I’ve been wondering this very thing. Some weeks, I have no garbage to put out on the street. Other weeks, I have a lot. Typically, our weekly garbage pickup includes a couple of small (kitchen-size — 13-gallon) trash bags. So I got to wondering: Just what goes into our garbage?
The answer is: Mostly plastic. Garbage from eating out. As it happens, a lot of used tissues (although we are stocked with cloth handkerchiefs, I am the primary cheerleader for them, and I just don’t need to blow my nose that often, biologically. The household’s primary nose-blowers have been using paper, and I’m seldom there to catch them, twist their ears and make them use reusable). Et cetera.
Last week, I took photos of each day’s garbage. Here’s the score — along with some notes about what did not go into the garbage can.
Monday
The biggest item in Monday’s trash was totally avoidable: A Starbucks cup and lid. I try to almost always grab my emergency latte at a locally owned shop near my house, but it’s a mile out of my way, and last Monday I was rushing to my office for a conference call and Starbucks was closer. I didn’t bring my reusable mug to school drop-off because I thought I was heading home. That was, of course, before the siren song of caffeine reached my ears. Lesson learned: Always bring the cup.
The other items I trashed on Monday were an empty prescription bottle from my dog’s medications (Rx bottles are very tough to recycle), the lid to a vitamin bottle (the bottle itself was recycled), the lid to a Yoplait container (the container will go to recycling), and a Good Earth tea packet. This tea comes individually wrapped packets; I can’t resist its spicy sweetness, the quotations on the tabs and the fact that it is sugar-free and caffeine-free to avoid adding extra juice/calories to my day.
What didn’t get tossed:
I was about to throw away this popcorn bag from our family trip to the movies on Sunday (and no, Mlle. Cheap didn’t see “I Love You Man” — it was all “Monsters Vs. Aliens” for us). Then I thought, maybe I can compost it! I tore it up and threw it into our compost bin.
The beer bottle and carrier will be reused for homebrew.
Tuesday
On Tuesday, I was a bit worried that I was on a serious upward trajectory. Here are that day’s additions:
- A cereal bag from Mr. Cheap’s breakfast. He usually has eggs, but our egg CSA pickup is on Tuesdays, so we were out of eggs by Tuesday morning. (I often use these for gift bags, but I have way too many accumulated right now.)
- A label from a new credit card.
- A Band-Aid wrapper.
- A spiral from a document that I unbound and recycled.
- Two Yoplait lids (containers recycled).
- From our delicious dinner, a packaging bonanza: a wrapper from goat cheese, a tray and plastic wrap from salmon, a butter wrapper, and a sticker from a lemon.
- The sheet from mailing labels that I used up.
- The wrapper from some chocolate-covered pretzels that I found hidden in a secret location (that was the last one).
- A plastic CD holder from a desk organizer that I don’t even own anymore. Didn’t think any thrift-store shoppers would appreciate that item.
Wednesday
Phew! Wednesday was much better than Tuesday. Two contact lens packages, the package from my dog’s monthly heartworm pill, the package and remaining half of a Benadryl given to Schnauzer Cheap for his unbearable allergies Tuesday night, another tea container and the cellophane from some Thin Mints.
On the way back from a veterinarian appointment I decided to grab some fast food for lunch. But this was my only waste from dining out:
… and I washed it off and tucked it away in the cupboard to reuse. I love that I can eat at Chipotle, have relatively well-sourced food (the meats are natural and local), request no bag and come away with no garbage. Because you choose your own straw, napkin, condiments, etc. (or don’t), you never have the surprise of a big wad of garbage after you’ve left the restaurant.
Thursday
Thursday wasn’t too bad:
- Another Band-Aid wrapper (I had an unfortunate run-in with the knives on my magnetic knife rack when I was unplugging the toaster — nothing serious, but barked the edge of my hand pretty well).
- More Yoplait lids (we looove Yoplait, and while I continue to strive to develop Yoplait-like yogurt, a good sale weakened my resolve not to buy it).
- The package from a sleeve of whole-grain Ritz crackers (another “craving” purchase).
- Two envelopes from hot cocoa mix for an after-school snack. (I do buy cocoa mix, usually in a bulk canister, but again these were almost free on sale, so I gave in.)
What didn’t go into the garbage were these items:
The stir stick (from coffee in the morning, in a reusable cup) went into the compost. The bottle cap went into a container where we are saving bottle caps with the idea of possibly making a craft, like the bottle cap wreaths we saw in the Colorado Governor’s Mansion at the holidays. The promotional plastic credit card went into an envelope of credit cards, possibly also to be repurposed into something like this mosaic frame.
Friday
Last but definitely not least … Friday. This shot shows a pull-string from some sort of package, two Babybel cheese wrappers (one for me, one for Mlle. Cheap), a granola bar wrapper from my breakfast on the run, a cheese wrapper from Mr. Cheap’s egg-and-cheese sammy, a wrapper from the candy bar we all shared for dessert the night before (not something we usually purchase — left over from months ago), more Yoplait and a plastic wrapper from … something.
Not pictured? Dinner. We were all exhausted and cranky on Friday night, and after bickering for 45 minutes about where to go eat, Mlle. Cheap requested Popeye’s and we gave in. Not free-range chicken. Not low waste. We threw out a couple of boxes and a couple of mashed-potato containers, plus napkins etc. Yikes! That meant that despite my relatively compact waste during the week, we ended up with a full trash can after Friday night.
Lessons learned
Almost all of what’s going out in our garbage is nonrecyclable plastic. Almost all of this plastic originates from convenience. I would say I very seldom eat something like a granola bar, but once a week is likely par for the course. We don’t eat a lot of single-use convenience foods, but lately we’ve had some. And dining out (or worse, takeout) can unleash an avalanche of waste. Clearly, choosing where to eat out, for instance, can make a big difference. Finally, we always have a bag of dog poo in our garbage; I am currently investigating solutions for that issue.
On the other hand, with our hectic lives, it’s hard to say that a livable answer is “make everything from scratch.” I can also look at the small triumphs:
- Most days last week, we ate free-range eggs from our CSA or bulk-purchased oatmeal cooked in a pot for breakfast, as we usually do.
- Every night but Friday, we cooked a meal at home from scratch.
- Every day, Mlle. Cheap took her lunch to school in a reusable lunch box, with no waste from lunch or snack except Yoplait lids and one cheese wrapper.
- After Monday, my coffee consumption came in reusable cups (and not every day — and I switched from a latte to an Americano to save money, too. Baby steps).
- Last year, we almost always had two bags for pickup every week. Now we average about 3/4 bag per week. That’s a more than 50 percent reduction.
Have you taken steps to reduce your garbage? What has worked for you? What do you suggest for the rest of us?
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Comments ( 10 )
Composting has made the biggest difference for us, as it obviously has for you. It was amazing to see how much less we threw out (and depressing to realize how much organic waste is going into landfills). The rest is small potatoes compared to that, but the newest innovation is trying to reuse packaging so that we don’t have to use ziploc bags (which we always wash out, but this way we save water) — the empty bag of gummy bears becomes the lunch snack bag, for example. So we’re not actually reducing what goes into the garbage, but we’re being more mindful of how we use things.
For me, the big challenge is kitty litter. I use Feline Pine, which I absolutely love because it’s totally biodegradable, but with three cats we generate too much to compost (waste removed, obviously, and the cats are parasite free), “use as mulch,” or any of the other suggestions I’ve seen. I’ve been hoarding it and sneaking it into yard waste bags on occasion, but we don’t put out that many yard waste bags! I’m going to have to bite the bullet and start putting it in the trash, but I hate to do it.
CT added these pithy words on
Apr 06 09 at
8:23 am
After attending a “plastics round up” last May, I became very aware of all the plastics that were coming in to our household. I now know that all of the plastic that you threw away (which is very like the plastic in our home), I can take to a recycling facility. We still have food scraps (the non-compostable ones), wierd complex things (metal plus plastic!) and sadly, disposable diapers* (alhtough we are close to being done with those at least during the day).
My understanding, and forgive me if I am mucking up plastic recyclers everywhere, is that plastic film is plastic film. So if you have plastic bag recycling in your area, you can also put in clean film (like your cereal bag).
We did move to a smaller garbage can recently and we are doing ok. The key for us is to recycle, recycle, recycle. Some times that means collecting and bringing ourselves to a center (something I know you also do). Keep up the good work!
* As a die hard greenie, it is hard for me to admit this but there are/were extenuating circumstances. Really. (These factors include twins, 3 kids in diapers for a while, and the inability to find diapers that were absorbent enough for growing boys). Enough said.
Erin added these pithy words on
Apr 06 09 at
11:41 am
Oh – I forgot to mention, my friend just created a composter just for dog, um, poo. If you have the space, you might look into it.
Erin added these pithy words on
Apr 06 09 at
11:42 am
@Erin – I have indeed looked into dog poo compost or worm composting. I’m leery because it’s a lot of yuck for not being able to use it (or at least have it work) for half the year due to freezing temperatures. Still thinking on that one.
Cheap Like Me added these pithy words on
Apr 06 09 at
12:17 pm
You are lucky that you can recycle so many different plastics where you live. We can only recycle ones and twos here. I try not buy the other kinds but I pick up a few at the grocery store.
jmisgro added these pithy words on
Apr 07 09 at
8:38 am
@jmisgro – I know, it can be tough! In my city we can only recycle plastics that are in the shape of a bottle. I collect the other items in bags in my laundry room and then take them once or twice a year to a special recycling facility 30 miles away, where they collect various plastics, styrofoam, sneakers, bicycle tires and all sorts of other items. Depending where you are located, maybe you can find such a facility? But you’re right, it’s best to avoid buying them at all when you can.
Cheap Like Me added these pithy words on
Apr 07 09 at
9:03 am
Great post- I am always looking at the trash! Yesterday my husband said you need a pig. Pigs will eat just about anything that does not have meat in it. We raised them years ago and it might be time again.
I am always amazed that no matter how far we have come the food industry finds new and creative ways to add more and more packing to what we buy.
Recently we are no langer able to recycle glass -of all things- it is just going in the land fill here- that should be a no brainer- but they say no money in it.
I have just finished turning two years of kitchen waste and “cow” dirt into raised beds.
Now, if we could compost those little stickers off the viggies!
meredith added these pithy words on
Apr 08 09 at
4:39 am
Umm, about composting dog feces… Please make sure that your 4-leggers stay on heart worm preventitive with intestinal parasite control included, and that your 4-leggers have routine intestinal parasite exams so that you’re composting parasite free feces. Zoonotic diseases are not something you want to contract your self. Hookworms bore through the bottom of your feet and can cause blindness. If you need any clarification, please contact your Vet. Just makes you wonder about dairy fields and what/how goes to he dump, let alone what other people don’t pick up in their yard.
Debbie added these pithy words on
May 08 09 at
7:49 am
I would like to participate. I am not quite to your level yet but I have made a huge improvement. Last year I did do something similar where I took pictures of my trash daily and then put the total amount on the ground next to the poly-cart I used to fill each week. Instead of a poly-cart full to the top with trash I had a weeks worth of trash stuffed in a bag that sheets came in. It was so small next to the big cart.
We cancelled our trash service and now go to the dump every 9-12 months as well as saving recycling and taking it to a city when we visit about once a month. I will start tomorrow.
SueEllen added these pithy words on
May 12 09 at
11:21 am
A couple ideas on the prescription bottles:
1.My vet takes back prescription bottles and re-uses them. We’ve started saving all our RX bottles for her. We had a chronically ill dog and we saved a lot of bottles for her. (We also give her the leftover dog medication.)
2.Our human pharmacy will also re-use bottles. They fill both animal and human RXs and are happy to re-fill the bottles. (Obviously the same script has to go into the same bottle.) I have a daily rx and my pharmacy is happy (if a little puzzled) to re-use the bottle.
Just one way to reduce those pesky bottles.
rhetor1999 added these pithy words on
May 17 09 at
10:01 am
