Waste and Recycling

Focus on Waste and Recycling 8 – 16 October

Lord, in all that we do we generate waste;
we are profligate in the way we consume energy;
we throw away food without thought and we create great mountains of rubbish.
Help us both as individuals and communities to value your creation, not to treat the treasure you have entrusted to us casually or as a thing that can ever be replaced, but teach us to make better use of your gifts and save us from squandering the world’s resources, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Recycling waste is now second nature to most us, but we could do much more. The UK lags behind many other European countries in this respect.

Nearly two-thirds of all household rubbish can be recycled. This saves energy and raw materials, and reduces the amount of waste sent to landfill sites.

There are many recycling plants in the UK, reprocessing million of tonnes of material every year. For example:

all of the newsprint manufactured here in the UK is now made from 100% recycled paper;
all of the organic (garden and kitchen) waste we collect is recycled in the UK, usually quite close to where it is collected; and
over 80% of the glass collected for recycling is used in the UK, the majority of it to make new glass bottles and jars.

Recycling can help save materials and energy, but cutting down on waste in the first place is even better. Taking your own bag when you go shopping can help. You can also repair broken items and find a good home for anything you don't want anymore.

What are the Archbishop’s Council and York Diocesan Board of Finance going to do?

We will encourage our employees to think “Reduce, Reuse and Recycle” in our regular administrative and work processes. We will seek to improve ways of communicating without recourse to paper.

We will dispose of our necessary waste creatively to avoid the use of landfill and to encourage recycling and reuse of materials we no longer need.

We will encourage and support churches and schools to look for ways of reducing their own waste.

What can you do as an individual?

Reduce. Nearly a fifth of household waste is packaging from retail purchases. Shopping carefully can help cut down on this waste. You could think about:

Taking your own bag when you go shopping, to help reduce the 10 billion plastic bags that are handed out by supermarkets each year
ry not to waste food; the average UK household spends £424 a year on food which is thrown away. Do you really need those “two-for-one” food offers?
Avoiding products with unnecessary packaging, and choosing reusable products

Reuse

If you don’t want to use your old saucepans or cutlery – don’t just throw them away – someone else might find them useful! Freecycle (www.uk.freecycle.org/) is an online way of offering your old items to people in your local area – you’d be surprised what people can find a home for!
There are a large number of organisations throughout the UK that will accept unwanted computer equipment and repair or recycle it. Many of them are charities that provide benefits to the local community.

Recycle

An average family can double or even treble the amount they recycle. Most councils run doorstep collections for paper, glass, plastics and cardboard. Local civic amenity sites (your local tip) can also accept many other materials for recycling.
Everything can be recycled, from wood, shoes, textiles and TVs, to electrical equipment, light bulbs, fridges and freezers. Even small items of furniture can sometimes be recycled.
Check with your local council to see what can be recycled in your area.
Compost your garden and food waste. More than a third of household rubbish can be turned into compost, including garden and food waste. If sent to landfill, organic waste produces methane which has strong climate change effects. Composting waste like tea bags, vegetable peelings, shredded paper and egg boxes reduces these climate change effects and saves valuable space in landfill sites.
Products made from recycled goods save raw materials and increase the demand for recycled materials. As well as paper products, you can buy recycled household and fashion items like shoulder bags, plastic trays, pencil cases and aluminium foil.

What can your church do?

Compost garden waste
Take recyclable material to local depots or collection points
Offer unwanted hymn books or other resources to other churches

What else is happening?

National Recycling Week is on 7 - 13 November www.recyclingweek.planetark.org

Further resources

Envirowise www.envirowise.gov.uk

Waste & Recycling www.recyclenow.com/

York Rotters and North Yorkshire Rotters www.stnicksfields.org.uk/york-rotters.php

Love Food Hate Waste www.lovefoodhatewaste.com