'What is Waste'? Waste arises from practically all activities where goods or products are consumed. In 1997 alone, a total of 27 million tonnes of household waste was collected. For Bournemouth residents, this means nearly a tonne of waste per household was collected through the wheeled bins each year.

Over the last few years there has been a steady increase in the amount of waste thrown away. The average growth throughout the country is about 7% per year, in spite of the considerable efforts presently devoted to recycling and minimisation. Each year more and more effort is spent on reducing the quantity of waste in the wheelie bin, since this upward trend places greater strains on the waste disposal sites that the Council currently uses.

There has been a 21% increase in domestic waste collected from 1992 to 1997.
Waste treatment and disposal poses a significant environmental challenge for the Council and residents of Bournemouth. For many people, waste is considered to be 'out-of- sight-out-of-mind' when it goes into the bin. It is this view that the Council is seeking to change by moving towards a partnership with public and commerce in developing the choices that need to be made for the future.

The contents of the average household wheeled bin: · 30% Vegetable Waste · 30% Paper · 10% Glass · 10% Cans · 8% Miscellaneous · 8% Plastic · 4% Textiles

There is a large part of the wheeled bin that is potentially recyclable. Bournemouth Borough Council provide a well established kerbside collection of newspapers, magazines, cans and textiles. This represents nearly half of the average dustbin, so by separating out these materials a 50% reduction can be made !

This growth of waste needs to addressed in the short term and Bournemouth Borough Council is seeking the views off the public on waste-related issues. The results indicate overall support for the expansion of current recycling schemes and a move towards using alternative methods of waste disposal such as composting and energy from waste.

The Government's view

Following the signing of Agenda 21 at the 1992 Earth Summit the UK stated its commitment to protecting the environment and its adoption of 'sustainable development' goals ( Meeting our own needs without jeopardising the chances
of future generations to meet their own needs).

One of the ways in which the Government sought to demonstrate its commitment to sustainable development was the promotion of the so-called 'Waste Hierarchy' which is simply a way of illustrating the preferred means of dealing with waste of all kinds - the most environmentally beneficial options are towards the top of the hierarchy.

REDUCE
Ý
RE-USE
Ý
RECOVER/RECYCLE
Ý
DISPOSAL

The waste management strategy is built upon three key objectives;

• To minimise the amount of waste that is produced.
• To make best use of the waste that is produced.
• To minimise any immediate and future risk of pollution from waste management practices.

What's happening locally?

Since 1985 when the Council first introduced recycling into the borough, there has been overwhelming support from the public for more and more schemes to enable them to recycle more. Over the years the number of recycling banks has grown to the present 63 sites collecting a wide range of materials including newspaper, plastic, glass, cans, textiles, foil and engine oil.

The two most significant improvements have been the collection of garden waste from the Millhams Civic Amenity Site in Kinson (in 1997 alone over 10,000 tonnes was collected and sent to be recycled into composting materials) and the introduction of a kerbside 'blue bag' collection scheme in 1996. This proved such a success that it was further expanded to cover all of the borough collecting newspapers, magazines, cans and textiles. On average the scheme collects in excess of 100 tonnes of material every week which is nearly 10% of all waste collected through the wheeled bin scheme. The success of this scheme is due to its simplicity and the support the public.

The Millhams Road Civic Amenity site in Kinson is owned by the Council and operated under contract by a commercial recycling company. It serves the whole of the borough, taking household waste that is unsuitable for disposal in the wheeled bins. In 1997 a total of 37,519 tonnes of waste was disposed.

Waste disposal options

At the base of the waste hierarchy is landfill disposal. In the UK this is the preferred method of disposal due to its relatively cheap costs in relation to the alternatives. However, the introduction of the Landfill Tax in 1996 is costs as years progress as will a new European Union Directive aimed at increasing standards of landfill engineering. Currently about 90% of all controlled waste produced in the UK is disposed of to landfill. In a recent Government publication "Less Waste More Value", it has been stated that landfill is not a sustainable waste disposal option in the long term and that the incineration of waste with energy recovery will play a more significant role in order to achieve national recovery targets of 25% by the year 2000 and 40% by 2005.

Future waste disposal options could include: • Waste incineration with energy recovery • Landfill • Recycling, recovery and re-use • Composting and anaerobic digestion • Chemical and biological treatments

What does this mean for Bournemouth? - Integrated Waste Management

None of the above methods of treatment on its own is more effective than any other on purely environmental grounds. The composition of waste is varied in its content and the adoption of a range of disposal methods is being viewed as the way forward. This is the basis of Integrated Waste Management.

With any option, environmental impacts need to be considered. Various methods are used to assess these although the two main procedures are Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). Both of these aim to quantify the waste disposal options to allow an assessment of the most suitable disposal option for any area. The EU have introduced some guidance principles including Best Practicable Environmental Option (BPEO), and Best Available Technology Not Entailing Excessive Cost (BATNEEC). All aim to achieve the same goal by maximising environmental protection, minimising pollution and achieving the most cost effective waste disposal methods.

What you can do
Promote waste minimisation and recycling in school.
Set up your own recycling schemes.
Raise awareness of waste issues.
Make use of existing collection schemes.
• Use local recycling banks and the Millhams Civic Amenity Site.
• Reduce the amount of waste you produceat school.
• Refuse to accept 'over-packaged' goods.
• Re-use materials.
• Buy items that are Eco-friendly - 'Green purchasing'
• Promote 'Good Practice'.
• Get involved in local decision making and become 'Eco-Aware'
• Do all of the above at home too!

For further information contact the Recycling Officer, Bournemouth Borough Council.