Someone shared this on my local FB Mum page...SERIOUSLY!

[Squiff85]

A bit of a random one, but I'm sure someone here will know. I'm having a clear-out of old sun lotions etc, all way past their best. What's the best way to dispose of them? I want to be able to put the bottles in recycling and tipping the contents down the sink doesn't feel particularly eco-friendly. Thanks!

Is it just me, or is this tragic?! She really needs more to worry about IMO!

I would squeeze the contents out on to newspaper and wrap and bin that, then recycle the tubes. I would hope any civilised human with a scrap of care for the environment would do similar.

I think it's a perfectly reasonable question. I'd squirt the stuff in the landfill bin, and then put the bottles into recycling. Some people care about the planet more than others. I do have bigger things to worry about,
but that's no excuse to not be arsed to recycle stuff properly.

I'd decant the contents into just one or two bottles, then bin the full bottles and rinse and recycle the empty ones. I'm a bit anal about my bin not having wet gunk in tho

Only tragic thing Is adding to the landfill crisis. Sensible question, IMO.

Seems a very reasonable question to ask.

I'm a bit anal about my bin not having wet gunk in tho
I can sort of see your point there. Maybe I'd squirt it into a compostable bag and bung it in the landfill. Maybe the lady on FB Mum page should have asked here question here.

I just keep mine till they are used up

I know they are supposed to go off but they don't seem to have.
Its probably lucky my kids are very dark and we never go abroad though

Great question. I chucked the whole lot in the bin but felt bad. This is a sensible approach.

I've found myself wondering that as well, actually, OP...

As my DH is a fucknig eco nerd who sits there sawing bits off bottles if he thinks they are 'bad' plastic, dismantling everything down to the last screw, carefully scrubbing, soaking, re-scrubbing every jar and bottle so we have a recycling bin cleaner than our draining board and basically being an insufferable tit about it all, I bag it up, hide it then smuggle it out of the house to throw away in the village. Otherwise he roots through the bins and brings it all back inside to research how to dispose of it 'safely' and 'properly'.

I think the best suggestion on the thread is use up as a general moisturiser, then recycle the bottle, save money too. Do you recycle at all OP?

So, genuine question here for someone who knows about the environmental problems.
Is it better to put the lotion in the bin, where it will probably go to landfill and maybe leach into the ground water, or put it down the sink/shower, which is where it would have been washed into from your skin or clothes if it had been used as intended, and would go to a treatment plant before it rejoins the system? Which is worst for the environment as a whole?

I would like to be friends with someone who worries about things like this because I worry about things like this too.

RustyBear

That's a really good question. I wouldn't have thought that far.
Not anytime this month, anyway.
Is it possible for it to have changed its composition on the skin?
I really want to know the answer now.

I bet the op is one of those people who does 'That awkward moment when...' posts about things that are in no way awkward!

I wouldn't use it as lotion. Sunscreen contains chemicals that are not good for your skin. It's much better to use sunscreen, obviously, than to overexpose your skin to the sun, but it's not a great idea to use sunscreen on your skin when you don't absolutely have to.

Perfectly normal question to ask.

I also like the fact that it makes people think when they read it (as in whether they would have just binned them/poured it down the sink and not thought about ecological repercussions. Hopefully it will have changed at least one persons way of thinking)

Despite getting in touch with the RSBS I have still not recieved my birdwatch pack so at this rate I don't think I will be able to do it, I was really looking forward to it.

Oops sorry wrong thread !!

I am laughing at the thought of Nisk creeping ninja style through a picturesque country village , scattering pizza boxes as she goes

*"The bin" doesn't really exist.

We need to think of it as "landfill" where it's going to sit, polluting the soil for decades and messing up the planet for years to come.*

^^THIS.

FWIW, I would probably squeeze the leftover lotion into a ziplock plastic bag, chuck that into the landfill and then put the empty bottles into my recycling.

rusty I've been pondering this too.

In my case it's probably better to not get optimistic about UK 'summers' and buy 3 for 2 sun block that I won't have chance to finish off.

It's the sort of question that people would ask on MN

I personally would burn them, the oils in there will burn and therefore keep me warm.....means I use less heating oil