Isonomia

by Chris Sherrington

As the father of two young children I am frequently reminded how early in life we develop a sense of what is fair, and (perhaps more intensely), what isn’t. One of my favourite methods of avoiding adjudicating on such matters is to step outside and busy myself with preparing materials for recycling. Given the nature of my work and my company’s culture, it will come as no surprise to hear that I am a pretty diligent recycler. Moreover, as far as I can, I try to prevent the generation of waste in the first place. The upshot is that the Sherrington family’s black bag waste is comprised almost entirely of plastic films and wraps.

Read more on It’s not fair…

by Peter Jones

The Daily Mail ran an extraordinary story on its front page on 5^th April, claiming that 12m tons (sic.) of material collected as household recycling is in fact being landfilled overseas. The article also reports that official statistics showing a recycling rate of 43% of household waste are overstated because “in reality, processors reject most recyclable material, which then often ends up in landfill sites.”

Read more on The Daily Mail’s recycling “con” con…

by James Fulford

It’s possible that Eric Pickles expected the Weekly Collection Support Scheme to provide a permanent boost to his popularity. After years in which local government had cut the frequency of rubbish collection, much to the chagrin of the Daily Mail, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government must have imagined that he would be seen to be acting decisively to put things right.

Read more on DCLG’s weak collection fund…

by Chris Sherrington

There’s something undeniably appealing about a wood fire and even the smell of wood smoke wafting down from someone’s chimney. Perhaps it stirs something deep within us, evoking a time when fire meant safety, and an alternative to raw food, in a world much more dangerous than that we inhabit today. A gas hob and a combi boiler just don’t offer the same appeal. Whether it be this ancestral attachment, or the more prosaic drivers of increased gas and electricity prices, burning wood is enjoying a resurgence. Sales of domestic woodburning stoves have rocketed over the past few years.[1]

Read more on Where there’s smoke……

by Dominic Hogg

I had a bit of a shock the other day. I saw an aluminium can in one of our residual waste bins. You might think I’m being a little melodramatic, but in my view, that type of behaviour is not acceptable in a company of which I am the Chairman. It triggered an e-mail to fellow staff at Eunomia to highlight the fact that I was expecting rather more of them than this.

Read more on “No can do” isn’t good enough…