Time to rethink our throwaway society

Nov 1 2007 by Sally Williams, Western Mail

Time to rethink our throwaway society

DEALING with the waste we produce is fast becoming one the big issues of modern life, to the extent that we will soon run out of space to dump our rubbish. While targets to reduce the amount of rubbish that goes to landfill have been set and most local authorities now provide some form of kerbside recycling scheme, to what extent do we remain a “throwaway” society?

Welsh Consumer Council research shows people in Wales are becoming increasingly aware of the need to protect the environment and live more sustainable lifestyles.

Recycling is generally one of the main things people do in their bid to be environmentally friendly. However latest figures show that recycling rates, although increasing, still vary considerably across the country.

Often people feel they have no choice but to create a certain amount of waste because not all things can be recycled or their local authority don’t collect certain materials.

We all know we should be recycling more but knowledge alone is rarely enough to significantly change behaviour. Making it easier for people to recycle – through full service kerb-side collection schemes and improved public recycling facilities around our towns, villages and cities – is also a big part of the jigsaw, but maybe the most important of all is to reduce the amount of rubbish we have to dispose of in the first place.

Some might say supermarkets are leading the way on this issue.

It is estimated that supermarkets give away about 17½ bn plastic carrier bags across the UK every year and a staggering 70% of the UK’s packaging market is for supermarket groceries.

There is no doubt they are major players in the waste we produce and are key to its reduction.

Over the past 18 months or so, sustainability has risen rapidly up the retail agenda with a growing number of companies recognising that doing nothing is not an option, particularly if they want to compete in a world increasingly aware of the need to act on global warming.

All the major supermarkets have stated that they are committed to reducing waste and supporting recycling.

This includes pledges to cut the amount of their own waste that goes to landfill; reducing the amount of packaging on their own-brand products; increasing the recycled content of certain own-brand products and packaging (such as toilet tissue and cereal packets); and replacing plastic packaging with recyclable, reusable or compostable packaging for some own-brand products and organic ranges.

Supermarkets and other non-food retailers have also signed up to the UK Government’s initiative to reduce the overall environmental impact of carrier bags, aiming for a 25% reduction by the end of 2008.

This involves changing the materials used to make the bags so they become degradable or “greener” versions, and encouraging customers to take action by reducing the number of carrier bags they use and recycling more bags.

Excess packaging is an issue that consistently rankles with members of the public. For the past two years the Women’s Institute has been campaigning for supermarkets to reduce excessive packaging on many of their products, ranging from fruit and vegetables to ready meals, with members being encouraged to leave excess packaging at the checkout. By taking such direct action we have seen how “consumer power” can not only highlight the issue but also help to prompt change.

We are also seeing similar public-led campaigns against plastic bags.

In July, banning plastic bags came top of a BBC Wales Poll on what policies the people of Wales would like to see the Welsh Assembly Government take up.

Recent developments would appear to show that the supermarkets are listening – to some extent at least.

The latest research from the National Consumer Council (Green Grocers October 2007) concluded that while positive things are happening there is still a long way to go.

Areas identified for improvement included providing customers with more incentives to re-use carrier bags and improving the information on all packaging so people know how best to dispose of it.

Of course supermarkets are just one part of the retail spectrum and much of the food and other goods they sell are branded products over which they have little control.

In many ways they do appear to be leading the way on waste reduction but if considerable progress is to be made efforts to reduce waste and packaging will need to be brought in at all levels of the supply chain, across a whole range of products, not just food.

For some products changes are being driven by legislation. In July 2007 the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive came into force. So called “e-waste” is one of the fastest growing forms of rubbish in Europe. Our drive to keep up with the latest gadgets and technology has meant that in the UK alone we produce about 1.2m tonnes of e-waste a year, most of which has been going into landfill.

The new legislation makes it the responsibility of producers and retailers of electrical goods to recycle their products once they are no longer needed and will hopefully make it much easier for consumers to get rid of their electrical waste.

Some of the responsibility does however remain with the consumer.

To help tackle the waste mountains that our 21st-century lifestyles produce and preserve our beautiful landscapes for future generations, we should all be recycling, re-using or composting as much as we can and “saying no” to plastic carrier bags whenever possible.

Making it easier for us to recycle and reduce the amount of waste we have to dispose of will hopefully help to convert hearts and minds and change our long-standing habits of automatically throwing everything into the bin.