About 45% of the average rubbish bag is made up of kitchen scraps or grass clippings which could be composted instead of ending up at a landfill.

If there is a garden at your Marae you could set up a compost bin to compost your organic waste like kitchen scraps and grass clippings. Not only will your garden love it but you'll cut back dramatically on the waste you send to the landfill.

Find out how to make a compost bin and compost.

 

If space at the Marae is limited you could consider setting up a Bokashi system or a Worm Farm.

 

EM Bokashi

'Effective Micro-organisms' (EM) are naturally occuring micro-organisms such as lactic acid, yeast, photosynthetic and actinomycete bacteria. When added to your compost scraps in an air tight container, these micro organisims speed up the composting process. The main advantage is that you can compost small volumes of organic waste quickly meaning you don't have to have large piles of compost breaking down slowly and taking up lots of space.

Find out about EM Bokashi Composting (PDF, 160KB)

 

Worm Farming

Worm Farming is another great way to deal with food scraps and turn them into rich fertiliser. Organic waste is fed to worms and they in turn produce worm casts (liquid from the composting process) which works as an excellent fertiliser. The worm farm can be built inside or out.

Learn how to make your own worm farm.

Do you have a stream running through or near the Marae?

Use the Cultural Health Index as a toolkit to assess and manage water quality.

                                           Find out more

Recycle what you haven't already reduced or reused.

To find out about what you can recycle in your area - click on the relevant link:

 

                                         Wellington City Council

 

                                             Hutt City Council

 

                                            Porirua City Council

If you currently have ' light tubes' installed at the Marae - consider replacing them with  compact fluorescent tubes. (replace the tungsten, halogen and incandescent tubes). They use 75% less electricity and can last up to eight times longer.

If you have smaller, ordinary light bulbs in other areas of the Marae then consider installing eco bulbs. Each ordinary bulb replaced with an ecobulb will save approximately $100 in power over the life of the ecobulb. 

Ecobulbs last 10 times longer than ordinary bulbs, so you do not have to change them very often.

Contact the Energy Doctor for more information on Eco Bulbs or to arrange an energy efficiency audit at the Marae.

 

                          We also supply Eco Bulbs, contact us!

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