We are now painfully aware of the harmful impact of plastic pollution on our beautiful environment. What can we do to reduce our reliance on plastic is a question we have asked ourselves here at Garmoran as we start as new season? Here are 5 things we are going to do to reduce our plastic footprint

1. Removal of clingfilm from the houses. We try and think what our guests might require while staying with us and put things like tinfoil and clingfilm in for use during your stay. However, we are removing clingfilm from the list of items available for guests to use. There are lots of reusable alternatives from using a plate to cover leftovers. Glass jars are good for storing all sorts of food, so we will some spares ones in each house for use during your stay along with ceramic cheese and butter dishes. Plus, some reusable cotton bowl covers, which are washable and ready for the next guests stay, the added good use is in the microwaves where they can stop splashes.
    
2. Reduction of bin liners. In the bedroom and lounge wastepaper baskets we are going to go nude! I.e. no bin liner at all, as most of the waste in these bins is dry clean waste. This will be the same for the recycling bin in the kitchen which can be cleaned out after each stay and carried to the outside recycling bin to empty. So that leaves the kitchen bin and bathroom bins, we will still use liners in these but use biodegradable liners from now on.
    
3. Toiletries – currently we use 50ml shower gel and shampoo bottles in each bathroom for guests to use during their stay. These will be changed to bigger refillable bottles which can be filled from 5liltre containers. Plus, we use soaps that have biodegradable wrapping.
    
4. Cleaning products. These have always been in the houses for guests to use during their stay, these along with products we use during the changeover clean will be keep in refillable bottles and the cleaning products now bought in larger containers so we can top up the refillable bottles as required. Also, we will review the products used and where possible eliminate them and replace them with specialised cloths, like e-cloths for the windows and glass rather than window cleaner. However, we will ensure the that the cleanliness that Garmoran is renowned for is retained.
    
5. Cleaning cloths. For each guest stay we put two multipurpose kitchen cloths and a scourer sponge under the sink, these are binned and replaced after each stay. This will no longer be the case and we investigate cloths and scourers that can be washed and reused. We are already doing this with all the cloths used during the changeovers

These are the things we will be putting in place this year to reduce the plastic used in Garmoran Square. We welcome any suggestion guests may have on how to improve further.