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| Can you spot the hermit crab? This beach near Key Largo, Florida, was choked with trash, but animals found ways to survive. |
Now that food waste is out of the way, I'd like to discuss trash as a whole: the plastic bits and bobs, glass bottles, clingfilm, single-use utensils, paper towels, styrofoam takeout containers, and a host of other pieces of junk that find their way into our bins, out to the curb, and then… "away." But where is "away?"
I own a house within five miles of a landfill that caught on fire several years ago and has been burning ever since. "Smoldering events" like these are apparently common to landfills, but this one threatened to rupture the stash of radioactive waste illegally dumped nearby in the 1970s. Hearing about the fire (and realizing that I probably needed an emergency plan for nuclear fallout) was one of many factors that made me think more about the fate of my trash once it was loaded into a truck.
Before long, I had discovered the Zero Waste movement and became briefly enamored with the idea of fitting all my trash for the year into a mason jar. However, the people who tended to do this were elitist and frustratingly naive, and it became clear to me that it's literally impossible to have zero waste. Even if "all" your trash is in a mason jar, there are thousands of pounds of trash created that's invisible to us.
Still, we all have to start somewhere, and thanks to discovering a group of more down-to-earth, realistic zero waste bloggers— looking at you, Litterless, The Daily Greens, Polly Barks, and Zero Waste Chef— I learned how to drastically cut my trash (while saving mason jars for more important things like making sauerkraut).
Read on to learn how to lessen your impact on the landfills, whether they're smoldering near nuclear waste or not.
BEGINNER:
Start recycling. If you've never taken the time to get a recycling system going, now is the time to start! Check your city's websites for guidelines (do you have to sort the recyclables by type, or can you put them all together), order a recycling bin if necessary, get a container inside your house to collect the items, and start getting used to separating your trash. Be sure to pay special attention to the numbers on plastic: not all are recyclable, and many cities only accept certain kinds. Other no-nos include anything dirty (including greasy pizza boxes), broken glass, and plastic bags or plastic wrap. (Check out this link for more info.)
When you are thinking of buying something, picture the end of its life. Looking at a neat electronic gadget, eyeing a cute blouse at the mall, agonizing over whether to get this cool new kitchen utensil? Take a moment and think about what will happen when it breaks or wears out. Can you reuse, repair, repurpose, refurbish, resell, donate, or compost it— or is it destined for the landfill the moment something goes wrong with it? You may still choose to buy a gadget regardless, but the more clearly you can picture the end of an object's life ("I know a good electronic recycling center"; "This blouse is made of cotton so I can compost it"), the more environmentally-friendly it's likely to be. Natural materials like cotton, linen, wood, metal, glass, paper, and stone are beautiful, generally last longer, and are easier to dispose of at the end of their life.
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| Zach and I realized that fast food was one of our biggest sources of trash. Since this picture, we've changed our habits so that our fast food consumption is close to zero. |
Do a trash audit. For a week, make a list of everything that you throw in your trash can. Don't try to change your habits during the week; just observe. Then go through the list and analyze it. See if anything jumps out to you. Do you throw away a lot of glass bottles that could be recycled? Are styrofoam takeout containers your biggest source of waste, or perhaps food that's gone bad in the fridge? Is there anything simple that you can do to reduce some of the pieces of trash?
Carry a water bottle. Did you know that in most of the United States (with some glaring exceptions), tap water must meet higher legal standards than bottled water? Plus it's much cheaper. Just get in the habit of carrying a water bottle with you, and you won't have to rely on the super-expensive, will-never-biodegrade bottles. (If your tap water is truly terrible, I recommend buying the five-gallon refillable jugs of purified water at the grocery store.)
Bring reusable bags to the store. Grab some bags or baskets and head to the grocery store. Ask the clerk to use your bags, or offer to bag the items yourself. In most places, people won't even look at you weird if you bring a reusable bag anymore. The trick is just remembering to bring them; I'd suggest placing them by the door or in your purse/bag the moment you unload them, so you'll always have them handy. Remember to use a reusable bag when shopping for clothes, electronics, or household items as well.
Carry a coffee mug. Many, if not most, coffee shops are happy to fill up your own mug, and it's also useful to have one around for community events, church (if you can stomach the bad coffee) and unexpected offers of hot cocoa.
INTERMEDIATE:
Make a list of the biggest potential leverage points for reducing waste. This is the next level in the trash audit (see above). Once you change something easy (for instance, recycling glass bottles instead of trashing them), look for things that might require more work. A plastic jug of milk? Plastic packaging on any sort of food? Single-use cleaning or hygiene supplies (wet wipes, little bottles of lotion)? Your hair care routine? Once you've done that…
Check out lists of zero-waste swaps. The Daily Greens and Litterless have accessible, simple suggestions for replacing some of your trash.
Figure out the best way to dispose of all the trash you create. Once you've taken a good hard look at where you could reduce your waste, look at what is left. Use Earth 911 to help you figure out how to properly dispose of what's left. Just remember that not creating trash in the first place is infinitely better than disposing or even recycling.
Make produce bags. Once you've gotten the hang of using canvas totes, make cloth produce bags to avoid using a plastic bag to hold a couple apples or heads of garlic. Any small, light bag will do, but if you own a sewing machine or can borrow one from a friend, try this method for a custom-made version.
Find a place to try out package-free grocery shopping. Litterless has a wonderful directory of stores all over the US that sell goods in bulk, allowing you to bring your own containers and avoid excessive plastic waste. Not sure how it works? Check out this post for a complete walk-through of bulk-bin shopping.
Arrange a swap meet. Instead of buying new things, get a group of friends and neighbors together to trade what you already own! Invite people to bring their unwanted goods (either a free-for-all or a particular category, such as clothes), and let everyone rummage through the piles. You don't have to worry about tit-for-tat swapping; there is always plenty to go around.
ADVANCED:
Commit to zero waste shopping. Food packaging is one of the biggest and most persistent forms of trash, so this is a great place to focus your efforts. Again, I point you to Litterless's directory of places where you're allowed to bring your own containers, as well as the blog Zero Waste Chef, which focuses on both shopping and cooking techniques, using bulk ingredients to make meals, snacks, kitchen staples, and more.
Consider humanure composting. One of the biggest sources of waste in a home comes from our bodies— and leaves through a flush with an obscene amount of fresh drinking water. Composting toilets are one solution. There are humanure set-ups for a huge range of situations, from using urine as a plant fertilizer to a five-gallon bucket system (Zach and I have done this with some success) to a more elaborate commercial system. Learn more by checking out the Greywater Action website, and/or reading The Humanure Handbook by Joseph Jenkins or The Water-Wise Home by Laura Allen.
Start a zero-waste group. A group of people can keep each other accountable, organize community events, spread the word, and party it up! Here are some wonderful suggestions for getting started.
Think about how you can make zero waste more accessible. I love this article by Polly Barks about privilege, accessibility, and what we can do to spread the joy of less trash.
Which of these challenges would you like to take on this month? What would you add to the list?
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