In the late 1800s all soft drinks were sold in glass bottles. Bottles returned to shops were collected by the manufacturer. There wasn’t a deposit scheme in place at this time – the return was completely voluntary. Not far up the road, in Falkirk, Barrs first started making soft drinks way back in 1875, and even if you’re not a fan, their bottle archive is fascinating.

By 1905 bottle returns had dropped off and they were also getting damaged, so drinks companies agreed through their trade body to introduce a bottle deposit system. It started off at one half penny per bottle. Nothing changed for over fifty years.

But then cans were introduced in the 60s, and not long after non-returnable glass bottles started to appear in supermarkets. Enter the plastic bottle in the 80s and the returnable glass bottle became all but history – all Barr one company. Barrs now sells 30 million “returnable bottles” in corner shops and garages every year, mostly locally.

Continue reading “Back in the day all bottles were returnable”

I was visiting one of my favorite places in East Lothian, Inveresk Garden and Lodge. There is not a time of the year when this place is not inspiring. A stone’s throw from the rumbling A1, it is nonetheless a peaceful and calming space.

But one thing got me going, last time I was there and that was the apples seemingly going to waste. There were admittedly a few available for sale, but there were piles ready to rot and windfalls galore. I found in no time a superbly sharp and crisp Cox. Though somehwat malformed, small and covered with superficial blemishes – below the thin skin lay a perfectly textured and flavoured local apple.

Continue reading “Unloved fruit”

Council, local businesses and community groups got together on Friday 8^th November 2013 in Dunbar Townhouse to discuss potential projects to reduce waste going to landfill and to increase recycling.

Representatives agreed that much work is needed and a new partnership approach. They also heard that businesses will need to segregate their waste for recycling from January 2014, with new arrangements for collections in schools too and that householders can expect food waste collections in the new year.

The group wondered whether local supermarkets and larger businesses, who are very close to achieving zero waste to landfill, could do more to help consumers, who need to do more. Everyone agreed that additional infrastructure is still necessary to make it easier to recycle, to repair, and to re-use. Further education at the household level, in the workplace and at school is also needed. Participants listened to new evidence that we are all recycling less than we think we are and wasting a lot more with unnecessary purchases. So what can be done?

Continue reading “No Time to Waste – Collaboration Needed”

Monica is a Dunbar resident with a problem on her doorstep

I recently moved near Dunbar’s East Beach – idyllic!  The sound of the gulls in the morning, sunset over the water, walking along the beach investigating what the tide had brought in … and a lot of what it brought was kelp, piles of the stuff, a metre long and with the holdfast attached, ripped out by the last storm.

And there I found the fly in the ointment – or, more precisely, the thousands of flies that seem to materialise in a matter of days, attracted to the rotting, stinking seaweed, and plaguing the lives of many of the town’s residents, not to mention seriously damaging the appeal of one of the town’s natural assets.

Continue reading “Kelp is not waste”

A couple of us from Dunbar went over to Bridge of Allan to the Community Resources Network (CRNS) 2013 conference. The topic was the “Circular Economy” and we had a chance to talk with delegates from most of the “community resource” sector, many public & private players too.

Frazer Scott, Head of Business & Development at ZWS introduced the concept of the circular economy, and that Scotland is the first and only country to have joined Ellen Macarthur’s CE100 club of the great and the good.

Dr Leslie Mabon, Edinburgh University, set out his project which is examining engagement (or the lack of) between academics, people and communities.

Bobby Gavin, Valpak wants to get more involved with the third sector and the WEEE contracts they manage in Scotland.

Alis Balance, Moffat CAN, spoke of the high profile projects and activities in Moffat aimed at reducing carbon impacts.

Stephen Clarke, TerraCycle UK explained the ‘Brigade Programme’ that tackles hard to recycle materials and products, whilst fundraising for local charities and giving big corporates an opportunity to use their persuasive brand power for good causes.

Workshops for funders, policy, partnership working, furniture, and reuse completed the day.

CRNS has around 100 members, which include most local reuse and recycling projects, but excluding charity shops.

Posters promoting the national re-use phone line started to appear in bus shelters earlier this year. The re-use phone line is a free service to make it easier to donate quality, unwanted goods like furniture, white goods, working electrical goods and other bulkier items.

Funded by Zero Waste Scotland, the re-use phone line – 0800 0665 820 is able to divert items to third sector community organisations in the East Lothian Council area.

Continue reading “National Reuse Phoneline”

There’s a lot of waste in the food value chain. This infographic from WRAP UK (2009/10 data.) suggests consumers have control over a lot of that waste.[1. Percentages denote amounts of food wasted as a proportion of that produced for UK consumption]

Continue reading “Four out of 10 of apples are thrown away – what a waste”