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How Rubbish Affects Our Health Long Term

Beverley Kenyon CWU Boote F S  Health and Saftey Officer, Womens Officer, and Paragon Repersentative provides some insight into the importance of rubbish collecting and how cans; plastic bottles, and other refuge dumped in our streets and countryside, can have a detrimental effect upon our health and our environment:

I litter pick around my local estate  - Plastic bottles, Covid  masks, Fast food packaging, and of course Cans.

Just some of the litter we pick up in bags so full!

"One day I collected overer 10 bags of plastic bottles."

Plastic

According to some researchers, they estimate that due to the PET used in objects like plastic bags, plastic water bottles and plastic straws, it could take upwards of 450 years to decompose.

Recycling takes 88% less energy than making plastic from raw materials while helping reducing fossil fuel consumption; Diverting discarded plastics from the refuse stream and turning them into new goods keeps these persistent materials out of landfills and the natural environment.

Cans

Any of the food and drink products we buy are packaged in cans made from either aluminium or steel and both of these materials can be recycled after we have finished with them to make either new cans or other products.  

Recycling aluminium uses only around 5% of the energy and emissions needed to make it from the raw material bauxite. The metal can be recycled time and time again without loss of properties, so getting the aluminium recycling habit is one of the best things we can do for the environment.

Steel can also be recycled time and time again without loss of quality; by simply recycling our steel cans we can conserve non-renewable fossil fuels, reduce the consumption of energy.

The new danger is from Covid masks which have plastic in them so they are a double danger when disposed  of incorrectly. Apart from the fact they expose the air to trapped particles and possibly Covid too!

Bev and her friends cleaning up after litterers

All this has an effect on the ozone layer which will affect air pollution  and emissions of gasses like carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.Causing  long term  health  and safety  issues e.g. unclean air , stronger sunlight  and natural  disasters floods etc.

It's a simple job, litter picking but if it  is  not done can cause long term  danger to our health and future generation . But until the government and companies take some responsibility and act fast  I will carry on litter picking and recycling  so I know that Volunteers like me are helping our environment.

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