While 22 April is officially World Earth Day, for the team at Acorn Enterprises, every day should be Earth Day. As the charity launches a campaign to spread awareness about protecting the environment, Caroline Spencer finds out what their local contribution is to the global problem.
THE carbon footprint of one new 100% cotton shirt is greater than driving a car from Grosnez to La Rocque and back.
The reuse of 12 small household appliances saves the equivalent CO2 of a flight from Jersey to London.
It would take 13 years to drink the amount of water needed to make one t-shirt and one pair of jeans.
These are three statements that Acorn Enterprises is using in its Reuse store in Trinity to raise awareness of the message that buying second-hand household goods and clothes is a great way to reduce your personal environmental impact.
Acorn general manager Steve Pearce said: ‘Acorn’s primary objective will always be to support people with a disability or long-term health condition with work and training opportunities. However, it also has an environmental objective, which is to assist in the protection and preservation of the environment and promote the concept of reduce, reuse and recycle waste.’
This month, Acorn is launching a campaign to raise awareness about the environmental benefits of reusing items and minimising waste.
‘Everyday things, such as smartphones and furnishings, from the smallest piece of jewellery to the largest thing we sell like a large sideboard, all have a carbon footprint.
‘You can look at the Reuse Network website (https://reuse-network.org.uk/impact-calculator/) and see that an average settee might have a 52kg CO2 saving but when we talked about this, we couldn’t picture what it meant. When you put it alongside the equivalent carbon footprint of a flight or a car journey, it starts to make sense.
‘Working with AI Studio and supported by Geomarine, we have interpreted some key messages. We want our customers to feel good about doing their bit for the environment.
‘Some of the statistics are quite shocking. Manufacturing and transporting a 100% cotton shirt, for example, has the equivalent carbon footprint of driving 35 miles. If we contribute to people’s awareness and make them think about their shopping habits in an accessible and fun way, then we will have succeeded.’
Geomarine managing director Phil Horsley said: ‘Reuse of materials is becoming, quite rightly, a big issue in civil engineering. Partnering with Acorn exposes us to different ways of thinking about eco-credentials and we look forward to continuing the relationship.’
Steve added: ‘Reuse is near the top of the waste hierarchy, second only to prevention of waste. It is often used in the same breath as recycling but it is much more than that. To reuse an item is to use it again or more than once either in its original form or after washing or minor repairs, for the same or an alternative purpose.
‘To Acorn Enterprises, the activity of reuse also has an environmental, social and socioeconomic value as it creates employment, training and volunteering opportunities for people who have a disability or long-term health condition and also provides low-income families with household goods at affordable prices.
‘Buying and selling second-hand is one of the easiest ways you can reduce your personal environmental impact. This is because you lower the demand for raw materials, reduce the demand for manufacture and production of goods like furniture and clothes, including the energy required to make them, prolong the actual lifetime of the items and reduce waste. All this translates into savings in terms of greenhouse-gas emissions.’
Last month Acorn took part in Jersey’s Climate Conversation, a six-week campaign aimed at encouraging Islanders to share their views about the Island’s climate-change responsibilities, ahead of the first meeting of a Citizens’ Assembly on climate change.
Forty-five randomly selected Islanders will produce a set of recommendations for consideration by the Council of Ministers and will also contribute to the Island’s long-term climate action plan.
Asked for his favourite ‘fun fact’, Steve said: ‘In one year, Acorn sorts more than 10,000 bin bags of donated clothing. If you stacked them on top of each other, they would be as high as Mount Kilimanjaro.’
• *If you would like to find out more about Acorn, please contact Caroline Spencer at caroline.spencer@jet.co.je.
Earth Day challenges
• Before throwing something away, ask yourself: Can it be reused? Can it be fixed? Can it be upcycled? Can it be recycled? Could someone use it, even if you gave it away for nothing? Could you donate it to a charity shop?
• Do you need to buy new? Could you find what you are looking for in a charity shop?
Could you share a lawn mower or other such appliances that you need only a couple of times a year with your neighbour, a friend or family member?
• Could you challenge yourself not to buy any new clothes for a whole year?
