tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9033465662037447681.post3984865848319297526..comments2024-03-28T10:54:32.803+11:00Comments on Zero waste and sustainable living blog : Get prepared for the plastic bag banUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9033465662037447681.post-50235478934340386312018-06-18T20:32:01.396+10:002018-06-18T20:32:01.396+10:00Hi M, we live in the tropics in Australia. Most c...Hi M, we live in the tropics in Australia. Most communities have a dump where they can take rubbish that is not collected weekly by the bin men. This includes items too large for the bin, scrap materials such as metal, toxic products such as batteries or paint and garden waste. The householder sorts their rubbish into the appropriate skip (dumpster?). Public composting centres usually take garden waste (lawn mowings, leaves, etc), not food waste. It is up to households to compost their own food waste (e.g. potato peel, egg shells, banana skins) in their own garden or in a compost bin on the verandah, and then use this compost themselves on their own plants. My understanding is that cooked food shouldnt be composted as this is what encourages vermin like rats. Cooked food should be eaten, but as a last resort thrown in the regular garbage bag. As it's close to 40 degrees here, we have to store fish carcasses, crab shells, etc in the fridge until the day the binmen come so that it doesnt attract flies. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9033465662037447681.post-12442274882855233492018-06-15T22:54:46.576+10:002018-06-15T22:54:46.576+10:00Thanks for sharing your story full of helpful tips...Thanks for sharing your story full of helpful tips, Jo. I particularly like that you tackled one plastic waste at a time. Taking is slowly can help those new habits stick. And I bet one day your children will look fondly at your op-shop shopping trolley :)Erin Rhoadshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13225185498560687113noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9033465662037447681.post-71385389630878895152018-06-15T19:03:16.403+10:002018-06-15T19:03:16.403+10:00As a Tasmanian I have been reusing bags for many y...As a Tasmanian I have been reusing bags for many years, in fact, long before it was required. I have a cardboard box in the back of my car full of cloth bags, and the net Onya produce bags. When I have unloaded the shopping I put the bags back at the front door and take them back to the car next time I leave the house. I also have one or two stuff sack type reusable bags folded up in my hand bag for whenever I am walking. I have a vintage op-shop shopping trolley in the back porch which my children refuse to be seen with:) All of this adds up to very little accumulation of plastic bags, which makes me very happy. I have a small container on my kitchen bench, which is an old tea canister which is my bin. While I currently use small plastic bags to line it, which are mostly pre-used bread bags that I get from my mum, I am working on transitioning to no bin lining. So far most wet things are going into the compost. I am still throwing some plastic-lined tea bags into the bin:( but when I use those up I won't be buying any more. It has taken a few years but tackling one kind of plastic waste at a time has made such a difference. It's good to see the plastic bag ban widening its impact.<br />PS Here in Tas many shops began offering cardboard boxes when the plastic bag ban came in. It feels good to re-use waste. I collect them and use them as mulch and weed-suppressors in the garden, under a mulch of leaves or pea-straw.Johttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17803297366197086152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9033465662037447681.post-51300251327799838112018-06-15T13:18:59.406+10:002018-06-15T13:18:59.406+10:00Yes, thank you. I am surprised but happy that larg...Yes, thank you. I am surprised but happy that large bins with good amounts of organic material rotting under the hot Australian climate does not pose a problem. I do remember reading once about how in some countries it's illegal to not put your trash in a plastic bag for this very reason. I have seen bins for composting outside restaurants that were missing a lid for months and were, of course, smelly. In cities with rat control problems, like NY, I wonder how the problem would be tackled. But maybe Australia can lead the way. Thanks again.Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14679839426291667211noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9033465662037447681.post-35087631952018125012018-06-15T10:21:05.157+10:002018-06-15T10:21:05.157+10:00Composting facilities in Australia are dedicated t...Composting facilities in Australia are dedicated to food waste, grass clippings, leaves and small branches. My council and others in my country have a dedicated green bin to collect the items seperate to rubbish and recycling bins. They prefer no bags instead residents place stuff like food scraps into a small pail that sits in their kitchen and is emptied into the larger green bin that is collected from our kerb side either each week or fortnight (depending on council). The green bins are sorted at the composting facility and any contamination like plastic bags are removed before they are put through the composting process. I hope this answers your question. Erin Rhoadshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13225185498560687113noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9033465662037447681.post-67057409516712500052018-06-14T13:53:02.505+10:002018-06-14T13:53:02.505+10:00I'm not Australian, may I ask: if most Austral...I'm not Australian, may I ask: if most Australian composting facilities don't take biodegradable plastic bags, what type of bags do they take? I assume they can't accept rubbish wrapped up in some kind of paper, as paper can not adequately contain rubbish and the smell it produces. Is it ordinary plastic bags that are required by those facilities? Thank you for your time.Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14679839426291667211noreply@blogger.com