Impacts of Rubbish
Per capita, Australia is one of the highest waste generating countries in the world and, despite its good record for recycling, Victoria ranks as one of the nation's largest contributors of solid waste. Disposing of waste that could be reused or recycled is a waste of resources, a lost opportunity and a waste of money. If not properly managed, waste can cause pollution and adverse impacts on the environment.
Did you know that:
- Rubbish does not break down well in a landfill. Plastic, steel and aluminum can take tens to hundreds of years to break down
- As garden rubbish and kitchen scraps break down in landfill they produce methane. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas - more than 20 times worse than carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas.
- Rainwater filtering through the landfill and the break down of garden rubbish and kitchen scraps contribute to a liquid called leachate. In old landfills, leachate can escape and contaminate surface and groundwater. In modern, well-managed landfills it costs a lot of money to collect and treat the leachate.
- Disposing of waste that could be reused or recycled is a waste of resources, a lost opportunity and a waste of money.
However, the environmental impacts of rubbish are not just related to their disposal. The processing, manufacture and transport of materials before they end up as rubbish uses energy and resources and creates pollution. To reduce the environmental impact of our rubbish, Council is seeking to reduce the volume of waste going to landfill, and increase the rate of resource recovery, reuse and recycling.
 Related Information | ||||
|