Whilst Manchester United were struggling to retain their lofty position at the top of the Premiership on Sunday afternoon, a gang of us were outside their opponents, Arsenal's ground collecting tin cans discarded by the fans. By half time we had collected 350 drinks cans that would otherwise have gone to landfill or incineration.This was the third collection we have done this season to highlight the lamentable lack of recycling facilities at Arsenal's new stadium, the Emirates. In October we had collected 18 kilos of tin cans, and glass and plastic bottles. Back in December some 700 drinks cans were collected during the entire match. This is the tip of the iceberg however.
On every occasion we observe Islington council's street cleaners doing a magnificent job collecting rubbish abandoned by the fans on the way to the match. Unfortunately everything they collect will go to landfill or incinerated, adding to the amount of waste the UK throws away.
And recycling saves energy as well. Recycling aluminium cans saves 95% of the energy that would be used to make them out of raw material. The amount of energy to make a glass bottle is 50% less if the source is recycled material. And glass is 100% recyclable. 85% of PET plastic bottles end up in landfill but every single bottle that is recycled saves nearly half a kilogram of carbon emissions.
It is time that Arsenal took its environmental responsibilities seriously. Many of the European clubs they play have recycling facilities for their fans. Other UK clubs from Manchester City to Dartford FC have built new stadiums with environmental sustainability in mind.
Arsenal scored an own goal when they chose to behave like an environmental dinosaur over the building of their new stadium.
Click here to view more photos of our recycling pick
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