring micro-organisms. This method of composting is one of fermentation. Bokashi is a pleasant smelling product which you add to your bucket and aids the fermentation process.

A Guide to EM Bokashi Composting describes more about this method of composting, where you should locate your Bokashi bucket, the process and how to use your EM c ompost .

You can purchase EM Bokashi and buckets from Council service centres.

Worm composting is possible all year round, inside and out. It requires minimal effort, a little knowledge and provides people with limited space an effective means of putting their kitchen waste to good use. A selfcontained system, worm composting doesn’t generate heat, and if properly maintained, is odourless.

All you need is a suitable container (just a bit bigger than your green recycling crate), bedding material and of course, worms. A Guide to Worm Composting explains the benefits of composting with worms, how to set up a wormery, the most suitable worms and where to obtain them, composting tips and how to use your compost.

Make your own Worm Farm from Reused and Recycled Materials illustrates how you can create your own worm farm reusing items, many found around the home, such as telephone directories and car tyres (the latter can be picked up, at no cost, from the Council’s three refuse stations).

With only a little more space outside, you can start garden composting. With this method you can compost a wide variety of garden material, including lawn and tree clippings as well as kitchen organic waste.

A Guide to Garden Composting tells you what can and can’t be garden composted, how to get star ted— including selecting a suitable site, making and using your compost.

• You can pick up any of these brochures from Council service centres, download them from the Council web site at www.ccc.govt.nz/waste or call the Council on 941 8830. EM Bokashi and buckets can be purchased from Council service centres