Waste Management When You Move

You may know this from personal experience, but it is also statistically proven that Americans are not likely to settle down in one home and stay there for the rest of their lives. In fact, according to the Census Bureau, the average American will move about 11.7 times throughout their lifetime. When it comes to moving responsibly, you need to be careful because the process generates a lot of opportunities to create waste and debris. In this article are some tips for making sure your waste management during the moving process is as environmentally-friendly as can be. So, how can you take proper care of your waste management while moving from home to home? It can actually be rather simple to limit the number of materials you send to your local landfill during the process of a move, it just comes down to some tough decisions and some proper planning. When you move from one place to another, you will inevitably have to play the pick-and-choose game where you decide what of your earthly belongings will make the journey to the new place with you and which will be wasted. Well, one easy way to immediately limit the amount of waste you generate during the moving process is to come up with piles for things that can be donated, recycled, and reused – thus limiting the amount of stuff you send towards the landfill. In this article are some tips for making sure your waste management during the moving process is as environmentally-friendly as can be.

Moving Boxes: One of the ways you can limit the waste you generate during a move is by foregoing the process of buying boxes for your move. Because you will likely know the moving date months in advance, you can simply start hoarding boxes long in advance, and if you need more boxes, you can solicit local businesses for used boxes. And, furthering this process, when you have completed the move, you can donate these boxes to someone else who is moving soon, rather than sending them to a landfill or recycling center.

Avoid packing paper: One of the very best steps you can take in order to improve your waste management when you move is to skip over the packing paper. One great and environmentally-friendly option you can use is old newspapers because they are fully recyclable when you are done with them. However, a great zero-waste alternative for packing paper is to use old towels or shirts. You can wrap your breakable objects in these in order to protect them. You can even save some boxes by using suitcases and duffel bags to pack all of your clothing away.

Pick the right moving company: If you decide to go the route of a moving company, you should make sure that you are picking one with fuel-efficient trucks and will help offer you some options when it comes to recycling your boxes.

Packing peanuts: If you can avoid using packing peanuts, that is the best call. However, if you are in need of using these helpful items, you should be looking for starch-based peanuts, as they are biodegradable and better for the environment after the fact.