Most Americans... generate 4.5 pounds of garbage per person per day. To get a sense of just how obscene that is, consider this: in 2003, Americans tossed out 236 million tons of solid waste. The people in your current home of Thailand, by comparison, chucked a mere 14.4 million tons. Thailand has about one-quarter the population of the U.S. -- but only one-sixteenth the trash. Yikes.
[...]
Sadly, in this world of Nifty mops and Zippy sandwich containers and things that are made to break, it's hard to convince people to buy -- and therefore throw away -- less stuff. But according to the EPA, more than 6,000 communities have "pay as you throw" programs that charge residents for each unit of trash they toss. And some industries have made progress. Remember those silly big cardboard boxes that CDs used to come in? And it seems that two-liter plastic bottles are 25 percent lighter today than they were 30 years ago. Small steps, but we'll take them.
So what can you do? Write to companies whose products you admire but whose packaging gives you shivers. Buy in bulk. Buy products with little or no packaging. Make thoughtful shopping lists, based on need, to avoid snatching things up spontaneously at the store. Shun anything that's marketed as handy, disposable, or one-time use in favor of more permanent solutions. And above all, don't get caught up in the Stuff Race.In this case, less is truly more.
I do wish that environmental costs were reflected in the price of Ziploc bags (surely, a reusable plastic container will do?) and cell phones (how many have you owned in the last 5 years?) and grocery bags (a $.05 charge would encourage people to take new bags only when they really need them).
Read the full article.
No comments:
Post a Comment