Reuse and Recycle
Toward the latter half of the 20th century there was a drastic increase in the production of one time use products. Furthermore, mass production capabilities grew. As a result of this, we slowly began transitioning to the modern-day disposable economy, meaning the number of one-time use products being made and used saw a drastic increase. In addition, we also started to throw away broken items instead of repairing them. If our living room television dies today we are far more likely to replace it than repair it. Although replacing everything is quick and easy it has started to take a toll on the environment. We produce a lot of garbage and it is important for our future and the future of our planet for us to be conscious of the waste we create.
Plastics
A major initiative to cut on disposable plastics always seems to be on the horizon but is never fully realized. Instead, small steps are taken to limit the use of certain products. This can be seen by the growing number of grocery bag laws. Many cities, counties, and states, have begun to pass laws that restrict the use of these bags. Grocery stores and other retails will soon stop providing bags forcing us to use reusable ones. This initially seems like a huge inconvenience but when we look back at it imagine how much waste is being saved. We must ask ourselves are the plastic bags necessary. In most cases we can easily live without them, we just have to get used to it. In addition, how many plastic bags do we see on the side of the road or at public parks? Next time you are out, count, odds are you will see one on the ground. By limiting the amount of plastic bags used we will limit the amount that they are littered by default. Plastic bags are not the only hot item of discussion when talking about reducing the disposable plastic footprint. One time use straws have been under attack for some time. Many places no longer provide straws and many places have begun to transition to paper straws. This is a small change that can slowly help reduce the use of plastic and slowly help our environment. Paper still creates waste but is far easier to biodegrade naturally, hence the movement to get rid of the plastic has gained some heavy support recently.
To Go Containers
The food portion sizes served at almost any restaurant today is ridiculous. Most of us can never finish our entire meals and often take left over food home for a whole other meal. Taking home leftovers makes life easy and usually ensures we have lunch the next day but we create a lot of waste by doing so. There are a wide variety of to go containers used. Some are plastic, some are foil, and some are paper. What many of us fail to realize is that these containers are often dishwasher safe and reusable. Too often we throw these containers away without seeing their true value. The products will go bad after enough uses but we can certainly get more than one use out of them. Having these containers can save us money and help us reduce the number of lunch bags used. Many of us use simple one time use zip lock style bags to pack lunches and these temporary multiple use containers can be used as a substitute. So next time you finish your leftovers wash the container and use it to pack a sandwich. You will be adding life to a product you already have and will be saving cost and the environment by not using the one time use bags.
Paper
How many of us make a mistake and through away an entire piece of paper? It happens all around us daily. Furthermore, how many of us use the entire sheet of paper or even the back side of the page? Odds are very few of us do this. Companies that make post it notes make a lot of money selling us a convenient product that we really do not need. A great way to reduce what we use and save costs is to create a pile of scrap paper. This can be the back side of used sheets of paper or pieces of paper that have unused area. Scrap paper is great for leaving notes and reminders and just to write something down real quick. They can be used to replace small note pads and sticky notes all together. This will save money and reduce what we use every day. It takes very little effort to reduce the amount of paper we use, we just need to think about the best way to do so. Reducing paper use is a great way to save costs and a great way to save trees and our environment.
Recycle
Throwing things away in the trash is easy and convenient but is not always the best thing to do. How many of us do a good job recycling? Odds are not many. Most of us try to recycle when it is convenient but many of us fail to recycle properly at home. Most kitchen and office areas have plenty of trash cans but very little space for recycling containers. It is up to us to put in the effort to change our ways. Unfortunately, the use of plastic and aluminum food and drink containers is a huge part of our society. If we properly recycled all of them every time we would make a significant impact on saving our environment. This takes some work and a commitment to recycle the right way. This means sorting plastics, cans, and paper separately and knowing where to take them. Many neighborhoods have recycling programs and drop off locations. All we have to do to start is call our local town hall and ask what the city does or recommends and start making our commitment to reducing our waste.
Water Bottles
How many disposable water bottles do we use on any given day? The answer is way too many. We buy the bottles because we know the water is cold, clean, and tastes good. Furthermore, we buy the bottles because they are convenient. We must ask ourselves how much waste do we create every time we buy a bottle and how much money do we spend on them. There are countless types of reusable water bottles that can be purchased at a number of retail stores. Some bottles offer great insulation to help keep our beverages cold, and others even come with small filtration systems. It does not matter what type of bottle we use, what matters is we have one and utilize it. This substantially reduces the amount of plastic bottles we use, it saves us money, and helps save the environment. So if you do not have a water bottle it is time to do some research and make a purchase. Just think of the upside, we save money, we reduce waste, and we help the environment, and as an added bonus we can use the bottles to express a sense of style as well.
It is easy to buy something and simply through it away, but the easy option is not always the best option. By being smart and being conservative we can save money and help the environment. There is no time like the present to make a commitment to our future.