Industry

News in brief 29/08/2014

Zero Waste Week begins on Monday

People across the UK are being urged to take up a waste reduction pledge as part of the seventh annual National Zero Waste Week, beginning on Monday (1 September). 

Organised by blogger Rachelle Strauss from MyZeroWaste.com in partnership with fellow blogger Karen Cannard at the Rubbish Diet, Zero Waste Week asks members of the public to become ‘Zero Heroes’ and make a pledge to reduce their waste production with the aim of making better use of resources and saving money. 

This year’s theme, ‘One More Thing’, asks members of the public to see if they can undertaken one more action to help ‘slim their bins’ and reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill. 

Suggested pledges include:

  • using reusable, rather thanplastic, carrier bags;
  • packing a ‘zero waste’ lunch;
  • taking clothes to a textile bank;
  • reducing food waste;
  • repairing something; and
  • buying food and products without packaging

Those pledging to take action will receive daily emails to ‘keep [them] accountable’, and could also be entered into a prize draw. Last year’s week saw 1,700 people take part.

Interviewed in Resource 77, Zero Waste Week founder Rachelle Strauss, said: "I think people like it because although it’s got a serious message, I’m quite fun with it… I’m not preaching at people because we’re in this together and I’ve got some bad habits and Zero Waste Week helps me rein things back in.”

Find out more about National Zero Waste Week 2014.

Biffa’s South Staffordshire uniforms to highlight vehicle-mounted cameras

Crews working for municipal contractor Biffa in South Staffordshire will soon be wearing new high-visibility shirts to highlight that their collection vehicles are mounted with cameras.

Following more than 100 reports of drivers travelling too fast or too close to collection vehicles and staff, all of Biffa’s 15 collection vehicles on the South Staffordshire contract have been fitted with 360-degree video cameras. Since their installation in October 2013, the cameras have recorded around 50 incidents of ‘poor, dangerous or aggressive driving’, one of which resulted in a loader suffering leg bruising.

It is understood that six Section 59 cautions (driving in a careless or inconsiderate manner that does or might cause alarm, distress or annoyance) have been issued by the police as a result of Biffa’s work.

To highlight the campaign, all of Biffa’s 50 collection staff will now wear bright yellow polo shirts overprinted with a picture of a road safety camera and the slogan ‘Live recording on this vehicle’.

It is hoped that the warning will encourage drivers to safely navigate around Biffa collection vehicles and crews on their rounds. 

Matt Bailey, Biffa’s Senior Business Manager for the South Staffordshire contract, said: “All we ask is for some consideration by other road users. Our vehicles don’t hold up traffic for long, and drivers are usually soon on their way, so it really isn’t necessary to get impatient, frustrated or angry.”

Biffa launched a similar safer driving campaign in the Wirral in April.

Fermanagh District Council installs ‘on-the-go’ recycling bins

In a recent bid to increase recycling rates, Fermanagh District Council has installed five new on-street recycling bins in Enniskillen Town Centre in Northern Ireland.

The new bins, installed at the Diamond, Eden Street, Gaol Square, the top of Church Street and Erneside footbridge, accept plastic bottles, glass, aluminium cansand newspapers for recycling.

It is hoped that the bins will help boost the council’s recycling rate from 32 per cent (as it is currently) to 50 per cent by 2020.

Councillor Bert Johnston, Chairman of Fermanagh District Council, has welcomed the move to on-street recycling, saying: “Now that we have installed on-street recycling bins in Enniskillen, we are confident that they will act as a catalyst for change within the local community and that our recycling rate will rise. We will then look toward rolling out this scheme to other towns and villages in the county.”

Similar bins have also recently been installed in Ealing and the Western Isles.

Improvement work to start at Broughton HWRC

Improvement works to refurbish Broughton Household Waste and Recycling Centre (HWRC) will begin on Wednesday (3 September).

The upgrades, which form part of a £650,000 investment to improve all sites for residents of North Lincolnshire, will close the site until 22 September.

Residents are being advised to use the alternative HWRCs on Cottage Beck Road in Scunthorpe (open 7 days a week, 8am – 6pm) or North Street in Winterton (closed Wednesdays and Thursdays) until then.

Other HWRCs, furniture reuse schemes and community recycling centres, as well as glass, can, and paper recycling points will stay open during the improvement works. 

North Lincolnshire Council has apologised in advance for ‘any inconvenience caused during the refurbishment’ and urges people to ‘continue to recycle’.

Find out more about recycling in North Lincolnshire.

BI WORLDWIDE increases recycling by 100 per cent

Performance improvement agency BI WORLDWIDE has announced that it has increased recycling at its Newport Pagnell office by 100 per cent following waste overhaul.

By removing 170 desk bins in April, and adding 20 recycling points, the company has reduced the waste it sends to landfill by over 60 per cent. It now sends one, rather than three, 1,000-litre containers to landfill every week.

 Managing Director Mike Davies, stated: “I’d like to say a big thank you to every BI WORLDWIDE Associate for the way they have embraced this initiative and made such a dramatic difference to our environment.”

Other initiatives the firm has employed to boost environmental performance include: installing electric car-charging points; rewarding employees for car sharing, walking or cycling to work; and giving its staff the option to take six days' paid leave a year to volunteer for ‘good causes’.

Read more about BI WORLDWIDE.