EDITORIAL - Garbage reduction key

During the recent Christmas period and continuing into the New Year, some communities were left with unsightly piles of garbage. This had many wondering how this could be the case, given that new trucks have been brought into the island and that up until the festive season, the garbage collection process seemed to be going pretty well, for the most part.

Now we are not saying that the Sanitation Service Authority (SSA) is responsible for keeping the volume of garbage down in Barbados. Rather, that entity is more geared towards collection.

And whilst we want to see an efficient garbage collection system in place at all times, it must be said that Barbadians must do their part to produce less waste. It is said that Barbadians generate an average of 1 000 tonnes of waste per day, of which domestic waste accounts for between 30 and 40 per cent and much of this 300 to 400 tonnes of domestic waste can be recycled.

However, Barbadians may be in the habit of simply tossing what they believe to be trash, without giving full consideration to how they could engage in a waste sorting process.

The truth is, Barbadians are generating too much waste and seemingly not recognising the role they could play in significantly reducing the level of garbage pileups across the island. On the whole, we as a people can do more to reduce, reuse and recycle waste in this country.

Thus, it needs to be said that the 3Rs are still as relevant today as they were in days gone by, when the concept was first introduced.

The first R- Reduce, can be said to be the most effective of the three R’s and the place to begin. It may however be the hardest concept for Barbadians to wrap their heads around.

Too many Barbadians have seemingly bought into the world view of “bigger and better” and they willingly accept the notion that new trumps old on any given day. And so we are constantly buying things and acquiring a host of consumer products covered in packaging that is in no way environmentally friendly.

Gone from our vocabulary are words such as “maintain” and “repair”; and instead “replace” and “acquire” are words that sit well with most of us.

The second R-Reuse, suggests that we can shop wisely and purchase lasting products, or products that we can find a way to keep in shape. Before a decision is made to discard anything, we should also decide whether it has some life left in it. Consider that reusing keeps new resources from being used for a while longer and old resources from entering the waste stream.

The third R- Recycle, speaks to the process of collecting and processing materials that would otherwise be thrown away as trash and turning them into new products. This concept has caught on the best. However, greater effort can be made to actively engage in the process of recycling.

The call has gone out time and time again for Barbadians to generate less garbage per week for the SSA to pick up, and if householders take this to heart and sort their garbage properly, they may be able to find some items they can recycle or even reuse and assist in this process.