We pride ourselves on being fantastic at recycling in Wales but where does this recycled material actually go? Ceredigion’s website refers you to ‘regenwaste’ who are based in Ireland and are proud to be international traders of materials that can be used to make new things out of waste, or for those items that can’t go into that particular waste stream to supply their energy from waste recovery unit, a vast burner that emits carbon dioxide and relies on us feeding it with our production of waste. Two valuable commodities, glass and aluminium, are easy to recycle but energy intensive. Our compostables go to an anaerobic digester. But plastic is the number one waste problem Now Christmas is over, we can see how much consumption has taken place by the overflowing bins. Charity shops too will be filling up with unwanted gifts. Let’s start the New Year by having a hard look at our behaviour and check how we can reduce our waste.
and clothes a close second. What happens to the unwanted or tatty clothes that charity shops cannot sell? The Netflix film ‘Buy Now: The Shopping Conspiracy’ shows beaches in Ghana thick with unwanted clothes from European nations and the US. The Ghanaians don’t want our rubbish any longer.
The answer to all this rubbish is for all of us to curb our excessive consumption. Let’s make it our New Year’s resolution. Here are some ideas I started last year. I stopped sending Christmas cards except to people who can’t be reached any other way. Instead, I wish people a Merry Christmas in person or make a phonecall. It’s very satisfying to have that yearly conversation with friends I don’t get to see. WhatsApp makes it so easy to talk to people abroad, much better than another card that gets read once and then binned. How about only buying presents for children; buying experiences rather than goods; wrapping presents in paper you saved from previous years; making something from material that might otherwise go to waste. We can all use our imagination to come up with splendid ideas. Last one on the Christmas theme: do you really need to buy another Christmas jumper or shiny dress?
What about starting the New Year by cutting plastic waste eg by not buying bottled water. Acquire a decent watertight flask to use for many years. And, ask shops to stop using unnecessary plastic wrappings. If they don’t want to, take it off at the till and leave it for them to sort out; they’ll soon change their habits if enough of us boldly leave such plastics behind.
Prior to the pandemic there was a great movement all over Wales to cut single-use plastic and also to cut food waste. We need to electrify this campaign, renew our demands and lead by example. One amazing small team in Aberystwyth, Aber Food Surplus, is still going strong; support them. I’d also like to see restaurants become part of the solution. I’ve been in some where the portions are ridiculously large and much food ends up going back to the kitchen. That’s totally unacceptable. So, restaurants, please offer smaller portions.
The consumerist society isn’t a happy one. People overbuy, overeat, throw away and buy more in a desperate bid to feel secure in this uncertain world. It’s also one reason why many people look for dictatorial leaders. True security is found in community, in communicating properly, in kind deeds and kind words. Let’s start 2025 by examining what actually matters in our lives and jump off the consumption treadmill. Let’s stop wasting money and cut waste into the bargain.