Waste

‘Australians admit to throwing away $5.3 billion worth of food every year.’ (E1)

How much went uneaten on your plate yesterday?

Waste sounds like a highly unappealing EARTH topic until you stop and think about it.  Sure there’s the recycling bin each week and general rubbish, but what about the rest of it.  Have you ever stopped and thought what you or somebody else could do with those items you no longer want or need – food, books, toys, electrical goods and blinds.  Australians admit to throwing away $5.3 billion worth of food every year ($2.9 billion fresh food, $876 million leftovers, $241 million frozen food, $630 million takeaway and $596 million in unfinished drinks E1), next time consider your Health and the Waste before getting super-sized and use garden compost for fresh food Waste.

There are also items that don’t get enough attention but are seeping further into our natural systems to the detriment of our Health.  Cigarette butts and fluorescent light bulbs would be two such items.  Both of these have major effects on the marine life, which you are encouraged more and more to consume.  The cigarette butts are a fairly well know item which washes off the road, down the drain into the river outlet and is consumed by the fish we eat.  But what about those fluorescent light bulbs we’re encouraged to use to save energy?  Well you see they’re not currently easily recycled in Australia with the majority of them going out with the general rubbish, breaking and seeping mercury into the soil which washes into the waterways and is again consumed by the fish we eat.  This is becoming a larger issue everyday.  Until these types of issues are raised en masse to governing bodies there is little that can be done to break these sorts of cycles which are building continual harm to yourselves.

And have you seen those massive bins at the airport, full of majority unopened products over 100mL which go straight to the rubbish tip?  Having had them taken, discarded there and re-bought exactly the same product for twice the price five metres  further inside is VERY frustrating.  At least if the items initially bought went to someone less fortunate it would be a donation rather than a complete Waste.

There is a restaurant in Sydney where the rules of the house are ‘do not waste food’.  If you don’t eat everything on your plate you will pay 30% more and not be welcome back.  It may be a contradiction to our Health to ensure everything is eaten, but also ensures an entree size meal is served and perhaps should be insisted upon everywhere that we dine where entree sized servings are usually not offered.

The best thing about waste reduction is that less waste, means less pollution, occasionally helping someone else out (someone’s trash is always somebody else’s treasure), saving money and resources.

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INTERESTED IN MORE?  Then check these out…
(for more Books or Websites just click the link)

The Converging World: How One Community’s Path to Zero Waste is Helping Save Our Planet

www.ecorecycle.vic.gov.au
www.sustainablility.vic.gov.au
www.ecofoot.org

Back2Basics…start simple next time you go to throw anything in the general rubbish, stop, to consider whether it is recyclable or reusable and if so put it in the recycle bin, find out how to recycle it or donate it.