Please feel free to share any ideas or tips here
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Native spirit
ameliorate
Violet
7 posters
Recycling and Upcycling
Violet- Admin
Number of posts : 24568
Location : UK
Registration date : 2009-02-15
Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterfly.
ameliorate- Member
Number of posts : 3603
Age : 74
Location : London, UK
Job/hobbies : Full-time person! Cooking, creating things
Registration date : 2012-02-15
There is a thread on upcycling! (Unfortunately many of my images - in my posts - were from photobucket hence why they no longer show up!)
https://spiritualinspiration.forumotion.net/t11151-upcycling
https://spiritualinspiration.forumotion.net/t11151-upcycling
Native spirit- Member
Number of posts : 887
Registration date : 2011-02-04
I do my bit but if i have to many milk containers i burn them
Namaste
Namaste
mac- Member
Number of posts : 4147
Age : 77
Location : Heart of England
Job/hobbies : retired
Registration date : 2010-04-23
I'm frustrated by being told certain shapes of plastic can't be recycled - by the company who's involved in my region. These damned drinking water bottles - the biggest ever scam getting folk to BUY expensive water, don't get me going - are category 1 and can be recycled but trays etc. made of the same material can't. And there's loads of category 4 wrap that could be made from biodegradable plastic, the kind some magazines are beginning to be wrapped in.
Upcycling's outside my remit.
Upcycling's outside my remit.
RainbowLight- Member
Number of posts : 265
Registration date : 2020-10-15
I have 3 rolling bins: one for green and garden stuff, one for plastic, one for the rest.
But bottles and jars go to the bottle bank (provided in several places throughout the village) and paper, that 'paper bank' right next to the bottle bank AND an additional plastic bank.
This is nationwide so every town, village, city has these banks everywhere, and people in most places have 3 rolling bins. Some even have a 4th: for paper. I have to take that away myself.
They stimulate all by charging separate for the 'rest garbage' and nothing really for plastic & green garbage. That's just included in a general fee.
The idea is to severely reduce 'rest' garbage.
I do my best and keep stuff separate, yes.
Since some 4 months we can also chuck cans in the plastic rolling bin. I don't always do that as my cans are mostly catfood and very smelly and prone to getting flies and maggots during the warmer months.
As for the rest... I do feel it's very important. Just Google the plastic reefs that are floating in the oceans, miles and miles long!! That's sheer insanity! So I'm glad to do my part to help our planet and with that our own existence.
But bottles and jars go to the bottle bank (provided in several places throughout the village) and paper, that 'paper bank' right next to the bottle bank AND an additional plastic bank.
This is nationwide so every town, village, city has these banks everywhere, and people in most places have 3 rolling bins. Some even have a 4th: for paper. I have to take that away myself.
They stimulate all by charging separate for the 'rest garbage' and nothing really for plastic & green garbage. That's just included in a general fee.
The idea is to severely reduce 'rest' garbage.
I do my best and keep stuff separate, yes.
Since some 4 months we can also chuck cans in the plastic rolling bin. I don't always do that as my cans are mostly catfood and very smelly and prone to getting flies and maggots during the warmer months.
As for the rest... I do feel it's very important. Just Google the plastic reefs that are floating in the oceans, miles and miles long!! That's sheer insanity! So I'm glad to do my part to help our planet and with that our own existence.
RainbowLight- Member
Number of posts : 265
Registration date : 2020-10-15
We all must decide for ourselves I guess, but I feel it's a crying shame and reading it makes me sad...Native spirit wrote:I do my bit but if i have to many milk containers i burn them
Namaste
mac- Member
Number of posts : 4147
Age : 77
Location : Heart of England
Job/hobbies : retired
Registration date : 2010-04-23
RainbowLight wrote:As for the rest... I do feel it's very important. Just Google the plastic reefs that are floating in the oceans, miles and miles long!! That's sheer insanity! So I'm glad to do my part to help our planet and with that our own existence.
This is an issue that particularly concerns and alarms me. Whatever measures we might take now to reduce plastic pollution in the future there is a mammoth problem that needs to be addressed with equal and perhaps more urgency - that of getting the trash out of the environment that's been accumulating for several decades.
It will need inventors with great imaginations to come up with ways of collecting the debris floating on the surface but the biggest problem is getting rid of the trash under the waves. And we taxpayers must be prepared to take the hit of increased taxation to pay.
Let's not forget who pays for EVERYTHING in life - the taxpayer.
linen- Member
- Number of posts : 379
Registration date : 2020-10-15
We live in a small town an recycling isn't a citywide priority. We recycle metal cans, paper, cardboard, and recently our plastics recylcing has shut down so another vendor will only take #1 and #2 plastics.
BTW, I was always in a dilemma with plastic mesh bags. I used to cut them into tiny strips before throwing them in the trash. But now I tie multiple knots in them to keep critters from getting tangled in them.
BTW, I was always in a dilemma with plastic mesh bags. I used to cut them into tiny strips before throwing them in the trash. But now I tie multiple knots in them to keep critters from getting tangled in them.
RainbowLight- Member
Number of posts : 265
Registration date : 2020-10-15
Yeah, and press cans closed so an animal cannot get its head stuck in it. My ex told me to do that and I thought he was over the top. A few weeks later one of my 2 kittens had a can of cat food on its head and couldn't get it off. He went totally crazy, running through the kitchen, barging into everything, in total panic.
Ever since I've pressed every can closed.
I don't really have plastic mesh bags, only onions I think. I will remember. But I rarely have those. I eat so few onions I sometimes buy 1 or 2 loose ones.
Ever since I've pressed every can closed.
I don't really have plastic mesh bags, only onions I think. I will remember. But I rarely have those. I eat so few onions I sometimes buy 1 or 2 loose ones.
RainbowLight- Member
Number of posts : 265
Registration date : 2020-10-15
A couple of years ago a young Dutch guy invented something to get rid of these reefs, and he successfully started implementing this with the help of sponsors. Not sure if he's still going. I do hope so!mac wrote:RainbowLight wrote:As for the rest... I do feel it's very important. Just Google the plastic reefs that are floating in the oceans, miles and miles long!! That's sheer insanity! So I'm glad to do my part to help our planet and with that our own existence.
This is an issue that particularly concerns and alarms me. Whatever measures we might take now to reduce plastic pollution in the future there is a mammoth problem that needs to be addressed with equal and perhaps more urgency - that of getting the trash out of the environment that's been accumulating for several decades.
It will need inventors with great imaginations to come up with ways of collecting the debris floating on the surface but the biggest problem is getting rid of the trash under the waves. And we taxpayers must be prepared to take the hit of increased taxation to pay.
Let's not forget who pays for EVERYTHING in life - the taxpayer.
But we have to prevent more getting chucked into the oceans and nature. So less needs to be produced and end up there. Then we can start extensive cleaning.
Thank goodness more and more people are becoming aware and mindful of this. Also to not burn it, which isn't the way to go. Enough crap in the air as it is which will eventually come down as pollution and/or with rain, toxifying land, water, and air that we all need to live and breathe.
mac- Member
Number of posts : 4147
Age : 77
Location : Heart of England
Job/hobbies : retired
Registration date : 2010-04-23
RainbowLight wrote:Yeah, and press cans closed so an animal cannot get its head stuck in it. My ex told me to do that and I thought he was over the top. A few weeks later one of my 2 kittens had a can of cat food on its head and couldn't get it off. He went totally crazy, running through the kitchen, barging into everything, in total panic.
Ever since I've pressed every can closed.
I don't really have plastic mesh bags, only onions I think. I will remember. But I rarely have those. I eat so few onions I sometimes buy 1 or 2 loose ones.
I like that idea of crushing cans although ours are SUPPOSED to go straight to the recycling plant.
It's similar to the situation of beer can mouldings holding 4 or more together. I cut through every loop before the bits go in the bin. Animals of all kinds have been caught and die in those loops.
Plastic mesh bags are plain diabolical and should be sliced into thin slivers or melted in a gas flame but not just thrown away - ever!
RainbowLight- Member
Number of posts : 265
Registration date : 2020-10-15
Yeah, I've also seen birds -for instance ducks- trapped with their beak and neck in the ring that is around the neck of a bottle. That ring that stays behind when you unscrew the top.mac wrote:RainbowLight wrote:Yeah, and press cans closed so an animal cannot get its head stuck in it. My ex told me to do that and I thought he was over the top. A few weeks later one of my 2 kittens had a can of cat food on its head and couldn't get it off. He went totally crazy, running through the kitchen, barging into everything, in total panic.
Ever since I've pressed every can closed.
I don't really have plastic mesh bags, only onions I think. I will remember. But I rarely have those. I eat so few onions I sometimes buy 1 or 2 loose ones.
I like that idea of crushing cans although ours are SUPPOSED to go straight to the recycling plant.
It's similar to the situation of beer can mouldings holding 4 or more together. I cut through every loop before the bits go in the bin. Animals of all kinds have been caught and die in those loops.
Plastic mesh bags are plain diabolical and should be sliced into thin slivers or melted in a gas flame but not just thrown away - ever!
Totally horrible to see and something you don't think of to be possible or happen even.
I think eventually such birds die as I doubt it can still eat and swallow. The beak was forced open. Lord knows when it's a duck -and the photo I saw of it was- it'll choke in water when it swims with its beak open.
So sad...
mac- Member
Number of posts : 4147
Age : 77
Location : Heart of England
Job/hobbies : retired
Registration date : 2010-04-23
A couple of years ago a young Dutch guy invented something to get rid of these reefs, and he successfully started implementing this with the help of sponsors. Not sure if he's still going. I do hope so!
I've seen proposals but the scale of this is immense and governments are probably needed to maintain the necessary pace.
But we have to prevent more getting chucked into the oceans and nature. So less needs to be produced and end up there. Then we can start extensive cleaning.
I disagree - cleaning needs to begin now and has to continue into a future I'll not see. We're talking in terms of decades and of course dumping in the present needs equal priority - it's not one before the other.
Thank goodness more and more people are becoming aware and mindful of this. Also to not burn it, which isn't the way to go. Enough crap in the air as it is which will eventually come down as pollution and/or with rain, toxifying land, water, and air that we all need to live and breathe.
Yes the young generations are the ones who will need to spearhead the move to clean up and then the young generations who follow. It's a long-term necessity. Burning can work if it's done properly but it's terribly wasteful and energy intensive and shouldn't be done unless there is simply no alternative way to dispose of trash. But it needs to be done carefully and properly - fat chance unless there's a huge sea-change in attitudes.
RainbowLight- Member
Number of posts : 265
Registration date : 2020-10-15
Yeah, I phrased that wrong. I didn't mean one before the other either. Both at the same time.mac wrote:A couple of years ago a young Dutch guy invented something to get rid of these reefs, and he successfully started implementing this with the help of sponsors. Not sure if he's still going. I do hope so!
I've seen proposals but the scale of this is immense and governments are probably needed to maintain the necessary pace.
But we have to prevent more getting chucked into the oceans and nature. So less needs to be produced and end up there. Then we can start extensive cleaning.
I disagree - cleaning needs to begin now and has to continue into a future I'll not see. We're talking in terms of decades and of course dumping in the present needs equal priority - it's not one before the other.
Thank goodness more and more people are becoming aware and mindful of this. Also to not burn it, which isn't the way to go. Enough crap in the air as it is which will eventually come down as pollution and/or with rain, toxifying land, water, and air that we all need to live and breathe.
Yes the young generations are the ones who will need to spearhead the move to clean up and then the young generations who follow. It's a long-term necessity. Burning can work if it's done properly but it's terribly wasteful and energy intensive and shouldn't be done unless there is simply no alternative way to dispose of trash. But it needs to be done carefully and properly - fat chance unless there's a huge sea-change in attitudes.
What I fear with now the almost free collection of plastic waste via rolling bins is that people become indifferent again and feel like, who gives a toss. Maybe it won't be that bad, but I have noticed and heard that people are more careful now with the amount of rest garbage as they have to pay per emptying of that bin.
In some cities there's now a lot of bin bags thrown away wherever so people don't have to pay.
So we do have government attempting to sort the problem at the core of people's homes but I'm not sure they're going about it the right way. Is there a 'right way' even?
I feel it's an issue for my generation, but also older generations. I've heard old people say "Oh well, I'll live the rest of my life without a problem!" Something along those lines. Totally selfish! And I can't believe they don't think about their children and grandchildren etc.
Same with RoundUp to kill weeds. The man -in his 70s- said the same thing to me. "I know I shouldn't, but yeah... I need the weeds gone, and those few years I got left, it won't affect me. Let the next generation sort it out."
Something like that.
Well, great thinking! Many people being careful and minding what they do and use and pensioners not giving a toss and adding to it as 'they had their time anyways and it won't do much to them no more."
But alas... I do what I can, I know my daughter does too. I know in the US many people do as well, which surprised me when I learned about that.
And if a number of people go the extra mile... I have supported Green Peace for a while on a project concerning plastic. They have the means, the equipment and the people. All they need apart from that is financial support.
If I can, I like to do that for sure. It's not much, but many 'not muches' turn into a big pile haha.
linen- Member
- Number of posts : 379
Registration date : 2020-10-15
Our recycling cans are melted down so no prob there. Just found out now we can't recycle glass! It's all bureaucratic crap. So and so resigned, so and so says she won't do it herself anymore, you know the routine.
ameliorate- Member
Number of posts : 3603
Age : 74
Location : London, UK
Job/hobbies : Full-time person! Cooking, creating things
Registration date : 2012-02-15
For those who don't care about the plastic pollution problem, e.g. adversely affecting marine life in our oceans, I wonder how many of them know about microplastics if they eat fish?
'Because of their small size, microplastics can be ingested by a wide variety of marine organisms. ... Microplastics are found in many species intended for human consumption including invertebrates, crustaceans, and fish'
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6132564/
'Because of their small size, microplastics can be ingested by a wide variety of marine organisms. ... Microplastics are found in many species intended for human consumption including invertebrates, crustaceans, and fish'
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6132564/
mac- Member
Number of posts : 4147
Age : 77
Location : Heart of England
Job/hobbies : retired
Registration date : 2010-04-23
ameliorate wrote:For those who don't care about the plastic pollution problem, e.g. adversely affecting marine life in our oceans, I wonder how many of them know about microplastics if they eat fish?
'Because of their small size, microplastics can be ingested by a wide variety of marine organisms. ... Microplastics are found in many species intended for human consumption including invertebrates, crustaceans, and fish'
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6132564/
Don't get me wrong. I am very unhappy about the way this world is being trashed but we don't yet know how harmful microplastics are overall. They definitely ARE harmful in certain scenarios - perhaps in ALL scenarios - and they appear to have no beneficial effects but it's a big picture that's nowhere near fully understood.
The sooner it is the sooner we know where we stand and where our focus should be.
ameliorate- Member
Number of posts : 3603
Age : 74
Location : London, UK
Job/hobbies : Full-time person! Cooking, creating things
Registration date : 2012-02-15
There's recently been a new study about the effects of microplastic and....surprise....it isn't looking good!mac wrote:ameliorate wrote:For those who don't care about the plastic pollution problem, e.g. adversely affecting marine life in our oceans, I wonder how many of them know about microplastics if they eat fish?
'Because of their small size, microplastics can be ingested by a wide variety of marine organisms. ... Microplastics are found in many species intended for human consumption including invertebrates, crustaceans, and fish'
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6132564/
Don't get me wrong. I am very unhappy about the way this world is being trashed but we don't yet know how harmful microplastics are overall. They definitely ARE harmful in certain scenarios - perhaps in ALL scenarios - and they appear to have no beneficial effects but it's a big picture that's nowhere near fully understood.
The sooner it is the sooner we know where we stand and where our focus should be.
'Microplastics detected in 100 Percent of Human Organs Sampled. Microplastics may be tiny, but they are a big problem — even bigger than you may have thought. ... This is one of the first pieces of proof we have that microplastics can persist in our bodies.'
https://www.greenmatters.com/p/microplastics-detected-human-organs
Elfin- Member
- Number of posts : 208
Registration date : 2020-10-16
Where I live, there are strict guidelines about refuse. So so so different from where I used to live ( just 80 miles away)... So refreshing. Green bin.. anything that is total rubbish, that cannot be recycled (very little).. blue bin.. anything recycable ... Which includes glass , pottery, etc.... Brown bin... Garden waste... All garden waste, including food waste, bones, kitchen roll etc. The brown bin is collected every 2weeks, and taken to sites where it is composted down. Once a year, the compost is bagged up, and given back to the residents that "donated" it in the first place...
mac- Member
Number of posts : 4147
Age : 77
Location : Heart of England
Job/hobbies : retired
Registration date : 2010-04-23
ameliorate wrote:There's recently been a new study about the effects of microplastic and....surprise....it isn't looking good!mac wrote:ameliorate wrote:For those who don't care about the plastic pollution problem, e.g. adversely affecting marine life in our oceans, I wonder how many of them know about microplastics if they eat fish?
'Because of their small size, microplastics can be ingested by a wide variety of marine organisms. ... Microplastics are found in many species intended for human consumption including invertebrates, crustaceans, and fish'
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6132564/
Don't get me wrong. I am very unhappy about the way this world is being trashed but we don't yet know how harmful microplastics are overall. They definitely ARE harmful in certain scenarios - perhaps in ALL scenarios - and they appear to have no beneficial effects but it's a big picture that's nowhere near fully understood.
The sooner it is the sooner we know where we stand and where our focus should be.
'Microplastics detected in 100 Percent of Human Organs Sampled. Microplastics may be tiny, but they are a big problem — even bigger than you may have thought. ... This is one of the first pieces of proof we have that microplastics can persist in our bodies.'
https://www.greenmatters.com/p/microplastics-detected-human-organs
Yes they can't be processed by - and may not be able to be eliminated from - our bodies but it's yet to be established whether they cause harm just because they're there. I'm not saying they don't, only that it's not known.
The kicker is that if they do cause harm we're unlikely to be able to remove them anyway.
mac- Member
Number of posts : 4147
Age : 77
Location : Heart of England
Job/hobbies : retired
Registration date : 2010-04-23
Elfin wrote:Where I live, there are strict guidelines about refuse. So so so different from where I used to live ( just 80 miles away)... So refreshing. Green bin.. anything that is total rubbish, that cannot be recycled (very little).. blue bin.. anything recycable ... Which includes glass , pottery, etc.... Brown bin... Garden waste... All garden waste, including food waste, bones, kitchen roll etc. The brown bin is collected every 2weeks, and taken to sites where it is composted down. Once a year, the compost is bagged up, and given back to the residents that "donated" it in the first place...
In the small town in the US we first lived in for a few years there was a dumpster for plastics whose contents were collected and processed. We lived opposite it and often tidied it up when a** holes couldn't be a**ed to sort their garbage - aluminum cans, cardboard boxes, food etc. just tossed in contaminating the load.
There was a HUGE volume of plastics of all descriptions, containers I'd never seen let alone bought. Everything worked well for some years but then the company stopped trading and that was the end of plastics recycling. All that plastic went to landfill a couple of miles from Florence, AZ and was buried.
It's likely what still happens there and happens in our new home too after plastics recycling became a separately charged for disposal. Same with cardboard and paper, even clothes. it shows what an international problem it is and it may be worse than in our country.
The worst situation is where recyling waste has been exported but then dumped and/or incinerated when it was supposed to be properly recycled.
linen- Member
- Number of posts : 379
Registration date : 2020-10-15
Elfin wrote:Where I live, there are strict guidelines about refuse. So so so different from where I used to live ( just 80 miles away)... So refreshing. Green bin.. anything that is total rubbish, that cannot be recycled (very little).. blue bin.. anything recycable ... Which includes glass , pottery, etc.... Brown bin... Garden waste... All garden waste, including food waste, bones, kitchen roll etc. The brown bin is collected every 2weeks, and taken to sites where it is composted down. Once a year, the compost is bagged up, and given back to the residents that "donated" it in the first place...
So tidy! Any recycling done where I live has to be done by us. No colored bins. It makes me sad, because we used to recycle anything that is recyclable. We've done it so long I have a hard time accepting that two recycling groups will no longer be available.
Violet- Admin
Number of posts : 24568
Location : UK
Registration date : 2009-02-15
I saw someone on a gardening programme using the big plastic milk bottles for plantsNative spirit wrote:I do my bit but if i have to many milk containers i burn them
Namaste
Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterfly.