Currently, the amount of household waste produced in East Lothian increases by an average of 2% each year – that’s an extra 2100 wheeled bins full of waste, every year. 

Reducing the amount of waste we produce in the first place will have a big impact on how much of East Lothian’s waste we have to send to landfill.  Here's a few things you can do to help:

Home Composting
East Lothian Council supports home composting as a method of managing household waste.  Up to 25% of an average household bin is made up of kitchen and garden waste that can be broken down to produce good quality compost for your garden.  Composting also reduces the release of harmful gases from landfill sites, which contribute to global warming.  From January 2007 East Lothian Council, in partnership with WRAP, are offering home composters at a discounted price to East Lothian residents.  Four different sizes of compost bin are available at prices ranging from £6 to £25.  Composters can be obtained by calling 0845 077 0756.  More information is available on the 'Let's not waste East Lothian' main page. 

We also have information available on different types of composter, wormeries (containers which use worms to help break down the material more quickly) and food digesters (which use micro-organisms for the same purpose).

Stop Unwanted Mail
By using the Mailing Preference Service- This service can stop unwanted mail that is delivered to a named addressee at your address - whether this is to you or another named person. The service can stop up to 95% of mail of this type. It cannot stop mail from companies with whom you already have dealings, mail that is addressed to "the occupier," or mail that is not addressed.

Register by calling the hotline 0845 703 4599 or visiting the website www.mpsonline.org.uk.  You can also write to the Freepost address:

MPS
FREEPOST 29 LON 20771
London
W1E 0ZT

Please note that using this method could result in you no longer receiving some mail that you may still wish to receive.

Use Real Nappies
East Lothian Council, in conjunction with Changeworks, are promoting the use of reusable nappies through the Edinburgh & Lothians Real Nappy Project.  Parents in East Lothian can apply to receive a trial pack of real nappies or a nappy lending kit.  Both contain lots of different types of real nappies to help new parents decide what type suits them best and find out how much real nappies have changed- modern cloth nappies are shaped, colourful, self fastening and come in a range of sizes and styles. 

More information can be found by viewing the links to the right- 'Information Sheet' and 'Application Form', calling Changeworks on 0131 555 4010 or emailing realnappies@changeworks.org.uk.

Smart Shopping
Smart Shopping is all about making a choice about what we buy, depending on how it is packaged.  Purchasing goods with as little packaging as possible means there is less waste to be thrown away and hopefully, eventually there will be less produced in the first place.  Major waste producers have a Corporate Social Responsibility to be considerate of the amount of waste they produce. 

The government funded Waste and Resources Action Programme is working with major retailers, through their retailer initiative, to reduce the amount of waste they produce.  This not only benefits the environment, but also the retailer as it reduces their storage, production and transportation costs and means less in-store shelf space is taken up per item.  For more information visit www.wrap.org.uk under Waste Minimisation.

Vouchers and e-cards
Buying vouchers as gifts doesn’t just mean you can be sure that your gift will be used, or that the amount of waste will be reduced- these days tokens or gift vouchers can be bought for everything from books, clothes and magazine subscriptions to rally driving and hot air balloon rides.  What better present than an unforgettable experience?  Many charities also offer opportunties to purchase everything from animals to toilet blocks as a gift to help communities in need.

Electronic cards (or e-cards), which can be sent via E-mail, are freely available on the Internet as an often-interactive alternative to conventional greetings cards made from paper or card (and there is no need for a stamp!).