Sustainability news
- www.thegreenpages.com.au
What should I do with bottle tops?
Plastic Tops
Plastic tops should be removed and thrown into the garbage before putting the bottle in the recycling. There are two reasons for this:
- When the lid is left on a bottle it’s more likely to have liquid left inside, which means the bottle will weigh more than it should. Because of this extra weight, the automatic sorting machines can’t process the plastic properly.
- Leaving the tops on the bottles also means there is air trapped inside. When the bottles are baled together at the end of the sorting process the air pressure inside them means they can pop back into shape and the bales fall apart. They then need to be re-baled which means using more energy than necessary.
So just take them off and throw them away. There’s no need to remove the ring from the bottle – the recycling process can deal with that.
Steel (Twist) Tops
The easiest way to check if a top is made from steel is to try to pick it up with a magnet. If a magnet sticks, it’s steel.
Steel bottle tops are too small to go straight in the recycling bin; they will fall through the sorting machines. The best way to recycle them is to collect them in an empty steel can and when the can is about half full squeeze the top closed and put the can and tops in the recycling bin. At the recycling station, magnets will pick up the steel can, with the tops inside and drop them in a collection basket ready to be melted down and reused.
Styrofoam is recyclable
Contrary to popular opinion, certain types of expanded polystyrene (aka Styrofoam) CAN be recycled. Learn what some of the waste companies don’t want you to find out!
Styrofoam is recyclable. That notion we’re taught when we’re young that burning it releases toxic poisons into the air, is actually a myth. “The black smoke which is released upon burning is actually soot. Studies have shown that burning expanded polystyrene is actually no more harmful than burning wood,” says Kin-Chun Ip, representative of Recycling Expanded Polystyrene Australia (REPSA) that works to create a more positive image of EPS and its recyclability.
“Our industry association, REPSA has established EPS Collection Centres in most states across Australia,” she says. Local collection facilities can be located on their website.
Meanwhile, the material has inspired at least one eco entrepreneur to try and make a difference to waste disposal in Australia. Entrepreneur Chris O’Brien, then 23 years old, was working for a white goods store when his idea struck. He saw truckload after truckload of polystyrene packaging materials being removed regularly from the store and taken straight to landfill.
He developed a machine he called the Hungry Giant that could compact polystyrene on site. Because it is 98% air, a great amount could be squashed into small solid blocks that could more easily be recycled, and fewer trucks were required to move it. His contraption adapted by a number of commercial venues including “The Good Guys” in Chatswood.
Despite the practicality and simplicity of his development, O’Brien has hit some industry snags when it comes to promoting a product that reduces waste and encourages recycling. “Traditional waste companies love the old system because they get to charge for every cubic metre of waste generated, even if it hardly weighs anything,” says O’Brien. “They’ve been making a fortune! Australian business and the planet have been paying dearly for it.”
Offshore electricity generation
In the tradition of businesses taking their operations off shore - off shore electricity generation is already a reality.
In fact, according to a new report by energy consulting firm ODS-Petrodata, global offshore wind farm capacity will grow at a compound annual rate of 32 per cent in the coming decade, soaring to 55 gigawatts by 2020.
The International Offshore Wind Market to 2020 report, released in Europe, predicts that by the end of 2020 global offshore wind farm capacity will be enough to power almost 37 million homes. Current installed capacity is under two gigawatts.
Based on an analysis of more than 700 projects and prospects in the company’s database, ODS-Petrodata forecasts USD 61.4 billion of capital expenditure in the sector between now and 2014. For 2016 to 2020, total capital expenditure could be double that.
In Australia, there is a lot of potential for off shore wind farms off the coast of Western Australia. “Most existing offshore wind farms are mono-piles installed in shallow water. It has been reported that Western Australia has great potential for offshore wind energy with mono-piles,” says Dr Jong Jeng who is currently heading a project supported by the University of Sydney, to investigate offshore wind energy.
Cadbury goes FairTrade
Those eyebrow kids have something new to get excited about - Cadbury has committed to going FairTrade.
This week, the chocolate giant has announced that it is committed to selling FairTrade Certified Dairy Milk Chocolate by 2010. “Cadbury is incredibly proud to bring Fairtrade Certified Cadbury Dairy Milk, our signature block, to Australian consumers by purchasing Fairtrade Certified cocoa,” says Managing Director for Cadbury Australia & New Zealand Mark Callaghan. “It’s Cadbury Dairy Milk with the same taste, same cost, but extra ethics.”
Cadbury has been working with FairTrade Labelling Australia & New Zealand. With the intended certification, Cadbury’s cocoa will come from certified plantations in Ghana. Farmers who belong a FairTrade Co-operative are paid fair wages and have the opportunity to advance their businesses sustainably and effectively.
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