Waste reduction?

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Waste reduction?

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anneka

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 158

Posted: Tue Nov 02, 04 10:48 pm Post subject: Waste reduction?

I am interested to know how 'we' can reduce waste. I know that recycling is good, but better would be a reduction in waste products of all matter. A lot of recycling processes are not in themselves particuarly energy effecient.

I have a friend who works in this field and is currently conducting a research project for Defra, collecting waste at random from households who have previously given permission, but do not know when (so as not to cause biased results). A second project will soon be under way looking at what people actually put in their recycling boxes, and how energy effecient recycling is on those products.

It does seem very hard to reduce waste, packaging being excessive on most things. Any ideas?

Anneka

jema
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Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 28234
Location: escaped from Swindon

Posted: Tue Nov 02, 04 11:34 pm Post subject:
I know i'm distressed at the waste my household produces, cardboard being a biggie. But wood can be sustainable, and how does the energy involved in getting cardboard to a recycling point add up? jema

mrutty

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 1578

Posted: Tue Nov 02, 04 11:40 pm Post subject:
What worse is that Jema could add all his cardboard to his black recycling box, but our council refuse to premote this. They will take ALL paper and card. Mind you not sure what they do with it. We're down to nappies and plastic in the bin, it's still two bags a week for a family of five

jema
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Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 28234
Location: escaped from Swindon

Posted: Tue Nov 02, 04 11:41 pm Post subject:
Are you sure they take card, i thought they rejected this? jema

mrutty

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 1578

Posted: Wed Nov 03, 04 7:31 am Post subject:

100% they take card from Quorn meals, big packing boxes, the lot. I've asked the guys that do the pickups and have mailed the council and they've confirmed it. There was a small paragraph in the local paper and that's it. So most of Swindon are still throwing their card away through no fault of their own.

I feel another letter to the council coming on

Last edited by mrutty on Wed Nov 03, 04 9:14 am; edited 1 time in total

jema
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Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 28234
Location: escaped from Swindon

Posted: Wed Nov 03, 04 7:48 am Post subject:
Well I suppose that is good news Shame about the usual failure to communicate. Reminds me of the newletters we get about the community forest full of tripe and totally lacking any maps as to where they are planting trees! jema

Treacodactyl
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Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Fri Nov 05, 04 9:19 pm Post subject:

I've often thought that reduction is better than recycling. I'm not sure how true it is but I'm sure I've read that it can actually use more energy and give more pollutants to recycle paper than if fresh pulp is used.

We just do the simple things at the moment, compost all vegetable waste (we especially remember to bring home stuff from work), try and buy in bulk etc. After a year or so of trying to cook most things ourselves we now prefer home food so hardly buy any ready meal or even half ready!

Most weeks we only have about three carrier bags of rubbish once the recyclables are taken out. The next step will be to try and reduce the plastic we throw out. When are they going to actually start using degradable plastic for most of the packaging?

Not sure if I have any new ideas. I have been trying to find a place that will recycle old batteries for several years as they seem a prime candidate for recycling.

mrutty

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 1578

Posted: Fri Nov 05, 04 9:46 pm Post subject:

Yes more energy can be used in recycling and I agree with the reduction idea.

Simple things help like using the lifetime carrier bags really help here. We use them and most stores will swap any lifetime bag for one of their own (We had a 50/50 split of tesco/asda but now it's 25/75).

I wish Swindon would do plastic and then I'd been down to one dustbin bag (we currently have nappies much to my upset, but Er now agrees we should have gone terry).

I'm moving to my milk to delievery to reduce my plastic intake.

jema
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Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 28234
Location: escaped from Swindon

Posted: Fri Nov 05, 04 10:36 pm Post subject:

mrutty wrote:

I got a bit pissed off with milk delivery, the milkman would only take back cleaned bottles, now they must clean them again, so why use the energy involved in cleaning them twice

jema

mrutty

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 1578

Posted: Fri Nov 05, 04 11:56 pm Post subject:
Just use the left over washing up water

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Sat Nov 06, 04 12:42 am Post subject:

jema wrote:

mrutty wrote:

I got a bit pissed off with milk delivery, the milkman would only take back cleaned bottles, now they must clean them again, so why use the energy involved in cleaning them twice

jema

Probably biological hazard control.

Treacodactyl
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Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Sat Nov 06, 04 7:52 am Post subject:

I know it's not practical for many, but I liked collecting the milk when we stayed in France. Bring your containers, watch the cows being milked, fill up containers and take home. Then pasteurise it if you feel the need. That way we wouldn't have to heat the milk twice when we make yoghurt.

Thinking about nappies, does anyone use the Terries (I thought you can get nappy shaped ones these days). That could actually be a good article as it would probably save more energy than many other suggestions.

I like the idea of standing your babies in a covered barn full of straw then you can recycle everything.

mrutty

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 1578

Posted: Sat Nov 06, 04 7:59 am Post subject:
I'll see what Er has got in the way of 'research'. The shaped ones are still called terry, maybe I'll suggest to the suppliers renaming them all june

alison
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Joined: 29 Oct 2004
Posts: 12918
Location: North Devon

Posted: Thu Nov 11, 04 9:04 pm Post subject:
We used Terry nappies for our third and half of our seconds nappy time. Not only did it save on disposal the money saved was terrific.

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