Waste is one of the major threats impacting the health of the planet and all life on it, but even the various strategies which have been implemented to manage it produce adverse side effects on the environment and people. Zero Waste has come to be touted as the solution to a more sustainable way to treating waste by taking a cradle-to-grave approach in managing resources. Read more

Ken Hickson looks into the status of Zero Waste as an approach and as a solution. At the same time, drawing attention to CleanEnviro Summit Singapore 1-4 July which is exploring issues and opportunities to deal  with waste, pollution, recycling and environment problems globally.

Is Zero Waste a pipedream or is it the approach all countries and cities must take to deal with the global health and environment problems associated with mountains of waste?

Questions like this are being asked in many countries round the world and at global forums in Rio and Singapore.

“Dream, the impossible dream” might well be the words on many lips even with the mention of the term “Zero Waste”.

Surely, such a concept is beyond the realms of possibility and practicality. The world is too far mired in the mess of waste to seriously consider eliminating it.

Yet many believe in it and many more are putting into practice Zero Waste programmes around the world. Zero Waste is taking hold in Europe (most notably Italy), 30 states and cities in North America as well as in Asia, with Philippines leading the way, followed by Japan and India.

Australia is an early mover for Zero Waste, but coming out ahead is New Zealand which became the first country in the world to adopt a national policy of Zero Waste in 2002.

The vision “Towards Zero Waste and a Sustainable New Zealand” resulted from an extensive, community-led campaign that has so far resulted in 38 of New Zealand’s 74 local authorities adopting Zero Waste targets. www.zerowaste.co.nz

So what is Zero Waste all about?

Simply put, “implementing Zero Waste will eliminate all discharges to land, water or air that may be a threat to planetary, human, animal or plant health”, according to the Zero Waste International Alliance.

It is a whole-system approach to addressing the problem of society’s unsustainable resource flows.

It encompasses:

•             waste elimination at source through product design and producer responsibility

•             waste reduction strategies further down the supply chain

•             introduction of cleaner production methods,

•             effective product dismantling, recycling, re-use as well as  composting

Communities that implement Zero Waste strategies are aiming to switch from wasteful and damaging waste disposal methods to value-added resource recovery systems that will help build sustainable local economies.

As such, Zero Waste is in complete opposition to landfilling and incineration.

The Zero Waste International Alliance is pushing for the United Nations to endorse a resolution recognising a universal definition of zero waste during the Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development, which begins 20 June in Rio de Janeiro.

The resolution declares, among other things, that voluntary recycling goals haven’t cut waste enough. It says that the placement of materials in waste disposal facilities such as landfills and waste-to-energy plants causes damage to human health, wastes natural resources and/or transfers liabilities to future generations.

The alliance is requesting the UN adopt the definition of zero waste that it has developed, which basically calls for “no burn or bury.”

Coming hot on the heels of the Rio Conference is the Clean Environment Leaders’ Summit (CELS), one of the three pillar events of the CleanEnviro Summit Singapore (1-4 July), where zero waste is expected to be one of the serious issues and opportunities on the agenda.

The Summit is gathering the world’s top environment leaders from the public and private sectors, international organisations and think-tanks, to discuss and help develop sustainable environmental management solutions.

The Zero Waste International Alliance has been established to promote positive alternatives to landfill and incineration and to raise community awareness of the social and economic benefits to be gained when waste is regarded as a resource base upon which can be built both employment and business opportunity.

Source: www.cleanenvirosummit.sg   www.zwia.org , www.abccarbon.com