did, our present facilities couldn't cope. Kathleen Gaffney-Frith investigates.

*** Not long ago, Bermudians were a resourceful -- and, by today's standards -- a pretty environmentally-conscious bunch. Because of Bermuda's isolated geography, residents created little waste and were model recyclers.

Used jam jars became storing devices for nails, buttons or hardware. Grocery shoppers packed their goods in used shipping boxes. Cloth napkins, handkerchiefs and tea towels were commonplace; disposable napkins and paper towel seldom seen. Newspapers, once read, stoked fireplaces; tin cans became seedling holders. Old clothes were torn into cleaning rags or kite tails.

Homeowners burned what little trash they acquired in oil barrels in their backyards.

Recycling was not so much a politically correct venture as a necessary way of life.

This resourcefulness, however, gave way to increased consumerism spurred by enhanced importation and wealth. The growing ease and frequency of ships and flights to the Island allowed for huge amounts of material to be brought into Bermuda. In 1947, the total value of imported goods into Bermuda was $1.2 million. In 1999 it was $700 million. Ironically, Bermuda entered the disposable society in the 1960s, when the environmental movement was starting.

Just as our American neighbours were beginning to recognise and devise solutions for the environmental impact of waste, Bermuda was amassing garbage at a nearly exponential rate for the sake of modern convenience.

In an attempt to follow North America's environmental lead, a recycling initiative was implemented in Bermuda in 1992 as part of the revamped waste management programme brought on board just before the mass incinerator began operation in 1994.

"Recycling was something that had to happen,'' says Alan Hunt, Government's solid waste manager. "Many Bermudians were influenced by the growing concern for the environment in North America and the rest of the world. Interest groups on the island were becoming vocal about how we handled our waste.'' The recycling programme, which primarily recycles aluminium and tin, still falls short of most of its North American and European counterparts. It suffers from a low (and declining) participation rate, aging and insufficient equipment, and a high cost factor due to Bermuda's mid-Atlantic location.

Certainly, most Bermudians don't recycle. Government estimates only about 18-20 percent of the population recycles. "This number is not where it should be,'' acknowledges Mr. Hunt.

Jane Brett, Government's waste education and enforcement officer, is charged with advocating recycling in the community. To accomplish this she employs Loop the Bluebird, a mascot who makes celebrity appearances at schools and public events such as the recent Bermuda International Marathon. She uses a litany of booklets, brochures, stickers and advertising spots on television, radio and in the newspaper to spread the word of recycling. Last year, Government sent out free blue recycling bags to the Island's residents. A recent Learnalots video also extolled the virtues of recycling.

"We really focus a lot on the children,'' says Ms Brett. "They are the ones that seem the most motivated and can often influence their household.'' Keep Bermuda Beautiful (KBB) a non-profit environmental organisation also goes to lengths to educate the public about recycling. Pilot programmes started by KBB include a weekly recycling drive, a paper recycling initiative that turns school paper into notepads and shipping material, and a new programme called Ringleader that will send plastic six-pack rings back to American manufacturers.

Yet, even equipped with these publicising tools and programmes, Bermudians in general are throwing their glass, aluminium and tin in their regular trash where it inevitably goes to the incinerator to be burnt.

"I think the reason more Bermudians don't recycle is that there is a lack of awareness about why recycling is important,'' says KBB executive director Lennox Doodram. "Lack of education breeds apathy.'' A more focused and energetic publicity campaign could encourage more Bermudians to recycle, yet Government is hesitant to launch such an initiative due to the fact that the current recycling facility is already running at full volume. "We wouldn't be able to handle even a 10 percent increase given the current facilities,'' says Mr. Hunt.

Devon Spring Recycling Centre is located in Devonshire, next to St. Brendan's Hospital. The facility was acquired in 1992 when the current recycling programme was initiated.

It works like this: the Government hires a private contractor to collect the household blue bags once a week. They are taken to the Centre and dumped in a large pile located outside the Centre's warehouse. Manned forklifts scoop the cans, bottles and bags and transfer them to a conveyor belt on large piece of machinery called a ptarmigan.

Recycling: It's everyone's responsibility The belt carries the material past two workers who sort out the `rejects': non-glass, tin, or aluminium material or material that has not been rinsed properly and is contaminated with food. Once past the workers, the refuse reaches a rotating magnetised belt that quickly sorts the tin and aluminium and dumps them in large crates. The remaining glass continues on the belt and is broken into small pieces by a crusher attached to the end of the ptarmigan.

A bulldozer crushes the glass.

The machine can process roughly 1.2 tonnes per hour. Once sorted, the aluminium and tin is taken to a second piece of equipment, the bailer. A conveyer belt collects the material into a large receptacle where the cans are tightly compacted into 60x44x32 inch bales. These bales are secured and prepared for shipment to an overseas waste contractor who sells the material to processing plants.

"The equipment really gets a tough beating simply due to the nature of material it handles,'' says Mr. Hunt. Although the equipment was purchased new in 1992, signs of deterioration are easily visible. In 1999, the machinery was broken down for several days for repairs and the recyclables piled up. With little storage space, this causes expensive problems. On one occasion, recyclables had to be sent to a rented storage facility at Clearwater before they were returned to Devonshire and processed.

"I would love to capture nearly 100 percent of the aluminium and tin in Bermuda, but we need a facility that can handle that kind of volume.'' says Mr. Hunt. The need for a new facility was recognised in the 1998 Budget Statement, yet no formal plans are in the works.

However, even if the current facility is upgraded and more Bermudians are persuaded to participate in the programme, cost is still a huge factor in the recycling initiative. Even though aluminium and tin are sold, any income is far outweighed by shipping costs and the $1.2 million a year needed to keep the Devon Spring Centre up and running.

"We are at the mercy of the US markets,'' says Mr. Hunt. At press time, aluminium was getting about 51 cents a pound, tin $36 per tonne. Karlos Burch, Foreman of the Recycling Centre, estimated that Bermuda currently bails and ships about 34,000 pounds and 17,000 pounds of tin and aluminium respectively, earning Bermuda just over $9,000 in a month. Aluminium and tin receive the highest returns, yet the cost of collecting, sorting and shipping makes many recyclable materials, such as glass and plastic, not viable in Bermuda, according to Mr. Hunt.

Most waste contractors will only accept glass that is sorted by colour, a timely and expensive task. Government has utilised the glass crushed at the Recycling Centre on occasion to enhance drainage in landscaping projects such as the renovated Pembroke Dump site and Ocean View golf course. Usually, however, glass is taken to the Airport Waste Management Facility where it is used to aid in stabilising the bulky waste items that are dumped there.

Plans for the future include using the crushed glass in the development of the Morgan's Point project planned for the former US Naval Annex in Southampton.

It is also possible to crush glass so finely that it becomes a sand-like substance that can be used with concrete in various building projects, a process that is gaining popularity internationally. "We would love to have the equipment to be able to do that and we're looking into it,'' says Mr.

Hunt.

Cost is also the reason sited for not recycling plastic and paper, two other obvious recycling candidates. Unused paper from The Royal Gazette is shredded at the Devon Spring Centre and given to local farmers to use as animal bedding, but the Centre no longer advocates public recycling as it did in 1992-1994 when they were overwhelmed by the sheer volume of material. Paper and plastic both suffer from relatively low market values and bulkiness, making it expensive to ship. Plastic, like glass, also needs to be sorted before being sold.

Paper and plastic also share a very combustible nature, making them attractive incinerator candidates. Bermuda's $70 million incinerator, which began operation in 1994, burns an estimated 60,000 tonnes of waste per year.

Heralded as a much-needed waste management solution, the incinerator replaced the Pembroke Dump, where all waste, including hazardous waste, was dumped.

Bermuda's accumulated garbage up until 1994 remains at Marsh Folly today, buried under layers of sealants designed to prevent any harmful toxins from leaching. The site was reclaimed as a horticultural waste depository, national park and playground and is still being developed. Current Government studies monitoring the site show no signs of leaching from the subterranean waste.

The environmental effects of the incinerator are monitored via air quality studies near the site, impact studies near the hot water effluent in Tynes Bay and studies conducted on the disposal ash that is mixed with concrete and placed in Castle Harbour.

To date, scientists from the Bermuda Biological Station for Research contracted to monitor the sites have found contamination levels within acceptable standards. "So far, we haven't seen any detrimental effects,'' says Dr. Robbie Smith, a Bio Station scientist who conducts some of the incinerator monitoring studies. "But I cannot stress enough how important it is to keep known sources of contaminants, such as batteries, PVC and fluorescent lights, out of the trash that is incinerated.'' The responsibility of sorting hazardous materials out of the trash is placed on the citizens. Of highest concern is building materials, batteries, and used car oil that release dioxins, heavy metals and furans, agents that have documented harmful effects (see Don't Trash It sidebar). Hazardous wastes may be deposited at a public drop-off site located at the Tynes Bay incinerator.

In addition, used car oil collection depots are at eight service stations on the Island and over fifty vendors accept used batteries.

Recycling Hazardous materials are taken to the Dockyard Hazardous Waste Facility where they are sorted and prepared for shipment. "The hazardous waste disposal programme is perhaps Bermuda's most important waste programme in terms of the environment,'' explains Clarkston Trott, Hazardous Waste Management Officer.

Recycling in Bermuda is certainly in need of attention, yet it is far from the only environmental solution to Bermuda's waste management. Reduce and re-use, the first two `R's in the Reduce, Re-use, Recycle campaign, are more efficient solutions, both economically and environmentally.

Many countries are adopting the policies that past generations of Bermudians practised so well. Simple acts such as using canvas shopping bags (The Marketplace alone uses an estimated 400,000 paper bags a month), demanding less packaging of bulk items such as produce; re-using material; using non-disposable material like Tupperware, cloth napkins and towels are all effective ways to reduce both the economic and environmental costs of waste.

As Mr. Hunt points out: "We have to remember that we are all stakeholders in Bermuda's future.'' Recycling: Bermuda currently bails and ships about 34,000 pounds and 17,000 pounds of tin and aluminium respectively, earning Bermuda just over $9,000 in a month. Aluminium and tin receive the highest returns.