THE people of Scotland should try to reduce the variety of their household waste, Zero Waste Scotland have argued, following the release of a new report which shows textiles account for a surprising amount of the country’s carbon impact.
The Scottish Government-funded organisation, which aims to promote the environmental, economic and social benefits of a circular economy, have found in their new Carbon Metric report that the five most carbon intensive materials wasted in Scotland – including paper, cardboard, plastic, textile, and animal and food waste – accounted for only 46% of all household waste tonnage in 2020, but made up 83% of the carbon impacts.
The report goes beyond traditional methods of measuring the impact of waste by weight, and measures the whole-life carbon impacts of Scotland’s waste, from resource extraction and manufacturing, all the way through to waste management emissions.
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The report found that textiles in particular account for 32% of Scotland’s carbon impact, despite making up just 4% of waste by weight.
As some products are more carbon intensive that others, depending on how they are manufactured, utilised and disposed of, Zero Waste Scotland has argued these new findings should prompt householders to pay closer attention to the content as well as the quantity of their waste.
Zero Waste Scotland chief executive Iain Gulland said: “The first year of the pandemic saw us all having to change our way of living almost overnight – this included working from home to a rise in online shopping, which of course resulted in a spike in household waste. This has contributed to an increase in our own individual carbon footprint.
“Every person in Scotland is responsible for 18.4 tonnes of materials every year and it is these products and materials which make up around 80% of Scotland’s carbon footprint.
“I commend the brilliant efforts by households to reuse and recycle, when possible, but Zero Waste Scotland believes the solution lies in the step before this. If we are serious about ending our contribution to the climate crisis we must live within our means and reduce our consumption in the first place – there is no time to waste.”
According to Zero Waste Scotland, impact-based measurements and targets – such as shopping smarter and wasting less - will help both Scotland and the rest of the world combat climate change more effectively.
Circular Economy Minister Lorna Slater (above) commented: "Every material that is wasted comes at a cost to our planet, but it’s clear that textiles are having a disproportionate impact. That’s why we are establishing an innovation fund to support initiatives that could help Scotland tackle textile pollution and throw-away culture.
“We want Scotland to have an economy where materials remain in use for as long as possible. This won’t just reduce Scotland's carbon footprint, it will also provide economic opportunities in re-use and remanufacturing. To help deliver this agenda, I am currently preparing plans for an ambitious Circular Economy Bill that will be published for consultation in due course.”
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