Today is Trash Day. Ummm...actually, I was a little confused and thought trash day began yesterday, so we’ve already started saving our trash for the week. Full disclosure, though--there are some things that are NOT going into the week-long trash collection bag. Sorry, but I’ve always said our family’s experiment is “No-Impact Man-Lite”--there are some things, like the packaging from chicken or any meat, that are going straight to the dump. Safety first.
Did you know that the average American generates 4.6 pounds of trash every day? So, our family of 5 contributes an average of 23 pounds of trash per day, or 8,372 pounds of trash per year. I can believe it, and I wonder if it isn’t actually more--considering that we have two dogs, two cats, a bunny, and two aquariums. I wonder how much trash a dog generates each day? Of course, if all dogs were like Chloe, our year-old pup--we’d have no trash, because she’d eat it all.
Now there’s an interesting solution for reducing garbage...
Please check out the No Impact Experiment project manual for terrific ideas to waste less. I’ll share a few here, but remember--I’m basically plagiarizing. Colin Beavan and the No Impact Foundation generated these great ideas, which can be found at http://noimpactproject.org:
If you are playing along, look at the contents of your special trash bag. Remember, we were supposed to save all the trash we generated yesterday? Now, divide the trash into two piles: stuff you used for more than 10 minutes, and stuff you used for less than 10 minutes. Shocking, isn’t it? Put it back in the bag to continue your trash collection for the week.
Compile a no-trash travel bag--reusable cup for hot or cold drinks, handkerchief, Tupperware for leftovers, reusable produce bags.
Don’t make trash. Follow the three Rs: Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. But don’t throw it away.
Some of the ideas posted on the website are pretty easy for me to implement: my lovely, organic produce bags arrived Friday; I have a stockpile of reusable shopping bags; I pack the kids’ lunches in reusable containers, not baggies; and we steer away from items with too much packaging. (Kind of ironic for a former marketing girl to shun packaging, hmmm?)
Paper towels and Kleenex are my downfall. I know I should use cloths and handkerchiefs, but I don’t. In fact, in a typical morning of making breakfast and lunch for the kids, I can use five paper towels. The good news is--I compost them. Still--from a resource and energy standpoint, I should limit my use of them.
Handkerchiefs are an interesting concept, because Peter uses handkerchiefs. All I can say is: you’ve got to really love a man to wash his handkerchiefs. Yuck. (Actually, I just kind of throw them in the washer and hope for the best.) So--he is our anti-Kleenex champion for the family.
Kristen and I, however, should give handkerchiefs a try. We can easily blow through a box of tissues in a day or two with our nasty allergies...so perhaps I’ll try to find some pretty little handkerchiefs for us. Mikey just uses his sleeve unless I can catch him in time. And somehow, I just don’t see Tyler incorporating hankies into his college-dude lifestyle.
I can also tell you quite honestly--while I want to better the environment and reduce our trash contribution--there will be no DivaCup or The Keeper happening for me. What, you may ask, is a DivaCup? Go ahead and Google it--you ladies can let me know if you would be willing to use that. I will personally make an eco-trophy for any woman who embraces it. Also, for anyone interested in purchasing reusable produce bags, I received a coupon for 15% off a purchase, with the offer open to friends. I'm not endorsing this company, because I haven't tried the bags yet--but they look good. The website is www.ecobags.com, and the promo code is "EBS09."
So, my friends--it’s time to start the challenge and see how much trash we can avoid! Good luck to anyone who is playing along, and tonight I’ll let you know how much trash the Adolf family generates today.
Well, Day One of the official No Impact Experiment week was--hopefully--a blip in our family’s journey toward environmental enlightenment. Frankly, we sucked. For a day when we were supposed to curtail our consumption, take a look at our results:
Lowe’s--four pressure-treated 4x6x12 pieces of lumber to build the foundation for my greenhouse. Also two tools Peter needed for the greenhouse project.
Home Depot--rented a fuel-guzzling pick-up truck to transport lumber home. (It was kind of sickly funny to pick up the wood from Lowe’s in the HD truck.)
McAlister’s for lunch--because we were starving and wanted to eat quickly to get back to work on the greenhouse project.
PetSmart--a pack of chew bones for the dogs, since Chloe decided to chew a blue marker this a.m...and we now have blue marker all over the carpeting throughout the house. Why couldn’t she just stay in one spot to chew the marker? It would have been annoying...but so much less so.
I hope, if you are playing along, that you consumed less than we did today. I did keep all of our trash in a reusable bag for tomorrow’s portion of the experiment. Stay tuned...
On a happy note...I planted lots of heirloom garlic today, and I harvested the remaining basil tonight, since we might have frost. Tomorrow, I’m making a boatload of pesto...and I must say, my hands already smell delicious. I’m taking my consumerist self to bed and hoping for better success tomorrow...Trash Day.
Here is it...the beginning of the official No Impact Experiment, A One-Week Carbon Cleanse. Today’s challenge:
Consumption (aka Don’t Buy Stuff!)
Did you know that:
“...ninety-nine percent of the stuff we harvest, mine, process, transport--99 percent of the stuff we run through this production system is trashed within six months.” Annie Leonard, The Story of Stuff
Frightening. When I think about the amount of items I purchase and what ultimately happens to those items I urgently “needed”...I personally contributed to that statistic. It’s not just the impact on the landfills as we junk our purchases--but think about the amount of petroleum needed to produce and transport those quickly trashed items.
Our hero, Colin Beavan, No Impact Man, shares a terrific list to get us started on our journey. Be sure to check out the project website (http://noimpactproject.org) to read the manual--you’ll find great ideas, like:
Type a list of the stuff you “need” to buy, and figure out what you can do without this week. Cross off those items. Borrow, buy used, or make your own items that you can’t live without this week.
Track your trash. Keep a reusable bag handy, fill it with your trash, recyclables, and food waste from today. Take a bag with you if you leave the house and put your trash in there. Take a look at what you accumulate throughout the day.
Do you need to shop? Can you think of anything more fun or productive to do with your shopping time?
If you plan to play along this week, please leave a comment so we can all support one another! You can also sign up at the official No Impact Experiment website, where you’ll find great ideas to get you through the week.
I’ll check in tonight to let you know how the Adolf family survives Day One. (Shoot...why did I just eat that Special K cereal bar? Now I have to add the wrapper to my bag of trash.)
Remember my promise to curtail my purchases yesterday in honor of Blog Action Day, thus reducing the amount of packaging I would contribute to landfills and recycling stations? Well, I didn’t buy much yesterday...but several online purchases arrived--all on my “reduce purchasing and packaging” pledge day! Holy crap. Take a look at the amount of packaging that entered the Adolf house yesterday: To add to this lovely pile of trash, we took lunch to Kristen at school--so let’s add two plastic salad containers from Zaxby’s into the pile of shame, as well as two styrofoam cups with plastic lids and straws, a paper bag, cardboard box, and plastic cup for Kristen’s kid’s meal, all nicely packaged in a plastic bag. UGH. I also purchased a contact case and solution for Ty...so add two more cardboard boxes and two more plastic products to our demise of the Earth. Plus, of course, I had to buy a book at the Joel Salatin presentation last night.
Welcome to Blog Action Day! (And you thought this was going to be another rambling about Diet Coke and eco-wine...HA!)
Today, thousands of bloggers throughout the world are working together to raise awareness of climate change--and to help generate ideas to improve our environmental stewardship. Let’s rip open a cask wine and drink to finding a solution for global warming!
In honor of Blog Action Day, we’re taking a little trip...a journey to one of my favorite destinations. A country that produces delectable chocolates, precision watches, and yes, wonderful husbands...
Switzerland.
Two years ago, our family traveled to Switzerland to visit Peter’s parents, who live in Kreutzlingen, near the German border. I was nervous--it was Mikey’s first international trip, and the thoughts of eight hours on a plane with him were, well, terrifying. Remember the family who was kicked off the plane for having an unruly toddler? I was certain we'd be next.
My fears were unfounded. Mikey was a terrific traveler. Kristen was already a traveling pro by then, and Ty--well, what teen isn’t excited to go to Europe, even if it means spending serious quality time (two weeks) with his parents and much-younger siblings?
While my fear-of-flying vanished, I developed a new fear on the trip:
global warming.
OK. We all worry about global warming--except for those poor, misguided few who refuse to believe scientific data and instead listen to the propaganda of the former administration. (Oops, sorry, this is a bi-partisan blog.) However, we worry about global warming in a theoretical, abstract way. We joke about the sweltering summers, we hang our heads about greenhouse gases, we write impassioned letters to save the polar bears. Global warming is a tough challenge to combat, especially when you don’t know, really, how one person can make a significant difference in our planet's health. Yes, we read the articles, listen to the experts, and watch the Planet Earth documentaries. But you know that cliche expression “a picture is worth a thousand words”? Well, imagine seeing the effects of global warming live, in person--right before your eyes.
I did.
Toward the end of our vacation, we spent a day playing tourists, driving through the major mountain passes in Switzerland. We picnicked at the Kleinescheidegg. Took photos in front of the Eiger. Drove to the Grimselpass. Took more photos at the Rhone glacier. Drove some more to the Sustenpass and took more pics at theSteingletscher. Peter’s parents thought we were crazy Americans for spending more than 14 hours driving around the country--and they were right. I hate to think about our carbon footprint after that day of driving...
The thing is--without our little road trip, I would still be talking about global warming in the abstract. I would quote Al Gore and environmental scientists, read articles and spout statistics.
Instead, I am now a Primary Source.
At each point along our road trip, we viewed glaciers. Gorgeous, breathtaking, Alpine glaciers...
...vanishing.
Take a look at the photo. See the ice? See the line where there’s no vegetation? That’s how much the glacier receded. The glacier should reach into the valley. Now you see it, now you don’t.The skeptics will say...check history. Glaciers thaw, then build up again. Sure, that’s been true...until now.
The current thaw continues to accelerate with no reversal in sight. According to BBC News, since the 1980s, Alpine glaciers lost approximately 25 percent of their surface. The Sierra Club predicts that by 2050, 75 percent of Switzerland’s glaciers may disappear. 2050! If our children return with their children in 2050, they may have a tough time finding the glaciers where we took our family vacation photos. Kristen would only be 49.
In fact, my favorite family photo, taken in front of the Eiger, shows a tourist mecca on the verge of collapse due to global warming. The Eiger East Face is crumbling. We’re not talking about just a few stones sliding down the mountain. In 2006, two million cubic meters of rock--enough to build two Empire State Buildings--split away from the main mountain. See that pile of rubble at the base of the mountain, behind my cute family?
What happened?The rock of the Eiger was held in place by the ice of the lower Grindelwald glacier. In the 19th century, the Grindelwald glacier reached far into the valley. Take a look at the photo again to see where the glacier ends now.As the ice melted, a mass of unstable limestone no longer had it’s permafrost layer binding it to the mountain. Melting glacial water entered cracks in the rock, causing larger fissures to open. Down went the rock.
As the glaciers continue to shrink, what, besides potentially devastating rock slides, will happen?
Glaciers are an important source of water, not only in Switzerland but worldwide. As glaciers recede, water levels in Europe’s rivers will drop substantially. In the months of June, July, and August, more than half of the water in the Rhine River is comprised of glacial melt water.
Reduced glacial water threatens crop irrigation. It obstructs freight traffic on Europe’s waterways. It causes instability in cooling nuclear power stations. It hinders tourism.
Global warming is a very real fear. It already impacts our children’s world.I think, like most of us, I worried abstractly about global warming. I worried about the polar bears. I worried about melting glaciers. I worried about how greenhouse gases would affect our gardening “zone.” I read articles, listened to reports, signed up for Greenpeace, and agreed that, damn it--we have to DO something! I worried about the idea of global warming and the impact it will have on our future. Our children’s futures.
But now my worries have turned to fear.Because I’ve seen it.It’s real.And it’s time to step-up our efforts to make a difference...one day at a time.
Today, I’m going to take a baby step--no purchases that generate waste, which generates energy consumption, which generates greenhouse gases, which speed global warming. Small step, yes, but if we all take a day to avoid unnecessary purchases...we’d see big results.
What are your ideas to combat climate change? How can we help slow global warming?
Want to save money? Lose weight? Have more time? Live healthy and be happy? All for the low, low price of...nothing? Sound too good to be true? Stay tuned, and find out how you, too, can win!
I’m a little nervous. You see, our year-long foray into full-scale environmentalism just ramped up--as in, next week is the Official “No Impact Experiment.”
We’re only in week three of our journey. Yikes.
What, you may ask, is the “No Impact Experiment?” And who, you might wonder, made it official?
First of all, let me back up. Our little family experiment began after I read an article about Colin Beavan, the original “No Impact Man.” A writer by trade, Beavan, his wife, and young daughter began a year-long experiment to make zero net impact on the environment. Here’s the kicker--they live in New York City. “That means no trash, no toxins in the water, no elevators, no subways, no products in packaging, no air-conditioning, no television, no toilet paper...” states his book, No Impact Man: The Adventures of a Guilty Liberal Who Attempts to Save the Planet and the Discoveries He Makes about Himself and Our Way of Life in the Process. You’ve probably heard about him--he’s a talk show darling, challenging Stephen Colbert to participate in No Impact Week. (“Hell, no!” said Colbert.)
As a writer, Beavan began blogging about the experiment and still continues to share his thoughts and actions via blog: www.noimpactman.typepad.com. He’s living every writer’s dream--his blog became a book, the project became a documentary, and now he has launched the No Impact Foundation. This guy doesn’t just “talk the talk.” He is the poster boy for environmental goodness.
Anyway--Beavan’s journey prompted our family’s year-long experiment: “No Impact Man-Lite,” as I lovingly refer to it. I read his book during the first week of our project and found many ideas our family will adopt...and some that just aren’t going to happen. We’re not going to give up toilet paper, we logistically can’t eliminate driving, but there are plenty of ways to turn our negative habits into positive ones.
That’s where the No Impact Experiment comes in.According to the website, http://noimpactproject.org/experiment/:
“The No Impact Experiment is a one-week carbon cleanse. It is a chance for you to see what a difference no-impact living can have on your quality of life. It’s not about giving up creature comforts but an opportunity for you to test whether the modern ‘conveniences’ you take for granted are actually making you happier or just eating away at your time and money.”
Wow. Not sure if we’re ready for this, I thought, when I read about the launch of the experiment.
But as I read deeper into the website, I remembered words of wisdom from two of my friends. While I was beating myself up over the purchase of a drink in a styrofoam cup yesterday, my friend Jessie reminded me that I don’t have to eradicate my carbon footprint overnight--it’s a journey. And my insightful friend Dana, who was part of the wine sampling Friday night, mentioned how much difference we could all make if we just reduced our consumption by 10%. Ten percent? That’s not hard. You barely feel 10%.
The official project site provides fantastic tools and strategies to help transition into No Impact Week. When you log on to the site, you’ll find a downloadable manual full of ideas to help ease you into environmental commitment. The project itself is broken into stages, with each day focusing on a new area:
Sunday: Consumption
Monday: Trash
Tuesday: Transportation (I know this will be the most challenging for us.)
Wednesday: Food
Thursday: Energy
Friday: Water
Saturday: Giving back
Sunday: Eco-Sabbath
The official launch is this Sunday, October 18. We’re going to try it, and I’ll be writing about our progress...and the things that challenge us.
Who’s in? Want to play? The prizes are fabulous...
Beauty... our family of environmentally-friendly Sigg reusable drink bottles.
Wow...it's been a busy few days. Here’s what I’ve been up to since my last post on Friday:
Sampling cask wine with my wonderful book club girlfriends.
Buying fresh veggies and gorgeous sunflowers at the Hub City Farmer’s Market.
Designing a potager. (pot-ah-zhay; French) A kitchen garden, typically a formal, decorative kitchen garden. We’ve fenced in a section of the backyard so that it’s dog-proof, and I’m trying my hand at a practical but beautiful fall/winter kitchen garden. More on that later this week...
Starting eight varieties of heirloom lettuces.
Sowing seeds for fraises des bois, also known as Alpine Strawberries, a culinary treat.
Shopping in the rain for fall veggie transplants, since my seed growing is behind schedule.
Freezing my butt off after said shopping trip, since I haven’t changed clothes and am soaked.
Checking my Facebook account obsessively, since I’m among the thousands whose accounts have been undergoing “site maintenance” for more than a week. Still no FB as of today.
Polluting the environment with a large styrofoam drink cup.
OK, let’s get the bad news out of the way first so I can clear my conscience.
While I did stick to my resolution to give up Diet Coke cans, I’ve failed miserably in my efforts to forgo my favorite burst of caffeine. Today, being a Monday, felt like a good day to start fresh with my resolution...no more DC. Well, that lasted until 9:30 a.m., when I was between errands and my head felt ready to explode.
So, here it is:Yes, not only did I break down and drive through McDonald’s for a large Diet Coke, I completely screwed up--McD’s large drinks are in--gasp!--styrofoam cups.Now, I need to find a station that recycles #6 styrofoam. Yeesh.
Beast...my inappropriate purchase, a Diet Coke housed in styrofoam.
Oh, but it tastes sooooo good. It’s a sickness, I know.
Obviously, I’m not going to win any “environmental woman of the year” award. It’s amazing how many non-ecological things sneak into your life, and in the oddest places.
As I mentioned, we went to the Farmer’s Market on Saturday. Of course, like the good environmental steward I am, I took my reusable bags. It always bothered me, though, that I put my beautiful, sustainably grown vegetables in plastic produce bags that the vendors provide.
While I was talking with one of my farmer friends, I told him about our family project, and I turned down the plastic bag he offered for our Japanese turnips. He pointedly looked at my sunflowers, which I had just purchased from a wonderful flower farmer, with whom I always spend an extraordinary amount of time chatting. Ummmm...my two bunches of sunflowers were wrapped in--gasp!--plastic flower sleeves. Damn. I’m such a hypocrite.
Here’s the problem: I was trying to keep an eye on Mikey and Kristen, who were a little obsessed with touching all of the gorgeous flowers, and when I looked up--my friend had already wrapped the sunflowers in plastic. I just didn’t have the heart to ask him to unwrap them.
I’m such an eco-wimp.
It’s not the first time I’ve been an eco-wimp. A funny thing happened this spring, when I was selling heirloom veggie plants at the Farmer’s Market. The plants that I sold through my business, Garden Delights, were all sustainably grown from seed, pampered by me, and packaged to minimize the impact on the environment. I sold all of the plants in peat pots. Peat pots are terrific because the plant’s roots aren’t disturbed when you transplant it into the garden--you plant the entire pot, the plant is happy because it’s not shocked during the transplanting process, and the pot breaks down in the soil. No worries about my business contributing plastic flower pots to the landfill. I also found an environmentally-friendly method for customers to carry home their purchases, since most people, thankfully, bought several plants: cardboard drink trays, an easy-to-recycle/compost solution to plastic nursery trays.
The irony is: a very sweet customer visited me every Saturday with a gift--a bundle of plastic grocery bags. Most vendors at the Farmer’s Market purchase these t-shirt bags, as they’re known, for their customers who don’t bring reusable bags. Since I was selling plants in peat pots with recyclable trays...I had no use for the bags. But I never told her. I always thanked her for thinking of me, and took the bags home... where they piled up, waiting for me to take them to the recycling station at Publix.
See? Eco-wimp.
I’m trying to be strong and smart about our purchases without being abrasive. I’m curious, though...what might happen if I took my Sigg bottle into McD’s and purchased a drink--without the cup? How would they charge me for the drink? Would I throw off their cup inventory system, since I would be using my own drink container but my order would show a “large” drink purchase? Can you imagine the havoc I would wreck with the McD’s staff?Hmmm. Might be interesting. Stay tuned to see if eco-wimp turns into Environmental Goddess, Champion of the Earth... Finally, I did promise to share a bit about our cask wine sampling. I bought the Wine Cube, Pinot Grigio, California, purchased at--yes, you remembered--Target. Personally, I thought the wine was pretty good--a little sweet for my taste, but definitely drinkable. According to our book club members--and I asked for honest opinions--they also thought it was good. Of course, I’m not sure how honest these ladies’ reviews were, because they are an awfully nice group. They may have been humoring me, just like I wasn’t very honest with my plastic bag-bearing customer...
So, Peter and I are on the search for another cask to sample. Casks are tricky to find in our area--Publix, Sam’s Club, Target--all have very few choices. We’re going to check out a liquor store later in the hopes of more selections. I’ll let you know what we find.
Ah, my head feels better. Thanks for letting me clear my conscience. I’ll try to behave tomorrow...
Until then, here’s a question for you:What is your favorite eco product?
