Small steps

Certainly it's good news that Westminster City Council have at last been able to announce the results of their protracted negotiations with the free newspaper publishers this week. As Westminster have been bearing the brunt of the freesheet war over the past 12 months it is only sensible that pilot projects are tested out in the borough which has to deal with 4 tonnes of newspaper every day. However a few questions spring to mind...

Are these measures alone going to solve the problem of diverting free newspapers from going to landfill?
What measures will be put in place to deal with the excessive number of free papers to be found on the buses, the tube network and the regional trains services?
How are we going to stop the culture of abandoning waste on the transport infrastructure which is so costly and bad for the environment?

On September 12th Project Freesheet is going to take to the streets once more to assess the impact of the new bins being sponsored by Associated Newspapers and News International. We will gather data which will give an accurate account of how much paper is ending up in the aforementioned recycling bins compared to what is ending up in the waste bins or on the street. If you would like to join us please email via the website for more details

As the gentle ripple of approval throughout the media continues let us see how many more boroughs and transport networks follow Westminster's lead in succeeding to get the free newspaper publishers to clean up their own mess.

Slow boat to China

'At about £500 to send a 26-tonne container of waste to China, it is now cheaper to send plastic to the Far East than by road from London to Manchester'

Here's another example of waste management policies in the UK that are simply not good enough. This article ( The slow boats to China filled with our refuse by Cahal Milmo at The Independent) illustrates more topsy turvy thinking. How can it be that this recyclable waste cannot be put to better use in this country. Surely we have the personnel, funding and location to handle our own plastics recycling?

Everybodys going green! It's great isn't it?

The tidal wave of 'green' continues to wash over the world of commerce. Whilst it is obviously great to hear of shifting attitudes and priorities, one has to wonder what the motivation is behind these recent announcements when the likes of Tesco, Walmart and BAE are getting in on the act.

BAE Systems - because 'lead used in ammunition can harm the environment' a new range of 'green' munitions are being developed including lead-free eco-bullets, quieter warheads (to reduce noise pollution!), smoke free hand grenades, and armoured vehicles with hybrid engines. Umm, environmentally friendly war?

Tesco and Sainsbury's are to start their own local veg box delivery scheme. With the impact that companies of this size have on the market, will the advantages of having small to medium sized suppliers now be lost? Can this new move really help to reduce food miles?

Walmart are making huge claims about their desires to go green. But can a trans-national company of their size really reduce their 'carbon footprint'?

Consuming responsibly is important. Supplying our shops with locally sourced materials is more important. But reducing the amount of waste we produce has to be the most important priority of all. Can the 'big-boys' with their huge appetite for resources really provide the answer?

Less waste equals less landfill equals less green house gases.

5-4-3-2-1

projectfreesheet.com is go!!

well, at least I've got some blurb up and am ready to start recruiting you lovely people. But I guess first of all I need to start by explaining myself and what I'm up to. I was reading an article in The Ecologist magazine written by Jon Hughes recently and it inspired me to start an art project which marries up my main interests - the environment and photography.

When I read the article it struck me as a very good example of contrasting approaches to life in the 21st Century. On the one hand you have 'big industry' being faced with increasing competition, tighter operating budgets, and more aggressive marketing techniques than ever; on the other hand there are the concerns of the people who see more waste and irresponsible consumption than ever before.

So, i thought, here is an art project that could serve as a raising-awareness-about-an-issue initiative. I would go round all the tube lines and stations, recycling centers, waste sub-contractors and the like and take photos that would end up as a collage and eventually an exhibition. But thats a tad 20th century innit...

So how about inviting people to upload their own photos of freesheet newspapers wherever they see them? In the gutter, on the tube, on the bus, etc etc. They're everywhere!! If we try to get people to upload their photo's we could aim to collect 1.5 million or so. That's how many issues of these freesheets are being handed out every day.

Currently I have built a very basic website and need to start raising some funds in order to build a proper one. If I'm going to try to upload 1.5 million images from Londoners (though i guess they could come from further afield) then I need some pretty smart apps and programs to automate the whole process. And in case you didn't think 1.5 million images sounds like very many - 1.5 million photos equates to 200 images per day for 21 years!!

So, if you're interested, watch this space where I'll be updating my progress.

btw, any ideas or suggestions would be most welcome!!