Treasure from Trash
By tony leather, 12th Aug 2012 | Follow this author
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I do not advocate dumpster diving for any but the most dedicated, but when youy think how much money you could be saving as well as the good you would be doing for the 'green' future we all aspire to, perhaps you might give it some serious thought
Treasure from Trash
You may well hold your hands up when you see the mountains of rubbish that accumulate on the streets. We live in the most wasteful, throwaway society the world has ever seen, and everywhere seems to be getting clogged by it, even the oceans. Governments talk of horrendous problems with overfull landfill sites, and we all let somebody else worry about it.
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The planet and those that occupy it cannot carry on in this way. At some point, we need to start giving back instead of taking, and at last some are beginning to see the light. The world needs our help, however little we can do, so we all need to get with the programme. Hopefully it is not already too late.
With the emphasis today on greener living, each of us has to take responsibility for doing the best we can at recycling. Believe it or not a whole new industry is growing around this concept, and you might be surprised at just how much trash gets turned into treasure every day. Used vegetable oils get processed to produce bio-fuels, but that is just the tip of the iceberg.
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We try to avoid using too much paper in order to save trees, but using less wood can hardly be less important. The UK is actually leading the world just now when it comes to green funerals. Around 10,000 people each year are now buried in biodegradable coffins or shrouds can be used with a woodland burial.
Waste consumer products, including sewage, ash, glass etc. can be compacted and moulded into strong and durable building blocks that are not only odour-free but at least as strong as concrete.
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When one considers the untold thousands of tons of waste that go to landfill, it is easy to imagine that much of it could be used to help provide materuials for much neeeded housing projects around the world.
There are sites now, notably in Holland and the USA, where household waste is burned to generate electrical power, another sensible use of waste. How often have you carelessly discarded an old bic pen because it ran out? Even these have their uses, as shown by this this stylish chandelier made by one inventive recycler.
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Old cable drums can find new uses as furniture, as could so much of the wood that gets so thoughtless;ly thrown aside every day. Wood can be a very durable asset for anyone to make use of and the more we find ways to re-use it the fewer the trees that need to be felled for fresh supplies. It takes centuries for some trees to develop and mature. Surely they should be left to do just that where possible.
Then we have the question of the drinks can. There can be as many recycling initiatives as there are stars in the sky but millions will still be thrown to one side by those whose thirst was slated. Such a waste, yet again, because these containers can also be re-employed in other roles. Compacted and made into jazzy objects like those pictured here.
Maybe you want some place to live that really is out of the ordinary. A place that people cannoy help but stop to stare at. Why not obtain yourself a de-commissioned aircraft? Roomy and cheap to maintain, if you have the space to put it in the first place. Some entepreneurs have even opened hotels using old planes.
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The fact is that wether you are a sculptor, an artist, a carpenter or designer, there will always be something useful to you personally among the stuff that you see being thrown out every day. I do not advocate dumpster diving for any but the most dedicated, but when youy think how much money you could be saving as well as the good you would be doing for the 'green' future we all aspire to, perhaps you might give it some serious thought. Trash can very easily turn into treasure, if you go the right way about it.
Comments
12th Aug 2012 (#)
good use of recycling proposed ,
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12th Aug 2012 (#)
That is nice article on recycling dear Tony! I appreciate it! Thanks for sharing!
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