We do make an effort when we are at home, we have a green bin to recycle our paper and we try to do the same with our bottles and jars, but I suppose there is a limit to what you can do in terms of time and energy. We do try to take it to the next level, but it's a bit difficult to go beyond the obvious." Dublin mother-of-three Fionnuala Waldron's views are similar to those of the majority of environmentally conscious people across the country. The best way to restore and sustain our environment is by taking individual responsibility - starting with simple round the house habits. Fiachra Ó Cionnaith reports.
Although keen to help improve the environment, many people in Ireland struggle to look beyond the established eco-friendly options, wary of changes that will result in a restructuring of their daily routine. But while it may not sound groundbreaking, real progress begins at home, with a number of small changes to everyday home life of significant benefit to the environment.
According to Department of Environment statistics, the annual home commercial waste produced by each person in Ireland is 700 kilogrammes, three times more than the EU average. Energy use in the home is responsible for 30 per cent of related carbon dioxide emissions, while today's Irish families use 70 per cent more water than in the 1970s. Although there has been an improvement in recent years, changes are still necessary in our approach to daily living.
"People aren't as aware as they could be about what they can do to help within their homes, but the small things you can do can really have a big knock-on effect on the country's general well-being," says Ben Whelan, educational environment manager at Sustainable Ireland. Since it was established in 2002 the organisation has encouraged a more considered approach to environmental issues in Ireland, with unnecessary energy usage in homes one of its priority concerns.
"One of the main issues we tell people about is that half of the energy of something when it is fully operational is used when appliances are still plugged in or on stand-by so it's important to always switch them off completely. Energy can be wasted that way. Renewing your boiler jackets and putting insulation in your roof can also help, because it's plugging gaps and making the best use of the heat and energy provided. We all have a responsibility to contribute to the reduction of Ireland's emissions and energy use can be a large part of that. What we try to get across is that it's all small scale and every little helps."
Other energy-saving activities include having showers instead of baths - which on average use twice as much water - decreasing the thermostat by one degree to save 10 per cent of the energy consumed, and using long-lasting light bulbs instead of the shorter versions to cut down on waste disposal.
Cutting down on wasting energy in this manner is a practical way of helping the environment without disturbing your daily routine. But while this advice appears straightforward, the reality is that many households across Ireland do not follow these steps, resulting in a higher level of energy consumption that has an adverse effect on the environment.
The impact of consumerism has also played a role, with products available for almost every conceivable need leading to an increased dependence on household chemicals that can have a damaging effect on the environment.
However, according to Elizabeth Arnett, project manager of the Race Against Waste campaign, many of these products are unnecessary as there are always natural alternatives within the home.
"We have a bit of a cleanliness problem at the moment in that if it's not bleached clean people don't think it's clean. But the reality of it is that soap and water cleans just as well, and in some cases better than using the bleach product which goes straight down the drain and causes problems when it reaches the waste water treatment plants. So there are alternatives to these products, for instance vinegar is good for cleaning glass and baking soda helps to remove odours about the house. There are lots of ways to cut down on household chemicals."
Concentrating on the natural alternatives to these products also helps to decrease the amount of packaging being sent to the State's overflowing landfills, which are among the largest in Europe.
ACCORDING TO ARNETT, a less obvious but equally important benefit is that this encourages people to think about other environmental issues in the home that would otherwise have gone unnoticed.
"Once people start doing one thing the next thing becomes easier, and very soon you're doing things that you would have thought 'God no, that's only for crazy people with sandals'. When people get into the mindset of changing their behaviour, the steps you need to take become easier and easier." One of these steps includes composting organic waste such as leftover food, which is estimated to take up one-third of all household waste.
Although the benefits of recycling have been acknowledged by a large proportion of the population - 42 per cent of houses now have different bins for recyclable and non-recyclable waste - composting is still an environmentally friendly activity that many have yet to adjust to.
"The problem with organic waste once it goes into your regular bin is that the waste it is mixed with then becomes completely unrecyclable because it starts to break down and becomes smelly and mushy. By separating that organic waste you leave your recyclables dry and easy to handle," says Arnett.
"Everybody who has a garden can have a compost bin. It's just a question of having a small caddie or kitchen bin that you put your potato peelings or tea bags into and tip it into your compost bin. The heaviest part of your waste is then removed and turned into an asset that you can use in your garden. Also, if you are producing your own compost and not buying in a peat-based compost made from peat bog that has an environmental impact that isn't desirable, you're replacing all of those products and difficulties with something that you're creating from your waste."
But while these small adaptions to daily activities are of value in helping to improve the environment, for the more label conscious there are larger changes that can be made within the home. The EU energy labelling system - seen as a small flower on the packaging of products - highlights the levels of emissions by household machinery and the amount of energy used in the making of individual items from manufacturing to usage to disposal.
SOME 21 IRISH products currently fall under its jurisdiction, including dishwashers and refrigerators, with the system recommending alternatives to those that do not meet the required standards. "The whole idea is that the impact of these products would be less than the impact of products that don't carry this label," says Dr Patrick Hayes, standard officer of the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI), who chaired a number of the EU meetings on the labelling system.
"Although the requirements vary from product to product, the main emphasis is on the energy consumption. The manufacturer has to make sure that the product is as energy-efficient as possible."
A Department of Environment campaign to explain the importance of these more energy-efficient products is expected this month, which is hoped will raise awareness of how individual households can help improve the environment.
But while government initiatives designed to encourage the population to be more eco-friendly are of value, the reality is that long-lasting change originates from a change in householders' actions. While larger activities are of importance, most change comes from what happens locally, and the real local is in the home.
The Annual Repak National Recycling Week takes place between October 4th and 10th