<< Previous Page | Page 2 of 5 | Next Page >>
Waste is a big problem in the United Kingdom. Every year, the UK produces 38 million tonnes of household, office and school waste. Most of this material, around 85%, ends up in landfill sites, 9% is incinerated and about 6% of it is recycled. This waste has significant environmental impact. For every tonne produced, it's estimated that 5 tonnes of waste has been generated at the point of product manufacture and 20 tonnes at the point of raw material extraction - an impact way beyond that on our own immediate doorstep.
What can be done to minimise this impact? As landfill sites become scarce, and costs rise through the recent introduction of the Landfill Tax, pressure is certainly increasing to reduce our dependency on landfill. At the same time, the health and pollution issues associated with waste incineration are not yet fully understood. Whilst landfill will remain a final option for some of our waste, much more can be done to minimise waste at source, re-use materials, and to recycle. The three R's - reduce, re-use and recycle - should be our top priority in helping to stem the increasing tide of waste.
With nearly 34,000 schools in the UK, schools have a vital role to play in contributing to the solutions to our national waste problem. Not only is there an important role in the education of tomorrow's consumers and decision makers, but schools can also make significant cost savings, turning waste into a resource and taking action to put the three R's - reduce, re-use, recycle - into practice. Currently most schools spend between £300 and £1000 on waste disposal each year depending on their size and produce a minimum of one tonne of waste per term. If every school implemented just one measure to reduce waste, imagine the difference this would make!
This guide will help you make that difference - it shows how your school can implement practical ideas to tackle waste which will both help the environment and save money. Supported with a range of case studies from schools across the UK, a background to the national waste problem and contacts for further advice and information, "Work at Waste at School" will prove an invaluable resource.
Any teacher being asked to consider waste issues and this guide will ask the question "how does this fit into the National Curriculum?" Statutory requirements regarding what has to be taught make teachers wary of anything that could be considered to be an "add on" extra. Within the programmes of study of each of the National Curriculum subjects there are a range of opportunities to increase understanding of waste and environmental issues. Any activities which do not fit neatly into the National Curriculum can be included in the 20% of "free" choice given to teachers.
Throughout the science programme pupils have to study materials and their properties. In geography, land use, the effect of humans on environments and the sustainable management of resources provide many occasions for the discussion of waste issues. This can be put into an historical perspective through local studies and within the context of a variety of the history study units. Waste issues can be used in mathematics to give the opportunity to use real life situations for mathematical analyses. Technology gives pupils scope to discover more about products and how they are designed and made, which should include understanding of packaging and issues of recycling and re-use. At Key Stage One and Two, (primary schools) good use is made of packaging material for developing skills in design and manufacture. The possibilities within "junk" material have always been a key element of two and three dimensional work in art. In the English curriculum, a multitude of activities for speaking, listening and writing exist in any area of work about waste.
ENVIRONMENT : pollution ● landfill ● incineration ● litter ● traffic
HISTORY: dustbin contents over time ● development of materials ● change in lifestyles
MATHS: calculations ● school waste audits ● quantities/weights ● formulas ● graphs
ENGLISH: poetry ● drama ● story-telling ● writing ● debating
RELIGIOUS, PERSONAL AND SOCIAL EDUCATION: moral issues: poverty/exploitation /greed ● lifestyles and environmental effects ● effect of production & waste on other cultures
GEOGRAPHY: location of resources & transport ● processes ● resources
SCIENCE: materials/physical resources ● manufacturing processes ● compost/decay ● habitats
MUSIC: lyrics ● songs ● instruments from recycled materials
ART, DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY: posters ● murals ● sculptures ● fashion ● recycling bins ● recycled products
When we are looking at ways to cut down on waste it is useful to place the choices available to us inside a waste hierarchy,where some options for dealing with waste are preferable to others. This is useful because the environmental impacts of waste are not just confined to their disposal. The processing, manufacture and transport of materials before they end up as waste uses energy and resources and creates pollution. The same can be said for recycling which is, of course, an industrial process like any other. This is why preventing the creation of waste in the first place is regarded as a better option. However, the environmental benefits of recycling are generally regarded as better than landfill or incineration, which fall to the bottom of the hierarchy.
This option depends on people:
Re-use items to extend their life and prevent the purchase of more goods. Where possible use durable products, refillable or returnable containers, repair and refurbish broken or worn items.
Recycling means the re-manufacture of waste into products. Benefits of recycling include:
However, recycling itself does use energy and will never wholly replace the need for virgin raw materials which is why it is essential to re-use materials as much as possible before recycling them.
Energy can be recovered from waste when heat from incineration is used to generate energy, or when biogas from decomposing organic waste in landfill, is drawn off and used to provide energy. At the end of 1996, all but 5 incinerators in the UK were closed due to new EC emission standards, but several new waste-to-energy plants are now under construction.
Burying waste in holes in the ground (often these are disused quarries). Modern landfill sites are capped and lined to prevent pollution leaking into the surrounding water table. Key environmental concerns are:
Burning waste. Modern incinerators have the facility to produce energy for heat and/or power from burning waste. They are also designed to minimise the resultant air pollution and are extremely costly to build. Concerns with incineration are:
To minimise the effect of waste on the environment, the first option must always be to reduce the amount of waste produced.
A great deal has happened in the last few years to pave the way for change in the way we treat our environment:
The Government's first response to the growing demand for action on waste was to set a target of recycling 25% of household waste by the year 2000 as outlined in 1990 as part of "This Common Inheritance", the Government's White Paper on the environment. This was followed up by the Environmental Protection Act 1990, which asked local authorities to draw up recycling plans, to show how they intended to meet this recycling target. This led to increased partnership working between community groups, schools and local councils to improve recycling capacity.
This growing awareness was reinforced by the Governments endorsement of Agenda 21at the United Nations summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. Agenda 21 is an international commitment to reduce human impact on the global environment. Local Agenda 21 is a local action plan for sustainable development, co-ordinated by local authorities and involving all sectors of the community in shaping the future policies of their locality. Many schools and children are involved in Local Agenda 21 activities, and often this will include action on waste at school.
The Government's official response to the 1992 Rio Summit was to produce "Sustainable Development: A Strategy for the UK (1994)". In the waste management field, this led to the publication in 1995 of another White Paper: "Making Waste Work - a Strategy for Sustainable Waste Management". This was the first time the UK Government had produced a national waste strategy for England and Wales. Separate strategies for Scotland and Northern Ireland are due in 1997. This White Paper is the precursor to a statutorywaste strategy which should be produced during 1997 as required by the Environment Act 1995.
"Making Waste Work" has three primary objectives:
The strategy sets a number of new targets for sustainable waste management, which are challenging but certainly achievable. They include:
The strategy will also aim to set a target for waste reduction in the United Kingdom. Work on this is currently underway, with the aim of setting this target by the end of 1998.
"Making Waste Work" outlines how each sector of society can play its part in achieving these aims, and understands that sustainable waste management can only come about if co-operation and partnership becomes a priority. This means local councils, schools, voluntary groups, community businesses and industry all working together for a common aim.
In 1996, the Government moved to promote waste reduction, re-use and recycling by making the cost of waste disposal to landfill more expensive. They have done this by introducing a Landfill Tax on waste going to landfill. This is set at two different rates, depending on the type of waste being disposed. While this means higher waste disposal costs, much of the income generated will go to reduce the employers contribution to National Insurance. This is one of the first 'green' taxes to be introduced in the UK, increasing tax on resources and reducing tax on labour. In addition, some of the Landfill Tax monies can be diverted to approved environmental uses, through approved Environmental Bodies. Many recycling and educational projects, as well as land reclamation, tree planting and wildlife projects will benefit from new resources made available by landfill site operators. Waste Watch is an approved Environmental Body, and "Work at Waste at School" is an example of educational work funded in this manner.
"Taking Environmental Education into the 21st Century" is the 1996 UK Government's strategy for Environmental Education in England. It stipulates that as a matter of priority, environmental education should be promoted within all sectors of education throughout the community, through formal and informal education and in the training of people of all ages.
In order to achieve this, schools need to give consideration to environmental education, not just within the curriculum but across all areas of school life. A positive attitude towards the environment should be reflected in the aims of the school and consideration needs to be given to waste issues when developing policies for purchasing, efficient use of resources, waste collection, maintenance of the school and its' grounds and other aspects of school life.
Over the last few years, a real momentum has been generated to improve our environment by taking more action to reduce, re-use and recycle more waste. Increased education and awareness underpins all these policies and practical initiatives.
Without a strong lead from schools and colleges, the challenges of meeting the targets for sustainable waste management set for the 21st century may not be met. Children can act as a powerful lever and positive force for change, both at school and at home. In a recent survey by Aylesford Newsprint on what would encourage children to recycle, most considered that information and advertising were paramount, but sadly lacking. We hope that this guide will contribute to that challenge.