Website maintenance

Due to essential maintenance some of our forms and interactive services such as waste and recycling, complaints, street cleansing, parking and planning will not be available from 8am on Saturday 9 November 2024 to Monday 11 November 2024. We apologise for any inconvenience.

Reducing your waste

There are many ways to reduce waste, and the best one is to reduce your use of packaging.

What are you buying in packaging that you could buy loose?

Swap items in packing for those in recyclable or less packaging:

  • Juice cartons - buy juice in plastic bottles.
  • Tomatoes in cartons - buy in tins.
  • Butter in tubs - buy a block of butter in a wrapper.
  • Lots of convenience food has lots of plastic packaging- can you use an alternative?

What are you using that is disposable?

  • Cups, straws, plates
  • Swap cling film for reusable containers

Food waste

Avoidable food waste is one of the biggest contributors to climate change due to the energy needed to grow and transport it. It costs the average family £700 per year.

  • In the UK we throw away 0.9 million bananas every day
  • If we all stopped wasting bread at home for a year it could do the same for green house gases as planting 5.3 million trees

Let's stop before we shop and put an end to food waste. By planning meals, looking in our fridge before we shop and cooking the right portion sizes.

Love Food Hate Waste top tips:

  • Plan your meals, including how much of something you need to buy.
  • Make a shopping list of what you need for your meals and stick to it.
  • Freeze food, most food can be frozen and saved for a later date.
  • Keep your fruit and vegetables in the fridge to keep fresh.
  • Check your fridge is 5oC and not warmer, this is the best temperature for keeping food fresh.

Visit Love Food, Hate Waste website for more tips and advice.

Recycling

We know that much of what people throw away in their grey bins can be recycled.

Recycling all glass bottles and jars in your glass box and plastic bottles, tins, cans, paper and cardboard and aerosols in your green wheeled bin will free up space in your waste bin.

Do you have any re-usable furniture or white goods to donate? If so The Community Furniture Project will take them or collect them from your home for a donation.

You can support The Community Furniture Project by:

  • donating furniture and electrical goods
  • buying low cost furniture from them
  • volunteering and training with them

The Community Furniture Project is based at 6 Joule Road, Basingstoke, RG21 6XH. For more information, including opening times, making donations and purchases please visit the Community Furniture Project website or call 01256 320700.

Squashing and filling is a great space saver

Squash your juice cartons and yogurt pots.

Squash every last bit of air out of your bin bags before tying them up...this saves lots of space.

Buy smaller bin bags as they leave less gaps of wasted space in your bin.

Fill your other tubs with other rubbish before throwing away.

Composting

Home composting is a great way to generate soil improver for your garden. Every year Basingstoke and Deane residents throw away over 8,000 tonnes of food. However, fruit and vegetable peelings can be composted at home.

Composting at home cuts CO2 emissions and turns most kitchen and garden waste into a free supply of compost that will keep your garden blooming year after year.

If you live in Hampshire you can buy a reasonably priced home compost bin from £25 plus delivery. Otherwise, compost bins are generally sold in DIY or gardening stores. You might even be able to pick one up secondhand.

Visit the Get Composting website to order your compost bin or take a look at the range of other products available to help reduce your waste.

Get advice on how to get started with home composting.

If you are particularly interested in composting only food waste this can also be done at home using a hot composter.

Please visit the Great Green Systems website for more information.

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