April Village Green Corner 2004
A better way to lose waste
'Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our
likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the
birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and
over all the creatures that move along the ground." Genesis
1:26 (NIV)
"Everything got started in him and finds its purpose in
him." Colossians 1:16 (Msg)
Genesis tells us that God has given us the creation to care and
rule over. And we are told by Paul that everything was made through
and for Jesus. I believe that we should care for the planet as
an act of love for the one by whom and for whom all things were
made. As Christians we all have an obligation to carefully consider
our stewardship of the earth's precious resources.
At present recycling is very much in vogue with considerable
government backing to increase the quantities. Do you recycle?
- if so, good! It is a way of reducing waste and the amount of
material going into landfill sites and it saves huge quantities
of energy and raw materials. But have you thought how efficient
this process really is in conserving our resources? As an alternative
to throwing into the black bin, recycling is the answer, but should
the question be different?
Recycling itself requires considerable inputs of energy with
much of the material being transported many miles in huge diesel
guzzling lorries. Did you know that some materials go as far as
the European mainland and that waste from Surrey and Hampshire
is transported down to the coast for processing? The process to
recover usable elements then uses even more energy!
Look at your recyclable matter. Is most of it packaging, cartons,
bottles, cans, bags etc? Do you need to use all these materials
in the first place? Remember, they have been costly to produce
in terms of energy consumed in creating and transporting them,
they then have a very short life before being thrown away, so
much is wasted and only a small proportion is recycled. It would
be preferable not to use these materials in the first place. We
need to seek to reduce the quantities of resources we consume.
So before you think Recycle -Think REDUCTION. Before you buy
anything consider whether you need to buy that ready meal, that
can, that bottle. Look for fresh produce with less packaging,
use large family sized containers rather than individual ones
and especially do not accept that ubiquitous plastic bag with
each purchase - take your own bag! Do recycle! But first think
"do I need it at all?"
Say No to Waste! - Think Reduction!
We hope you have enjoyed reading this article.
It was written by David Sanger for his church Magazine. You are
welcome to use it for your local church magazine.
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