New Zealand photographer Niamh Peren confronts us with the harsh reality of our global waste crisis through sobering images of plastic eroding the Cambodian coastal town of Sihanouk. Peren took photos of the devastating sight when she was there on holiday. The experience kick-started her to launch a petition calling for the Government to introduce compulsory labelling on all food and drink packaging in New Zealand indicating how recyclable they are.
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Niamh, like most of us, admits she doesn’t have the time or energy to decipher tiny Resin Identification Codes indented in our plastic packaging. Who even knows what the number ‘6’ means? “The system isn’t working,” Niamh told VICE. “It needs to be more simple."
The straight-up Kiwi approach, which ranks the recyclability of packaging, leaves no room for sneaky loopholes that keep us in the dark about what we are buying and where it goes once we biff it. Niamh hopes that if the petition gets support and makes it through to law, the initiative would put pressure on manufacturers to be transparent and work towards ditching single use and harmful plastics.
VICE: Hi Niamh. What makes Cambodia’s waste issue so drastic?
Niamh Peren: The hardest thing is, Cambodians have to drink water from plastic bottles to survive. Tap water is either unsafe to drink or overly chlorinated, which means plastic there is a necessity not a luxury. They have to have bottled water even just to brush their teeth. The lack of infrastructure surrounding waste disposal in Cambodia means communities live amongst generations of plastic waste. It's built up, it's everywhere, and it's thick.
Niamh Peren: The hardest thing is, Cambodians have to drink water from plastic bottles to survive. Tap water is either unsafe to drink or overly chlorinated, which means plastic there is a necessity not a luxury. They have to have bottled water even just to brush their teeth. The lack of infrastructure surrounding waste disposal in Cambodia means communities live amongst generations of plastic waste. It's built up, it's everywhere, and it's thick.
Is there any waste management in Cambodia?
Cambodia still relies on waste pickers to collect recycling. Families with carts were digging through, sorting through people’s trash and collecting cans and things to give to recycling yards for money. Cambodia doesn’t have one single sanitised landfill, so waste collection is really just burning rubbish. There is actually no organised waste collection for 80 percent of the country.
Cambodia still relies on waste pickers to collect recycling. Families with carts were digging through, sorting through people’s trash and collecting cans and things to give to recycling yards for money. Cambodia doesn’t have one single sanitised landfill, so waste collection is really just burning rubbish. There is actually no organised waste collection for 80 percent of the country.
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Did the waste in Cambodia make you reflect on New Zealand’s waste issue?
Yeah of course. We are obviously very lucky in New Zealand because plastic is not a necessity. Yet, we are currently in the midst of a waste crisis, especially now that China is no longer accepting our recycling and so finally it’s our responsibility to deal with our own waste. It's a real problem, and we need to work quickly to counteract it. There are tonnes and tonnes of waste and recycling in New Zealand right now that has nowhere to go. And it just keeps on accumulating.
Yeah of course. We are obviously very lucky in New Zealand because plastic is not a necessity. Yet, we are currently in the midst of a waste crisis, especially now that China is no longer accepting our recycling and so finally it’s our responsibility to deal with our own waste. It's a real problem, and we need to work quickly to counteract it. There are tonnes and tonnes of waste and recycling in New Zealand right now that has nowhere to go. And it just keeps on accumulating.
How would the ‘three thumbs up’ waste initiative work?
The idea is we label all food and drink products with either ‘Two Green Thumbs Up’ meaning the packaging is 100 percent recyclable in New Zealand and made from 100 percent recycled materials. ‘One Horizontal Yellow Thumb' means it’s 100 percent recyclable in New Zealand, but not made from recycled materials, and ‘Two Red Thumbs Down’ means it’s not recyclable in New Zealand. It’s straightforward, visual and easy to understand.
The idea is we label all food and drink products with either ‘Two Green Thumbs Up’ meaning the packaging is 100 percent recyclable in New Zealand and made from 100 percent recycled materials. ‘One Horizontal Yellow Thumb' means it’s 100 percent recyclable in New Zealand, but not made from recycled materials, and ‘Two Red Thumbs Down’ means it’s not recyclable in New Zealand. It’s straightforward, visual and easy to understand.
How will this make a difference to New Zealand’s waste crisis?
It seems that people feel helpless about the growing waste crisis, and wish there was more they could do to positively contribute. When you go to the supermarket or pull up at the petrol station, you are just aren’t empowered as a consumer to know whether or not the goods you are buying are just going to add to the problem. If the ‘three thumbs idea’ resonates with others I see it as a simple way for us all to be informed and empowered as consumers to quickly and wisely choose packaging that is better for our environment.
It seems that people feel helpless about the growing waste crisis, and wish there was more they could do to positively contribute. When you go to the supermarket or pull up at the petrol station, you are just aren’t empowered as a consumer to know whether or not the goods you are buying are just going to add to the problem. If the ‘three thumbs idea’ resonates with others I see it as a simple way for us all to be informed and empowered as consumers to quickly and wisely choose packaging that is better for our environment.
