“... every single piece of plastic existing on
the planet today will never, ever, go away,
no matter how much it breaks down”
THE CARAVAN YOU WANT IS NOW EASIER TO FIND tradervs.com.au^47
CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE Choose USB-
rechargeable camping gadgets; ditch single-
use batteries and charge your gadgets off solar
instead; every piece of plastic on the planet
today will never, ever, disappear; buy gear from
companies that care about the environment
cleanser for my face, hands and body when
there’s no shower available in camp, and to
compostable and genuinely biodegradable
bamboo fibre wipes for everything else.DITCH: DISPOSABLE BATTERIES
According to Planet Ark, 345 million
handheld batteries are sold in Australia
each year and, despite recycling efforts,
two thirds end up in landfill leaching toxic
metals — lead, mercury, cadmium and nickel
— into the environment.
Recycling batteries can recover up
to 90 per cent of the materials used to
manufacture them, but when you travel,
it can seem like a hassle to find a battery
recycling station and all-too tempting tostash them in the bin.
Thankfully, Planet Ark’s website
(recyclingnearyou.com.au) can guide you
to the nearest disposal point, wherever you
are. Even better than recycling single-use
batteries is to stop buying them altogether.
Choose solar or USB-rechargeable torches
and outdoor lanterns, cameras, GPS units,
water purifiers and more.
If the equipment you have on hand needs
a battery, choose the rechargeable kind
which can be recharged up to 1000 times, or
buy Eco Alkalines. These are the world’s first
certified carbon neutral batteries containing
no mercury, lead or cadmium, and they are
non-toxic if sent to landfill (you can buy
them at greentopia.com.au).Reducing waste
on the roadGREEN
ISSUE