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Apply the reduce and reuse hierarchy to purchasing

The most preferred option is to stop waste being created at all, ahead of recycling, composting, energy recovery and disposal. Off-grid, every item you avoid buying is also an item you never have to carry out.

How

1. Write the hierarchy on your plan: 1 source reduction and reuse, 2 recycling and composting, 3 energy recovery (for example biogas), 4 treatment and disposal.
2. For each top category from your audit, list a reduction move: buy in bulk, choose refillable or returnable containers, avoid single-use packaging, repair before replacing.
3. Choose less toxic products where they exist (for example a plunger instead of chemical drain cleaner) so less hazardous waste is created.
4. Set up a reuse shelf for jars, boxes, timber offcuts and fixings so useful items are stored, not binned.
5. Re-audit after three months to see what changed.

Sources

1. Sustainable Materials Management: Non-Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Hierarchy. US Environmental Protection Agency (archived snapshot), accessed 2026-11
2. Household Hazardous Waste (HHW). US Environmental Protection Agency (archived snapshot), accessed 2026-11

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