2011

Rabu, 28 Desember 2011

Zero Waste hotels initiative

The agreement between ANCI and Federalberghi Capri and Sorrento hotels for Zero Waste Federalberghi Capri and Sorrento Coast has partnered with ANCI Campania to bring their own hotel facilities sphere goal of zero waste. The philosophy of Zero Waste...

Kamis, 22 Desember 2011

Progress towards Zero Food Waste in the EU

Almost 50% of edible and healthy food gets wasted in EU households and supermarkets each year while 79 million EU citizens –out of 500 million Europeans- live beneath the poverty line and 16 million depend on food aid from charitable institutions. Food...

Rabu, 07 Desember 2011

Reuse of WEEE: widening the cycle of materials

Giving a second life to products before they are –hopefully- dismantled for safe recycling is the most preferable option. Yet “some” say the demand for second-hand electric and electronic goods is low and it is better to send them to dismantle and get...

Kamis, 01 Desember 2011

Gaiakraft: Beyond paper recycling?

Few years ago paper and cardboard recycling was regarded as a big step in closing the loop of materials, yet what back then was a big improvement now it has the potential of going further. Paper recycling is a no-brainer now but there are new alternatives...

Selasa, 22 November 2011

Little Museum of Bad Industrial Design

Primary school students of Capannori, Italy, set up the Museum of Bad Industrial Design (Piccolo Museo degli orroridi progettazione). A museum of packaging and products that cannot be reused, repaired, recycled or composted and hence have to end up in...

Selasa, 15 November 2011

Unpackaged: shopping without packaging

Look at your home waste and you will see that it is mostly packaging. Once you have removed the food waste and paper what is left is mostly single use plastic bottles, cans, trays... Therefore, if you minimise the packaging in your shopping you will...

Kamis, 10 November 2011

Succesful Zero Waste event in Rome

Organised by Zero Waste Lazio with the support of the Italian Zero Waste NetworkLast weekend the Piazza Apostoli in Rome was filled with more than 3000 people who were asking for a Zero Waste alternative to the “Polverini local plan" which instead of...

Selasa, 25 Oktober 2011

Retorna - When waste has a value it stops being waste

When something has a negative value there is no incentive to deal with it. It is then left in the environment and we all suffer the consequences. Partly, a Zero Waste strategy consists in creating markets so that the products find a use at the end of...

Jumat, 14 Oktober 2011

Before recycling: Repair!

The excellent ‘Self-Repair Manifesto’, developed by iFixit, a free repair manual that is open to anyone to access and edit. Pass it on!&nb...

Senin, 10 Oktober 2011

"Beautiful politics is when the politicians work with the activists" - Zero Waste international meeting in Capannori

More than 200 participants including mayors, councillors, enterpreneurs, artists, waste experts and civil society participated last weekend 8-9th October in the first international Zero Waste meeting for municipalities. The path that started 4 years...

Rabu, 05 Oktober 2011

"Waste is a mistake, not a Resource" - ZW conference in Coventry, England

On September 9th, representatives from UK central government, local authorities and universities gathered together in Coventry along with social enterprises, multinationals, waste management companies, the third sector and environmental bodies, to explore...

Kamis, 29 September 2011

Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) & Zero Waste

Many cities have built Mechanical Biological Treatment Facilities (MBT) during the last decade with the aim of reducing the waste to be finally dumped or burnt. The results depend on every case but it is clear that MBT alone is not the sollution for...

Jumat, 23 September 2011

Meeting of Zero Waste municipalities in Capannori, Italy, 7-8-9th October 2011

More and more European municipalities are adopting the Zero Waste goal. This is why a meeting will be held in the craddle of Zero Waste in Italy, Capannori, to organise the coordination -national and international- of the Zero Waste Communities.The meeting...

Selasa, 20 September 2011

New EU's Resource Efficiency roadmap points in the Zero Waste direction

The EU has an ambiguous policy when it comes to Zero Waste; on one hand it promotes recycling and separate collection and on the other hand it rewards energy generation from burning waste more than it rewards energy savings from prevention. In a former...

Senin, 12 September 2011

Business & Zero Waste

Zero Waste is one of the pillars of sustainability. It is impossible to be sustainable as long as what we discard cannot be the resource of another process without endangering health or the environment. This is why Zero Waste concept is good for both...

Senin, 29 Agustus 2011

Kretsloppsarken. Recycling or amusement park?

How to make getting rid of what we don’t need a fun experience? In Gothenburg, Sweden, they have designed a reuse and recycle park to look as an amusement park. Results: they attract 300 to 400 visitors a day, sell for a value of 1,1...

Selasa, 09 Agustus 2011

Experiences from Zero Waste Europe presented at the annual CRRA conference in California

From July 31st to August 3rd the California Resource Recovery Association celebrated its 35th annual conference in San Diego, California.California is the US state with most advance waste and resource management, with San Francisco leading the way with...

Kamis, 28 Juli 2011

SONY ZW

Sony Europe has made consistent progress, with all GEMS *4-certified Sony sites throughout Europe being powered by electricity from 100% renewable sources*5 since fiscal year 2008. In terms of waste management, recycling levels have increased from 73% in fiscal year 2000 to 99% in...

Kamis, 21 Juli 2011

Reusable nappies, a Zero Waste solution to an European problem

We all use or have used nappies in a time of our life. Nappies are a fairly recent invention that has eased the workload to many generations of parents –specially mothers-. Consequently, nappies are here to stay. The question is how to make its production,...

Rabu, 13 Juli 2011

Puma - towards Zero Waste?

The shoe producer Puma in cooperation with the FuseProject has set itself in the path to minimise waste and is today a reference for other companies on greening production. As Puma says in a good understanding of waste hierarchy; they make better use...

Kamis, 07 Juli 2011

Shortsighted EU policy on raw materials delays getting to Zero Waste

The EU is the region most dependent on foreign imports of raw materials in the world. Hence there is a genuine interest in reducing this dependency. But, are the current policies apropriate to create a close loop society in the EU? How can the Zero Waste...

Rabu, 29 Juni 2011

An alternative to single-use plastic bags in Europe?

Are all single-use plastic bags the same? Do they have the same impact on the environment? Are biodegradable bags better than non-biodegradable? Are paper bags better than biodegradable plastic bags?First things first; before focusing on the material...

Kamis, 16 Juni 2011

Join the 3rd of July International bag-free day!

Can you imagine a Zero Waste world in which we continue to use single-use plastic bags? It is just not possible, right? There are several reasons why we should phase out single-use plastic bags in Europe.On July 3rd it will take place the third...

Senin, 13 Juni 2011

Door-to-door Separate Collection Guide

Want to implement a Zero Waste separate collection strategy in your municipality and don't know how? The "Manual de Recogida Selectiva Puerta a Puerta" is what you need.The Catalan Association of Door-to-Door Municipalities has published a new version...

Selasa, 31 Mei 2011

Are Nespresso-type coffee capsules compatible with Zero Waste?

The coffee capsules from Nespresso, Lavazza and others have taken over the coffee market in the EU. Normally they are made of fully recyclable materials (alluminium or plastic + coffee grounds) but they are very rarely recycled. Why?Is it bad design?...

Kamis, 19 Mei 2011

If You Care about Zero Waste...

Common kitchen and household products such as aluminium foil, baking paper, coffe filters or sandwich bags are the visible side of how sustainable and toxic-free our everyday life is.A Zero Waste approach to these kind of products is based on prevention:...

Selasa, 17 Mei 2011

Wasara, Seletti... and other ZW companies

http://www.wasara.jpAs the fate of all paper tableware, it can only serve its purpose only once. Yet, it is designed to minimise waste. Wasara uses reed, bamboo, and bagasse (sugarcane waste) pulp as a material. By replacing wood pulp with non-wood materials we use materials more...

Kamis, 12 Mei 2011

The first European Zero Waste Research Center - Capannori, Italy

The first Zero Waste Research Center in Europe was founded in Capannori, Italy, in December 2010. The research center is a vital piece of a Zero Waste strategy because it is impossible to slim the waste bin if we don’t know what ends up thrown in it....