This time I will guide you through the world of colors and the colors that should apply in global recycling.
We
will use the subtractive RGB and additive CMYK scales to accurately
describe color values, so that there will never again be distortions in
the shades of waste sorting containers.
If you don't know what CMYK and RGB are, I'll explain.
CMYK is an abbreviation of the English color names CYAN, MEGENTA, YELLOW, BLACK and is the scale most often used by professionals in preparing publications for printing, computer typesetting and printing publications.
RGB
is an abbreviation for RED, GREEN, BLUE and is a color scale commonly
used in IT, programming, and graphics displayed on computer monitors.
There
we have the two most common scales for describing colors in a
mathematical and very precise way - let's use them to describe the
colors of containers when sorting waste.
The primary RGB colors at full intensity have these decimal and hexadecimal values:
RED - (255,0,0) #FF0000
GREEN - (0,255,0) #00FF00
BLUE - (0,0,255) #0000FF
These
colours are used in the logo of our 369 SORT YOUR WASTE recycling
campaign and are suggested to become common colours in recycling logos
worldwide.
Why?
We need to systematize our knowledge of waste and sorting methods. This
is crucial. The decimal or hexadecimal values of individual colors
are already fixed within a given scale, whether RGB, CMYK, or some
other.
So what colors should our containers in our homes be?
Well,
homes should have any colors they want, adapted to the interior design,
type of furniture, equipment, financial possibilities, etc.
However,
in the kitchen, metal containers with a foot-operated top lid and a
removable plastic insert (bucket) are recommended. But only if they can
be placed on the floor in a free, easily accessible space where you can
press the top lid opening button with your foot.
In other cases, the containers may take the form of buckets with removable lids and take up space, for example, under the sink.
It all depends on our preferences.
However,
when it comes to external containers, they must have appropriate
markings and it is best if the colours of these containers are
consistent.
So let's describe what colors the variable X in our recycling equation consists of.
It should be like this:
1) MIXED [RECYCLED AND NON-RECYCLED] fraction - blue color. RGB BLUE [0,0,255] #0000FF | CMYK BLUE [100,100,0,0]
- Yes, full blue from the RGB scale, this is not the blue we know as
the color of the paper container. Paper containers have full CYAN colors
from the CMYK scale and I will talk about them below.
2) BIO fraction - green color. RGB LIME GREEN [0,255,0] #00FF00 | CMYK LIME GREEN [100,0,100,0]
- because it is ecological waste and may contain GREEN waste and only
biodegradable waste, including leftovers from meal preparation, plate
leftovers such as bones, meat, potatoes, dairy products, bread.
3) GLASS and CERAMICS fraction - red color. RGB RED [255,0,0] #FF0000 | CMYK RED [0,100, 100, 0] - because it should be noted that glass and even ceramics are potentially dangerous, breakable materials with sharp edges and may cause cuts to your hands when handling them.
That's it for the basic colors for the three basic fractions produced in the kitchen.
Of
course, containers in the kitchen should be marked with these colors in
a relatively discreet manner, if possible, or even, in the case of
plastic buckets, be completely in these colors.
We are left with a bathroom and a room with a desk.
So,
let's recall that here we're using the variable Z from the universal
recycling equation. It has the form (X+Y+Z) = 18. You can read more
about this equation in other articles and ebooks.
Bathroom:
4) HIG fraction - HYGIENIC - brown color. RGB MAROON [128, 0, 0] #800000 | CMYK MAROON [0,100, 100, 50 ]
This fraction is potentially dangerous due to the possibility of transmitting germs.
Room with desk:
5) MIX fraction - color RGB BLUE [0,0,255] #0000FF | CMYK BLUE [100, 100, 0, 0] from the Basic Big Trinity or PAPER fraction - color RGB CYAN [0,255,255] #00FFFF | CMYK CYAN [100, 0, 0, 0] fully 100% from the CMYK scale.
The
same containers should be placed in the garbage shelters right next to
the MINI-SORTING/SEGERATING PLANT/EKO AB PAVILION, which also includes
the WASTE BANK.
Therefore, in the garbage can there should be:
1) MIXED [RECYCLED AND NON-RECYCLED] fraction - blue color. BLUE [0,0,255] #0000FF | CMYK BLUE [100,100,0,0]
- Yes, full blue from the RGB scale, this is not the blue we know as
the color of the paper container. Paper containers have full CYAN colors
from the CMYK scale and I will talk about them below.
2) BIO fraction - light green. RGB LIME REEN [0,255,0] #00FF00 | CMYK LIME GREEN [100,0,100,0]
- because it is ecological waste and may contain GREEN waste and only
biodegradable waste, including leftovers from meal preparation, plate
scraps such as bones, meat, potatoes, dairy products, bread. These will
be regularly moved to cold storage, as sanitary conditions are important
and low temperature slows down their decomposition process.
3) GLASS and CERAMICS fraction - red. RGB RED [255,0,0] #FF0000 | CMYK RED [0,100,100,0]
- because it should be noted that glass and even ceramics are
potentially dangerous, breakable materials with sharp edges, and hand
injuries can occur when handling them. Ideally, these containers for
GLASS and CERAMICS should have three compartments, so that PACKAGING
GLASS, OTHER GLASS, and CERAMICS can be separated.
4) HIG fraction - HYGIENIC - brown color . RGB MAROON [128, 0, 0] #800000 | CMYK MAROON [0,100,100,50 ]
In addition to the MIX, BIO, GLASS, and HIG containers, you should add another 4 containers in the garbage shed: for PAPER, PLASTIC-METAL, TEXTILE, and BALLAST.
5) PAPER fraction - light blue, blue-green color RGB CYAN [0,255,255] #00FFFF | CMYK CYAN [100,0,0,0 ]
6) PLASTIC-METAL fraction - yellow, red-green color RGB YELLOW [255,255,0] #FFFF00 | CMYK YELLOW [0,0,100,0]
7) TEXTILES fraction - light purple (Fuchsia), red-blue RGB MAGENTA [255,0,255] #FF00FF | CMYK MAGENTA [0,100,0,0]
8) BALLAST fraction - black color RGB BLACK [0,0,0] #000000 | CMYK BLACK [0,0,0,100]
Additionally, you can add:
9) ASH/SLAG fraction - gray color RGB GRAY [128,128,128] #808080 | CMYK GRAY [0,0,0,50] But this is not an obligatory container.
0) LIQUID WASTE fraction - white color RGB WHITE [255,255,255] #FFFFFF | CMYK WHITE [0,0,0,0] But this is not an obligatory container
These
are the 9, or rather 10, basic colors that should be used in marking
containers or even on labels or information brochures commonly used.
That's all about our indoor and outdoor containers.
Remember that as regular users, we should have a simple, basic setup: three containers: MIX, ORGANIC, GLASS/CERAMICS.
However,
the containers in the garbage shelter belonging to the COLLECTION POINT
with SEGREGATION ROOM and WASTE BANK should be supervised and operated
by a trained employee - WASTE SORTER, and they should also be monitored.
Soon I will post information about the next assumptions of the 369 SORT WASTE method and the entire EKO AB 369 system.
We
need 6 waste banks, so we should probably choose 6 more colors.
Remember, this is the variable Y in our universal recycling equation,
which has the form (X+Y+Z) = 18.
Follow the blog.
Thank you and best regards.
