Love Food, Hate Waste...It’s a Wormy World: This presentation explores the world of worms and how...
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News! Hawkesbury City Council Issue 28: Winter 2012 Inside this issue... % % % % % % % What's so wrong about wasting food? Shop Smarter - Reduce Waste Low waste lunch: Take the challenge! World Environment Day 2012 Teacher Spot! Environmental Dates and Websites Student Spot! - Giant Find-A-Word SCRAPPY Fast Facts!! Love Food, Hate Waste What’s so wrong about wasting food? There are serious environmental impacts associated with food wastage. Food such as fruit and vegetables and grains must all be grown in good soils, with plenty of water, in good weather and climate, at the right time of year. Food must then be harvested, transported, processed and refrigerated. The steps required in getting food from the fields to our forks requires a lot of energy and fuel, the by-product of which is carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide or CO2 is a dangerous greenhouse gas which affects the health of our climate by contributing to the enhanced greenhouse effect otherwise known as global warming, a symptom of long term climate change. When we waste food by throwing it away and sending it to landfill, greenhouse gases such as Methane are created as organic matter breaks down. Greenhouse gas pollution from sources such as food, harvesting, transportation and landfill affect our climate and our ability to grow food. If we waste less of our food and recycle our organic scraps by composting and worm farming, we can reduce our individual impact on the environment, save money, save resources and live happier, healthier lives! > In the Hawkesbury, 42% of what goes into individual household garbage bins is organic waste that could be composted, placed in a worm farm or fed to other animals like chickens or pigs. > NSW households send an average of 800,000 tonnes of food waste a year to landfill, that is 315kg from each household. > When food waste breaks down in landfill it creates a toxin called ‘leachate’ which seeps into the soil. Sending organic matter to landfill creates Methane - a potent greenhouse gas. > By wasting food, the average NSW household throws away $1036 each year! > By being less wasteful, you can save money and reduce your impact on our environment. > > > > So how much are we throwing away? NSW households throw away more than $2.5 billion worth of edible food per year. These figures are equal to throwing away: page 1 $848 million of fresh food $694 million of leftovers $371 million of packaged and long-life products $231 million of drinks $231 million of frozen food $180 million of take-away food Source: NSW Government Office of Environment and Heritage
Transcript of Love Food, Hate Waste...It’s a Wormy World: This presentation explores the world of worms and how...
News!
Hawkesbury City Council
Issue 28: Winter 2012
Inside this issue...
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What's so wrong about wasting food?
Shop Smarter - Reduce Waste
Low waste lunch: Take the challenge!
World Environment Day 2012
Teacher Spot!
Environmental Dates and Websites
Student Spot! - Giant Find-A-Word
SCRAPPY
Fast Facts!!
Love Food, Hate Waste
What’s so wrong about wasting food?
There are serious environmental impacts associated with food wastage.
Food such as fruit and vegetables and grains must all be grown in good soils, with plenty of water, in good weather and climate, at the right time of year. Food must then be harvested, transported, processed and refrigerated. The steps required in getting food from the fields to our forks requires a lot of energy and fuel, the by-product of which is carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide or CO2 is a dangerous greenhouse gas which affects the health of our climate by contributing to the enhanced greenhouse effect otherwise known as global warming, a symptom of long term climate change.When we waste food by throwing it away and sending it to landfill, greenhouse gases such as Methane are created as organic matter breaks down. Greenhouse gas pollution from sources such as food, harvesting, transportation and landfill affect our climate and our ability to grow food. If we waste less of our food and recycle our organic scraps by composting and worm farming, we can reduce our individual impact on the environment, save money, save resources and live happier, healthier lives!
>In the Hawkesbury, 42% of what goes into individual household garbage bins is organic waste that could be composted, placed in a worm farm or fed to other animals like chickens or pigs.
>NSW households send an average of 800,000 tonnes of food waste a year to landfill, that is 315kg from each household.
>When food waste breaks down in landfill it creates a toxin called ‘leachate’ which seeps into the soil. Sending organic matter to landfill creates Methane - a potent greenhouse gas.
>By wasting food, the average NSW household throws away $1036 each year!
>By being less wasteful, you can save money and reduce your impact on our environment.
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So how much are we throwing away?NSW households throw away more than $2.5 billion worth
of edible food per year. These figures are equal to throwing away:
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$848 million of fresh food
$694 million of leftovers
$371 million of packaged and long-life products
$231 million of drinks
$231 million of frozen food
$180 million of take-away food
Source: NSW Government Office of Environment and Heritage
SCRAPPY News! Issue 28: Winter 2012
Low Waste Lunch - Take the Challenge
Shop Smarter to Reduce Waste
page 2 Hawkesbury City Council
Packing a Low Waste Lunch - What would you pick?Circle the items you would choose to put in your low waste lunch! You need: a sandwich, fruit, a drink and a treat!
Re-usable lunch box with separate compartments
Drink in a reusable cup or in a re-usable bottle
Sandwich is kept fresh in a lunch box - no need for plastic wrap!
Take a whole piece of fruit instead of canned or pre-packaged fruit
Use the separate lunch box compartments to store nuts, vegetables or dried fruit
Perhaps a little treat? But it doesn't need to be wrapped up in plastic!
Think about each part of your lunch and recess: your sandwich - is it wrapped in glad wrap? chip packets? juice boxes? Now think about the rubbish you throw away from each part of your meal everyday; it works out to be quite a lot doesn't it? Why not take the ‘Low Waste Lunch Challenge’! The aim of a low waste lunch is to make less rubbish, and to be able to reuse containers, cutlery and bottles so you throw less stuff away.Low waste lunches reduce your rubbish, so less waste ends up in land fill! They are not only good for the environment, but they are less expensive as well!
Currently all of the rubbish that we throw out is sent to the tip (landfill) and buried. However, we are quickly running out of space. As a result, the cost of getting rid of our rubbish is increasing every year, and it is important to try and find more ways of reducing the amount of waste that ends up in our rubbish bin. ‘Waste-wise’ shopping is a great way of reducing the amount of waste you create, always keep in mind “Avoid, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle”. Here are some tips to change the way we buy things to reduce waste, help our environment and save money!
1. AVOID: Say no to plastic bags, take your own shopping bags to use again and again!2. REDUCE: Buy goods with less packaging, and avoid products that are individually wrapped, or even buy things in bulk.3. REUSE: Reuse your plastic bags, and choose items that can be reused many times. Choose reusable and durable products instead of disposable ones. Or perhaps you can buy second hand goods or clothes.4. RECYCLE: Learn what can be recycled and choose as many products as possible made from recycled packaging.
Fruit in plastic bag
ApplePacket of chipsReusable drink bottle
Disposable drink carton Cookies in reusable container
Sandwich in plastic bag
Sandwich in reusable container
page 3Hawkesbury City Council
SCRAPPY News! Issue 28: Winter 2012
Environmental Dates & Websites
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Teacher Spot!Did you know Council offers FREE interactive school recycling presentations to support curriculum outcomes? Presentation topics include:
Recycling Rules: This presentation teaches children the rules and benefits of recycling correctly.
Being Resourceful: This presentation explores the natural resources products are made from and how recycling benefits the three major environmental issues facing the planet.
It’s a Wormy World: This presentation explores the world of worms and how we can use them to reduce organic waste.
The Three R’s: This presentation introduces the concepts of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle to students as part of the waste hierarchy for waste minimisation.
Litter Litter Everywhere - This presentation teaches children the negative effects litter has on the environment, why people litter, and different littering behaviours.
Caught on Composting - S
Bookings are limited and places fill quickly. To get involved, please call: 02 9724 3889 or [email protected]
tudents will learn about nature’s recycling factory, how it works and the elements needed to make the best environment for composting.
e-mail:
World Environment Day 5th June 2012
World Environment Day (WED) is now an annual event
that is aimed at being the biggest and most widely celebrated global day for positive environmental action. It is a day that stimulates awareness of the environment and enhances political attention and public action.
Through WED, the United Nations Environment Program addresses environmental issues and enables everyone to realise not only their responsibility, but also their power to become agents for change in support of sustainable and equitable development.
WED is a day for people to work together to ensure a cleaner, greener and brighter outlook for themselves and future generations. So why not get involved?
began in 1972 and
– organise a school clean-up, stop using plastic bags and get your community to do the same, organise a collective tree planting effort in the school, or walk to school. What is your promise to the environment?
June 20125th World Environment Day
www.unep.org/wed
15th Global Wind Daywww.globalwindday.org
17th World Day to Combat Desertification and Droughtwww.unccd.int/en
20th-22nd Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development www.uncsd2012.org/rio20
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July 201227th Schools Tree Day
www.treeday.planetark.org/schools
29th National Tree Daywww.treeday.planetark.org/about
August 20129th International Day for World Indigenous people
www.un.org/Pubs/CyberSchoolBus/indigenous
14th-15th International Youth Daywww.un.org/en/events/youthday
22nd-28th Keep Australia Beautiful Weekwww.kab.org.au
NEW
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page 4 Hawkesbury City Council
For more information or to make a contribution to Scrappy News, please contact Steph Martin at EnviroCom.Telephone: 9724 3889E-mail: [email protected]: 16 Childs Road, Chipping Norton, NSW, 2170
This newsletter is printed on paper containing a minimum of 50% recycled fibre.
Student Spot!
Scrappy would love to hear about any activities that you and your school have undertaken to avoid, reduce, reuse or recycle waste. Write to or email Scrappy and your story could feature in an upcoming edition of Scrappy News: [email protected]
SCRAPPY News! Issue 28: Winter 2012
Food Waste and Our Climate Change
Landfill Garbage Pollution Food Methane
Compost Climate Waste Supermarkets Harvested
Transported Processed Refrigerated Energy Fuel
Environment Disposal Leftovers Organic Worms
N F E V O T O M L D O O A E E E T E R I M E A L C
T O U A R T L T P E R E R C N F V L N R S F R F I
E R T E O T V E U T N B D G C A L L E P V E T N O
A B A A L E D V N W A T T O A L G R P T O R D F O
N M E N G C D E O E R O L T S N I I D I L E I R E
S D E E S E R R R C R W R O O R I M E T T I E T E
O A S U R P M E E O P G M E N N E C A I E A I E P
R E O A D S O R I A H I Y P N R I V M T R S T T G
L M S E E A N R O C O T I O D K P U O D E D M N E
E R E L E T O T T N L L E D O Y S L I T S S P A O
I O E R T U T C N E R A E A E A E S G L F L A D A
D I R F R O S R O L D I O N A O P K A R F E E O E
E R G R R U R D A D S S W I F O E M R L O T L F A
S T F A G I R V E E T F E P S L F T S W S D E E F
F E L P R S G S D E O N O A E P N N R E M A L L V
C A U C G B S E K N V F L I I R O R V E E E L T W
D D S T O E A R R I M I K N E I L R T E S I D A O
R E R D C N A G R A S D R I T Y A R S T F L S F N
R A S O A M S O E E T D R U I H L A T D L T O E E
O W R N R P N S N E L E L R R O A S N O E O O R U
D P O E R M T A N S D L D E E T O A N E D A D V E
T K P T E S H D T D O O N U P P L I A A O C S R O
O U M N C T O E T P A L E A M C T D R P O R A S S
S L T R E F T L F S R D S O R P L W N M T D T A A
S O C M R E S S T S F P C R O R R S O E I T N M R
