Jane Powerson reusing.
Slogans usually have most oomph when they have three parts. Take "Liberty, equality, fraternity". It has a perfect, well-balanced resonance. Or "Beanz meanz Heinz" - also perfect, if somewhat shorter and snappier. And "Reduce, reuse, recycle". It's particularly elegant because the verbs are arranged in order of preference. In other words: reducing is best, reusing is next best and recycling is in third place.
It's a great motto, but can anyone hear all three bits of it? Or, more to the point, why have the agencies that are promoting this message let the middle drop right out of it? We're frequently encouraged to reduce (electricity, fuel, packaging), and we have been helped to become model recyclers (far better than many other European countries). But when was the last time we were urged to reuse something (other than the odd plastic bag or ice-cream tub)?
Reusing, after all, comes farther up the hierarchy than recycling: if you reuse something, or find someone who will, there is zero waste, no dismantling work and no costly transportation to another location or country for specialist treatment. Recycling may keep the item (or a proportion of it) out of landfill, but there's often a huge, energy-intensive kerfuffle in doing so.
Our Weee - waste electrical and electronic equipment - collection points, for instance, make no provision for whole and healthy pieces that could go on to lead second lives with new owners. Michael Molamphy, a teacher at Portumna Community School, in Co Galway, wrote in to this column about what he found at his local civic amenity site, where he had brought his pupils to recycle some (really) old and defunct computers. "We were amazed at the number of what appeared to be perfectly good electrical goods being disposed of."
Although not officially sanctioned to do so, over the next few months the school rescued five televisions, two flat-screen computer monitors, two computers, a fridge-freezer and a microwave. That's 11 items in perfect condition. Molamphy approached two county councils and the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, suggesting they provide a covered space at such centres, for working electrical equipment, or a noticeboard where people might post information about such items. He was disappointed by the lack of response.
The EU Weee directive says priority must be given to the reuse of waste electrical and electronic goods, and John Gormley, the Minister for the Environment, has announced that he will address this before the end of the year. In the meantime we might take matters into our own hands and do a bit of guerrilla reusing. One strategy, suggests Molamphy, is to send your child to school with a note if you're getting rid of a DVD player, computer or TV. Or ask at your local community centre, at the local Society of
St Vincent de Paul, if it can use the equipment.
Let's not wait for the Government to pick up the "reuse" and put it back between the "reduce" and "recycle".