4 ms·

> As time passed, the collection of rags and bones fell to the side due to the knowledge that these items contributed to the spread of disease Is that a genuin

by donatj 3y ago

> As time passed, the collection of rags and bones fell to the side due to the knowledge that these items contributed to the spread of disease Is that a genuine concern? Collecting your bones and rags don’t seem any worse than simply having a compost heap. Sounds a lot to me like a made up excuse to get inelegant people out of your neighborhood.

jayceedenton 3y ago
Compost heaps don't include cooked food, so they aren't so attractive to flies, vermin, etc that can spread bacteria and disease. Seems likely too that the collection of rags and bones (for their various uses) became more systematic, with rags and bones as side-products of industrialised processes, and therefore collecting a few rags and bones from individuals was no longer economically worthwhile. There are also other ways to make money now, that are more profitable to the individual than collecting bones worth a few pence per bag. I suspect too that the rise of plastics mean that we have fewer day-to-day uses for bones, as handles for things, ornaments, etc. This leaves only the larger scale industrial uses, that get bone from other industrial food production processes. The article mentions that Rag & Bone men moved to items that were still valuable e.g. scrap metal. They weren't chased out of neighborhoods.
- donatj 3y ago
  > Compost heaps don't include cooked food A big part of every compost heap my family has ever kept has been the post meal plate scraps that are assuredly cooked. Probably close to 50% by volume. I am reasonably certain this is usually the case.
  - AlecSchueler 3y ago
    Where I am of you're seeing putting cooked food in compost someone will immediately jump up to stop you. We have municipal composting systems that are very explicit about what can and can't be included. I'm also involved in various community gardening initiatives in my city and some friends of mine did research into the different low level compost heaps in the city. In every case like that that I saw they were very careful about the cooked food rule. I'm sure it varies a lot by geography and culture and I'd be loathe to say there's a general "norm" that would apply to the mileus of most readers here.
    - philwelch 3y ago
      You can also just keep your own compost heap in your back yard. (Municipal composting? Sounds like a scam where I separate my garbage and the city just throws everything into the same landfill anyway.)
      - AlecSchueler 3y ago
        I separate my garbage and then the municipality uses the organic waste to create compost. I've visited the site myself and seen it (my ex worked for recycling company). The compost is then used to feed our shared green spaces, parks and flowerbeds, within the city. I do also have a separate compost heap for my building which we use to feed our community garden. This practice of municipal organic waste connection actually dates back centuries. Anthony van Leeuwenhoek, the father of the microscope, worked his day job in gathering organic waste in the locality, and some of his early experiments were based on inspecting this waste via magnification. I understand that the trustworthiness of public governance varies from place to place but I can't imagine why a city would spend time and money on a project like this just to throw everything in a landfill.
        philwelch 3y ago
        A lot of “recycling” ends up in landfills, especially since China stopped accepting it. Some people like separating their garbage because they enjoy the illusion that they’re doing something virtuous, and it’s easier to indulge that fantasy than to actually have multiple waste management streams.
        AlecSchueler 3y ago
        I'm aware of that, and my municipality also sends some dry recycling abroad. But the green waste we use locally. I've visited the sites and read their annual reports. It makes sense to be critical but there's a certain level of distrust that I wouldn't be personally able to tolerate and still feel happy living here.

by donatj 3y ago

jayceedenton 3y ago

Compost heaps don't include cooked food, so they aren't so attractive to flies, vermin, etc that can spread bacteria and disease. Seems likely too that the collection of rags and bones (for their various uses) became more systematic, with rags and bones as side-products of industrialised processes, and therefore collecting a few rags and bones from individuals was no longer economically worthwhile. There are also other ways to make money now, that are more profitable to the individual than collecting bones worth a few pence per bag. I suspect too that the rise of plastics mean that we have fewer day-to-day uses for bones, as handles for things, ornaments, etc. This leaves only the larger scale industrial uses, that get bone from other industrial food production processes. The article mentions that Rag & Bone men moved to items that were still valuable e.g. scrap metal. They weren't chased out of neighborhoods.

donatj 3y ago
> Compost heaps don't include cooked food A big part of every compost heap my family has ever kept has been the post meal plate scraps that are assuredly cooked. Probably close to 50% by volume. I am reasonably certain this is usually the case.
- AlecSchueler 3y ago
  Where I am of you're seeing putting cooked food in compost someone will immediately jump up to stop you. We have municipal composting systems that are very explicit about what can and can't be included. I'm also involved in various community gardening initiatives in my city and some friends of mine did research into the different low level compost heaps in the city. In every case like that that I saw they were very careful about the cooked food rule. I'm sure it varies a lot by geography and culture and I'd be loathe to say there's a general "norm" that would apply to the mileus of most readers here.
  - philwelch 3y ago
    You can also just keep your own compost heap in your back yard. (Municipal composting? Sounds like a scam where I separate my garbage and the city just throws everything into the same landfill anyway.)
    - AlecSchueler 3y ago
      I separate my garbage and then the municipality uses the organic waste to create compost. I've visited the site myself and seen it (my ex worked for recycling company). The compost is then used to feed our shared green spaces, parks and flowerbeds, within the city. I do also have a separate compost heap for my building which we use to feed our community garden. This practice of municipal organic waste connection actually dates back centuries. Anthony van Leeuwenhoek, the father of the microscope, worked his day job in gathering organic waste in the locality, and some of his early experiments were based on inspecting this waste via magnification. I understand that the trustworthiness of public governance varies from place to place but I can't imagine why a city would spend time and money on a project like this just to throw everything in a landfill.
      - philwelch 3y ago
        A lot of “recycling” ends up in landfills, especially since China stopped accepting it. Some people like separating their garbage because they enjoy the illusion that they’re doing something virtuous, and it’s easier to indulge that fantasy than to actually have multiple waste management streams.
        AlecSchueler 3y ago
        I'm aware of that, and my municipality also sends some dry recycling abroad. But the green waste we use locally. I've visited the sites and read their annual reports. It makes sense to be critical but there's a certain level of distrust that I wouldn't be personally able to tolerate and still feel happy living here.