case study - london
Rubbish is bad Karma And we are running out of landfill – fast!
In our larger cities like London, our environmental problems tend to be more acute. This is certainly the case in respect to landfill. Carrier bags and food packaging waste in particular are a major component of household landfill and the problem is increasing at an alarming rate.
The Mayor of London is aware of this. In his ‘Municipal Waste Management Strategy’ he urges all of us to be greener and outlines how small changes of habit can have a really BIG effect. The classic example of this is to refuse a carrier bag when it is not required*. Also, be aware of how the food we buy is packaged in the first place. If we all subscribed to this; these two very small shifts in consumer behaviour will massively reduce the amount of landfill. This is a fact!
Ever thought about how much landfill volume we are talking about?
On average every person in the UK throws away their own body weight in rubbish every 7 weeks! This means that each UK household produces over 1 tonne of rubbish annually, amounting to about 31 million tonnes for the UK each year**. This, you must agree is staggering and it just has to change.
Recent research has revealed that a great place to start taking action is in our kitchens. Around a quarter of this landfill-bound waste is from carrier bags and food packaging alone. If waste continues to grow at its current rate, there will twice as much to deal with by 2020! At Greengrocer we firmly believe that we all have a role to play to ensure this doesn’t happen.
Back to London…Where 73% of the city's municipal waste is sent to landfills in the surrounding regions. Available landfill capacity varies greatly across the country but the picture is bleak. Some regions are expected to run out of landfill space very soon indeed. The East of England only has 6 years of landfill capacity remaining and there are only two landfill sites in London, one will run out by 2012.
Ok, but what can we do right now? Well, we all need food to live and most of us shop at one of the major supermarket’s stores or increasingly at one of the many Farmers' Markets around the country. With respect to grocery shopping, ‘Sustainable Consumption’ is the key.
Want to s tart today and make a positive change? Ok, it's easy. For starters – try buying your fruit and vegetables loose not pre-packaged. Be conscious about how your other food, drinks and household goods are packaged. Consider buying in bulk if you can to reduce packaging.
Reward forward thinking and innovative producers and retailers. Reward them with your money by buying minimally and cleverly packaged products. Together we can turn things around and it isnt difficult. Producers will always respond to widespread consumer demand so let's demand cleverer packaging NOW! Support producers and retailers who package minimally or with recyclable, compostable and/or biodegradable wrapping. And if you really want to reduce the number of single use plastic bags in circulation, you can add to your existing sustainable consumption practices and use Greengrocer Bags every time you shop.
Together we CAN make a difference…OK UK, It’s so simple! Reduce, Reuse, Recycle as often as you can and use a Greengrocer bag whenever and wherever you shop.
*The Mayor's Municipal Waste Strategy, Rethinking Rubbish in London was published on the 23rd September 2003. To view a copy click here.
**source: www.wastewatch.org.uk
