Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1324024
16 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 3 JANUARY 2021 NEWS MATTHEW VELLA THE repair of household goods, clothes and gadgets once con- sidered to be meant for longev- ity, was once a trade firmly es- tablished in almost every single Maltese village. And yet, decades later the re- vival of the 'art' is kicking back against the short lifespan of con- sumer goods: MEPs themselves want to introduce a "right to repair" by making repairs more appealing and cost-efficient, whether by extending guaran- tees or with better access to in- formation on repair and mainte- nance. A resolution on this subject this week was passed by 395 votes in favour. It insists on increasing support for second-hand goods markets, but also to tackle prac- tices that shorten the lifetime of a product, and endorse sustain- able production. The resolution included a demand for a com- mon charger system to reduce electronic waste as well as label- ling on the estimated lifespan of a product. "The time has come to use the Green Deal objectives as the foundation of a single mar- ket that promotes durable products and services by de- sign. To achieve this, we need a comprehensive set of rules that facilitates clear and simple decisions in place of technical amendments that lack politi- cal courage and which confuse both consumers and businesses. By adopting this report, the Eu- ropean Parliament sent a clear message: harmonised manda- tory labelling indicating dura- bility and tackling premature obsolescence at EU level are the way forward," said Green MEP David Cormand, who is the rap- porteur on this initiative. According to a Eurobarome- ter survey, 77% of EU citizens would rather repair their devic- es than replace them, and 79% think that manufacturers should be legally obliged to facilitate the repair of digital devices or the replacement of their indi- vidual parts. Back home, Malta's Friends of the Earth have set up their own 'zero waste camp' – an annual work- shop in which vol- unteers perform the 'forgotten' craft of repairing bro- ken goods. In 2018, they had four stations dedicated to the mending of clothes, quick bicycle fixes, up-cycling of un- wanted goods, and electronic consumer goods. As FOE had described it at the time, "repairing has become a political act." Indeed, it is a throwaway cul- ture that generates so much electronic and plastic waste, and manufacturers are persis- tently discouraging repairs to take place. One of the exam- ples they elicited was the way a bread-making machine gets manufactured in such a way as to make its repair impossible, diminishing the power of con- sumers to repair and making disposal and replacement the only option. Even the Maltese government started its own government agency in the hope of reducing waste generation by lengthening product life-cycles, create sec- ondary markets for end-of-life goods, and promote the eco-de- sign of products that increase their durability, r e p a i r a b i l i t y and upgradea- bility. "With cheap c o n s u m e r goods and their widespread availability, we are creating consumer habits that allows us to dispose of these goods simply because they are easily replaceable," Muscat had said back in 2018, suggesting the need to rekindle time-tested habits to take broken items for mending, rather than just being discarded and replaced. "When was the last time you took your torn shoes to a shoe- maker?" he said, painting a pic- ture of the dinky village repair shop with their overpowering smell of leather, almost redolent of a bygone era of sustainability. Repairing has even got its own TV show in the UK, with The Repair Shop on BBC One giving old family heirlooms a scrub- bing-up or a full-body . Repairing should become a thing in 2021 THE festive period has been an important time for many peo- ple coming together over the holidays. And as much as we'd like for things to be "business as usual" this festive season, Christmas has required a little more work to keep everyone happy and healthy. While Christmas certainly looked different this year, that doesn't mean 2021 cannot start on a more responsible level. It is easy to focus on conven- ience rather than how much waste is created on a daiy basis. With parents tak- ing more time off and kids on hol- iday school, the extra cooking and festive baking, do- mestic taps, toilets, dishwash- ers and washing machines real- ly do end up working overtime during such days, adding a big surge in seasonal water con- sumption and the knock-on ef- fect on our water resources and utility bills. Here are some easy to imple- ment water conservation tips, which will go a long way to us- ing your water more wisely and which, can be put in place for the long term. Change your showerhead to a water-efficient one: this will reduce by half your consump- tion of water when showering. Turn off the water while sham- pooing your hair. Fix leaky taps and always close them properly. Even a slow drip will waste litres in a day. Make sure your dishwasher is completely full before hitting the start button and don't use the drying function on warmer days, when it can air dry. Dish- washers typically use less water than washing dishes by hand so make sure you stack it well before switch- ing on. Wash your clothes in cold water to save water and energy and get those stubborn stains out before putting any- thing in your washing machine. While you wait for hot water, collect the running colder wa- ter and use it to water plants. Put buckets under drains to catch rain water for your gar- den. But water your garden when the sun goes down or be- fore it even goes up to reduce losses of water by evaporation. And when watering plants use a watering can to make sure the water goes where it's needed. Don't run the tap when washing dishes. Plugging the drain, filling the sink with soapy water, and scrubbing and rins- ing from there can reduce the amount of water you use clean- ing all those holiday pots, pans, and dishes. Save water – and make that pile of laundry disappear a lit- tle faster – by only washing and drying full loads every time and using the appropriate setting on your machine to the size of the load you're washing. And if you're thinking of a wise investment in 2021, do look around at the water effi- cient gadgets available on the market. Tap aerators and water efficient showerheads are small and reasonably priced and per- fect stocking fillers. An idea for 2021: waste less water after the pandemic year