In Education > Reduce > Why Rethink Waste

Why Rethink Waste?

Why is rethinking waste a good thing to do?
Rethinking our waste benefits our schools and colleges through cost saving, but it benefits the environment in a number of ways.

Reducing, reusing and recycling saves energy and in the process decreases the amount of carbon dioxide generated - which is responsible for climate change. For example, you can reduce food and garden waste by composting it yourself. Why not try installing a compost bin? This breaks the waste down into a soil conditioner that can then be used to help your plants and flowers grow. You can use the compost bin for grass, twigs and leaves from the school grounds, as well as cardboard and some waste from your school canteen such as fruit and vegetable waste, tea leaves and egg shells. If food and garden waste is not composted, it usually breaks down to produce greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming.
Reducing, reusing and recycling cuts pollution and saves the Earth's natural resources. For example, if aluminium cans are not used to make new ones, non-renewable bauxite must be mined to manufacture new aluminium cans.
Reducing, reusing and recycling waste relieves the pressure on landfill. As well as being an eyesore, landfill sites have a number of disadvantages. As rubbish rots in landfill it produces methane, a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming. Dangerous chemicals can also leak into groundwater supplies, and they can attract pests, such as rats and flies, due to the food waste present. Although there may always be a need for some landfill, this is not a sustainable method of managing our waste in the long term. There is a limit to the amount of space available - which is why we need to rethink waste.