Japan - burger chain abolishes plastic takeout bags

Japanese Mos Food Services, Inc., owner of the Japanese Mos Burger chain, has announced it will stop using plastic takeout bags and introduce transparent corn-based takeout drink cups at all stores in July.

Japan for Sustainability reports that this is the first major fast-food restaurant chain in Japan to introduce biodegradable drink cups at all its stores. Mos Burger expects that the use of such containers will reduce around 130 tons a year of consumption of plastic raw materials, and abandoning plastic bags will reduce oil consumption by around 352 kiloliters (about 1,760 barrels) a year, estimated from the company's use of plastic products in 2005.

Meanwhile, the company has introduced paper takeout bags and reviewed its use of package materials. The new paper bags are made of unbleached paper and cost more than plastic bags, but the company plans to offset the rise in cost by efforts to reduce the number of bags and other packaging used.

Mos Burger also started selling the "Mos My Bag," a new original cotton bag, to encourage customers to use their own takeout bags rather than paper bags. The bag is sold for 700 yen (about US$6) including tax. The company plans to continue shifting to renewable materials from petroleum-based products for its packaging and containers.

From RRF news

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Denmark - Reuse by promoting repairs

The Organic Council (Det Økologiske Råd - DØR) has initiated a project on waste prevention through promotion of repairs. International Waste News from Denmark reports (No. 3, June 2006) that the project will among other investigate whether local repair shops can be established in two locations in Copenhagen. The project will be carried out in cooperation between two agenda centres:

• Agenda centre SundbyØster
• Bispebjerg Environmental Centre.

The starting point of the project is the increasing waste amounts.

Although amounts of waste for landfilling have been reduced, it has not been possible to stop the increase in waste amounts. The project shall test two product groups - electronics and furniture. These have been selected because there is a potential for increased repairs, since a lot is scrapped today when people see no benefit in repairing things. On the other hand there exists a relatively well functioning network of repairmen of e.g. bicycles, cars and white goods. For furniture and electronics with a new price above app. 2000 DKK it must also be assumed that it would be repaired if the item is not totally written-off or outdated. With white goods it must also be taken into consideration that older machines should rather be written-off than repaired, because their power consumption is too high and they may contain CFCs.

Existing internet guides

Already today there exists the site www.repairationsguiden.dk, operated by the Environment and Energy Centre in HØje Tåstrup but which covers the whole country. It is sponsored by several municipalities, including Copenhagen. This site is recommended because it gives an overview of existing groups of goods and municipalities and the connecting repair shops. However it does have shortcomings. One of the barriers of repairs is that most repairmen operate with a starting fee. For electronics it is often e.g. 800 DKK to even examine the problem. Therefore most people will abstain from this solution unless the new price is well over 1000 DKK. The problem is connected to the fact that mostly the retail shop receives the broken electronic item from the customer but do not carry out the repairs themselves. They send the goods somewhere else and hereby the bear considerable costs before even starting to do any repair work. The guide gives the impression that there are already quite a few repairmen in Copenhagen municipality but also that there are areas with very few of them. In terms of furniture repairs there are several in the municipality but must of them do upholstering and do not repair antique furniture.

Only few can do joinery and are able to repair e.g. broken chairs and tables. Extended warranty Another way of securing goods for longer time is to extend the warranty period. This exists today for instance in the radio and television sector, for MP3 recorders etc. where it is possible to get a four year warranty by paying extra. But the Consumer Council is sceptical of these arrangements because there are cases where retailers have not respected these warranties. The project will review whether it is possible to improve these warranty arrangements. The project is implemented in the period 15 May - 31 December 2006

From RRF news

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UK- London, Hackney - Give or Take III

On Saturday 8 July at Daubeney Primary School, the Hackney council recycling team will be holding the 3rd Give or Take Day for local Hackney residents.

Give or Take days are a community waste exchange event – an opportunity for residents to give unwanted items like furniture, bikes, toys, tools, books, kitchenware and bric-a-brac, and then take something they might like or need. As well as providing residents with the opportunity to give or take unwanted items, the event also helps reduce the amount of waste that builds up in Hackney.

I am aiming to get as many people to this event as possible so if you would like to send this post, please click below on the letter caption to "Email post" to friends or relatives. It will be a fun, activity-packed community based day.

Check previous goods from the 2nd Give or Take we held in Woodberry Down, N4.

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UK- London, Hackney - Be Recreative

Hackney council celebrated The Big Recycle 2006 at Hackney Council's BIG Recycle Day on Saturday 3rd June at London Fields Park. This year Hackney hosted a family fun day with the Reuse theme on mind, including mini reuse workshops, face painting, bouncy castle and stalls with participation from organisations including ecoACTIVE, Morph. In addition to these activities, the day also showcased artwork from children from four local schools- Hackney Free and Parochial, Mossbourne Community Academy, London Fields Primary and St John the Baptist Primary. This exhibition was the culmination of the BeReCreative project, which aimed to get children thinking creatively within the framework of "reduce and "reuse" by making use of materials that would have been discarded.

Two local artists have been working with two schools each to help design and create artowrks, useful household items, musical instruments or any other concept using recyclable materials. Prizes were awarded to all four schools. The best innovative work was based on sustainability, the amount of material used, aesthetics and functionality.

The weather on that saturday really helped and people created pledges and sticked them on 30 green boxes laid out in the field. These are some of the photos of the day:








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USA - Waste Free lunches

Lunches are known to create an incredible amount of waste, originated from packaging. The site Waste Free Lunch dedicated to this problem. Their data is based in USA statistics, however any developed countries will be able to use their information to apply similar projects, for schools or offices.

Most parents pack lunch items in single-use plastic bags, aluminum foil, or wax paper, or they purchase single-serving items that come in their own disposable package. Admittedly, these products are extremely convenient, but what is the environmental cost to a country that relies so heavily on them? Landfills are full and overflowing. Incinerators pump contaminants into the air.

Much of the trash we generate comes from the packaging on the food we buy, and lunch foods are no exception. In fact, it has been estimated that on average a school-age child using a disposable lunch generates 67 pounds (30kg) of waste per school year. That equates to 18,760 pounds (8,500 Kg) of lunch waste for just one average-size elementary school.

What can we do to reduce lunch waste? Start local! Start a waste-free lunch program at your school. Many schools across USA have begun to do so, and they're truly making a difference!

A waste-free lunch program is a process of educating students, parents, and school staff about where our trash ends up and how we, as individuals, can reduce the amount of trash we generate. Waste-free lunch programs favor the use of reusable food containers, drink containers, utensils, and napkins. They discourage the use of disposable packaging, such as prepackaged foods, plastic bags, juice boxes and pouches, paper napkins, and disposable utensils.

What does a waste-free lunch look like?

*With this type of lunch, lunch food items can be bought in larger quantities. The packaging can be left at home for reuse or recycling. Waste-free lunches are not only a wise environmental choice, but they are less expensive as well.


What does it cost to pack a waste-free lunch?

A Disposable Lunch, 1 egg salad sandwich, ($1.25), 1 yogurt (.85), 1 granola bar, (.45), 1 apple (.30), 1 package of carrots and dip (.65), 3 plastic bags (.12), 1 juice pouch (.35), 1 plastic spoon (.04), 1 paper napkin (.01)
TOTAL: $4.02

A Waste-free Lunch, 1 egg salad sandwich ($1.25), 1 serving of yogurt (.50), 1 serving of granola (.35), 1 apple (.30), 1 serving of carrots and dip (.25), water (0), cloth napkin (0), stainless steel spoon (0), packaging (0)
TOTAL: $2.65

723.60 - 477.00 = $246.60 savings per school year per kid

For more information and valuable literature go to www.wastefreelunches.org

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International - Bulletproof Packaging Punishes Consumers

The problem with the increasing use of packaging in electronic goods, annoys every kind of customer.
We're fed up with impenetrable packaging. We've all experienced those oyster-like packing materials, where even the sharpest knife in the drawer won't put a dent in them. Then you get out the industrial-strength pruning shears, make a few cuts, and the result? Shards of plastic that are sharper than a scalpel. The folks at Wired have put together a diatribe about the status of consumer electronics packaging today, and it's a satisfying read:

From Psyclone electronics cables encased in impenetrable layers of thick plastic to DigiPower camera batteries coated with packaging several times the size of the item itself, the hardest part of buying electronics these days is opening the products when you get them home. In many cases, it makes solving Halo 2 seem like a kindergarten project.

In honor of this packaging nightmare, Consumer Reports has created the annual Oyster Awards, shaming the creators of the hardest-to-open packages. It's no wonder hospital emergency rooms report significant increases in deep lacerations from product packaging during the week after Christmas. Sure, product manufactures want to make it so that products are hard to shoplift, but this is getting ridiculous. Commenters, any packaging horror stories?

Extracted from Gizmodo

Technorati Tags: ander waste minimisation waste prevention packaging electronics www.wasteminimisation.com

Australia - 3 billion plastic bags cut

The Australian Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Senator Ian Campbell, today praised supermarket shoppers and operators for cutting three billion plastic bags from circulation during the past two years. He said a report compiled by the Australian National Retailers Association, representing major supermarkets, showed that by the end of last year supermarkets had reduced their annual use of lightweight, single-use bags by 45 per cent compared with 2002.

"This is an enormous achievement by shoppers and supermarket management and a clear demonstration of a behavioural change by thousands of Australians," Senator Campbell said. "The cutback means fewer bags in the litter stream. The goal must be to stop plastic bags getting into the litter stream and spoiling Australia's environment. The initiatives introduced by supermarkets to cut back on the number of bags issued, the eagerness of shoppers to be part of the campaign and the take-up of re-usable bags have all contributed to this win for the environment. It is important to bear in mind that this outstanding result came from entirely voluntary action - no regulations, no levies or additional costs to shoppers. There will be some predictable complaints that the 50% reduction goal was missed and therefore the campaign failed. While 50% would have been better, 45% is still an outstanding result and it would be nonsense to portray it otherwise. I am delighted that the major supermarkets are committed to achieving the 50% goal by the end of this year".

From RRF news

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US - Wired article

The computer magazine WIRED, has an article on "The Next Green Revolution", read it, is interesting to see how the green issue is going to all sectors. One of the paragraphs mentions the efficiency of resource and wasting less:

"Efficiency creates value. The number one US industrial product is waste. Waste is worse than stupid; it's costly, which is why we're seeing businesspeople in every sector getting a jump on the competition by consuming less water, power, and materials. What's true for industry is true at home, too: Think well-insulated houses full of natural light, cars that sip instead of guzzle, appliances that pay for themselves in energy savings."

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Internaltional - Compost Awareness Week 2006

Compost Awareness Week 2006 is an annual showcase for composting in the UK. Organised by the Composting Association, it aims to raise the profile of compost and composting amongst the public and the media. This years the compost week is between the 7th to the 13th of May, 2006.

The initiative came to England from Canada six years ago and is an international education initiative to showcase the production of compost and demonstrate its uses. During the week, all kinds of organisations involved with compost - from manufacturers to local authorities and retailers - are encouraged to get involved and hold events to promote the use and benefits of compost in their local area.

Hackney and many other boroughs in London and UK wide are raising the benefits of composting through various events and workshops. Above an image of the poster which will be around Hackney soon.

This is a graphic extracted from WRAPs compost website (pdf file)



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Hackney Real Nappy Network

They just released their 1st newsletter. This group of mums are really setting an example in London! Click the image


They got together thanks to the efforts of Nappy Ever After, Hackney Council (Recycling) and above all Hackney mums on 22 June 2005. The same day Hackney launched their £51 subsidy to help cut the cost of purchasing real nappies.

Technorati Tags: ander waste minimisation waste prevention eco recycling real nappies www.wasteminimisation.com hackney HRNN

UK- Real Nappy Week approaching

Why use real nappies?

Around 3% of waste in the UK comes from disposable nappies. This is equivalent to the weight of nearly 70,000 double decker buses each year. Real cotton nappies are easy to use, soft on the skin and don’t contain absorbent gels. Real nappies are cheaper. You could save around £500 per baby if your wash your own nappies. Hackney Council and its neighbouring boroughs (Camden, Islington, Enfield , Waltham Forest , Haringey & Barnet ) offers a £54 subsidy for you to start using real nappies, whether you choose a nappy laundry service or to home launder them. Fully funded by the North London Waste Authority.

Laundry Services operating in North London:
• Nappy Ever After
• Number One for Nappies

This is the leaflet our team produced for the events in Hackney Real Nappy Week, come along!





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USA - San Francisco group resists new purchases

The power of the internet harvest the potential of the Compactors from the group The Compact set up in San Francisco.

The question is What would happen if you gave up shopping for a year? The Guardian reports that a group in San Francisco, calling themselves the Compactors, have agreed not to buy anything new (apart from items related to food, health and work) for the whole of 2006. It's not even as easy as it sounds.

What about underwear? (All other clothing must be bought second-hand, but underwear has been exempted.) Is the carbon footprint of a bought can of beans greater or smaller than making them yourself at home?

The Yahoo group set up by the Compactors has become an interesting documentation of the questions that beset many consumers, but it also offers helpful suggestions (and has a links page that illustrates just how hard many people are thinking about these things - for example, every month San Francisco holds the Really Really Free market where everything is swapped). There are ways of crocheting bath rugs out of plastic bags, recipes for making paper, eulogies about growing your own food and spats about whether religion plays a part in this mindset. This is very similar to the Give or Take events taking place around Europe and in London, Hackney.

The Compact has several aims (more or less prioritized below):

We are a group of individuals committed to a 12-month flight from the consumer grid (calendar year 2006).

To go beyond recycling in trying to counteract the negative global environmental and socioeconomic impacts of disposable consumer culture and to support local businesses, farms, etc. -- a step that, we hope, inherits the revolutionary impulse of the Mayflower Compact.
To reduce clutter and waste in our homes (as in trash Compact-er).
To simplify our lives (as in Calm-pact)

Their blog, click here
Their Yahoo Group, click here


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UK - paint scheme diverts 151,000 litres from landfill

Research published by environmental consultancy SWAP shows that the paint reuse scheme Community RePaint increased the amount of paint it diverted from landfill by 15 per cent last year. Between August 2004 and July 2005, 151,500 litres of paint were redistributed by the network's 62 schemes, an increase of 19,000 litres on the previous year.
The paint was donated by members of the public at household waste recycling centres, DIY retailers and to the schemes directly. It has been used in a variety of innovative ways from decorating a lighthouse in Cardiff to painting murals. The Community RePaint network also provides additional social benefits through the creation of employment and volunteering opportunities, supporting 72 part time and full time jobs and 138 voluntary positions.

From: Resource Recovery Forum

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USA - Pay-As-You-Throw Programs (PAYT)

Traditionally, municipal solid waste collection and disposal services have been financed through property taxes or by fixed annual fees charged to households. At the same time, households are charged according to their rate of use for other utilities such as water and sewer service or electricity. As a result, residents often mistakenly perceive that solid waste services are free because of the separation between cost of services and how they pay for them. Citizens have little direct financial incentive to reduce the amount of waste they produce. Also, because each household is generally charged the same amount, small generators subsidize garbage services for those who throw away more.

Many local governments are adopting Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) programs for both curbside and drop-off collection systems. With PAYT, also known as “variable rate financing” or “unit pricing,” customers are charged by weight, by volume, or by a combination of the two per unit of garbage disposed. Market-based approaches such as these are proving to be important tools for dealing with environmental issues. With only a dozen PAYT programs in the late 1980s, the United States now has more than 4,000 communities with such programs.1 PAYT programs have been mandated in both Minnesota and Wisconsin. More than 30 North Carolina communities are using or are part of larger (county-run) PAYT programs.

Benefits of PAYT: These programs offer a myriad of benefits for local governments. Furthermore, PAYT programs can be structured to maximize particular benefits. Some benefits of PAYT are:

• Economic Incentives to Reduce – PAYT creates a direct link between waste disposal and cost resulting in a true economic incentive to reduce the amount of waste generated and recycle as much as possible.

• Reduced Solid Waste Tonnage – In most communities, the realization of costs associated with waste management results in a decreased tonnage of waste to be disposed. This decrease is attributable to both source reduction and increased recycling. A reduction in the tonnage of waste disposed generally results in savings from reduced tipping fees.

• Increased Recycling – The easiest way system users can save money is through increasing recycling. Increases will vary in size based on public education programs and the level of services available. Communities that receive revenues from recycling will see an increase in recycling revenues, however, these revenue increases may be quickly off-set by increased recycling hauling costs.

To read more go to this pdf link

EPA's website is very comprehensive, read the FAQ page to learn more. It's worth reading this website to case studies. This map was extracted from this website



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Japan - Bring your own cup

Japan - Trade Ministry tests "bring your own cup" vending machines

The Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has installed a vending machine that allows consumers to use their own cups when they purchase drinks in the elevator lobby of the ministry building. Japan for Sustainability reports that the aim is to conduct research on consumer behaviour and convenience. This experiment, the first of its kind undertaken by a government or other public office, started on November 1, 2005.

There are about 160,000 paper cup vending machines in Japan, and it is estimated that about 2 billion paper cups are consumed every year. Should "Bring Your Own Cup" vending machines come into common use, consumption of paper cups is expected to decrease by 20 to 50% .The ministry pins high hopes on the spread of BYO cup vending machines as an effective way to reduce consumption of containers and packaging.


From: RRF news

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Waste of packaging finalist from Treehugger

Here a Treehugger article from their blog

"For those of us who still think a good peanut butter and jelly sandwhich is manna from the heavens, Kathleen Robinson's entry into the contest is especially heartbreaking - individually wrapped peanut butter slices. Obviously, individually wrapping each "slice" of peanut butter creates quite a bit more packaging than a simple jar would. However, Kathleen thinks she may have an even better idea, "It seems to me the inventor of this "unsticky" peanut butter could have simply sold his peanut butter in blocks, like cheese, that could be sliced with a cheese cutter (creating even less waste than a regular peanut butter jar?). Consumers could maybe even use a cheese grater on a block of peanut butter, creating shredded peanut butter, which I imagine would be good for cookies, or icecream." We're still not sold on "unsticky" peanut butter, however Kathleen's block o' peanut butter looks much better than a pile of plastic any day. Check out the picture after the jump..."

The different comments from Gizmondo and Treehugger blogs are obviuos, the Gizmondo ones are more happy to find out where they are sold, caring zero to nothing about the whole idea of the packaging waste headache(not all though!) and Treehuggers are criticizing more the packaging problem in our shops and bins.

Technorati tags: waste prevention rubbish recycling peanut gizmondo butter treehuggers packaging peanut butter

Zero Waste - Introduction

Zero Waste is a movement to emulate natural cyclical processes where no waste exists. It will require to re-design our resource-use system. Every stage of any resource-use process must be so designed as to ensure that nothing is generated as an output, deliberately or otherwise, that does not become a useful input into another process. Any output that is destined for land, sea or air should not be a threat to planetary, animal or plant health. It seeks replace waste management with resource management.

While this is a laudible aspiration it is difficult to see how the transition from our current consumerist society could be managed as many items have been designed for a limited lifespan and will require disposal. However, this initiative provides a solution to pollution and depleting natural resources.

The movement gained publicity and reached a peak in 1998-2002, and since then has been moving from "theory into action" by focusing on how a "Zero Waste Community" is structured and behaves. The website of the Zero Waste International Alliance has a listing of communities across the globe that have created public policy to promote Zero Waste practices. See also the Eco-Cycle website for examples of how this large nonprofit is leading Boulder County, Colorado on a Zero Waste path and watch a 6-minute video about the Zero Waste big picture. Finally, there is a USA Zero Waste organization named the GrassRoots Recycling Network that puts on workshops and conferences about Zero Waste activities.

Extracted from Wikipedia

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England - Government consults on waste strategy

England - Government consults on waste strategy

New targets to recycle up to half of all household waste is just one of a number of proposals in a major consultation on the Government's strategy for waste in England.

Launching the consultation, Minister for Local Environment Quality, Ben Bradshaw said "We've made some really positive progress since 2000: recycling and composting of household waste has doubled, nearly 50 per cent of packaging waste is being recycled and less waste is being sent to landfill. We need to put more effort into producing less waste in the first place, before considering how to make more use of the waste which is left by reusing, recycling, composting or using it as a fuel".

In a YouGov survey for Defra, only 3% of people always think about how they are going to get rid of the everyday items they buy when they no longer need or want it, half of people admitted that it never crosses their minds. Indeed, many people thought they were paying more for waste collection, treatment and disposal than they actually were. Most people (38%) think that it currently costs local authorities £10 per week to collect and deal with their household waste, in fact it is on average just £2 per household.

Among the measures being proposed are:

*Greater focus on producing less waste in the first place by:
• developing a greater emphasis on eco-design
• increased engagement with businesses and householders on waste prevention
• more agreements with businesses to take greater responsibility for their products at the end of their life

*New recycling and composting targets for household waste are proposed:
• 40% in 2010
• 45% by 2015
• 50% by 2020

Recovering more resources from businesses waste with new targets for a reduction in the proportion of commercial and industrial waste landfilled, more help for small businesses and a more joined up approach in managing waste from different sources facilitated by local authorities and regional bodies.

Making proper use of new investment to recover energy from waste as an alternative to landfill, but not at the expense of practical waste prevention and recycling by seeing a more modest growth than original estimates. It is proposed to set a target for 67% recovery of waste by 2015 by recycling, composting, energy from waste (incineration, pyrolysis and gasification) and digestion with at least 45% composting and recycling.

The consultation paper Review of England's Waste Strategy A Consultation Document February 2006 (0.8MB) is available from Defra's website

On leave

I will be on leave until monday the 20th. Thanks

Give or Take - Hackney

...leaflet to promote the event...

The Give or Take that I organized for the 21 January in Woodberry Down area, Hackney, London was another success. We had plenty of stuff! From bric-a-brac to large furniture, including 15 chairs, that were all taken! Hackney residents are happy to have these kind of events happening in the borough. 1 tonne of goods were reused and hardly any was disposed.

I read this article "Give and take": People flock to Freecycle.org to find new homes for unwanted goods in the NCTimes, from North San Diego and Southwest Riverside County News, USA. It says "an exploding online community of creative recyclers: The Freecycle Network, where thousands of San Diegans are coming together to give and take free stuff. " There is also a UK version as well as other many other countries.

These are some of the goods that came and left on that day:

A very old radio, no FM, but still nice looking vintage

Some of the furniture that was given but also, lets remember "Taken"!

There were also plenty of soft toys and games for kids to take home, which is great for those parents that cant afford it

Stickers are put on top of large furniture/goods so is known that it has been taken

...also books are a major given goods in the day, some very old, others only days new. Some of them are given to charity if they are not taken

Tehcnorati Tags: freecycle hackney environment reuse San Diego
california Give or Take