Last week's 'War on Waste' - throwaway coffee cups were the deserving target - was an exemplar of effective single-issue campaigning by Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall. But the answers to our waste problems go way beyond recycling. We must begin to plan a societal transition to a post-consumer culture of caring, sharing, and knowing when we have enough.
… Hugh's 'War on Waste' is great - but we need to grasp the … picture Sam Earle | 3rd August 2016 Comment Waste Consumerism Recycling Economics Green … Drink shopping-cut.jpg Last week's 'War on Waste' - throwaway coffee cups were the …
Britain's trade in waste plastic to the Far East is booming. But it's not good news. The exported plastic is meant to be recycled under UK conditions and standards, but often is not, undermining bona fide UK recycling firms who face falling prices, reduced turnover, collapsing profits, and all too often, closure.
… UK exporting 67% of plastic waste amid 'illegal practices' warnings The Ecologist | 13th March 2017 News Waste Pollution Recycling UK Indonesia Vietnam … plastic-sorting-cut.jpg Britain's trade in waste plastic to the Far East is booming. But …
A Parliamentary report reveals that £200 million has been wasted on failed 'public-private' PFI projects for waste management, writes David Hall. The obvious solution: to allow local authorities to build and operate their own, which is cheaper and more flexible. The only problem: under UK government rules, it's PFI or nothing.
… PFI waste incinerator contracts burn more money … | 22nd September 2014 News UK Finance Waste Politics incinerator-edmonton-cut.jpg A … report reveals that £200 million has been wasted on failed 'public-private' PFI projects …
The recent closure of five US power stations is forcing the industry to confront big questions about radioactive waste, writes Paul Brown. Who is to pay the mounting costs of managing the wastes and keeping them secure? And precisely where will be their final resting place?
… Nuclear waste - the unanswered questions that won't go … 20th July 2014 News USA UK EU Nuclear Energy Waste san-onofre-cut.jpg Now it's just a big pile of nuclear waste - San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, …
Following this month's intense rainfall in the north of England an Environment Agency alert has highlighted the flood risk to the crumbling nuclear waste dump adjoining Sellafield in Cumbria, writes Marianne Birkby - a dump which remains in use despite its condemnation by the EA in 2005 due to its likely destruction by rising seas. Now it really is time to close the gate on Drigg!
… Agency issues alert on Drigg nuclear waste site Marianne Birkby | 31st December 2015 Activism Nuclear Waste UK Water Flooding Regulation … the flood risk to the crumbling nuclear waste dump adjoining Sellafield in Cumbria, …
In the last act of the dying Parliament, MPs quietly voted to dump democratic planning processes to expedite a 'facility' for the high level nuclear waste in geologically fractured Cumbria, writes Marianne Birkby - so over-ruling strong and highly effective local opposition. Shame on them!
… To dump nuclear waste, first they must dump democracy! … Birkby | 2nd April 2015 Comment Nuclear Waste UK Politics Water boreholes being … a 'facility' for the high level nuclear waste in geologically fractured Cumbria, …
The long term problems of what to do with nuclear waste remain entirely unsolved, writes Andrew Blowers. Yet governments and the nuclear industry continue to peddle their untenable 'bury and forget' policy of deep geological disposal, which only unloads the toxic legacy of modern day nuclear power and weapons onto uncountable future generations.
… Why worry about nuclear waste? What has the future ever done for us? … Blowers | 16th November 2016 News Nuclear Waste Society USA UK France Germany Russia … long term problems of what to do with nuclear waste remain entirely unsolved, writes Andrew …
The UK opposed stricter rules on the emissions of nitrogen oxides and monitoring of mercury.
… UK lobbied to weaken EU waste incinerator rules Emma Howard | 26th … rules designed to reduce toxic emissions from waste incinerators, less than a year before it … weaken new EU rules on toxic emissions from waste incinerators.” At the meeting in Spain …
Britain is shipping 700kg of highly-enriched uranium capable of making scores of nuclear bombs to the US, writes Gordon MacKerron. The move is a symptom of a huge problem that's afflicting all nuclear nations - what to do with their nuclear wastes? The only real solution is deep geological disposal. But it's politically fraught, technically challenging, very expensive - and has yet to be done.
… Nuclear industry reveals its unsolved problem: waste Gordon MacKerron University of Sussex | 6th April 2016 News Nuclear Waste Economics UK radioactive-cut.jpg Britain … nations - what to do with their nuclear wastes? The only real solution is deep …
Activists in Gloucestershire are battling to block the construction of a massive incinerator that they see as a blight on the landscape, costly, polluting, wasteful and undermining recycling, writes Dan Hinge. Now the fight, backed by superstar actor Jeremy Irons, just entered a new phase after a tribunal forced the County Council to reveal essential details of the contract it had signed.
… Dan Hinge | 24th April 2017 Activism Waste Pollution Recycling Landscape UK England … a blight on the landscape, costly, polluting, wasteful and undermining recycling, writes Dan … that they see as costly, polluting and wasteful. The fight entered a new phase in …
If you don't want an incinerator near you, you are either going to have to move to a rich neighbourhood or bin your bin...
… your bin Jon Hughes | 1st July 2006 News Bin Waste Incinerator Incineration Incineration … a billion pound contract with Onyx to manage waste disposal in the county for the next 25 … a year, which accounts for half of all the waste currently produced in East Sussex by a …
Fracking operations produce radioactive waste derived from naturally occurring uranium and thorium - until now, safely buried deep underground. And right now the industry has neither a plan, nor the technology, to deal with it.
… Fracking operations produce radioactive waste derived from naturally occurring uranium … radioactive material that is found in the waste water, principally radium, is high … neither will it be possible to dispose of the waste water by injecting it back underground. …
The single biggest energy service we all need is heat, writes Rob Raine - yet it's largely ignored in the energy policy discourse. By focusing on heat as well as power, we can accelerate the transition to renewable energy sources and - because heat stores are far cheaper than batteries - keep the costs down.
… Time to tap in to an underused energy source: wasted heat Rob Raine | 10th September 2015 … their homes warm, but few realise the heat wasted in our energy system could provide the … of all home energy use , while UK industry wastes enough heat to warm more than two …
Every Hallowe'en the UK throws away enough pumpkin to make 360 million portions of pumpkin pie, soup, or cake, writes Gavin Ellis - a shocking waste in these hungry times. Hence a bold new initiative to rescue all those pumpkins from landfill, and turn them into delicious food we can all enjoy as part of our seasonal festivities.
… Ellis | 31st October 2014 Ethical Living Food Waste UK pumpkins-andrea-vergani-cut.jpg … or cake, writes Gavin Ellis - a shocking waste in these hungry times. Hence a bold new … would welcome more recipes to decrease waste. 18,000 tonnes of pumpkin is the same …
As Cameron 'cuts the green crap' Paul Mobbs remembers how the decisions of a Conservative government 20 years ago to go easy on the owners of contaminated land and old waste dumps have led to present day blight, ill-health and death. Now brow-beaten regulators and politicians in hock to party funders are doing it all over again.
… Paul Mobbs | 22nd December 2014 News Waste Toxics Politics Regulation UK … on the owners of contaminated land and old waste dumps have led to present day blight, … all sorts of 'nastiness' - from the dodgy waste reclamation plants of the Black Country, …
The cash-strapped Cumbrian Museum is rebranded to tell 'The Sellafield Story'. The UK's favourite scientist Brian Cox and Government Minister Baroness Verma provide razzmatazz along with the Happy Robot. Lollypops anyone?
… public meetings such as Managing Radioactive Wastes Safely. The ironically titled Managing Radioactive Wastes Safely Partnership was dissolved … cunning plan to dump heat generating nuclear waste under Cumbria.'s complex geology. But …
The apparent conspiracy by the UK government and its agencies to conceal the real cause of death of 7-year old Zane Gbangbola may go right up to Prime Minister David Cameron, writes Paul Mobbs. He was chair of the COBRA emergency committee at the time when it appears to have held back the truth that he was killed by cyanide from the toxic landfill site his home was built over.
… Paul Mobbs | 14th December 2015 News Toxics Waste Pollution Cities Politics Law UK … not be able to sell or develop it; or the waste lobby generally, who want to prevent tighter regulation on waste disposal operations - there are a lot of …
A Greenpeace investigation has exposed the massive efforts of global food and drink giant Coca Cola to defeat popular proposals to require deposits on single-use plastic bottles, writes Maeve McClenaghan. In fact, deposit schemes are working fine in many countries in which the company operates - it's a simple case of corporate profit before environment, oceans and wildlife.
… big 'fight back' against tackling plastic waste Maeve McClenaghan Greenpeace Energydesk | 2nd February 2017 News Waste Pollution Corporations Politics UK EU … scheme in Scotland designed to reduce plastic waste, according to an Energydesk …
Nuclear enthusiasts have been singing the praises of nuclear reactors that use thorium as their fuel instead of uranium. Jan Beránek analyses the claims - and finds that thorium is a mere distraction on the way to our renewable future.
… Comment Nuclear Power Renewables UK USA th-u-waste-lifetime.png Nuclear enthusiasts have … reactor safety, production of dangerous waste, and last but not least, nuclear weapons … and 'cheap as chips' - it's produced as a waste product of rare earth mining. But the …
Planned air transports of high-enriched uranium from Dounreay in Scotland to the US state of Tennessee would risk of accident or a terrorist seizure of weapon-usable nuclear material, writes Ernie Galsworthy. The motive for the transport appears to be purely commercial - and would thus put the public at needless risk for the sake of a cut-price nuclear waste / fuel deal between US and UK authorities.
… risk for the sake of a cut-price nuclear waste / fuel deal between US and UK … global nuclear security by transporting this waste across the Atlantic by air? Why is the … , "the largest ever such movement of nuclear waste" . No mention had previously been made …
Nearly a year ago at the height of the UK floods, tragedy struck an ordinary family in Surrey as toxic gas from a nearby landfill site killed a 7-year old boy, Zane. Now the authorities appear determined to exculpate the source of the poison - an old landfill site - even as they prepare for a massive increase in hazardous waste from fracking.
… The Ecologist | 19th January 2015 Activism Waste Health Fracking Corporations Politics UK … prepare for a massive increase in hazardous waste from fracking. Zane, a beautiful bright … may need countless new landfills to dump its waste In a recent submission to the …
In its haste to get fracking, the UK Government is neglecting safe, clean alternatives that could be providing low-carbon gas and heat energy, writes Keith Barnham. The technologies are already well established in other European countries and are picking up fast here too - so why the insistence that only fossil fuels can deliver the UK's energy needs?
… freezer cabinets running efficiently. The waste heat, from the air-conditioning in … be used in any building where recycling of waste heat is possible, for example from air … computers or manufacturing. Biomethane from waste The third alternative is biogas, also …
The Ecologist goes inside the workings of Smithfield to reveal the true horrors of its pig production business
… additive residues naturally end up in their waste. Industrial-style pollution. A pig produces 10 times as much waste as a human. One of Smithfield’s Utah … houses 850,000 pigs and produces more faecal waste than New York City’s 8.5 million people. …