to be concerned over the lack of fcuks people have over the planet and cliate change etc

[Harford]

I have lived in 3 different house shares in the past year in apartment complexes, not 1 bit of recycling is going on. I have raised it to the co-tenants and nobody seems bothered.
It is making me anxious over all the waist and I just think why aren't there more recycling bins etc?

I care, and I recycle, and I only wear second-hand clothes, and I walk rather than drive...and it all feels a bit pointless really. Massive action needs to happen in a global scale to make any difference at all.

It's sad but our individual actions all seem rather hopeless.

its not more bins we need its less rubbish to go in them!!

the plastic packaging is ridiculous. challenge manufacturers' do and have had some success with vendors sending products out to our stores

I think it's just the powerlessness people feel.

A bit like the reverse of the mantra "if you owe the bank $1M that's your problem, of you owe them $100M that's their problem"

I could live my life like a environmental saint, in fact I could dedicate my life in a way that made sure that personally I was not just reducing my harm to the earth but actually being in credit with regards my environmental impact, and it wouldn't make the slightest fucking difference.

I think it's just the powerlessness people feel

it's the government's lack of direction though. I see it as their responsibility to enforce it and so recycling should be mandatory instead of skips out the back of many flat complexes with no recycling insight.

Recycling comes way, way after REDUCE and REUSE.

People who are reducing and reusing don't have much to recycle. You are looking at this back to front. It's not about buying stuff willy nilly and just recycling it. It's about not buying it in the first place.

It's not about buying stuff willy nilly and just recycling it. It's about not buying it in the first place

then what do I do with all the packaging from my weekly shop?

@Harford

I think it's just the powerlessness people feel

it's the government's lack of direction though. I see it as their responsibility to enforce it and so recycling should be mandatory instead of skips out the back of many flat complexes with no recycling insight.

Well if they enforce, they should also take care of that rubbish

Ideally, you'd take your own containers into one of those shops that sells by weight. And get a veg box delivered from a local ish company. It's possible, but time consuming and more expensive.

I realise this is not realistic for many (most) people.

Well the responsible thing to do would be looking at ways of reducing that packaging. Obviously recycle what you cannot avoid but if you're really that bothered you'd be actively choosing milk in glass bottles, tins which can be melted and reused, taking your own tupperware to put meat into, buying loose fruit/veg etc etc

@gardeninggirl68

its not more bins we need its less rubbish to go in them!!

the plastic packaging is ridiculous. challenge manufacturers' do and have had some success with vendors sending products out to our stores

It is! Lots of the stuff really doesn't need that piece of plastic on...

Yanbu. I was chatting to my brother recently. He has 3 dc who still wet the bed. He said they replace their mattresses every few months because "they aren't exactly expensive". I suggested waterproof sheets would be far better but apparently they are "horrible and we do enough laundry as it is". Ffs.

Having said that. The amount of packaging on some things is ridiculous.

Don’t pile on the OP, she’s trying. Pile on the government, the bank’s investing in coal and oil, and the MN posters who claim that anything other than washing your towels every day, changing underwear twice a day, and washing sheets twice a week is “grim”, that every child “needs” a complete new set of uniform, bag, pencil case every year, and that the poster “deserves” that new item.

It does not help at times when previously materials have been separated yet the bin people just stuck all the recycling into one bin and into the wagon.

I'm just at odds as to why we are being told in the latest report to change and yet the government is doing bugger all to guide us into this or enforce it. Simple things like making recycling widespread and mandatory would make huge changes.

I was vegan, zero waste, i then had an epiphany. Why am I making my life harder and more expensive when the government and big business don’t care?

Well its because people don't want to change which would be have less children, don't buy so much e.g new clothes only buy second hand , buy a veg box or only buy locally grown produce in season, don't hoard food especially perishables, get rid of the car at the very least only have 1 per family, work from home, don't live too fat from your workplace, holiday localy, do not fly, Don't use things like tampons, pads, disposable nappies use moon cups and cloth diapers etc.. etc,, These things are always mentioned then people explain why it doesn't apply to them. Simply put humans are just too selfish and the plant is f..ked.

@GreeboIsMySpiritAnimal

I care, and I recycle, and I only wear second-hand clothes, and I walk rather than drive...and it all feels a bit pointless really. Massive action needs to happen in a global scale to make any difference at all.

It's sad but our individual actions all seem rather hopeless.

I agree, the UK are only responsible for 1% of global CO2 emissions so OP your neighbours lack of recycling won't even scratch the surface.

@Harford

It's not about buying stuff willy nilly and just recycling it. It's about not buying it in the first place

then what do I do with all the packaging from my weekly shop?

You only buy stuff without packaging on.

Local councils only recycle because it is a revenue source for them. They sell the stuff on to be recycled. It also means they're not paying to tip off at landfill (yes, your council has to pay to dump rubbish). Don't be naive enough to assume this is done out of some altruistic notion of saving the planet.

A large volume of what gets up in recycling bags/bins doesn't actually make it to being recycled either. It's just chucked in with regular waist or tipped off in landfill.

I completely agree. We're doing our best here.

Individual people recycling barely makes a dent in the problem. Not to mention that more than half of the stuff you put in your bin doesn’t actually get recycled.

www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/may/17/uk-plastics-sent-for-recycling-in-turkey-dumped-and-burned-greenpeace-finds

Reading this has really upset me.

The way I look at it is that I don't want to be a part of the damage. I am aware that my efforts aren't making a difference, but I am pleased to not be harming animals by eating them, reducing my waste, etc means I feel as though it isn't me causing the problem. Obviously I am a bit by being alive, buy I'm not going to kill myself to help save the planet!

Recycling is way less important than consuming less in the first place.

We recycle fastidiously but a full recycling bin wouldn't make me feel smug it would remind me to try and buy less stuff

Buy less. Buy second hand. Buy reusable. And then recycle.

If it makes you feel less alone - I try and buy second hand as much as possible, drive a tiny car, don't fly anywhere...

What annoys me is when posters here preach about the environment when someone says something relatively minor like they use say, disposable wipes for cleaning. Massive pile on, yet these same people have children, drive, fly, and turn the heating on in september rather than put a jumper on

We can only do what we can do. Equally it's all too easy to pay attention at what other people are not doing and become incensed by it, but it's out of our control. Steps taken by companies seem nothing more than virtual signalling a lot of the time. Coca Cola for example supposedly want to be net zero carbon emissions by 2040, which sounds great, but doesn't negate the fact that they are ranked the world's no 1 plastic polluter

So while my last sentence may make some people say, 'fuck it, what's the point in me making the effort when it makes no difference', I still try and do my bit rather than add to the problem.