42 Ways to Not Make Trash — by No Impact Man Colin Beavan

42 Ways to Not Make Trash — by No Impact Man Colin Beavan

(A Timely Re-Post)

Together with his family, Colin Beavan—aka No Impact Man—spent a year trying to live in the middle of New York City without having a negative impact on the environment. One of his first challenges: getting through everyday life without producing trash. Below are some of his favorite tips and tricks.

No soda in cans (which means we’re probably less likely to get cancer from aspartame).
No water in plastic bottles (which means we get to keep our endocrines undisrupted).
No coffee in disposable cups (which means we don’t suffer from the morning sluggishness that comes from overnight caffeine withdrawal).
No throwaway plastic razors and blade cartridges (I’m staging the straightedge razor comeback).
Using non-disposable feminine-hygiene products that aren’t bad for women and are good for the planet.
No Indian food in throwaway takeout tubs.
No Italian food in plastic throwaway tubs.
No Chinese food in plastic throwaway tubs.
Taking our own reusable containers to takeout joints (except that now we’re eating local so this tip is out for us).

Eco-Stepping with Community Supported Agriculture

"Hello, yeah, it's been a while.  Not much, how about you?" 

Okay, so now that you're in a '70's kind of mood, let's talk about Community Supported Agriculture or CSAs.  Community Supported What?

According to Wikipedia, community-supported agriculture (in Canada Community Shared Agriculture) (CSA) is a socio-economic model of agriculture and food distribution. A CSA consists of a community of individuals who pledge support to a farming operation where the growers and consumers share the risks and benefits of food production. CSAs usually consist of a system of weekly delivery or pick-up of vegetables and fruit, in a vegetable box scheme, and sometimes includes dairy products and meat.

Still feeling the 70's or even the 60's?  Maybe even a little hippie-ish?  Let's press on with a little history. 
Community-supported agriculture began in the early 1960s in Germany, Switzerland and Japan as a response to concerns about food safety and the urbanization of agricultural land.  That may sound like long, long ago and far, far away, but recent news has indicated otherwise. 

Stubble Free Sustainability

Legs, armpits, beards, "other" places... Most adults in modern Western society shave something on our bodies to remove unwanted hair.  And according to Wikipedia, we've been shaving in some way, shape, or form for a long time-- since the Bronze Age.
In 1895, the concept of the safety razor was conceived by King C. Gillette and the arduous (or artful) task of shaving was revolutionized.  Then came along Schick, Bic, and then the electric shavers all to add to the list of modern conveniences.  And, well, you know the rest.  Or do you?  What about all of those single-use plastic disposable razors that we use once or twice, then pitch into the garbage and landfills to remain in perpetuity?

Another Good Reason to Step On Outta Those Hose!

Be nice to the planet and ditch those panty hose. Nylons are made out of petroleum.  Yep.   Even if you've ditched your gas-guzzling SUV and are now driving a hybrid or biking to work... you can still do just a little more to help the planet.  Here are some other things that are made out of petroleum.  You may be surprised...

Chewing gum:  It lasts as long as it does for a reason—just about all brands on store shelves today use petroleum-based polymers. According to my friends at Planet Green, Goodyear, the tire and rubber company, supplies Wrigley's with much of its gum base. Yummy!   

More from Planet Green: 

• Hair dye: As if the toxic chemicals in hair dye weren't enough reason to avoid coloring your hair. Try finding more natural alternatives, or just go au naturale.

• Asphalt : Also known as bitumen, the material used to resurface roads (as well as in roofing materials) is an oil-based hydrocarbon. Meaning—if you noticed that road construction slowed down in your area at all in the last year, rising oil costs may well have been the reason. 

   Crayons: The main ingredient is paraffin wax, a petroleum product also used in most candles.

  Ink: Ever wonder why so many companies with an eco-conscience tout their use of soy-based ink?

  Pantyhose: ...and all other nylon products. All petroleum-based.
  

  And there's more...

  Heart Valves. Pillows. Aspirin. Ammonia. Toothpaste. Toothbrushes. Guitar strings. Shoe polish. Tape. Rubbing Alcohol. Vitamin capsules. Solvents. Caulking. Insecticides. Deodorant. Glue.
  The wax layer of the packaging your frozen food comes in. (And, of course, the fertilizers that farmers used to grow much of that food.)
  
  Given the ubiquity of oil, it's not an easy thing to get away from, no matter how much bike-riding and food-growing we do for ourselves. (Though both of things are a great start—keep 'em up!) But, like other addictions, we got ourselves hooked, and with serious effort and dedication, we can get ourselves unhooked.

It's a Wrap!

It is no secret that we generate a lot of garbage.  In fact, the EPA estimates that the average American throws away 4.5 lbs of garbage per day.  And, it gets even worse during the holidays.  It is estimated that 25 million tons more waste is created during the holidays than over a typical 10-week period.  That's roughly 1 million extra tons of waste per week!  EEK!

In the spirit of taking small, eco-steps to help the environment, here are a few things you can do to help reduce that very large and ugly figure, get creative, and save yourself some time and money in the process.

Hey! Did Ya Know?

Interesting Factoids for a Tuesday:
 
The average American meal travels 2500 miles before it hits your table!
Try selecting locally grown food whenever possible.  

 
The average American throws out 4.5 lbs of garbage every day!
Reuse, Reuse, Reuse.  Then Recycle, Recycle, Recycle.

Americans consume more than 2.5 million bottles of water every hour, and only around 10% are recycled.
Tap water costs about $0.0015 per gallon vs. $2 for a 16-oz bottle at the convenience store!  ($16 per gallon!!)  Save yourself some money and do the planet some good by buying a good reusable and refillable drink container.
 
The average American is exposed to about 3000 advertising messages a day.
Think about that for a moment... (you just missed out on 2-5 ads while doing that...)

Children ages 8-12 see the most food ads on TV — an average of 21 a day, or 7,600 a year.
Many of those ads are not for healthy, nutritious foods.  Why are our kids unhealthier than ever?  Hmmm.....