Litter and Recycling

In the natural order of things, recycling making new things from old discarded ones - is a fact of life, and nature's 'litter' usually has built-in recyclability. Take trees for example. Many trees drop all their leaves in autumn, but evergreens drop some leaves all year round. The discarded leaves on the ground form a mixture of twigs and leaves called leaf litter. The leaf litter rots down to become part of the soil and forms a natural soil enricher, supporting the healthy growth of new vegetation.

Unfortunately our own litter is not so obliging, and a growing proportion of the things we discard do not rot away or 'biodegrade' but stay around indefinitely. In their manufacture, many use up the earth's valuable resources and produce harmful waste products, yet have only a limited useful life.

Lethal litter

Some items are not only unsightly as litter, but are also dangerous to wildlife.

• Yoghurt cartons can trap inquisitive hedgehogs who move into the carton attracted by the remains, but then - because of their prickles - cannot move backwards to get out.
• In waterways and the sea, discarded plastic loops which originally held drinks cans together can catch and kill diving birds and fish. On land, the loops can trap hedgehogs and other small mammals. One way to avoid this is to cut the plastic loops before they are discarded.
• Floating plastic bags look like appetising food to marine life, yet can kill if they are swallowed.
• Discarded fishing lines can maim and kill waterbirds.

Your local wildlife trust may help organise 'clean ups' of certain areas, for instance ponds and streams where litter is a particular threat to wildlife. Joining a wildlife trust means you could take part in practical action.

Even putting rubbish in the right place - in bins can cause problems. After it's collected, it is taken to places called landfill sites - large natural or manmade holes in the ground. But we're running out of these convenient 'holes', and in addition, the liquid from these heaps of rubbish can soak into the soil and can be dangerous.

Recycling makes sense

Many local authorities now have a Recycling Officer and provide places where unwanted items can be collected for recycling. Melting old bottles to make new glass uses less heat energy than making totally new glass - about one litre of oil is saved for every four bottles you put in the bottle bank.

Here ore some examples of sensible recycling.

• Give clothes, toys and books to charity shops or jumble sales.
• Use worn out clothes as cleaning rags.
• Buy sticky labels from your favourite charity and re-use envelopes.
• Advertise things like washing machines, freezers, fridges and furniture in your local paper - someone else can probably use them. People sometimes dump freezers and fridges on waste ground. This is potentially dangerous, not only because young children and animals can become trapped inside, but also because fridges and freezers contain CFCs. These are substances which originally helped the fridge or freezer keep food cool, but which are also an environmental hazard. If you can't sell unwanted household appliances, contact your local council for how to dispose of them safely.
• Make use of your local recycling collecting points. Separate glass, metal, paper and plastic into different containers and make one trip to save energy. If there aren't any local collection points, ask your council to provide them.
• Make compost from kitchen or garden waste and give food scraps to birds.
• Take used car oil to a garage for safe disposal by recycling.
• Get together as a group to collect paper. Merchants are only interested in large quantities. You may need a fire-safe place to store it. The British Waste Paper Association can advise you.

Can Recycling

Drinks cans are made from aluminium or tin plate steel (steel covered with a thin coat of tin). Making cans is very expensive and uses a great deal of energy. Using old aluminium from used cans is a great energy saver - for every eight cans recycled, a litre of fuel is saved. If you squash the cans before taking them to a collection point, they take up less space. Fewer lorry trips are then needed to collect and empty the bank, which saves even more energy.

Litter and the law

In 1990 a new low called the Environmental Protection Act made sure that schools and colleges, local authorities and government departments had a duty to keep their land free of litter.

Local authorities have been given new powers to help them fight litter.

1. They can insist that shops and take-away restaurants keep their street clean
2. They can appoint litter wardens who can give people a £10 fine for dropping litter if they do not pick it up straight away
3. The maximum fine for littering is now up to £1,000

Useful addresses:
Aluminium Can Recycling Association, Suite 308,1-Mex House, 52 Blucher Street, BirminghamB1 lQU

Steel Can Recycling Information Bureau, 69 Monmouth Street, London WC2H 9DG

British Waste Paper Association, Alexander House, Station Road, Aldershot, HampshireGU11 lBQ

Aluminium Foil Recycling Campaign, 38 and 42 High Street, Bidford on Avon, Warwickshire B50 4AA

If you don't know where to contact your local wildlife trust, then ask The Wildlife Trusts, The Green, Witham Park, Waterside South, Lincoln LN5 7JR Tel: 01522 544400

Did you know... Each year in Britain, we throw away and bury cans worth a total of £24 million - about 90 drinks cans per person.