Have Environment Issues Caused a Change in Your Behaviour?

Associate
Joined
5 Mar 2017
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2,252
Location
Cambridge
Nope. What surprised me over 13 years ago, when moving from Italy to England was the use of free plastic bags. And the ones in Italy, most of them are biodegradable. But now Morrisons charging 20 pence for their cheaper bag, not a chance. Carrying a roll of 80 bags which coat me 1.99. And reuse them as bin bag.
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
4,534
I think climate change dwarves any other single issue in the world today. It's undeniable that it is happening, but even if it were all some big hoax, there is no reason not to try and help preserve the one home we have.

I'm trying to do the best I can, but it does seem futile. I try to recycle religiously, even though I know our useless local authorities will end up shipping it off to Thailand. I bought a desiel car because our moronic government said it was the most environmentally friendly option at the time (looking at full ev at the moment). I get my 7 year old son steam vouchers for his birthday... Unfortunately the Mrs still insists on buying him a load of plastic tat he never touches.

Far from perfect, but it's something. It does play on my mind with everything I buy and choose to do.

The government and large corporations should also be doing so much more too. Unfortunately they're of the opinion that it's someone else's problem to sort. Beggars belief.
 
Associate
Joined
5 Mar 2017
Posts
2,252
Location
Cambridge
I think climate change dwarves any other single issue in the world today. It's undeniable that it is happening, but even if it were all some big hoax, there is no reason not to try and help preserve the one home we have.

I'm trying to do the best I can, but it does seem futile. I try to recycle religiously, even though I know our useless local authorities will end up shipping it off to Thailand. I bought a desiel car because our moronic government said it was the most environmentally friendly option at the time (looking at full ev at the moment). I get my 7 year old son steam vouchers for his birthday... Unfortunately the Mrs still insists on buying him a load of plastic tat he never touches.

Far from perfect, but it's something. It does play on my mind with everything I buy and choose to do.

The government and large corporations should also be doing so much more too. Unfortunately they're of the opinion that it's someone else's problem to sort. Beggars belief.
True. But companies, specially the big ones, don't care, at all.
Take for example Royal Mail. Instead the local post office providing space at the premises, for the items to be prepared for delivered, and undelivered items left at your local post office, now the postman computes to work, drives a 2010 diesel combo, from the bigger office to the village/town, back to the office, and drive his car back to the office. Them many of his customers will drive from the village/town to the main office to collect their items. Save few pounds in rental, but the cost of a can, plus maintenance, plus the travel time, even without the environmental impact, it's worthy? Maybe for the CEO pocketing 2 million pounds in bonus. But hey, they bought 2 e-bikes for the Cambridge office so when a MP comes to visit, they can take pictures b
 
Man of Honour
Joined
29 Nov 2008
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London
Population control might save the planet but wouldn’t it cause havoc for ageing economies, and pensions?

Obviously small compared to climate change but it’s still something that would cause massive issues in our current systems.
 
Soldato
Joined
26 Apr 2008
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Location
Bristol, Old Blighty
Switched to a renewables-only energy supplier. Of course, I only have their word for it that the energy is coming from renewables, I can't actually check.

It was a whole £2 a month more expensive than the cheapest electricity provider. Oh, the sacrifices we make for Mother Nature!
 
Soldato
Joined
10 May 2012
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10,062
Location
Leeds
I mean you're obviously unaware of the scale of pollution caused by countries like China, India and even America to think what the few of us on this tiny island do matters. Over population is the problem, yet populations need to keep growing to pay for the retirement of the previous generation. The only thing that can save the environment is technology at this point
 
Capodecina
Soldato
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30 Jul 2006
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12,129
I'm not sure that the recent media attention has significantly changed my attitude in that I have ridden a bike (locally) for years, I use public transport whenever possible and I have been enthusiastically recycling for a number of years. However, I would be very reluctant to fly anywhere on holiday nowadays.

The thing that upsets me is that I do get the impression that my carefully sorted rubbish just gets chucked into landfill anyhow.
 
Caporegime
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Northern England
Population control might save the planet but wouldn’t it cause havoc for ageing economies, and pensions?

Obviously small compared to climate change but it’s still something that would cause massive issues in our current systems.

Completely true. But what does that tell you about our current systems if they require continual and unsustainable population growth to maintain?
 
Caporegime
Joined
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Boston, Lincolnshire
Completely true. But what does that tell you about our current systems if they require continual and unsustainable population growth to maintain?

It's simply a case of do not care. It will not effect me mentality. It's only going to get worse now China can have two children. Again to help with the aging population. The only way this is going to get solved is with AI, robots and a strict children policy.
 
Caporegime
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It's simply a case of do not care. It will not effect me mentality. It's only going to get worse now China can have two children. Again to help with the aging population. The only way this is going to get solved is with AI, robots and a strict children policy.

Again true, saying that I believe their birth rates are dropping. The problem at the minute is southeast Asia, south america and Africa. Europe for example is seeing stagnation and drops in many areas!
 
Caporegime
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Boston, Lincolnshire
Again true, saying that I believe their birth rates are dropping. The problem at the minute is southeast Asia, south america and Africa. Europe for example is seeing stagnation and drops in many areas!

That is the Irony. Our governments invest billions in rubbish when it is the massive continents they should be investing to help. All these electric cars and bio degradable bags are a drop in the ocean compared to what they could be doing over there but no profit in that ;).
 
Soldato
Joined
15 Aug 2005
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22,973
Location
Glasgow
Yep, I'm now more concious about my recycling, reusing ready-made food containers etc when I can rather than just binning them, and I've been collecting my used Tassimo discs for a few months now to take them somewhere that does recycle them. I feel quite guilty that I've been binning them for all these years until now.

I think councils need to start doing more though, Glasgow City Council won't take a significant amount of plastic waste (e.g. food trays, containers etc) because they don't have a contract with anyone who processes them. There's a lot that individuals can do but only if local authorities and businesses start taking their social responsibilities more seriously and put the facilities in place.

I also think companies who manufacture things like single-use plastic bottles, packaging etc should be required to contribute towards providing opportunities for their products to be recycled, or do it themselves so the material goes straight back into the production line.
 
Soldato
OP
Joined
16 Nov 2009
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16,030
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UK
The thing that upsets me is that I do get the impression that my carefully sorted rubbish just gets chucked into landfill anyhow.

Yes, that annoys me too. What a waste of everyone's time. Sadly, some councils are terrible and populated by awful people who just don't care.
 
Soldato
Joined
31 May 2009
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21,257
We use garden waste and food waste bins all the time.
Separate anything that can be into recycling bin.
We try not to buy stuff that is simply packed and repacked in plastics.
Make sure to donate anything we not longer use if it remains useful to either a charity or freecycle.

We buy less, turn stuff off when not in use.
 
Soldato
Joined
8 Jun 2013
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4,372
when did food waste bins spring up? we just have green [household], brown [garden] and blue [recyc].
what goes in it, literally just all your uneaten food?
 

Deleted member 651465

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Deleted member 651465

Yes. The thought of chucking uneaten food in the black bags makes me gag.

We’ve got plastic, card, tins and glass, green waste (grass cutting etc), general and food waste containers.

The council won’t accept more than 2 black bags every 2 weeks but they’ll take unlimited recycling (in theory, I tend to put out 5 or 6 bags).
 
Man of Honour
Joined
13 Oct 2006
Posts
91,129
The thing that upsets me is that I do get the impression that my carefully sorted rubbish just gets chucked into landfill anyhow.

Mine pretty much let slip with their new resource recovery centre PR that currently a lot just goes into landfill anyhow.

EDIT: That isn't to say they don't have systems for reusing plastics, etc.
 
Capodecina
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. . . That isn't to say they don't have systems for reusing plastics, etc.
How exactly do recycling facilities separate plastics from everything else (e.g. copies of the Daily Mail) and how do they identify "recyclable" plastics :confused:

It isn't as if they can be retrieved by some suuper power electromagnet or anything.
 
Joined
5 Aug 2006
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11,312
Location
Derbyshire
In 2011 I started a PhD on sustainable manufacturing. I bloody hated it and left after 1 year....but I learnt that the human race is screwed beyond repair. We are selfish and are consuming resource at a shocking rate.

Enjoy your car etc. whilst you still can :).
 
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