Think before we toss, and before we buy

I'm a recycler. I've been known to retrieve bottles and cans from a trash bin while under my breath saying, It is so easy to recycle in this town. Why do people still throw bottles and cans away?

We each count for one. Lots of ones added together equal 1,111,111,111 into infinity. That one bottle or plastic bag or piece of trash that a person throws away, multiples. We all need to think before we toss. And, better yet, think before we buy.




Here is a link to a PDF published by the National Park Service which lists how long different materials take to decompose: Time it takes for garbage to decompose in the environment.

Here is a link to a 2012 article comparing plastic bottles, glass bottles, and cans: Which is greener: Glass bottles, plastic bottles, or aluminum cans?

Update: Following are links to two articles published 7/18/17 and 7/19/17.
Research article in Science Advances on "Production, use, and fate of all plastics ever made"
Summary article in Washington Post entitled "There's literally a ton of plastic for every person in the world. "

Below is a list of a few things Hubby and I do to help reduce our own personal waste contribution.

• We use personal water bottles.
• We keep reusable take-home containers in our vehicles for left overs from a restaurant meal.
• We keep plastic cups from Panera in our vehicles to reuse when we dine at Panera.
• When we eat fast foods, we take any recyclable trash with us and later put it in recycling bins.
• Due to my disability I can rarely cook. So, a few times a week, I eat prepackaged frozen meals. I buy the Amy's brand because of ingredients and because the brand uses cardboard instead of plastic in which to hold and cook the food. After eating, I wash the cardboard bowl and recycle it.
• We wash plastic food wrap bags and recycle them with the plastic grocery bags. We wash and reuse resealable plastic baggies.
• We carry cloth bags in our vehicles for store purchases. But sometimes we forget to take them in. If so, we usually choose paper bags over plastic if available.

• We buy half-size paper towels. We then cut the half-size in half to make the towels quarter the size of a whole paper towel. We keep the two different sizes (half-size and quarter-size) on two separate paper towel dispensers.
• We reuse a used paper towel, depending on what it's first use was.
• I use cloth napkins. I use my personal-use cloth napkins more than once before having to wash them.
• We don't flush every time we pee, unless we have guests. 
• We typically use appliances and cars and electronics and whatever else until they wear out or are  no longer feasible. We donate or recycle what can be donated or recycled. We always think about the landfill when contemplating a replacement purchase.
• We recycle paper, cardboard, plastics, aluminum, and even styrofoam. When I toured the local recycling plant in the early 2000s, the owner said to throw an item in recycling even if we aren't sure if it can be recycled. If it can't be, the plant will discard of it properly.
• We use recycled, biodegradable poop bags to clean up dog poo.

I know we all have only so much time and energy and resources. But, every little bit helps. I'd love to be able to grow my own veggies, compost, and bicycle to run certain errands.

~*~

One Piece of Trash

I saw a piece of trash
on the ground today.
I could have walked right by
and let that litter lay.

I paused a moment, looked around,
as people quickly passed.
Reaching down I wondered,
why do we move so fast?

Maybe folks will notice
when the litter is a heap.
I hope we soon slow down
before it gets too deep.


april 11, 2007

~*~