Our Plastic Addiction: The Importance of Recycling and Plastic Use Reduction

Our addiction to plastic is destroying marine life and killing fish

Rubbish is a part of all of our lives. Like it or not, we create waste on a daily basis, and even though we are more aware of the environmental cost of our waste than ever, we are still, on the whole, pretty good at ignoring it. Our methods of waste management are becoming more conscious and more sophisticated every year, but for a real environmental change, we all need to be a little better when it comes to dealing with our day-to-day domestic waste.

Here at Skip Hire Info, we are striving to make the world a little cleaner and a little more aware of the impact that our rubbish has on the planet. But, we can’t do it alone; we need you to help us build a community that makes better choices, through awareness, new habits and education.

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The ongoing problem of fly-tipping in the South East

Fly tipping in country lanes

A recent report making the news in most of Sussex and Kent’s local newspapers has highlighted the growing problem of fly-tipping. The story is prompted by recently released figures from DEFRA (the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) claiming that around one million flytipping incidents were dealt with by councils across England from 2016 to 2017.

Locally in Eastbourne, there were 473 cases of fly-tipping which amounted to a total cost of over £19,000. Lewes fared slightly better with 147 cases costing about £11,000 and Mid Sussex figures came in at 324 cases, costing £35,000. The estimated overall cost to taxpayers in the UK was a whopping £58million.

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Our environment – Who or what are The Unflushables?

Southern Water wants to teach you about The Unflushables

If you’re a Sussex resident then the buck stops with Southern Water for the supply of water and removal of sewage in your local town. The company is on a PR drive at the moment that’s designed to make you aware of…. “The Unflushables”.

As the quirky name suggests, these are the items that Southern Water wants you to stop either flushing down your toilet or pouring down your sink. Essentially, it’s a short list of the most common thing that cause blocked pipes which can lead to a deluge of raw sewage flooding your home.

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Plans to charge Wealden residents for garden waste collections

Garden waste collection charges in Wealden

Roy Galley, Cabinet member for waste management at Wealden District Council has recently said that the council intends to start charging local residents to dispose of their garden waste. He said it was a regrettable decision but the tough choice needed to be made due to a sharp dip in the price of organic waste on international markets in recent years. He said that he was proud of Wealden’s recycling rate of over 50% and it was a decision that the council didn’t take lightly.

The proposed charges are likely to come into effect around the summer of 2019 and it’s hoped that recycling rates will at the very least remain the same, and will hopefully even increase as a result of the new charging scheme.

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Nearly 3 out of every 4 aluminium cans are being recycled

Nearly 3 out of every 4 aluminium drinks cans are now being recycled

It may not be a story that’s going to make the headlines of your favourite tabloid newspaper, but as we’re inextricably linked with the world of recycling, we think it’s an important statistic that’s noteworthy of a brief blog post today.

According to European Aluminium, the recycling rate for aluminium drinks cans has seen a modest increase in the overall percentage recycled in 2014 to 72.9%. This increase makes the compulsory target of 75% by 2025, which has been set by the EU, a realistic goal.

When you consider that the number represents almost 3 in 4 cans being recycled, it gives cause for some optimism about the future of recycling for our weary planet; not just with metals, but all other materials that are capable of being turned into something new.

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Gravity Lamp – Is a gravity powered light bulb fact or fiction?

gravity lamp

Everyone likes something for free, especially when it comes to sources of clean, renewable energy. Enter the Gravity Lamp – It’s a story that pops up from time to time on Facebook, Twitter etc. about a device that can produce free, renewable energy in the form of light, and all it requires is a bit of muscle power – and crucially, no batteries. But is it a hoax or is it real? – Is it just another one of those internet scam stories with no basis in scientific reality or does the device really exist AND deliver the goods?

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What are the benefits of hiring a skip?

Overloaded car when not hiring a skip

Skip Hire Info provides a comprehensive range of waste management solutions. Although we hire out large RoRo (Roll on/off) containers and provide a convenient caged lorry rubbish clearance service, our most popular service by far is the hiring of skips to Sussex residents.

Here’s a brief overview about why hiring a skip could save you time and money and also prove to be easiest and most environmentally ethical way to clear all your household rubbish, garden waste and building rubble… all in one go.

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Fairy Liquid bottles to be made from ocean plastic

Proctor and Gamble, the makers of Fairy Liquid, have announced that they will be making a limited edition bottle in 2018 that is made from 100% recycled plastic. 90% will come from plastic destined for landfill and the remaining 10% will come from plastic that has been floating around in our oceans.

An oft-quoted prediction on the internet suggests that by 2050, the amount of plastic in the ocean will weigh more than the number of fish – A scary statistic if it comes true.

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Cleaning up the waste at Glastonbury

Now we’re firmly into September, the summer festival season has pretty much been wrapped up for another year. Today, we take a look at the rubbish and general waste left by partygoers to this year’s Glastonbury Festival.

We stumbled upon this interesting video posted by Bristol based company Coveya, which shows how a part of the clean-up process is speeded up with the use of their conveyor belts. The video contains a few interesting stats about what happens once all the party goers have left the festival to return to their daily lives.

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