Ed,

Thankfully our council and ever increasing numbers of people, in particular young people, have joined the dots following the latest United Nations report that one million of the world’s species are now threatened with extinction.

Our council’s declaration of the climate emergency suggests the urgent need for us to now make different choices in what we do so that we don’t end up where we are heading.

I’m delighted that our council has asked for our assistance in framing a more sustainable waste management strategy which will result in a smaller volume of valuable materials ending up in landfill and a resultant increase in the recovery of valuable resources for both reuse and recycling.

For the sake of both our young grandchildren and the world’s threatened species, I hope we take the time before the 1st of July to make submissions to the council with our two cents worth of ideas that don’t cost the Earth when it comes to minimising our generation of waste.

So a couple of quick points to consider:- Minimising waste is the way to go, for by minimising waste we generate less waste in the first place, which is a far more sustainable choice than just managing our waste.

Choosing to use many more reusable, multi-use products greatly cuts our consumption for a 1% cut in consumption is equivalent to a 25% recycling rate. This is a pretty important consideration in our grandchildren’s world with its vital finite resources such as water.

Also have a look at “Volume Based Charging” for the collection of household waste if you want to cut both waste and your waste collection charges.

For more information towards a more sustainable future, ring our council or visit http://www.clarenceconversations.com.au/clarence-waste

And give a thought for our grandchildren and those endangered species for the future is what we choose.

Harry Johnson, Iluka