With the amount of household rubbish set to double to over 40 million tonnes a year by 2020, the
UK Government is facing a severe crisis. European directives are insisting that Britain reduce
its landfill use, but while the incineration option looks attractive it is proving politically and
financially difficult.The British Government is currently conducting a full waste review and
suggested last week that householders who do not recycle their rubbish may have to pay up to
US$1.56 a sack to have it removed. Many authorities around the world are turning to a "zero
waste" system that would abolish landfills and dramatically reduce the need for incinerators.
Getting rid of waste altogether is, in fact, quite simple. The premise is that everything we buy
will eventually be made from materials that can be repaired, reused or recycled. So,
governments, councils and industry should work together to find ways to make waste profitable
or else design it out of the system altogether. The UN and the South African Government have
agreed to green the Johannesburg summit by following zero waste principles. The initiative
has been picked by a Liberal Democrat MP for Guildford in the southeast of England who recently
launched a charter and 10 commandments that call on government to get rid of household waste
by 2020. But Bath and North-east Somerset council, in the west of England have already adopted
the zero waste vision. Colchester and Braintree councils, in Essex, are following suit. "Zero
waste is, to me, a grassroots movement from local authorities and people," says Bath councillor
Roger Symmonds. He was won over to the concept two years ago at a conference in Geneva,
where New Zealand authorities that had taken the plunge recounted their experience. "Don't get
too hung up on the zero bit,'' he cautions. "It may not be achievable. But if we get anywhere
near, then the benefits for health and jobs will be enormous." The early signs are good. Where
Britain currently recycles 11 per cent of household waste, burns 8 per cent and dumps the rest,
within six years of a change in policy Canberra is recycling 59 per cent of its rubbish and
Edmonton, Canada, has reached 70 per cent. Surprisingly, organic waste makes up the bulk of
household rubbish and causes the nastiest health risk when it rots. Composting can
immediately reduce the problem. In many cases, the high achieving cities and councils have
introduced a three-stream collection, separating organics, dry recycled things such as bottles
and plastics, and tricky residuals such as batteries. This can increase recycling by more than 50
per cent.Waste can even be turned into an asset, creating small business opportunities and
employment in struggling communities.This has been a key factor in New Zealand, where zero
waste is regarded more as a driver of local economic development than a matter of
environmental conscience. "It's a quiet revolution where non-profit community groups are
turning waste into jobs," says Warren Snow of the New Zealand Zero Waste Trust. Radical
thinking about waste is seen to be essential. When it comes to the 15-20 per cent of waste
that is difficult to recycle, it should be designed out of the system. Here, industry is seen as
a key player. Many large companies already foresee the arrival of legislation that holds
producers responsible for what happens to their products at the end of the life-cycle.