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As citizens of a society we have a responsibility to manage our waste sustainably. We can do this following the five R’s of waste management: reduce, reuse, recycle, recover and residual management.
Reduce
Reducing waste is the most important thing we can do. By reducing waste, we avoid the unnecessary use of resources such as materials, energy and water. It means there is less waste to manage.
How can we reduce waste?
- Buy in bulk to reduce packaging
- Take a reusable shopping bag with you so you don't have to use a paper or plastic bag from the shop
- Say ‘no’ to a plastic shopping bag when you only have a couple of items
- Choose products that use less packaging
- Buy reusable items rather than disposable ones
- Stick a "no junk mail" sign on your letter box
- Take your lunch to school in a reusable container.
Reuse
The next most important thing we can do is reuse waste material. That way it doesn't go in the rubbish and end up in the landfill. It also means you don't have to buy a new product. That saves you money and saves the energy and resources that would have been used to make the new product.
How can we reuse waste?
- Give unwanted toys and books to hospitals or schools
- Put unwanted clothes in used clothing bins
- Use plastic containers for freezing or storing food items
- Save wrapping paper and boxes to use again
- Use old jars for storage
- Take old magazines to your local doctor's or dentist's surgery
- Shop at second hand stores or use online trading websites to buy items that are unwanted by others
- Take household items to your council’s resource recovery centre
- Make memo pads out of waste paper
- Re-use envelopes - purchase reuse labels.
Recycle
Recycling involves some form of reprocessing of waste materials to produce another product. For example, recycling plastic bottles to make buckets.
What can be recycled?
- The main products that can be recycled are paper, cardboard, glass, aluminium, tin and plastic containers.
- Composting and worm farms are methods of recycling organic waste.
Buy recycled
- You can buy products that are made from recycled materials. This is called ‘Closing the Loop’.
Recycling in your district
Recover
- This is the recovery of waste without any pre-processing. For example, waste oils that cannot be refined for reuse in vehicles can be burnt for energy recovery. Recovering the energy from waste oil reduces our dependence on coal and imported oil.
Residual Management
This is the last option when waste cannot be used in any other way. Usually, this means sending rubbish to a landfill. Residual disposal of liquid waste is normally into a sewer or septic tank.
It is very important to manage residual solid and liquid waste properly. Waste not disposed of correctly can cause damage to health and the environment.
Audio Māori keywords:
Challenges: Write down how you might reduce waste by replacing these items with a reusable product: plastic wrap, paper napkins, disposable nappies, disposable batteries, tea bags.
FAQs
The 5 Rs of waste management are as follows: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose and Recycle. In practice, the 5 Rs will break down the waste lifecycle into stages so that businesses can identify actions they can take to reduce the amount of waste and pollution they produce.
What is 5 RS waste management? ›
Five actions should respectively be taken if possible before recycling any products. These R's include: refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose and finally, recycle.
What are the 5r systems for waste management? ›
According to the 5 R's, four actions should be taken, if possible, prior to 'recycling': refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, and then recycle.
What is R's in waste management? ›
Good waste management follows the 4 Rs: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Recover, as well as avoiding illegal dumping and littering. Did you know that the 4 Rs can help us to find better ways to manage our litter?
What is the 5R principle? ›
5 R principles (Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Recover) are adopted for effective management of plastic wastes. ∙ Refuse means to avoid the use of plastic items which are not needed. ∙ Reduce means to minimise the use of plastics and instead use alternatives.
What are the 5 R's? ›
The 5 R's: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose, Recycle | RTS.
What are the 5S in waste? ›
The 5S pillars, Sort (Seiri), Set in Order (Seiton), Shine (Seiso), Standardize (Seiketsu), and Sustain (sh*tsuke), provide a methodology for organizing, cleaning, developing, and sustaining a productive work environment.
What is the 5R model? ›
The 5R framework represents Reporting, Responding, Relating, Reasoning, and Reconstructing the experience to present it in an engaging reflection.
Why is 5R important? ›
By following the 5R principle, you may help to conserve natural resources, reduce pollution, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, save energy, and reduce waste to landfills. By lowering the environmental effect of trash creation and disposal, these measures contribute to a healthier and more sustainable environment.
What does refuse mean in the 5 R's? ›
Refusing helps eliminate a lot of waste from the start. It's about saying “no” to free stuff that becomes instant waste. It takes a bit of practice and preparation (read: resources of time and money) to find and actively incorporate reusable alternatives into your daily life.
Getting started with the 7Rs: Rethink, Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repair, Regift, Recycle. Previous.
What is the R's rule? ›
The three R's rule, which stands for Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, is a way to take care of the environment by generating less waste, saving money and being a more responsible consumer.
What are the 7 R's of waste management? ›
What are the 7 R's of Waste Management?
- Rethink. Become a more conscious consumer. ...
- Refuse. Say “no” to products you don't need or won't use. ...
- Reduce. Lower the amount you buy & how often you buy. ...
- Reuse. Upcycle items you would typically throw away. ...
- Repair. ...
- Regift. ...
- Recycle.
The 5 Rs of waste management are as follows: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose and Recycle. In practice, the 5 Rs will break down the waste lifecycle into stages so that businesses can identify actions they can take to reduce the amount of waste and pollution they produce.
What are the 5 R's and their meaning? ›
They include refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, and recycle. Each of these steps must be followed to every last detail in order for the plan to work to its full potential.
What are the 5 steps of waste hierarchy? ›
The Waste Management Hierarchy Explained
It gives top priority to waste prevention, followed by re-use, recycling, recovery and finally disposal. The hierarchy helps us rethink our relationship with waste based on five priorities ranked in terms of what's best for the environment.
What is an example of recover in 5rs? ›
Waste recovery examples include transformation of sludges into organic fertilizers, clays and sawdust into cat litter, making valuable materials from used batteries, and energy recovery (e.g. biogas production from anaerobic digestion of biodegradable waste).
What are the 5R rules of zero waste? ›
These principles, refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle, and rot, guide us to work toward a more sustainable and eco-friendly future. They serve as guidelines to keep us on a zero-waste lifestyle as explained by The Honest Consumer.
What are the 5S 7 wastes? ›
5S works by helping the team eliminate the seven wastes of lean manufacturing: Waste in Transport, Inventory, Motion, Waiting, Over-processing, Overproduction, and Defects.
