Farmers are the best recyclers in the U.K., says a report from York-based waste and recycling company BusinessWaste.co.uk.
Considering the dedicated efforts adopted by the U.K. farmers for recycling the waste, BusinessWaste.co.uk recommends that they should be paid by the government to show the rest of the world how it’s been done.
Sectors such as factories and farms are the best at recycling since their profits depend on reusing and recycling.
On the other hand, office-based businesses, night clubs and takeaway food establishments are the worst commercial recyclers in the country, the study said.
“Office workers generally aren’t aware of the cost implications of throwing everything into their desk-side bin,” says BusinessWaste.co.uk spokesperson Mark Hall, “And in a large organization that can soon add up to literally tons of rubbish.”
Recycling is part of the farming culture. They have been doing it for centuries, and they have a waste-not-want-not ethic that has survived down the years, said Hall.
“From small family-run farms to giant agri-businesses, it’s the same – everything is collected, assessed and re-used where possible.”Only the absolute detritus is thrown away, and then only with reluctance,” he added.
BusinessWaste.co.uk say factory owners and operators have the same sort of ethic, but for entirely different reasons.
“Every ton of unrecyclable waste they produce costs them money to get rid of,” says Hall. “Industry has gone to great lengths to find alternative uses for its waste, often selling it on to another sector that finds it useful for their own products.”
Waste rubber and glass going on to be constituent ingredients of low-noise road surfaces is a fantastic example of this cooperation between industrial sectors, BusinessWaste.co.uk says.
Offices, on the other hand, have little incentive to boost their recycling waste, and many simply can’t be bothered – or simply don’t have the time in a pressured environment – to move from their desks to find the bin for their empty drink can.
And that’s why farmers should be employed by the Department of the Environment (DEFRA) as recycling ‘champions’ to pass on their knowledge to the slackers and refuseniks at the bottom of the survey.
“They’ve got generations of knowledge that could and should be passed on to others,” says Hall, “And because it results in everybody saving money and resources, it’s a scheme that will easily pay for itself in the long run.”
Image credit: http://www.fwagsw.org.uk
Rajani Baburajan