Caring for Creation?
What a load of rubbish!

Caring for Creation? What a load of rubbish!

Marian Green

Have you ever had a lightbulb moment? I was merrily tossing out my rubbish the way I always had, and then late last year I attended a course on Sustainable Living... somewhat reluctantly as it was being held in our parish and I felt I ‘should’ attend. The lightbulb moment came halfway through the 6 week course when I realised that if we don’t change our ways, the damage to our planet, this beautiful creation that God gave us, will be irreparable.

It’s an obvious idea I know, however it was an epiphany at that moment! I can’t fix every environmental issue, but I can make a difference in my little corner and encourage others to do the same.

The St Nic’s Recycling Hub was born.

We thought about household waste, and after some research found that if items can’t be recycled (via the yellow bin) they usually go in the landfill (red) bin. BUT, with a bit of effort many of the items destined for landfill can be recycled or reused by other organisations.

Rather than trying to tackle all waste, we shortlisted some common household waste items that we could do something about:

• Plastic Bottle Lids
• Plastic Plant Pots
• Plastic Bread Tags
• Toothbrushes/Floss Containers
• E-Waste/Mobile Phones
• Household Batteries
• Printer Cartridges
• Light Globes
• Beer Can Clips
• Medication Blister Packs

We have been overwhelmed with gratitude from the local community as there is finally somewhere local to help them in their goals of reducing landfill and caring for our world. We don’t claim to be experts on waste management, but we are learning and we try to share what we have learnt. Recycling is only one aspect, each one of us can also reduce our purchases to cut out waste, choose items that are reusable instead of disposable, repair the broken instead of replacing, and more.

After each Hub, we deliver everything to our industry partners, diverted from landfill to be recycled or upcycled.

None of us will solve the problem of waste on our own, but with small steps together we can make a huge difference.