Reduce, Reduce, Reduce, Reuse and then Recycle

In my position at reCREATE, we visit thousands of kids and talk to them about waste reduction.  As part of the presentation, we show them a video that explains how our garbage is processed here in Western Placer County at the Material Recovery Facility (MRF).    

Did you know, if we took all the materials recovered for recycling at the Western Placer MRF, and placed it on a football field, for one year, it would go from one end zone to the other, and be about 200 feet high.  (If a building is over 200 feet, it is officially considered a skyscraper.)

No football fields were "trashed" in the making of this image.

While these materials will be used again, it does take resources to convert these materials into new paper, cardboard, plastic, glass, metal or aluminum.  Some materials recycle "better" than others.  For example, glass can be recycled forever, countless times.  Paper and cardboard can be recycled several times, but eventually it is an end product (no longer recyclable).  Aluminum cans can find their way back onto a store shelf in as little as 60 days, quick and easy!  To see how plastic is recycled, here is a video from Recycle Bank. 

It is interesting to note, that recycled products often take fewer resources to make than new products from virgin resources.  I will talk more about this in a future blog post!

That said, I still feel a responsibility to make less waste, recyclable or not.  What about you?  Want to help shrink that skyscraper a bit?  

We encourage the idea of Reduce (make less garbage) first.  
Reuse (use things over and over) second,
And Recycle as the third option. 
Ways everyone can reduce and reuse: 

• Buy snacks in bulk, and pack them in reusable containers
• Invest in a reusable water bottle
• When shopping, look for options with minimal packaging 
• Shop thrift or reuse stores
• Need something short-term?  Borrow or rent it. 
• Take your own shopping bags.
• When you are out eating, do you need a plastic lid and straw or can you forgo them?  

All of these ideas help make a little less trash.  Thanks for stopping by!  I'd love to hear how you reduce your waste. 

Trash Audit - A.K.A. Does this Trash Make My Bin Look Big?

Happy New Year!

We audited our trash last week, to check in to see how we were doing, in our quest to make less trash.  We hosted many people for both Christmas and New Years, and I am happy to report, that even with the present opening, we still have room in our trash can!  (We forgot to put it our between Christmas and New Years.)  Here is what it looked like:

Trash:
8 plastic bags of assorted food packaging (crackers, bread, cheese, ham)
Three plastic tubs (cottage cheese, dip and spread)
12 candy wrappers.  Mostly paper and foil.
 One kitchen trash bag of paper (from a purge of old paperwork.  This all arrives paperless now, but we still had it from the past.)
Christmas Packaging - fit in one 10" x 10" by 8" box.  This was the rigid plastic around a toy each of my kids got.  There was also tissue paper that was beyond reuse, and had already served us well several times!  Santa wrapped his gifts - so there was a small amount of gift wrap  We were pleased that Santa used eco-friendly printed paper.  
One grocery sized bag of assorted tissues, floss, misc.  bathroom trash - collected from all the bathrooms.
Two paper soda cups that came home from eating out - no lids or straws.
Three pieces of fruit that went bad.
A decent handful of junk mail and envelopes from Christmas cards we received.
12 glass bottles of various types.  Did you know that glass can be recycled forever?  It never goes down in quality like other products. 
13 cans of cat food.   Our elderly cats can't eat dry food very well any more.  
4 soup cans.
Cat waste.

Diverted:
8 cans from soda.  They are being diverted to make soda can art, like this 
4 wine bottles.  Diverted to make these centerpieces.
Loads of gift bags and tissue.  We refold and put these back away for another year.  
Compostable plates from New Year's Eve.  They will go into the worm bin.
5 plastic cups - that were washed out and will be used again.
5 cardboard boxes that will be used for art at reCREATE.
Eco -Packing peanuts - which can be used for to make fun art sculptures, like this.


Not Among Our Trash:
Wasted Food from Christmas Eve.  We carefully calculated how much food was appropriate for our guests.  We replenished food as needed.  Result - virtually no wasted food after hosting 11 people.
Excess Packaging:  Among the adults - almost all gifts were either handmade or "experience" gifts.  I'm thrilled that we will be getting together with other family members to see theater performances, and attending some lovely fundraisers together.  Not only are we helping causes, we now have some dates that we know we will be having fun together.  My sister and her husband are taking our kids to see a show and keeping them overnight.  They can't wait!
Disposable Plates & Cutlery - We did bring out some paper plates for New Year's Eve- but we will compost them.  We used all real plates and cutlery for the rest of the time, and just cleaned up afterwards. 
Shopping Bags - We bring our own when we shop - so we don't have a drawer exploding with one use plastic shopping bags.  
Christmas Decor - I heard a story about a local family that put their Christmas Tree out for the scouts to pick up.  It still had on the lights and ornaments.  I can't imagine that!  Each year as we pull out our ornaments, we revisit memories of Christmas Past.    The result is that we reuse them every year.  We did buy a tree this year... but I know it will be mulched and made into compost. 
Much of the food we bought was placed in our glass containers, significantly reducing the amount of waste we generated.  

We are still learning, but are quite proud of our low waste holidays!  How did you do?

 

Being Creative in Making Less Waste

I can't believe it is just a few days until Christmas. My last several weeks have been busy, but calm.  No frantic trips to the mall.

Last weekend I helped 80 girl scouts (along with a small army of helpers) make 400 gifts.  Each made a waterless snow globe, an ornament, a winter scene art piece, a button & wire sculpture and a key chain.  The amazing thing is that the only thing we purchased to make it through this afternoon was the rings for the keychains, and a small amount of glue.  EVERYTHING else was from reCREATE.  We essentially made 400 gifts from other peoples waste!

If you are looking for gifts kids can make, from items around the house, you might want to check out my Pinterest board:  Green Gifts Kids Can Make.

For my kid's teachers, I made these cookies in a jar, from the Whole Foods Market Blog.  The jars were not purchased, but rather empty jelly jars we re-purposed.  We spruced up the jar, with a bit of fabric and ribbon around the top.  There is even a tag you can print out for the gift, here.  

If you are inspired to make something, I have been pinning upcycled projects for over a year at Pinterest.  Upcycled is a term for taking waste or used materials, and transforming it into something of better or higher quality.  Check out this board.

I mentioned that I was part of an Ornament Exchange this December.  In our group of four, two ornaments were upcycled!  This beauty was made by the creative Cindy Ann who runs the ornament exchange.  You might also want to check out the adorable egg carton angels made by Michele, from Michele Made Me.

We plan to audit our trash for the next week, so we can tell you exactly how much trash we made over the holiday.  We are hosting the family, so we might have more garbage than usual, but I am optimistic to share that we were able to have a few days filled with special moments without having an overflowing garbage bin.

I hope you have a lovely holiday. 



 

Less Trash Doesn't Have To Mean Less Memories

I mentioned in my Overconsumption post, that we are going with a simpler holiday this year.  I have to tell you, my old ways inch back, and sometimes I feel the urge to revert to my habits.  My husband and I agreed that the kids could each get each other one toy.  I took my daughter to get my son's gift, and while I was in the store, I had to resist my urge to buy more.  It was like a magnet was drawing me to the stuff.  I had to keep reminding myself that "stuff" does not equal memories.  It is really hard to break old habits. 

This weekend,  instead of going to the mall, we went to the kitchen.  We whipped up a batch of cookies, that caught my eye in a Whole Foods Market blog post about Gifts in Jars.  These cookies were a hit.  So, I just found my gift for my kids' teachers and we had our cookies for the week.  The added bonus was that our batch of cookies produced giggles, and kids caught with their hands in the cookie jar.  One batch of cookies equaled some sweet memories of my kids who are still young enough to giggle down to their toes, and still young enough to think that making cookies with mom is cool.  Something I couldn't have gotten at the mall!

Advent Calendar

Other greener holiday options we can share with you.  You can make an advent calendar  from toilet paper rolls, like the picture to the right.  Inside are coupons like - Go see Christmas lights, Read a book together, Watch Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, time, not stuff.

• You can give experiences, like a lesson to try something new.
• You can make something.  I was part of an ornament exchange, and gave these trees made from magazine pages.  My kids and I are as busy as elves making some gifts this year.  No crafty?  
• You can re-gift something - does a younger family member swoon over a piece of family jewelry?  Maybe it is time to pass it down. 

On the lights front - Have you converted to LED lights yet?  In Roseville, we could take back our old lights and trade them in for LED lights - for free!  We also just put up less this year. 

For cards - we cut down the number we are sending out.  I am in touch with so many people on Facebook, so we're just sending our cards out to a smaller number of people. 

For wrapping - We use and reuse gift bags each year.  After all the presents are passed out, we re-fold and stash the bags for next year.  Old gift-tags are also re-stashed for next year. 

I hope you and yours create some wonderful memories this year.  Did you make a gift this year?  I'd love to hear about it.

An update on how much trash we are making.  We have put out our garbage can the last two weeks and it has been less than half full, we could have easily skipped a week!  Our biggest change has been in our grocery shopping. 

Overconsumption...I'm not buying it

For years now, my family has been in search of a "better balance" for Christmas.

One year we all ONLY made gifts.... for everyone.  That year was memorable, in that it almost put all of us over the edge, rushing to complete all of our projects.  We learned how to etch glass, make liquor, collage, make gum-ball machines and more.   

Then the kids came along, and we decided to skip the adult gifts and focus on the kids.  Result:  Overwhelmed kids who were over gifted.

Last year we scratched the rules, and everyone did what they wanted.  I think it was a better balance.
I bought a beer making class for the guys, made some ornaments, and scheduled a spa trip for the girls.  We asked everyone not to go overboard for the kids. It seemed to work.

This year, we didn't shop on Black Friday, or Cyber Monday at our house.  In my opinion, the stores lure people in with irresistible offers, only to have very limited numbers of said sale items.  The thought of leaving Thanksgiving to go camp out somewhere for a flat screen TV doesn't appeal to me.   The race to spend as much money as you can, on stuff you really don't need completely negates spending a day together as a family being thankful for what we have.  

Some people may say my thinking doesn't support our local economy.  But I disagree.  Buying imported stuff from big box stores does little to promote our local economy.  I would much rather seek out interesting experiences, or handcraft something that I can give to my family.  My daughter will be getting horseback riding lessons, and my son will be set up for archery class.  Neither gift came across the seas in a box that will need to be recycled.   Both gifts will support local businesses. 

So my challenge to you, is before you buy another pair of crazy socks (or tie, or plastic toy, or scarf) the recipient will likely never wear, ask yourself do we really need this stuff?  Maybe you can sit down and make something for them, or write them a heart-felt letter, poem or celebrate a memory. 

People have been talking about overconsumption for years.  And while I don't agree with all of the points in the video, I suggest you go check out The Story of Stuff. 

What works for your family?  I'd love to hear your ideas!

Be Thankful For an Emptier Garbage Bin after Thanksgiving is Over

The holiday season is about giving… but it doesn’t have to be about wasting. 

A recent study from the Natural Resources Defense Council's food and agriculture program, found that  Americans discard 40% of the food supply every year, and the average American family of four ends up throwing away an equivalent of up to $2,275 annually in food. 

Receiving Floor - Western Placer Material Recovery Facility

The average family produces about 25% more garbage waste between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, according to the EPA. 

Waste is bad for the environment, but it's also bad for your pocketbook.  Here are some tips to save money and make less waste.

Planning and Shopping

• Plan your menu, and don’t overbuy on portion size – remember there are many side plates for special meals, so it is likely that each person will take smaller portion of many dishes.  Love Food, Hate Waste has a portion planner calculator here. which can help you plan appropriate meal portions.
• When shopping, make a list and stick to it.  Don’t be tempted to add more items to your cart. 
• Plastic Free Thanksgiving tips can be found here.

One the day of Thanksgiving, here are a few ways to make less waste:

• Go with the real plates, silverware, glasses and cups.
• Store leftovers safely.  In my family – we all bring a few containers that we can take home with extra turkey, etc.
• Not part of the clean plate club?  Consider composting those scraps.
• Sure you cannot eat one more serving of leftovers?  Check out these creative leftover recipes here.

I’m looking forward to spending a day with my family, and am thankful for all that we have, and will try very hard not to be wasteful!