Tuesday, July 1, 2014

The End is Here

On July 1, 2013 we began on our journey of one bag of non-recyclable, non-compostable garbage for the entire year. Yesterday marked the final day of our challenge, and I am happy to say that we have succeeded in our quest. Our family of four filled one 77 litre bag with 14.5 kg (32 pounds) of garbage for the entire year. There were times we weren't sure whether or not we'd keep it to one bag, but we were pretty sure we wouldn't fill two.

Our entire garbage for one year, yard waste, 
and our well used blue bins and green bin

What we did

In the blog posts I've posted sporadically throughout the year, I have shared some of the things we've done to reduce our waste. The biggest change had to happen at the consumer level. We tried to reduce the amount of packaging and garbage we brought into the house. As most of our purchases are food, it was at the grocery store that we found we needed to change the most. As a general rule, convenience foods were out, as most are packaged in non-recyclable, non-compostable packaging. We gave up granola bars, nacho chips, crackers, and frozen vegetables. These things were either replaced with homemade alternatives (baking ingredients often come in bags that we line our small compost bucket with), or given up completely. We purchased more fresh vegetables to substitute for the frozen, or froze our own in reusable freezer bags during harvest time.

When it came to gift giving time (Christmas, birthdays) there was some thought about the packaging the gifts came in, but there was more thought given to keeping the amount of gifts small, as we're already blessed with an abundance of things. (See my post Holidays and Waste Reduction Fatigue for more on gifts) Reusable gift bags filled with reused tissue paper keeps the waste to a minimum.

What we didn't do

I guess I should point that we didn't do anything like hoard garbage, or put it in our neighbour's trash. When there were socks that had holes that could not be mended, they went in the garbage. (I have more than enough cleaning rags, and don't need to keep every sock that is no longer wearable) About a month ago we cleaned out our children's rooms, and got rid of many crafts and other things that were no longer being played with or cared about. We could have waited until the end of our year, but we didn't. We took the time to sort things. Toys that were in good shape that were no longer played with went to a local thrift store. Crafts that had been forgotten about were taken apart. Any pieces that could be recycled went in the blue box, things that could be reused were put back in a craft box, and garbage was put in the garbage.

We also did not throw out things at school or work. We take our lunches in reusable containers, and our children's school has a "boomerang lunch" program, where whatever goes to school in their lunch bag has to come back home. We also got to know which restaurants offered take out in recyclable or compostable packaging, and when we did eat out, that knowledge would play a part in our decision making.

Where do we go from here?

One of the biggest questions I've had recently is how our lives might change once our challenge is done. I have to admit that it is very likely we will produce more than 14.5 kg of garbage in the next year, but at the same time, I don't anticipate it increase greatly. Before we began this challenge we already produced very little garbage in our house. We've always taken the effort to recycle and compost, though we've definitely been more vigilant in the past year. We've also been more conscious of the waste that comes into our house, as I've said before. It is likely that we will return to purchasing some of the convenience foods we have given up in the past year, like granola bars for example. However, I don't know if we will go back to the level of consumption of these types of foods, as we now have alternatives in our repertoire.

This year has had a large impact on our shopping habits. We will likely never again purchase meat from a grocery store on styrofoam trays, as we've gotten used to purchasing from our local butcher, who wraps everything in compostable butcher paper. In this particular area we might spend a bit more money than if we had purchased something in a grocery store on sale, but in the end we're not just reducing our waste, we're also supporting our local businesses and local farmers.

We did manage to keep our garbage to one bag, making our challenge a success. However, I think what makes our challenge more of a success is the people we've influenced to make even small changes to their approach to household waste. It makes us laugh when friends say things like "I'm sorry we're using disposable plates" or "We're trying to compost, but...". Ultimately we don't want to make people feel guilty, but do want them to think about their waste, and how they might be able to change. There are people out there who have done a whole lot better on waste reduction challenges that we have, but without changing our lives too drastically, our family has made a pledge to do what we can to reduce our impact on the environment.

Sunday, June 29, 2014

The Soft Plastic Solution

The best news ever in this challenge came from Region of Waterloo Waste Management on May 1. Their soft plastic recycling program has expanded. Yahoo! I can finally recycle the majority of the milk bags we have been collecting over the past year. Not to mention bread bags, newspaper bags, and outer wrapping from toilet paper. This is so exciting!

We had been collecting these plastics separately from our garbage, as we knew they could be recycled in other regions where we have extended family. Our plan was to see how much plastic could have been recycled if our region changed their program. And they did! We're so happy that it is now even easier for the residents of Waterloo Region to reduce the amount of waste going to the landfill. Check out this poster to see what soft plastic is now recyclable in Waterloo Region.

Monday, February 24, 2014

Holidays and Waste Reduction Fatigue

After almost four months away from the blogosphere, I figured it was time I actually got another post written and uploaded. I started writing a few during the Christmas season, but each one was more "ranty" than the last, and ultimately that's not what this blog is about. This blog is about sharing our journey into waste reduction, the strategies we've discovered and challenges we've faced. So hopefully this post won't devolve into a rant about consumerism, though I will probably still touch on that issue.

Still Getting the Word Out

Well, it seems as though this challenge is still interesting to people out there. Since I last posted I have had the privilege of sharing our challenge with a local church during their adult education time, had another chat with CBC Kitchener-Waterloo, and was a guest on CBC Maritime Noon and participated in their call-in show. The call-in show with Maritime Noon was great, as it gave us more ideas to use in our own challenge. And, as always, it's amazing to hear how other people are reducing their household, and in some cases, their business waste.

Holidays and Waste Reduction

It seems that everyone I've talked to in the past little while has wanted to know how we did Christmas in our house. For us we did keep our challenge in mind when preparing for the holiday, but to be honest, our Christmas this year wasn't much different from how it's always been.


Gifts

Okay, this is where I may rant a bit. We have two primary school aged children, and they like "stuff". Heck, most people like "stuff". But honestly, how much stuff do we really need? Our children make long lists of things they would like for Christmas, and I am happy to let them do that. It works on their reading and writing skills, and it does give me ideas for gifts. However, when they hand the lists over they always hear something like this: "I know you want all these things, but please remember that you have lots of toys already, and you don't really need any of this. You will get presents for Christmas, but will probably only get one or two things off your list."

As a single income family we live comfortably, but don't have a lot of leftover money once the bills are paid. We made the decision early on that Santa wouldn't bring presents to our children, so they were never disappointed or wondered what they did wrong if a desired gift wasn't received. Instead Santa has brought stocking gifts, which usually include socks & underwear, a bit of candy and a small toy or craft project. All the bigger presents come from us, and are limited in number. This year each child got a book, a board game, and then a video game and a Lego set to share. This was enough. There was no "Awww, but I didn't get..." or "Mom, you didn't get me...". Don't get me wrong, they constantly tell me about things they want, like handheld video games, or the coolest thing in the book order that comes home from school, and all the things they will buy when they're grown up. But at the end of the day they understand (I hope!) that they are blessed to have the things they do have.

When shopping for their presents I did try to keep in mind the amount of waste the packaging would create. Board games have the cellophane wrapper, which is not recyclable in our region, and Lego has the inner bags which are also not recyclable here. The books were also wrapped in cellophane, as they were Lego books that contained Lego pieces. The video game was used, so it had no packaging. All in all, not too bad for packaging.


Wrapping

This also didn't change much from what has happened in the past. In our area wrapping paper is recyclable, as long as it is non-metallic, and you remove the tape. Large undamaged pieces can be trimmed and reused the next year. We also use gift bags, and reuse those year after year, as well as reuse the tissue paper that goes in the bags. We also reuse bows & ribbons, as well as gift tags. Everything gets stored in totes to be reused the next year. Very little waste here.

Waste Reduction Fatigue

We are just finishing up month eight, and I must admit that there are times I wish we didn't start this challenge. I'm getting frustrated that I can't buy any convenience foods when I go to the grocery store, because most have non-recyclable packaging. There's no crackers, cookies, frozen vegetables or granola bars in my grocery cart. There are weeks I'm so busy that I just don't have time to bake, and packing the kids' lunches becomes very challenging. And when I do cave a buy something with non-recyclable packaging, I feel guilty or frustrated. Guilty that I'm "cheating" on my pledge, or frustrated when I have to chose a higher priced product to get it packaged in boxboard rather than cellophane.

I find myself wondering why products are packaged the way they are. I wonder if petroleum based products are cheaper to make, and if so, why? I understand that in some cases plastics are needed to keep products fresh, but is there a more eco-friendly option that could be explored. Maybe this is a question for an environmental engineer, or an environmental studies student.

Anyways, we're almost two-thirds of the way finished our challenge, and we're probably a bit over where we should be for this time. We will keep going, trying to reduce the amount of waste we're bringing in to our house. And even when we're done, I know we've made changes that will stay with us throughout the rest of our lives.