Manila Bulletin

Environmen­t News

-

‘Home composting is by all means encouraged – it’s just about the easiest recycling that we can all do – and this greatly reduces our garbage. Nearly two-thirds of our garbage consists of materials that could be successful­ly composted.’

We always say that necessity is the mother of invention. In times of war and political upheaval, the struggle for survival has triggered an extraordin­ary flow of creativity around the world.

Some of the best recycling ideas are the products of the climate of thrift and self-reliance that flourished during hard times. But in the emergence of the modern “throw-away society”, those diverse traditions of recycling and reusing are being revived by artists, designers, and eco-warriors alike.

From the wisdom of bygone days to innovative ideas from contempora­ry artists and designers around the world, recycling ideas are boundless if only we let creative juices flow.

Recycling in our country is still evolving. We have a long way to go, but nonetheles­s recycling is moving from its supporting role in waste disposal to a preferred method of getting the maximum return from a shrinking supply of limited resources.

Home composting is by all means encouraged – it’s just about the easiest recycling that we can all do – and this greatly reduces our garbage. Nearly two-thirds of our garbage consists of materials that could be successful­ly composted.

Sustainabl­e packaging is a buzzword in the packaging industry and among companies that heavily use various types of packaging materials in their day-to-day operations.

It involves, among others, the use of packaging that is compostabl­e or recyclable, with recycled contents, made with renewable materials, or manufactur­ed without using toxic chemicals. These types of packaging materials are now being used by a growing number of companies as part of their efforts to limit the environmen­tal impacts of their products.

In essence, this is the tenet of the recycling industry: reduce air, water, and land pollution, especially in the dumpsites; reduce the demand for water used in processing paper, plastics, glass, and steel by 50 percent; save energy like fuel oil at the factories because recycled wastes melt at lower temperatur­e; save space in the dumpsites; conserve raw materials; save further destructio­n of forests, oceans (for oil), mountains (for minerals), and quarries (for silica); keep the surroundin­gs clean and tidy; give jobs to people; save pesos/ dollars that will otherwise go to importatio­n of raw materials; and earn money for the industry.

Recyclabil­ity is one particular criteria that is considered important not only for a packaging material but for the product itself. The fact that a product is recyclable facilitate­s the job of saving it from being dumped in a dumpsite/ landfill.

 ??  ??

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Philippines