19 Aug 2025
Photo by Naja Bertolt Jensen Global negotiations to forge the world’s first legally binding treaty to tackle plastic pollution have collapsed for the second time in eight months, as countries remain fundamentally divided over whether to limit plastic production or focus solely on waste management solutions. The sixth round of talks under the Intergovernmental […]
12 Aug 2025
Photo by Naja Bertolt Jensen High-stakes negotiations resumed in Geneva on 5th August for a legally binding global treaty to tackle plastic pollution, with delegates from 175 countries attempting to finalise an agreement that has eluded negotiators for nearly three years. The resumed fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5.2), scheduled to run […]
06 Mar 2024
The Drinking Water Inspectorate has published new research on dual pipe recycling systems to understand the associated risks and to assess the suitability of English and Welsh regulations to manage the risks from evolving systems. The research project found that many large-scale dual pipe systems in the UK have either been mothballed or have never […]
03 Jan 2024
Reported in the Los Angeles Times California is set to adopt regulations that will allow for sewage to be extensively treated, transformed into pure drinking water and delivered directly to people’s taps. The regulations are expected to be approved Tuesday (19 December) by the State Water Resources Control Board, enabling water suppliers to begin building […]
09 Mar 2021
Plastics is the oil & gas industries Plan B … incinerating it simply adds to the emissions Plastic production is set to grow exponentially – undermining climate commitments Channel 4 is screening its Dispatches ‘The dirty truth about your rubbish’ programme the night before this newsletter comes out – Lucy Sielge – see below Client […]
24 Nov 2020
There have been an increasing number of articles on the idea that ‘recycling’ is the ultimate example of ‘greenwashing’, which is really having little or no effect on reducing our overall use of plastics in particular. Beyond Recycling, a consultation report sets out how Wales sees a route to significant reductions in waste and carbon. […]
13 Oct 2020
Rainwater harvesting (RWH) and grey water recycling (GWR) are ways of generating alternative sources of water. A new review sets out the costs and benefits This can be used for some non-potable uses instead of mains water which is treated to meet strict drinking water standards. To date, both RWH and GWR systems have been […]
22 Sep 2020
The effort to promote recycling has been too successful. That is the argument being made by some environmentalists, as they point to a perception among consumers that if they carefully sort their glass, paper and plastic, they aren’t polluting the planet. “The message about recycling is so positive that it becomes an incentive to consider […]
