Reducing waste

The reduction of domestic waste needs to be encouraged in Ibiza. Less than 10% of rubbish is recycled and the landfill site is struggling to deal with increasing levels of waste each year.

To reduce waste we have to change our ways of consuming and throwing away. The Ibiza Preservation Fund recommends the following:

Reduce, re-use and recycle.

Think before you buy – buy only what you need
Avoid items with unnecessary packaging – nearly a fifth of all household waste is packaging from retail purchases
Say no to plastic bags – take your own bags with you
Choose reusable products
Start composting
Recycle at the different recycling locations dotted around the island – yellow, green and blue bins situated on road corners and outside supermarkets
Give things away or take them to the auction. Buy second hand goods.

Recycling in Ibiza

Ibiza has good recycling points dotted all over the island, with three main recycling bins. People are often confused about what exactly they can put in these bins.

The yellow bin is labelled “envasos”. You can put three types of containers in these:

a) plastic containers (eg plastic bottles, plastic bags, yoghurt pots)

b) tin or metal containers (eg tin cans, cans of beer or soft drinks, aerosols)

c) Tetra Pak (cartons of milk, soup, juice, sugar)

The green bin is labelled “envases de vidrio”. You can put all glass containers in this (without lids).

The blue bin is labelled “envases de carton”. You can put all cardboard containers in here as well as paper. But no cartons or paper spoiled with oil or grease.

For more information please see http://www.ecoembes.com

Second Hand Shopping

There is a great auction in Santa Gertrudis the first Saturday of every month called Casi Todo. There is also a flea market every Saturday at the Hippodrome in San Jordi, where you can sell unwanted goods and buy second hand (9am – 2pm). There is an organisation called FUNDACIÓN DEIXALLES , who collect and resell second hand furniture at their outlet, Deixalles Eivissa, Pou de na Massiana, 27. Poligono Montecristo. San Antoni (971 191118). They sell everything from fridges to outdoor furniture and are worth visiting regularly if you are looking for something in particular. They also have a fairtrade shop in Ibiza Town, called La Botiga Solidaria (Avenida Espanya 52, Eivissa).