In Glasgow we throw away hundreds of thousands of tonnes of rubbish every year. For most of us once our rubbish has left our homes it is out-of-sight-out-of-mind. But when rubbish is thrown away it doesn't really go away - it just goes somewhere else.
And the problem is, waste is increasing. Glasgow City Council disposed of more than 300,000 tonnes of waste to landfill in 2005/06 and this figure is expected to rise by 2% every year. It has become crucial that we find alternative ways of using resources and disposing waste.
So what can we do as individuals?
If we reduce, reuse and recycle more of the stuff we use we not only use less energy, create less pollution and preserve non-renewable material, but we can save a lot of money too.
The general rules of thumb
REDUCE
- Buy products that are designed to last.
- Buy products in refillable reusable containers.
- Buy products that are made from recycled and recyclable materials.
- REFUSE to buy goods with excess packaging.
REUSE
- Reusing something takes less energy and creates less pollution than re-processing into a new product.
- Many items get thrown away just because they are old or broken when they could be repaired, refurbished or reused.
RECYCLE
- If waste can't be reduced or reused then it should be recycled.
COMPLETE THE CYCLE
Doing all of the above will definitely help but we also need to increase the demand for recycled products by buying and using more recycled and recyclable products.
The Story of Stuff
Annie Leonard's movie The Story of Stuff takes a thought-provoking tour around our systems of production and consumption of consumer goods, and highlights some of the processes and impacts that are hidden from view.
Watch a taster
Watch the full movie on The Story of Stuff website.
