When moving, you likely declutter and toss any belongings you don’t want to schlep to your new home. However, throwing out furniture, clothing, and other belongings you no longer need can harm the environment. Your trash ends up in landfills, which can affect habitats on land and in the ocean while also contributing to climate change. Luckily, there are a few ways you can make your move better for people and the planet. Here are a few ways to pack sustainably and effectively.
- Own Less
When you’re ready to pack, you may not have the option to own less. However, if you plan to move in the near future, consider all the items you have. Do you really need more leggings or another chair? You probably don’t. Owning less means there will be less to deal with during your move, but it also means you’ll have less trash. So whether you plan to move in the next few months or years, buying less stuff can help in many different ways.
- Sell and Donate
If you’ve kept your belongings for not too long or have a careful upkeep routine, it’s likely they’re still in fair to good condition. Try to sell and donate as much as you can instead of throwing things away. Selling and donating early, or at least starting the process early can reduce stress as you get closer to your move. Consider assessing your belongings seasonally to find things you can donate or sell online to repurpose and rehome items rather than adding them to landfills.
- Find Recycling Services
Always recycle what you can, including electronics and devices. Everything from your old television to your iPhone can be recycled, and many places offer this recycling service. You can also recycle carpets if you happen to be renovating your home before the move.
- Try Reusable Moving Boxes
Cardboard moving boxes naturally decompose when tossed outside or in a landfill, so they’re already quite sustainable. However, you can also invest in reusable moving boxes to prevent the need to constantly buy new boxes for your move.
- Get Used Cardboard Boxes Locally
Asking family, friends, and local business owners for their cardboard boxes can help reduce your carbon footprint because you’re not buying new boxes. In most cases, many local business owners will be willing to let you have their cardboard boxes for free because you’re doing them the favor of getting rid of them.
- Eco-Friendly Wrapping
Bubble wrap is not eco-friendly, so consider avoiding it altogether for your next move. Instead, try wrapping fragile items in newspapers, t-shirts, towels, and anything else you have on hand. Unfortunately, you may still need some bubble wrap for extremely breakable and fragile items, but you can at least reduce your usage of it by packing anything you can in soft materials you already own.
- Use What You Already Have
Most people have a few different types of bags around their homes. You may have duffle bags, reusable shopping bags, and backpacks you can use to pack your belongings. While these bags aren’t necessarily large enough to carry a lot, they can help limit how many boxes you have to use. Consider packing items such as your clothes, favorite walking shoes, and t-shirts into your travel bags to help keep your clothing accessible while you move,
- Recycle Old Boxes
After you unpack your new home, keep or recycle old boxes. If your new home doesn’t have a recycling bin, you can take boxes to a recycling facility or put them in storage to use for your next move.
- Roll Clothes and Linen
Instead of folding your clothing and linen, roll them up to use less space. Rolling clothes may also protect them from wrinkles, but mostly it helps you use fewer packing supplies, which means fewer boxes or plastic bins.
- Dispose of Chemicals Correctly
All the cleaning products you use to get rid of bacteria and pet odors are harmful to the environment unless you’re using natural products in natural packaging. When cleaning your cupboards out, always dispose of chemicals in an environmentally friendly way. Many manufacturers provide instructions for safe disposal, so always read the instructions. If you’re unsure how to dispose of your cleaning chemicals, you can always search online or contact the manufacturer directly for more information.
- Work With Green Moving Companies
Wouldn’t it be nice to sit back and let someone else pack up and unpack your home? Believe it or not, some moving companies offer these services, and many of them offer green solutions to help you pack and move more sustainably. When looking for green moving companies, ask questions about how they transport your belongings and if they have any eco-friendly packaging solutions, you can use when packing your belongings.
- Walk Instead of Drive
Consider walking places instead of driving when packing, donating, or selling. While you might not be able to walk everywhere, you can walk up to local shops to ask for boxes and walk them back to your home if it’s close enough. You can also use a larger vehicle when transporting belongings to reduce the number of back-and-forth trips you have to take when packing your belongings to prepare for a move.
- Keep Essential Utensils Out
Leave enough spoons, forks, knives, plates, and glasses out until the day of the move. Then, if you plan to have food delivered, you can reduce how much plastic you have to use by using your own utensils instead of plastic sporks and knives. In addition, you can choose to eat out instead of ordering in to reduce the waste involved in the move.
- Don’t Grocery Shop
Don’t grocery shop too close to your move because you don’t want to have to pack a bunch of heavy cans or throw away food you won’t eat. Instead, eat what you already have in your home, whether refrigerated or canned food. Of course, if you need to grab a few things from the store, you can, but there’s no need to do a full week’s work of grocery shopping if you won’t be able to eat all the food.
Final Thoughts
Moving sustainably is difficult, but you can reduce your carbon footprint with the right planning and supplies. Remember, if you truly want to make your move more sustainable, you must go beyond the packing stage and work with a green moving company that can get your belongings to their new home with a smaller carbon footprint.
Megan Isola
Megan Isola holds a Bachelor of Science in Hospitality and a minor in Business Marketing from Cal State University Chico. She enjoys going to concerts, trying new restaurants, and hanging out with friends.
