1. Get set up for composting.
2. Familiarize yourself with local recycling services. Be sure you know which # plastics are recyclable in your area. How about lids? Tin foil?
3. Bulk foods and products are going to help you through this. Be sure you have the appropriate re-usable containers to stock up on bulk goods!
4. Gather all products you use that have packaging you'd need to throw away within 40 days (toothpaste, deodorant, meds... basically anything that's part of your personal routine). Think hard about alternatives for these. Search your local health/natural foods store. Find out where you can get shampoo, conditioner, lotion, and detergents in bulk. There are shampoos and deodorants that come in solid form so they can be sold without packaging. You may be able to eliminate your use of some products altogether by thinking about alternatives like baking soda as toothpaste, and vinegar as a cleaning product.
5. Get set up with your "New Age Hippie's Urban Survival Kit" consisting of reusable containers, water bottles, coffee cups, cloth napkins, hankies ect. (See ecologicaldesign.blogspot.com.) Most of these things probably come with a bit of packaging initially, but once you've invested, you'll be waste free for the life of the product.6. Think really hard about anything new you will absolutely need before March 22nd. (Software? School supplies? Seasonal needs?). Remember that most brand new products come with some sort of non-recyclable packaging.
7. Anticipate any special circumstances: Will you be traveling? Do you have pets? Any health concerns? Any big family celebrations or gift-giving events during Lent? Weddings? Will you be starting a new activity (class, sport, etc...)? Are you MOVING? (if so, good luck!) These circumstances tend to cause us to consume more than we do on a routine day, so think ahead.
And if you DO unwittingly end up with some trash (e.g. those pesky little plastic peel-offs that are often hiding under the lids of otherwise reusable containers...), you've gotta keep it! We're each keeping a bowl on our desk for any trash we get stuck with. We'll quantify it in the end.
Ready.... Set.... GO!
3 comments:
So, this basically sounds to me like you are preparing for a 40 day trip. You are going to stock up on all these bulk goods, then try to last for 40 days. I am assuming at the end of the 40 days, you'll have rationed your goods such that you didn't have to buy anything and didn't produce any trash. It sounds to me like you are creating all of your trash now in this buying spree, and not counting it towards your total.
Don't get me wrong, I think it's a noble and courageous thing to attempt. However, if you wanted to live waste free, then you'd have to change your lifestyle. That means no running water for anything other than potable water consumption (showering, pooping, cleaning all produces waste. wastewater treatment plants use a LOT of energy). You'd have to omit the use of electricity meaning no refrigeration, no tv, no cell phone use, nada. (getting rid of your waste produced from coal by your local power plant for your needs).
These is indirect waste since we aren't burning the coal ourselves, or running the pumps and filtration systems in our wastewater treatment plant, but it is important to consider your role in much larger issues. Think about this: only 3% of the energy burned from coal at your local power plant is available for use. Any reduction in the output (the 3% side) makes a huge reduction on the input side (coal).
It's my opinion that if you wanted to make a difference in the world, you'd focus your energy on reducing energy use, since the waste produced indirectly for your needs from the power plant far exceeds your personal waste production.
just my opinion. I still think it's a great idea.
Mister Anonymous - you bring up lots of good points, let me see if I can address a few.
So, this basically sounds to me like you are preparing for a 40 day trip. You are going to stock up on all these bulk goods, then try to last for 40 days.
Well..no, not really. We are stocking up on the tools and knowledge needed to go trash free. To me this means getting reusable containers and locating places in your community to buy bulk goods. It doesn't mean buying an extra tube of toothpaste and saving your half empty tube until lent is over. Instead, it is the discovery and observation of what we throw away that is interesting. It sparks ideas about alternatives.
It sounds to me like you are creating all of your trash now in this buying spree, and not counting it towards your total.
A great point. Earlier this week I went through a pre-Lent purge in my house. As I trashed or recycled items laying around the house I actually thought about weighing it all. Unfortunately, other commitments keep me from putting more time into this project. For next year though, it would be interesting to weigh your trash for both the week before and after Lent.
It's my opinion that if you wanted to make a difference in the world, you'd focus your energy on reducing energy use....
Another excellent point. Energy is HUGE and we should all be working on energy conservation. I would love to see a corollary project - 40 days without fossil fuel! But this project is about trash, and I like this because trash is much more tangible than energy. After 40 days we'll be able to see and touch the consequences of our lifestyle choices, and this can be a great motivator for change.
And lastly, making products takes lots of energy. Moving the materials to make products takes lots of energy. And moving trash takes lots of energy as well. So it's great to change your light bulbs to CFLs and buy a new energy efficient washer but remember that everything you buy on a daily basis has embodied energy in it. Reduce your trash, reduce your energy use.
Great project. I wish everyone would do it. As a trash hauler, I witness every day the completely needless things that are bought and thrown away, as if they would vaporize when they get removed from the curb.
One comment - in tip # 5, could you replace "tupperware" with a non-brand name, such as "reusable containers" ? Thanks.
Ruthy
(Pedal People)
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