The Zero Waste International Alliance reacts to bogus Zero Waste claims
As a direct response to the emergence of bogus “Zero Waste” organisations around the world the Zero Waste International Alliance (ZWIA), which has for over a decade proposed and promoted the elimination of all waste in human endeavours, has contacted its friends in the Industrial Ecology, anti-incineration and circular economy world, to ask for help in flushing out the imposters that are trying to steal the Zero Waste term in order to promote incineration and other unsustainable practices under the cloak of the term “Zero Waste to Landfill” —mostly for undisguised commercial reasons.
“There can be no form of deliberate resource destruction in a zero waste world” –Ric Anthony, Chair of the Zero Waste International alliance.
“ZWIA has taken great care to define Zero Waste in a way that it actually means “no waste” because we humans have been made to realise, far too late really, that waste has been something our species has created by mistake and we are jeopardizing our survival chances on this earth by being so careless.” he added.
ZWIA asserts that Zero Waste to Landfill is a bogus claim that falsely implies an element of environmentalism to disguise blatant commercialism. ZWIA challenges organisations not to use the term Zero Waste unless it means the same as in the published ZWIA definition.
Metro Vancouver Regional District BC Canada’s “Zero Waste Committee”, is a prime example promoting unsustainable waste to energy (WtE) projects without reserve. Also, Metro Vancouver regional district were instrumental in the creation and financing of the National Zero Waste Council, which is an organization operating without a definition of ZERO WASTE and with some of its members who promote and support waste to energy/incineration.
If the waste industry’s response to no landfill –as legislated in the European Union – is incineration disguised as Waste to Energy (WTE) then it needs to be exposed as bogus –it’s at best a pretty unimaginative alternative.
“Well —-if we can’t bury rubbish let’s burn it instead” – is pretty lame you have to admit.
Whilst municipalities the world over have begun to realise that waste was a mistake and that we have been burying and burning valuable resources, the waste industry profiteers are running scared by the prospect of no materials to trade as recycling and composting rates climb higher and higher.
They are desperate to stop a reduction in their traded commodity—-waste, and “Zero Waste to landfill” is yet another desperate attempt at turning back the environmental (and now economic) tide.
Thankfully San Francisco at 80% and South Australia at 80% and municipalities in Europe reaching past 75% when they are properly managed, indicate the true way forward to a sustainable economy.
A circular economy that creates endeavour and jobs from the value of these resources rather than maintaining business as usual for those with yacht palaces parked in Monaco and Martinique.
ENDS
ZWIA.
See http://www.zwia.org/ for the only peer reviewed definition of Zero Waste.
Editors note
Zero Waste International Alliance was established in 2003 to co-ordinate the education and re-education of the citizens of the world so that they will change the way that they regard the materials that pass through their hands daily – to eliminate that which we called waste.
Zero Waste means no waste at all; the urgency for a zero waste world flows from the realisation that creating waste was a big mistake. Homo sapiens, unique amongst the creatures on this earth, creates the waste. So homo sapiens can stop creating it. Zeroing Waste is an action we can decide to take –and must.
Zero Waste organisations are becoming more numerous every year and are now active in over 30 countries.
ZWIA is an organisation that is formally recognised by the United Nations.