Long Island couple on a mission to reduce household waste

NEW YORK (FOX5NY.COM) - Nicole Lentini is trying to live as close to a zero-waste lifestyle as possible. The 32-year-old Malverne, Long Island, resident avoids adding to local landfills by reusing and repurposing what she already has and only buying natural products of what she doesn't.

"We're in a really dire situation right now with the environment," Lentini said. "Any little thing that some of us can do, it really helps."

For the past three years, she and her husband have been doing their best to consume less and conserve more.

"So we throw out the trash about three times a year," she said. "The last time we threw it out was February 1st."

They use pieces of old T-shirts as tissues, replace plastic straws with metal ones, charcoal water filters in place of plastic, and only bamboo toothbrushes in the bathroom that later make their way to the kitchen for cleaning.

"In place of a plastic sponge we use a biodegradable sponge," Lentini said. "And then we use baking soda and vinegar to clean most things."

The Lentinis never leave home without their reusable water bottles, tote bags in case they go shopping, reusable utensils if they eat out, and containers in case they want to bring home leftovers.

They've turned the top of their toilet into a sink and decorated the majority of their home using secondhand furniture to keep new materials out of landfills.

Outside, their food waste goes into a compost tumbler. It takes a couple of weeks to break down into compost before it's added to their garden.

"I want to move away from a disposable way living and just take care of the things that I own," she said. "And be respectful of natural resources because they're not indefinite."

They are seeking a greener way of living by eliminating waste and reducing carbon footprints.