3 Encouraging Steps Forward In Waste Processing
19th Mar, 2018
Environmental health is a hot topic in the news right now. The environmental damage that plastics are doing to our environment means all of us are more aware than ever of how we’re recycling our waste – especially if we’re looking to hire a skip for a day. And speaking of which – if you’re comparing skip hire services, here at Skip Hire Network we’re proud to say that we’re particularly keenly aware of how we process your waste. Before we get onto that, though, we wanted to tell you about some of the most encouraging methods that others are developing!
Innovative Ways To Prompt New Recycling Efforts
It’s no secret that one of the best ways we can cut down on the waste that goes to landfill is by prevention – but after that, recycling is by far the next best option. Compared to a few years ago, it’s becoming far more viable than it used to be. Some countries, like Spain and Portugal, are even upgrading recycling bins with Radio Frequency Identification, to track how much waste is going into them. The way it works is that the refuse collector scans and weighs your bins, and charges you for your un-recycled waste. It might sound harsh, but there’s no denying it’s working – the RFID bins have resulted in a 7% – 10% increase in recycling so far.
Others, like Dr Jenna Jambeck, are approaching it from a slightly different angle – rather than nudging people into changing their habits, she wants to motivate them to do it themselves, by – and we quote – helping them to “feel a moment of joy” when recycling. What she’s come up with is straightforward, but effective. Basically, it’s a recycling bin which lights up with a smiley face when you recycle something, giving you the feel good factor as it gradually counts how much waste is being collected.
High-Tech Waste Disposal Options
We’ve talked before about how e-waste is a huge global problem. Some scientists are working on the issue already – namely, with dissolvable circuit boards. Now, normally, these are about 1mm thick and made of silicon, which itself is dissolvable in water. The idea is simple but genius; just make them thinner. Reduced down to 100 nanometres (about as wide as one of your hairs), they can do the same job but also dissolve in three to six months. Rest assured, top scientists are working on developing the idea!
Then there’s the UK’s Axion Recycling plant in Salford (not too far from us at Skip Hire Network), which operates a state-of-the-art recycling facility to sort and recycle plastic polymers. The technology it uses allows it to identify individual polymers using infrared technology, which takes about 100th of a second, and then an air jet nudges it off a conveyor belt to land in the appropriate container. With this method, it takes about two hours to sort a whole tonne of plastic, ready to be melted down into something new.
We don’t claim to be nearly that high tech here at Skip Hire Network – we use good old fashioned humans for our sorting processes, and we find everything works out quite well! We’ve made it our mission to ultimately divert 100% of waste from landfill, and so far our very own recycling facilities are helping us to move ever further towards that goal! And don’t forget, when you choose to hire a skip from us, you’re helping too. Just enter in your postcode and phone number into our homepage to get your instant skip hire quote, and we’ll do the rest.