Could you cope with your waste collected over just three days?

Small changes in our daily life can make a big difference in reducing the volumes of waste ending up in landfills or facilities which, in a small island like Malta, always end up in somebody's backyard.

Kevin Gatt, the coordinator of a new waste management policy that has been issued for public consultation by the environment minister, says reducing waste is a top priority but that this depends on how much society commits to it.

His mix of technocratic knowledge and a quasi-evangelical zeal in promoting waste minimisation as a way of life, is evident. "If we set an example of altruism in something as simple as waste management, this will permeate in other aspects of life," Gatt says.

One straightforward way of reducing waste is buying the amount of food that is actually required, and serving appropriate portions of food. Food waste itself amounts to 54% of waste produced in households: 21% of the food itself ends up as waste in rubbish bins.

As Gatt says, prevention can only work with a "strong message" for lifestyle change. He says rationalising food purchases is a win-win situation: producing less waste, and leaving more money in one's pockets.

Gatt says it can only be achieved through more awareness and education. "Waste prevention is not about putting a tax or issuing a permit, but a way of ensuring a commitment towards a common goal."

But isn't the new emphasis on frugality at odds with rampant consumerism promoted by the media?

"Changing consumption patterns is the most difficult thing to address because we have become used to a certain level of consumerism. That is why it is important to propose win-win situations through which the consumer ends up saving more money and is enticed to do so through the same media, which promotes consumerism," Gatt says.

One significant lifestyle change would be to dedicate more of people's limited time to waste separation. Under the new plan, by 2015 the collection of mixed waste will take place only once a week, while the collection of organic waste will take place three times a week. Presently no separate collection exists for organic waste, while the collection of black bags - containing mixed and organic waste - takes place on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

On Tuesday people put out the grey bag for recyclable packaging waste and on Thursday some councils have collections for another waste fraction like glass.  Therefore, most people are already accustomed to the collection of grey bags once or twice a week and the collection of the black bag four times a week.

But according to Gatt, the fact that people have already learned to distinguish between grey and black bags provides a good foundation for the next step: separating organic waste. "People are already on the first step towards distinguishing between days in which they dispose of certain type of waste and days where they dispose of other kinds of waste."

One of the most radical changes is to have mixed waste collected once a week instead of four times a week. How does he expect the public to respond to this change?

Gatt is optimistic. "For years we have grown used not to having a waste collection service on Sunday. Therefore for years we have coped with accumulating waste over two days. The introduction of grey bag collection has also made householders accumulate mixed and organic waste over a two day period".

But the reduction in the collection of mixed waste will be compensated by the frequent collection of organic waste. The ultimate aim is to have the organic waste accumulate for the efficient operation of two mechanical biological treatment plants where this waste is presently treated.

Gatt claims that the amount of "mixed waste" residents will have to store for a whole week would be minimal if "we commit ourselves to maximise separation of waste".

But reality shows that presently only 23% of waste is being separated. The target for 2020 is that 50% will be separated. Moreover, some people throw the wrong stuff in the wrong bags. Wouldn't the problem increase with the introduction of new colour-coded bags?

"I admit this is a big challenge which requires the exploitation of all forms of media and all forms of spaces to give access to a critical mass of people. We need to reach out to people in situations where we can take the least possible time from their day-to-day activities in order to pass simple messages."

Gatt gives a couple of examples of these simple messages.

"If a plastic cup if washed, something which takes just 30 seconds, it can go in a grey bag to be recycled instead of finishing up in a landfill."

"We need to build on our knowledge to push forward and evangelise the message that the success of waste management does not depend on facilities, but is dependent on everyone's behaviour."

Gatt says this learning experience will be the way through which families can involve their children in a display of generational solidarity. "If we set an example of altruism in something as simple as waste management, this will permeate in other aspects of life."

He also points out that waste separation comes at no extra expense, but simply requires commitment. "But for people to make this commitment they have to understand why they are making this commitment... while in the past most awareness took place in schools, it is vital that waste management advocates also reach adults. We need to convince them that time is worth investing in separation. What people need to become aware of is that ultimately there is a price for not recycling or preventing waste, as this will result in end-of-pipe solutions."

In short, the less waste produced, the greater the amount separated and recycled, and the less land needed for landfills or larger waste treatment facilities.

"Yes. In a small country like Malta such facilities are always a short stroll away from where each one of us lives and the impact is close to everyone. Moreover a low rate of waste separation is costly for the country. It results in a greater dependency on the use of facilities to manage that waste. If we recycle more waste we would be ensuring that less waste goes to the landfill. If we recover energy from that waste we would be breaking down even further.

"Basically by putting all kinds of waste in a mixed bag we would occupy more space in a landfill. It is only be minimising the amount of waste that we can minimise the need for facilities. In this way we also minimise the impact on resources like energy and land use."

2014                                                                  

1. The collection of black bags containing mixed waste will be reduced to 3 times a week.

2. Collection of dry recyclables (ex glass) to be increased to 2 or 3 times weekly   

2015

1. Collection of black bags containing mixed waste will be reduced to once a week

2. Introduce collection of bio waste (ex food waste) 3 times a week

3. Twice weekly collection for dry recyclables.

4. New colour coded garbage bags for dry recyclables, bio-waste and mixed waste

5. Vehicles collecting waste not to exceed a 4 tonne capacity

6. Waste collection to be regionalised

7. Late evening collection in traffic hot spots

One of the new plan's more controversial aspects is the suggestion of expanding the Sant Antnin Waste Recycling Plant from the current capacity of 71,000 tonnes to 100,000 tonnes. Gatt says the plan is not envisioning the expansion of the facility itself but only stating that in the absence of adequate separation of organic waste, the amount of waste in the black bags allowed into the facility needs to increase in order to meet the design capacity of the current digester.

Today the facility is permitted to handle 71,000 tonnes: 36,000 tonnes of which are composed of dry recyclables while 35,000 tonnes is municipal solid waste. 

But what is happening today is that only 50% of the waste coming from black bags is composed of organic waste. Therefore, out of the allowed 35,000 tonnes throughput, which is coming via black bags, only half of it is composed of organic waste which can be directed to digestion - a process through which micro-organisms break down biodegradable material in the absence of oxygen.

The digestor's actual capacity for treating organic waste is 35,000 tonnes, which means it is not even operating to its full capacity.

So if the amount of separated organic waste increases to direct 35,000 tonnes of it to Sant Antnin, there would not even be the need to increase throughput to the plant, as there would be enough organic waste to operate the digestor at its current capacity.

"Through the introduction of the organic separation of waste we can possibly direct 35,000 tonnes of pure organic waste directly to Sant Antnin. Therefore we would not need to increase the capacity of the digester. Our aim is to ensure that the digester operates at its full capacity."

This is a clear case showing how societal behaviour - separating organic from other waste - can contribute to not having an increased throughput of waste at Sant Antnin. So while not cast in stone, increasing throughput is a temporary measure until 35,000 tonnes of organic waste may be secured through the three-tier separation process proposed.

Gatt makes it clear that the government has already excluded any tax or tariff to finance waste management. But he cautions that the best way to avoid such taxes in future is only by reducing the waste that had to be managed: and that means, reducing waste at source, increased separation and recycling to secure the most efficient cost possible to run the plant. "Ultimately, even if one day a charge had to be applicable, by making operations even more efficient through waste minimisation and more recycling, the cost of operations will be less and the burden on society will be less."

Less junk mail, new collection hours

While people can control food waste by changing their shopping behaviour, they certainly won't control the vast quantity of unsolicited mail they receive in their own letterbox and which usually ends up in the bin.

Gatt says technology has provided alternatives to do away with this kind of waste. "For a considerable number of people it is much more convenient to receive a soft copy of a catalogue that can be deleted."

The plan is to bring together all mail distributors to ensure 'junk mail' is addressed only to people who really want it, and to allow others to opt out from receiving it in hard copy. "This will result in a reduction in the amount of paper sometimes still found in its plastic cover which is finding itself in our waste management system."

Another proposed change is to avoid tailbacks of traffic in the morning hours, by organising late-night collections. People who work in the morning and afternoons will also be able to take out their rubbish after returning home from work.

Presently most waste from households is collected in the morning, something that the waste management plan says has created increased congestion and traffic. "What happens in the villages is different from what happens in the traffic hot spots," Gatt points out, but it is here that night-time collection makes more sense. "It will result in a reduction of emissions, not just by the refuse collection vans but also by avoiding the tailback it creates during traffic rush hours."

Changes to the waste management plan will see the Local Councils Association and the department for local government team up to discuss a more regional system for waste collection. "We want to discuss regionalisation to create economies of scale that allow waste collectors to become even more professional and invest in vehicles that are more attuned to modern technology," Gatt says. "It's a win-win: we get a more a professional service, and collectors can get larger contracts."