How bad is our package waste problem in the United States? Annually the people of California – ALONE - generate 66 million tons of solid waste. Almost one third of that solid waste is packaging.
Above you see an example of a common ingredient in packaging – tie wraps and plastic bags. Plastic bags are made from oil and the wraps are made from processed metals and oil combined, which take a significant amount of resources to produce. Imagine our landfills stuffed full with billions of dollars worth of natural resources formed into these tiny packaging products. It is a crisis to have all that money and resource lost.
While the “players” in the packaging industry truly need to work together to reduce packaging waste, it is also our responsibility to help keep it out of landfills.
Above you see where I have reused a water bottle package as a mini-greenhouse for seedlings this spring. It is easy to make if you carefully remove the flavored soft-drinks as you need them. Plastic ties are also reused in the garden as plant ties. They are good for kid craft projects as well and I always keep some on hand to tie cords and belts together.
What ways can you think of to reuse packaging products and make a difference for the world?
Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com
I was just thinking about this the other day. We bought a lot of organic fill dirt for our raised bed garden this year, and now have a pile of oversized plastic bags sitting around in the garage. If you have any recommendations on ways to reuse these, I would LOVE to hear 'em!
Overpackaging is one of my biggest pet peeves! It's an epidemic in this country.
Posted by: Sonia | June 03, 2009 at 11:38 AM