IN THE HOME

Wage war on plastic to help protect the planet

15th JAN DITCH THE BIN LINERS Rob Cowen, nature writer and author of “Common Ground”

“Doing away with bin liners was a revelation in our house, instigated by my wife. We now separate our rubbish into recycling, raw food compost, cooked food, and a dry packaging bin for stuff that can’t be recycled. None of them need a plastic liner. The raw food compost gets taken down to the allotment with any cardboard (shredded up). Cooked food waste goes in a secure compost bin at the allotment to keep pests out. Recycling is done as normal and the packaging bin (which we try to keep empty in any case) is emptied straight into the wheelie bin.”

JAN 16 TURN YOUR BATHROOM INTO A PLASTIC-FREE ZONE Natalie Fee, founder of City to Sea and author of “How to Save the World for Free”

“Swap shampoo and conditioner bottles for solid bars, disposable razors for stainless steel, unrecyclable toothbrushes for bamboo (above), toothpaste tubes for jars or tooth tabs. An average pack of menstrual pads contains as much plastic as five carrier bags, so switch to organic disposables or reusable period products (washable pads, menstrual cups or period pants) to massively reduce your home’s plastic footprint.”

JAN 17 READ A POEM Simon Armitage, Poet Laureate, who is setting an award for poems on nature and the environment

“Sit down quietly and read a poem every day, then read it again. Even if you don’t like it or understand it, it’s five minutes of not driving a big car or eating red meat or throwing plastic bottles in the sea. Five minutes multiplied by 7.5billion people equals... a contribution.”