News

Let's get greener

Published 21 February 2013

A University of Brighton academic has joined Oscar-winning actor Jeremy Irons in a worldwide appeal to increase recycling and composting.

Professor Andrew Cundy, who researches environmental and pollution management, provided expert advice on coastal landfill sites in the making of a film Trashed, hosted by Irons, which focuses on the global problem of household and industrial waste. It was released in the USA in December and is due to be shown in the UK in the spring.

Professor Cundy, professor of geoscience at the university's School of Environment and Technology, said: "We must reuse and recycle more, rather than just throw things away."

He joined other academics around the world in the making of Trashed which warns of the dangers of growing landfill sites and environmental pollution fed by "society's unsustainable consumption cycle".

He said: "Waste is very much an unseen problem. Though the waste itself is very visible, many people don't regard waste as a pollution problem. Meanwhile, our rubbish dumps are continuing to grow.

"Whether our household waste ultimately ends up in landfills or is incinerated, in some cases allowing for energy recapture, it puts a stress on the environment. When trash is exported to developing countries – where rules governing disposal may not be as stringent – the environmental impact is especially troubling, as the documentary film shows."

Professor Cundy said more than three billion tons of waste is thrown out in the European Union every year: "That represents six tons per citizen, according to the European Commission statistics, and while there are some signs of progress in waste reduction, recycling and treatment, the Union's 27 countries are still a long way from meeting their 2020 targets under the commission’s waste reduction plan.

"The most meaningful way of reducing the stream of waste is by reducing consumption and re-using materials. Composting at home can do much to cut the amount of general waste households produce."

You can find out more about Trashed at www.trashedfilm.com.