Those of you who have seen the film will be familiar with the Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth Class; commonly known to you and me a Wall-e. Left behind on an Earth which has been deserted by mankind, Wall-e is a robot programmed to clean up the waste covered planet’s surface. Whilst the film may be fictional, new statistics published by the World Bank suggest we could be on our way to making it a reality. They estimate that:
- Humans currently produce 1.3 billion tonnes of waste every year. This figure has almost doubled in the past decade and is expected to reach 2.2 billion tonnes by the year 2025.
- 2.2 billion tonnes of waste is the equivalent of filling a 3,107 mile long queue of rubbish lorries every single day.
- At present it costs us £136billion to dispose of this amount of rubbish; though that is expected to increase to £250billion by the year 2025.
Reducing Your Level of Waste
As consumers, we are slowly becoming more conscious of the amount of waste we produce. However, there is much more which can be done to reduce the amount of waste that we throw away for landfill. Recycleguide.org.uk offers suggestions for small changes you can make in your daily life. A few of their suggestions include:
- Avoid Unnecessary Purchases: We are all guilty of it – we go shopping and make purchases that we really don’t need. Things such as food items that will inevitably get left at the back of the fridge until needing to be thrown out, or goods which we never even get around to using. Not only are we throwing away the item itself, but the packaging and carrier bag it is transported in – needless waste.
- Use Reusable Items: From plastic drinks bottles to batteries, our throw-away lifestyles mean many of us dispose of these goods without a second thought. By investing in a refillable drinks bottle or rechargeable batteries you will not only be doing your bit for the environment, but also saving yourself money in the process.
- Reduce Your Paper Waste: If you are anything like us, you are probably sick to the back teeth of the amount of junk mail which drops through your letterbox each day. Rather than just going through the routine of picking it up and chucking it in the bin, take the time to visit the Direct Marketing Association website and unsubscribe from mailing lists. This will not only stop the junk landing on your doormat, but reduce paper wastage.
To many people, Wall-e is an entertaining family movie that is guaranteed to keep the children quiet for a few hours. However, it also offers us an insight into the future of our planet if we do not change our ways; a future where the zippo lighter and metal hubcap are treated as nostalgic items and memories of a time when we all lived a throwaway lifestyle.
If you would like more information about our waste management services, please click here.