School supply purchasers can buy reusable and durable items and thus reduce waste. Examples of specific items and procurement policy changes follow. Purchasing milk in steel dispensers or refillable bottles Buying items, such as cleaning supplies and food products, in bulk Buying concentrated food items 3. In addition to reducing the amount of waste, waste prevention involves reducing the toxicity of waste. Many products and packages contain toxic constituents that can be harmful.
Some individuals are sensitive to the chemicals in products when they are used.
Toxic constituents in products and packages can create environmental or health problems when these materials are recycled, incinerated or landfilled. Awareness Educating students, teachers, and administrators about garbage problems and the benefits of waste prevention is the key to developing and implementing programs to reduce waste. Some ideas for increasing awareness follow. Placing swap boxes in classrooms or designing swap days for students to reuse materials and equipment from their homes that would otherwise be discarded Collecting unused school materials at the end of the next year Setting up suggestion boxes so that teachers and students can relay additional waste prevention ideas and identify any problems with the program Distributing waste prevention information to parents and guardians to show them how to adopt less wasteful practices Evaluating the program periodically to identify improvements that can be made to further reduce waste Develop waste education curriculums for schools that focus on reduction and reuse.