Good work never goes unnoticed.
One Bailiwick of Jersey minister, Constable Andy Jehan, Minister for Infrastructure, has observed how the neighboring island, Guernsey, has achieved an impressive recycling rate of 59%, the BBC reported in early February. Compared to Jersey's recycling rate of only 35%, Jehan believes that Jersey can learn a thing or two about recycling from its neighbor.
"I very much wish to increase the rate of recycling in Jersey. Last month, I visited Guernsey to see the good work that they have done in this area," Constable Andy Jehan said, per the BBC.
Inspired by Guernsey, Jehan has several recommendations to increase Jersey's recycling rate.
Jehan envisions structural changes to Jersey's recycling infrastructure. This means investing in the facilities that process recycling materials and establishing a solid framework of legal and regulatory guidelines to handle Jersey's recycling affairs.
For example, if Jehan executes his recommendations as envisioned, a "kerbside collection facility" that circles all 12 parishes throughout Jersey will be implemented, but the details of when, how often, and with what budget, still need determination.
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A government's initiative and involvement in promoting programs that increase sustainability can go a long way in influencing public behavior.
For example, Aarhus, Denmark, found that a large portion of the city's waste was produced from plastic takeaway containers like coffee cups. The city introduced a new program where cafe customers could take away their coffee in sturdy plastic cups and return them to machines around town to reduce waste.
Similarly, Flint, Michigan invested in producing large-scale waste carts — 96-gallon trash carts and 64-gallon recycling carts — to be distributed to over 30,000 residential households to increase proper recycling throughout the city.
Increasing a city or town's recycling rates means reducing the total amount of waste that goes to the landfill, and conserving natural resources, or raw materials needed, to produce new products. Saving on raw materials also cuts down on the amount of environmental destruction and pollution produced by extracting, refining, and processing raw materials.
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Jehan hopes to follow in neighboring Guernsey's footsteps.
"We should also make every effort and take every opportunity, at parish and island level, to promote our existing services to ensure they are used to their optimum, and we should adapt as necessary to meet the changing needs of the community," Jehan said, per the BBC.
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