Food leftovers, rubbish and toilet waste make waters eutrophic and contaminated. When you are out in a boat, make sure that toilet waste is stored in the toilet waste tank, also known as the septic tank, and emptied at appropriate suction unloader stations. Waste can also be sorted on board your boat. Many harbours have versatile services and collection points for emptying any waste materials generated during the boating season.
L&T wants to make sure that boaters are familiar with the basics of sorting and recovery. Our intention is to explain how you can make your contribution to the environment by caring for the cleanliness of waters and sorting/recycling your waste. It is great to go boating in a clean environment.
There are harbour-specific differences in waste management
Sorting and recovery of waste are arranged differently at different harbours. The availability of different services in harbours varies depending on the size, location and users of the harbour. Waste designations and treatment methods may also vary. Find out which options for recycling and recovery are available at the harbours you use. You can always propose improvements to your home harbour as well!
Sorting and recovery of waste will save natural resources as many parts of sorted waste can be reused as raw materials. Burnable but not recyclable waste is utilised in energy production. When recycling and recovery work well, only a small part of waste ends up in a landfill. This is also our objective at L&T – on land as well as on sea.
Sorting tips for boaters
Avoiding unnecessary waste saves the environment and your costs. You should choose and pack your goods so that the amount of waste generated is minimised. Sorting of waste is also possible on board, and appropriate sorting will save space.
• Flatten out your packages and place them inside each other to save space.
• Empty and flush the packages as necessary.
• Use empty packages as sorting receptacles; for example, a cereal box can be used for flattened milk cartons.
• Durable kitchenware will serve you for the entire boating season and will not generate unnecessary waste during your trips.
• When purchasing products, pay attention to the packaging material, its quantity and recovery options. Leave unnecessary packages in the shop.
• Do not dump washing water directly into waterways but let it absorb into the soil. Favour detergents that have a smaller environmental impact.
Tip! Utilise underseat spaces and the anchor box as sorting space.