Save the planet, pile your yoghurts up!

Here is a very smart tips from a friend of my mother's.

Source photo © La Fée Crochette

Yoghurt is a product widely consumed in France, and sold in individual pots. Instead of just throwing them out after use (those small pots are not reclycled in France), she keeps them in a separate bag and when she has a certain number, she piles them up and then throw them away.

By doing so, she saves space and uses fewer waste bags; it's important because in France, or at least where she lives, you have to pay extra taxes above a certain number of bags per month.

Even if we don't pay extra taxes here and we can recycle yoghurt pots, it still has a great ecological interest:

you can transport more yoghurt waste this way - fewer trucks are needed -, and then save petrol and carbon emissions. It's especially important since plastic collected in blue bags in Tromsø is send to Germany to be recycled (more info here).

Think about it!

***

French version published on Un Truc Par Jour / Version française publiée sur Un Truc Par Jour

Voici un "truc" donné par l'une des amies de ma mère et que je trouve très ingénieux.

Au lieu de jeter les pots de yaourt vides au fur et à mesure, elle les conserve dans un sac à part. Au delà d'un certain nombre, elle les empile, puis les jette.

En procédant ainsi elle peut jeter plus de yaourt dans un même sac poubelle (puisque, rappelons-le, ils ne sont pas recyclés partout). Elle évite ainsi de payer une taxe supplémentaire (lorsque le nombre de sacs poubelle autorisés par famille), mais cela a aussi un intérêt écologique plus large).

Il faut moins de camions pour transporter le même nombre de yaourt; on économise de l'essence, il y a moins d'émissions carbone.

Et c'est d'autant plus important que ces mêmes pots de yaourt peuvent faire un nombre élevé de kilomètres avant de pouvoir être traités. Par exemple, là où je vis, dans le nord de la Norvège, nos pots de yaourt sont recyclés (oui, certes)... en Allemagne!

Comments

1 - How: the saponification process

0 - Why and how to make your own soap? 1 - How: the saponification process Soap is the result of a chemical reaction between fatty substances (oils, lard, vegetable butter) and sodium hydroxide also called lye or caustic soda (NaOH). Caustic soda is a dangerous substance and is to be used very carefully, but it is totally transformed through the process: none of it remains at the end of the chemical reaction...if you used the right quantity of lye. If you use more lye than required your soap will be "caustic" and irritating. Therefore it's recommended that you use less soda and more oil than the exact amount required for total saponification. Firstly, it's a safety precaution: using more oil than necessary for the chemical reaction is a guarantee that the lye will be entirely transformed through the process. And more than that, with extra oil (nonsaponified - remaining oil), your soap will be even softer on the skin. This extra oil is called "sup

How to recycle a fleece jacket?

Fleece is a very useful material and there are many things you can turn an old jacket into, like make up pads ( see previous article ), baby wipes, dusters and so on. Every piece of fleece is reusable, so the first step is to remove all the threads. It's even more interesting because where the fleece was folded (hemline) or inside the pocket, the fabric has remained very soft, perfect to use on the skin. I think, other parts, more "exposed" are still soft enough. You might see the different textures by clicking on the picture. Once the fleece is ready, there is nothing easier: you just have to cut the shape you want, and it's done. Small squares for facial pad s, bigger pieces for baby wipes ...or duster . I didn't expect it the first time I tried but fleece is a very efficient dust catcher. As efficient, maybe more than microfiber cloth . That's why I use it to clean the floor too. I cut a long rectangle so I can tie it on my specia

Why and how to make your own soap?

As I explained it in a previous article, I came to home-made soap because I wanted to control the ingredients (no palm oil) and their origin (as few kilometres as possible), so as to use the most ecological soap for my laundry liquid . But there are other valid reasons to make soap for yourself: some oils are naturally soft and good for the skin, others you will choose because they give extra lather and foam to the soap, or even because they just give a special colour you like. In a word: home-made soap is very good for the skin (also because it naturally contains glycerine, which is otherwise removed from industrial soaps) and it's even better because it's customized to your needs. Another good reason to make your own soap is the price. Finally, it's a very creative (and addictive!) activity, which may explain why soap makers make more soap than they can use. Soap making is a complex and very rich art. It’s a great hobby, and you probably won't offer anyth

The Green touch

Search This Blog