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The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step? Or, in this case, with a single Instagram post. After stumbling across an image depicting the horrific impact on an innocent sea turtle of humanity's dependence on plastic in a throwaway culture, Carly Tizzano sets out on a year-long journey to understand the true cost of modern living on the environment. In the process, she discovers that her lifestyle and personal choices impact far more than just sea life. Her investigation makes her even more determined to redefine her values, personal habits, and her overall relationship with the planet. In this honest treatise of the power and pitfalls of her year-long pursuit of sustainable living, Carly details the latest research and statistics, and shares the tools, tactics, and methods she employed in her attempt to protect the environment and live out her personal values. Come along with her on this journey as she experiments with new products and re-discovers old ones, establishes new habits, redirects her mindset, and discovers that while sustainability may look different for each of us, it's a goal and a direction that all of us can move towards.
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Seitenzahl: 542
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022
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The Sustainability Project © Copyright 2022 Carly TizzanoPublished in Poulsbo, Washington
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
Although the author and publisher have made every effort to ensure that the information in this book was correct at press time, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause.
Adherence to all applicable laws and regulations, including international, federal, state, and local governing professional licensing, business practices, advertising, and all other aspects of doing business in the US, Canada, or any other jurisdiction is the sole responsibility of the reader and consumer.
Neither the author nor the publisher assume any responsibility or liability whatsoever on behalf of the consumer or reader of this material. Any perceived slight of any individual or organization is purely unintentional.
The resources in this book are provided for informational purposes only and should not be used to replace the specialized training and professional judgment of a health care or mental health care professional.
The advice and strategies found within may not be suitable for every situation. This work is sold with the understanding that neither the author nor the publisher is held responsible for the results accrued from the advice in this book.
For more information, email [email protected].
Paperback ISBN: 979-8-9873647-0-3eBook ISBN: 979-8-9873647-1-0Library of Congress Control Number: 2022922639
To Mom, Dad, and Mrs. Pope — Thank you for teaching me how to write and use punctuation,and for giving me the confidence to write this book.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TitlePage
Copyright
Dedication
Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1 - January: Starting Strong
Chapter 2 - February: Cleaning
Chapter 3 - March: Clothing
Chapter 4 - April: On the Go
Chapter 5 - May: Skincare
Chapter 6 - June: Body
Chapter 7 - July: Food
Chapter 8 - August: Shopping
Chapter 9 - September: Workplace
Chapter 10 - October: Home
Chapter 11 - November: Gifts + Parties
Chapter 12 - December: Boot Camp Sustainability
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
Blurb and Bio
Endnotes
INTRODUCTION:
A GIRL LIVING IN A THROWAWAY WORLD
I am a serial murderer. I have killed the environment one small step, one insignificant choice, one mylar-coated birthday balloon, at a time. I have been a plastic-using, environmentally ignorant, consumption machine. I have gone through countless shampoo bottles, Starbucks cups, and squeeze pouches of applesauce. I have tossed out straws, plastic bags, and toothbrushes. I have spent many unnecessary hours in the shower, walked blindly past litter, and driven miles out of the way to get my favorite queso.
I never would have predicted that I would write a book about saving the planet. But here we are.
My journey began two years ago. I was reading How to Give Up Plastic: A Conscious Guide to Changing the World, One Plastic Bottle at a Time by Will McCallum, a book I had checked out of the library on a whim. In the book, there is a story about a picture that had gone viral. I’d never seen the picture, but the book’s description of rescue workers pulling a plastic straw painfully out of the nose of an innocent sea turtle turned my world upside down.
This was happening in the world? It had to stop!
Of course, on some level, I had known that this kind of harm was happening in the world around me. I knew that plastic floated in the oceans and that landfills were growing larger every day. Up until that moment, however, I hadn’t made it a personal mission. I had always believed that other people would make the changes. My mistake.
And now here I am, trying to change that.
Shortly after finishing How to Give Up Plastic, I decided that my “word” for the following year, my focus and goal, would be “sustainability.” I wanted to figure out how to ensure that my habits, purchases, and lifestyle were in line with living on the earth sustainably. Instead of focusing solely on environmental concerns or ethical ones, I settled on “sustainability” because it is very future-focused. The choices we make today and continue to make tomorrow will produce benefits for us all.
And so, on January 1st, I embarked on the goal of learning more, being gentler on the earth by reducing my waste, and reducing my support of destructive industries. It was a year-long path, one I want to help you to traverse, too. I hope this book will help guide your journey and save you from some of the pitfalls and potholes that I stumbled into along the way.
I am far from perfect even now as I write this book. But the more people I talk to, the more I have realized that most people know that they need to make different choices — they know that many of the choices they are currently making are damaging the earth. But many people have no idea where to start. I understand that. I didn’t either.
As I began to live out my sustainability project, there were times I felt paralyzed by indecision and overwhelmed by statistics and information. But I was convinced even more that this book had to be written.
My writing style was influenced by two other books in this genre. The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin and The Wellness Project by Phoebe Lapine both inspired readers with the idea that we can pursue lofty life changes through measured steps of marginal improvement. Changing your life, without changing your life.
These books, and my sustainability project, are “projects” designed to be undertaken during a calendar year. As a New Year’s Resolution coach, I know how much change can be made between January 1st and December 31st, so it is no surprise that my project would follow the same pattern. I also understand the power of living in alignment with our personal values. As I planned my own sustainability project, I knew that the coming year would be the perfect way to transform my life while also demonstrating that transformational power to my community and my clients.
And while the main focus of this book is environmental sustainability, that topic touches on other major social issues — world hunger, animal activism, racism, classism, and countless others. This is a beautiful reminder that our actions in this one area can spill over into so many others and vice versa. For example, environmental issues don’t affect everyone proportionally.
Statistics show that the wealthiest 10% of the population is responsible for 50% of global emissions. The wealthiest 20% contribute 70% — like the Pareto principle, but not in a good way.
People of color in the US are three times more likely to die from pollution-related diseases, ranging from lung cancer to heart disease to stroke, and they are 1.5 times more likely to be exposed to pollutants in general. They are 79% more likely to live in neighborhoods with toxic industrial pollution and are exposed to 38% higher levels of nitrogen dioxide, which inflames the lungs and can lead to an increased risk of respiratory problems.
These issues don’t have easy answers or easy solutions but the statistics do not relieve us of our individual responsibility to the environment we share. We must all work to be informed and take actions that will better care for our planet and our neighbors. Both are infinitely important and being able to make a difference that impacts both is extraordinary.
Government and big businesses play a massive role in sustainability, or rather the lack thereof, in the world today. When both refuse to take the necessary steps towards sustainability, that action, or some part of it, falls to the consumers. Whether they don’t listen to us or whether we aren’t speaking loudly enough (with our words or our wallets) is a different question, and one I don’t intend to delve into in this book. Research indicates that 100 companies are responsible for 71% of global emissions. But that doesn’t mean our actions as individuals aren’t important. I urge you to fight for legislation that supports sustainable practices, reach out to brands you love (or brands you hate) to revolutionize their practices and increase transparency and sustainability, fight with your words, dollars, and actions. We definitely have a role to play in ensuring that sustainability advances are made on these levels.
In this book, I focus on what we, as consumers and individuals, can do to affect sustainable change — in our habits, practices, and purchases. I’m not discounting the importance of institutional change, and there have been other great books written on that topic, but the actions I wanted to focus on in my sustainability project were my own.
I want to encourage you to make changes in your life. But the effects of these changes will stretch far beyond yourself, into the lives of others, and to the world as a whole. As a wise person once said, we aren’t inheriting this world from our forebears, we are borrowing it from our grandchildren.
There is no wrong way to build a sustainable life — except to ignore that you probably need to do it. It is comfortable to think that our actions make little difference. But that is simply not true. And through this book, I hope to inspire you to pursue important, if small, actions.
I share a lot about how our lifestyle, actions, and purchases can impact the planet. But it’s not just a long list of items you need to buy, or things to check off, to live a “sustainable” life.
You can still live a sustainable life and use plastic straws sometimes. You can live a sustainable life and eat meat every day. You can live a sustainable life and drive a Suburban — growing up with four siblings, I know some people need to.
When plastic was invented only a few decades ago, it was considered a marvel. But as the decades passed, people began to see the impact it has and will have on the environment in the future.
I want to give you a direction and a starting point. My suggestions will not be perfect. I hope that you will join me in doing what we can, with what we have, with what we know in this current time.
Some people will disagree with me, and that’s okay. If they are living a 100% environmentally conscious and sustainable life, I am happy for them and support them in their efforts, 100%. But I think that you can be sustainable, and still dry your clothes in your dryer, and not on a clothesline. Just like you can be healthy and still eat cake. But it is important to understand that you can’t likely eat cake, cookies, chicken alfredo, soda, onion rings, chocolate bars, donuts, and fried chicken and still be the healthiest version of yourself — unless you indulge in extreme moderation.
My goal is to help increase your awareness of the choices you make as you progress in your sustainability journey and not to let having a big car, a big family, or a big pile of laundry make you believe that you can’t make a big impact.
As I began my journey towards living a more sustainable life, I read numerous articles about the things we do because we think we are helping the earth but actually may not be, or at least not as much as we think. These articles, while well-intentioned, often do much more harm than good. I hope to bring clarity to some of these ideas.
Be aware that you may meet opposition from unexpected places. While you are enjoying the “high” from making incremental changes to improve the environment, you may meet others who will try to convince you that you’re doing it wrong. This phenomenon is called “whataboutism.” You share about your progress, and someone will say “well, what about…” This often arises with conversations about fast fashion, what milk to drink, reusable grocery bags, and other topics. Whataboutisms may be well-intended but are rarely helpful. They don’t initiate action, drive discussion, or further the cause in any way. More often they lead to confusion and hesitation, which stalls or maybe even halts our progress in the direction we want to go.
Sustainability isn’t all or nothing. It isn’t black and white. It isn’t either-or. As long as we are alive, there are some things that we do and participate in that aren’t sustainable. Even when we die, how and where we are buried can have drastic environmental consequences (don’t worry, we’ll talk about that too). I share the facts so you can understand the impact of whatever choices you make, and I will encourage you to experiment, try, shift, and change. But what you do is ultimately up to you. And questioning the journey of others, or peppering them with whataboutisms, is unlikely to move any of us towards sustainability.
While I focus primarily on environmental sustainability in this book, I also reference being financially responsible and sustainable as well. Whatever your financial status, you can support sustainability — through your lifestyle and through the purchases you make.
Sustainability isn’t about having money to buy new eco-friendly things or starting to compost in the backyard. It isn’t even about dedicating yourself to clearing roadside litter. It is about simplicity, ease, and figuring out what works for you. It’s using less and using what we have. This book was written to meet you where you’re at right now; to increase your awareness; give you the tools to consciously make decisions on how to live a sustainable life; and to encourage you to move forward, in the right direction, one step at a time, one month at a time.
The point of this book isn’t to convince you that saving our planet and taking sustainable action is important. I hope that if you are reading this, you already believe that wholeheartedly. I am so glad to have you along on this journey with me. You may not know what you should be doing (even though you probably know there is a lot you could be doing), and you may be overwhelmed by the research, statistics, information, and projections.
That’s why I’m here. I’m going to walk you through my journey, starting with the same overwhelm, through curiosity, and into conscious, intentional, imperfect action. The first step is hard, but you’ve already taken it. You’re here. And don’t worry, we’ll walk through the rest together.
As I began the journey of researching and writing this book, I felt alone. And I can’t tell you the number of times that I slammed down my phone or shut my laptop and sat feeling sad, lost, and overwhelmed.
The social campaigns are endless. The steps that could be taken are infinite. The options and possibilities and upsides and downsides are innumerable.
I’ve laughed when I found something amazing or read something hopeful. And I’ve cried when I read about plastic in the oceans or when I saw pictures of animals in cages with beauty products smeared across their faces.
I had to take action.
The only question that remains is what action to take.
And that, I soon realized, was a very, very tough question.
CHAPTER 1
JANUARY: STARTING STRONG
I knew I was about to undertake my sustainability project. It was planned, I was ready.
They say the longest journey starts with a single step, and for me, that step was a paragraph in a book about a turtle and a straw. From that small beginning, my journey toward sustainability began.
Those who, like me, live in the Pacific Northwest know that in January you have very little hope of seeing summer or the sun ever again. But despite the dismal weather and being continually cold, I was ready to start my sustainability journey — or so I thought.
I wanted to know what the recycling numbers mean on the bottom of my soap and shampoo bottles. I knew I wanted to upgrade to reusable products and find nontoxic cleaners and makeup to benefit my home and my skin. I was prepared to walk more, drive less, and bring my reusable grocery bags to the store.
I set a general goal to spend the new year embarked on this sustainability project and to make sure that my actions were aligned with this overall focus for the year. But I didn’t realize how much of a project it would turn out to be. I planned out February through December broadly, but January was still a blank slate so I decided to spend the cold dark month of January developing a base level of knowledge and understanding about sustainability and the other factors that play a role in the well-being of our planet.
Looking back now, I wonder what I was thinking! I am a very Type A person. I’m a 1 on the Enneagram. I’m a life coach and own a professional organizing company. I started a blog years ago just for fun. I don’t do things without a plan, and I certainly don’t set out on a year-long adventure without double-checking my direction, filling my water bottle, and packing a bag full of snacks.
But thankfully, my lack of planning on this occasion is, I think, what put me exactly where I needed to be.
Early in the year, I stumbled across Instagram’s discovery tab (and I confess that since I have spent excessive amounts of time there). I enjoy immersing myself in the amazing content posted by millions of people I will never know.
That’s where I came across a photo of a man standing in front of a garbage can inside a well-known coffee retailer. The photo showed the man with his arm going into the side of the can that read “trash” but his hand could be seen coming out the top of the other side of the can that read “recycling.” Despite the appearance, everything was actually ending up in the trash. This eye-opening photo revealed a sad truth: even though it may appear that a business is taking responsible steps towards caring for the planet, the reality may be very different.
That photo sent me down an Instagram rabbit hole (it doesn’t take much). I soon found myself looking at dozens of sustainability posts and other things under #greenwashing.
I couldn’t get that image out of my head.
Things escalated when I saw a post about how long it takes for certain things to break down in the environment. Mylar balloons, for example, which my family buys to celebrate birthdays and graduations and every event in between, never break down. Never. Ever. They last forever.
A few days later, I was sharing with my friend, Heidi, about my sustainability project. I told her about my discovery and my newfound fear of a future filled with deflated foil balloons. In my nightmare, the balloons blow aimlessly along roads like tumbleweeds, float across oceans like seaweed, and are compressed together like bricks to construct buildings and bridges. A WALL-E-style world, composed entirely of deflated Mylar balloons.
“Wow,” Heidi said, with a small smile, seemingly unsure of what to say about the dystopian future I had described.
I couldn’t stop. “Now, I know it is an unlikely reality — especially since we will run out of helium long before that could ever happen. Not too long from now, actually, so it is unlikely our children will ever have foil balloons, or balloons of any kind — not that I would buy them, knowing what I know now.”
Heidi laughed, and we moved on to discussing less dramatic aspects of my project. We agreed that while many things around us seemed to be speeding up, at the same time, many things appeared to be winding down. I felt desperate to know what I could do to protect the earth, while still enjoying things like birthday parties (sans balloons).
Greenwashing
Even before starting my project, I had tried to choose the green option whenever possible. I wanted to live in line with the values I was developing and picking up laundry detergent with a tree on the label or that read “green” was an easy switch.
But as I began my research, I quickly discovered (and also already understood at some level) that sustainability is much than label (or trash can) deep. I had fallen into the greenwashing trap, and it was time to fight my way out.
The Journal of Consumer Research recently shared about the “greenconsumption effect.” This is when a person uses a sustainable or “green” product and feels good about themselves and their choices. They often have a ‘warm glow feeling,’ that they don’t get when using a conventional counterpart.
Greenwashing happens when a company attempts to label a product with deceptive jargon about its environmental friendliness without being fully transparent, or without making any real changes to lessen its impact on the environment. As more consumers (like me and you) desire to make more sustainable choices and purchases, the issue of greenwashing becomes very important. When companies project the mirage of environmental concern without taking actions to back it up, it can be hard for consumers to make the right choices or to even know what those choices might be.
Unfortunately, greenwashing is a prevalent practice. In 2010, 4,744 “green” products from the US and Canada were surveyed and 95% were found guilty of greenwashing.
Although greenwashing is technically monitored under the Green Guides of the Federal Trade Commission, companies aren’t always held accountable, since vague statements and failure to disclose information are rarely prosecuted. Determining whether a product has been greenwashed or whether a company is actually working to protect the environment, and whether we should or should not purchase a particular product, are difficult decisions that consumers are left to make.
Greenwashing normally takes place on the surface level, such as on the product label, whereas the evidence to support these claims, everything from how items are sourced, produced, shipped, and distributed, can be harder to identify. To make this identification easier, the environmental marketing agency, TerraChoice, has developed a list of the “seven sins of greenwashing: hidden trade-off, no proof, vagueness, worshiping false labels, irrelevance, lesser of two evils, and fibbing.”¹
While a few companies are enacting positive changes to protect the environment, too many others prefer to just appear to be taking action. As with the food industry, terms like “healthy,” “clean,” “organic,” or “all-natural,” sound pleasing, and might make you reach for a product, but these words don’t necessarily speak the truth about what is inside the package.
Even if a product lives up to its packaging and is actually “eco-friendly,” it may not be sustainable. Ethics and social justice issues also play a role in determining sustainability, and without evidentiary backup, this is just another example of greenwashing. We’ll explore this further later.
Companies producing everything from food to detergent to shampoo utilize greenwashing in an attempt to increase sales and improve public perception. They may use ubiquitous or vague terms that sound great but mean nothing. “Natural,” “eco-friendly,” “non-toxic,” “chemical-free,” “biodegradable,” “socially responsible,” “green,” “bioplastic,” and even “sustainable,” are commonly used without real substantiation.
Because greenwashing continues to happen, for now, it is up to us to try to decipher whether a claim is true or simply greenwashing. To do this, we start with the label. We need to make sure the company can back up its claims with specific data or research. Look for certifications on the product label — such as Fair Trade Certified, Certified B Corporation, or Food Justice Certified. Some certifications not only mean that the product or corporation is taking steps to ensure minimal environmental harm, but also that workers are treated fairly, and products are produced sustainably. Some brands will also indicate the carbon footprint of the item on the packaging, which is another practical way to substantiate the environmental impact of the product rather than a simple label proclaiming it as “green.”
As with certifications, we can also look for products or companies with third-party assessments or awards such as Fairtrade, the EPA’s Safer Choice, GreenSeal, OEKO-TEX standard, and the Global Organic Textile Standard.
It is worth noting that while some smaller brands cannot afford to get certified, they may be a viable sustainable option, especially if they are local to you.
If the product label doesn’t give you the answers you are looking for, you can determine whether greenwashing is occurring by researching the company’s website and presence. The first thing to look for is whether they actually discuss their sustainability efforts. If it isn’t discussed at all, that’s a red flag. If a company does share their environmental goals, look for specificity of steps and a timeline — moving towards something that is statistically insignificant or vague isn’t likely to have a big impact. Truly transparent companies will share facts, statistics, reports, and explanations.
It is also worth considering whether the company you are researching is working to reduce their emissions or whether they are merely planning to purchase offsets (we will discuss offsetting more in Chapter 4). Companies that are truly striving to benefit the environment may go so far as to invest in climate-safe technology or lobby for environmental policies.²
Expect and seek transparency, and hopefully, that is what you will find.
It’s easy to grab the product that looks more environmentally friendly — paper over plastic, or recycled-looking cardboard over the fresher, newer-looking alternative. And although these packaging options are something to look for and are likely the better choice over a plastic-wrapped alternative, the packaging doesn’t inherently mean anything about the product itself. And even when the product is really and truly “green” it is often up to us to close the loop and make sure it stays that way — by repairing, reusing, or recycling.
Remember that even the brand with the certifications and the recycled and recyclable packaging isn’t perfect. The things that we consume, and the way they are produced, inherently have an impact on the planet.³ We can do our best to be educated as to what that impact is, and take the necessary steps, or make the necessary purchases, to minimize the impact when and where we can.
The Good Housekeeping Institute conducted a survey that found that just 2% of respondents aren’t concerned about making “green” choices in their homes.⁴ Hopefully, as time goes on, more and more companies will listen to the 98% of people who want to purchase clean, green products, and take the actions necessary to label their products and provide the evidence to back up their claims.
Don’t be fooled by the word “green” or the sprout image on the package, unless you know that the sustainability claims are more than surface deep.
The Reality of Recycling
I’ve certainly been guilty of tossing a dirty container into the trash, instead of taking the time and effort to clean it or to find out if it was recyclable. I knew I wasn’t alone, but I had no idea that over 80% of the items that are sent to landfills could have been recycled instead. Many of these items will take hundreds or thousands of years to break down in the landfill.
On a scale from solution to pollution, I was a walking red plastic Solo cup. But I was a Solo cup in solidarity with the majority of the population.
Actually, I’ve been committed to recycling for as long as I can remember. I placed the can with the blue lid alongside the green can at the curb on trash day. But although I considered myself a “recycler,” I never paid a lot of attention to the numbers on the bottom of the recyclable containers. If I could see the arrows, into the recycling can it went. I’ve since learned that while the arrows are a general indicator of recyclability, the number inside the arrows is actually more important.
Growing up, I remember seeing posters portraying what could and could not go into the recycling can, but I never understood how the chart correlated with the numbers. So, when I decided to start my sustainability project, I knew I needed to make sure I had all the information necessary to take purposeful action. I needed to figure out what those numbers meant.
I quickly learned that these numbers indicate different types of recyclables. These are just general guidelines about what can be recycled, so it’s important to check the local or county guidelines to ensure that the items you are putting out on the street to be recycled actually can be. The variations on what can be accepted in a given area often result from the capacity and capabilities of each recycling center.⁵, ⁶
One type of recyclable that we’ve all had significant contact with is labeled with the number 1, which identifies products made from polyethylene terephthalate (PETE). PETE is one of the most easily recyclable materials and is often found in soda or water bottles. When recycled, it can be made into another bottle, or into polyester fibers for carpet or fleece clothing. It should be mentioned here that PETE-containers release endocrine-disrupting chemicals over time, so a product made out of PETE should only be used once, not refilled and used again and again. A major step we can take to reduce number 1 recyclables is to take a reusable cup or water bottle with us when we’re on the go. After all, washing and reusing are the best options when possible.
Recyclables labeled with the number 2 are products made with high-density polyethylene (HDPE), which is often used for containers that contain bleach, detergent, milk, or hair care products. These containers can also be easily recycled once they have been cleaned. These materials can be remade into bags or other bottles, or into products as diverse as decks and frisbees. It is worth noting that some of the additives in HDPE have never been tested for public safety. Thankfully, new alternatives are being created which have a lower environmental footprint, in terms of how the products and their containers are produced. I will be sharing more about some of these companies and products in the coming chapters.
Number 3 recyclables, made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), are familiar. This material is found in, of course, PVC pipes, but can also be found in furniture, shower curtains, clothing, toys, and packaging. Unfortunately, PVC is very difficult to recycle and is not accepted by most curbside recycling programs. PVC is the most toxic kind of plastic, leaching carcinogens and phthalates, and has been linked to cancer, organ toxicity, reproductive problems, and other significant health issues. This isn’t a material that I want to come into frequent contact with, much less see used for things as innocent as toys. If you are faced with the decision to purchase a product that would conventionally be made with PVC, I urge you to consider whether there is an alternative. While it may be harder to find a shower curtain without some amount of PVC, you can probably find children’s toys without it.
Number 4 recyclables, while less dangerous to public health, have a worrying environmental impact. Low-density polyethylene (LDPE) is used in grocery and sandwich bags, laminates, six-pack rings, plastic wrap, and playground slides. Most of the time, these items can be recycled to become more of the same products. While they don’t necessarily pose a chemical concern to our health, these products break down very slowly if they are discarded and not recycled. Unfortunately, like number 3 recyclables, number 4 recyclables are not widely accepted by most curbside recycling programs. However, more and more communities are working to be able to accept and process them, and some stores will take back their plastic bags. Fortunately, there are many ways to reduce our use of these items in general or substitute them with more sustainable options, which we will discuss in-depth later in this book. And although we may largely be able to switch to alternatives, as someone who grew up using playgrounds with metal slides, I think future generations will appreciate it if we stick with LDPE for playground equipment.
Number 5 recyclables consist of polypropylene (PP) and can be found in products like packaging, clothing, carpets, stationery, rope, diapers, dairy containers, and medicine bottles. Polypropylene has never been tested for public safety, although it is used in products that have close contact with our bodies. As with number 4 recyclables, many communities are working to accept polypropylene in their curbside recycling programs. When properly recycled, polypropylene can be used to make many things including battery cables, brooms, ice scrapers, bicycle racks, rakes, and my favorite, signal lights. Aside from dairy containers, many of these items are never recycled, although they certainly could be. There aren’t many clear-cut alternatives to number 5 recyclables, so it’s best to avoid these products wherever possible and recycle them when we can’t.
Number 6 recyclables are made from polystyrene (PS), which is commonly known as Styrofoam. We find this material in everything from packing peanuts, fast food containers, and meat trays, to DVD cases and insulation. Unfortunately, despite its low weight, it is bulky and extremely difficult to recycle. Polystyrene leaches toxic chemicals for its entire lifespan. Many curbside recycling programs do not accept number 6 items, but those that do, turn the polystyrene into more of the same. This is a material we should replace with more sustainable alternatives. For example, we could use glass, ceramic, or metal cups instead of Styrofoam ones, and shredded newspaper could replace packing peanuts.
Finally, number 7 recyclables are everything else, including combinations of the materials identified above. They are unpredictable to deal with so most curbside recycling programs won’t accept them. Examples of number 7 recyclables are nylon, DVDs, sunglasses, phone cases, and even some bullet-proof materials. The good news is that if you find yourself with a lot of one type of number 7 recyclables, such as DVDs, there may be companies or organizations that will accept and process these items. Some of the materials in the number 7 category contain hormone-disrupting chemicals that can cause infertility and other serious health issues. Whenever possible, it is ideal to avoid number 7 recyclables or opt for longer-lasting, higher-quality items that you’ll be able to use longer.
I found it challenging to keep all of these numbers, categories, and materials straight! I looked online to see if anyone had written a catchy song to help me remember the important things — alas, one has yet to be created. Maybe I will write one in the future for all of us who find ourselves hesitating over the recycling can.
To recap, most curbside recycling programs will accept recyclables identified with the numbers 1 and 2. For items labeled 3-7, it is best to check with your county or other local municipality. They may accept additional categories of recyclables and it is worth checking to make sure you know which ones those are. Ultimately, if you find yourself confused or overwhelmed or just forget what is what, that is okay. I have been there, too. The key is for each of us to take responsibility and make time to check before tossing an item in the trash can. Any small step that we take makes a difference!
Whenever possible, choose and reuse metal and glass materials. If you take plastic, or some other “recyclable,” please dispose of it properly.
In the United States, a recent survey found that while 94% of people support recycling, and 74% say it is a priority, the average recycling rate is still only 34.7%.⁷ This leaves almost two-thirds of potential recyclables heading to landfills, contributing to greenhouse gas emissions, in incinerators, or floating in the oceans as litter. The sad truth is that the average piece of litter will be found within 16 feet of a rubbish bin. Good intentions are certainly important, but only good intentions followed by purposeful action will make a difference.
The average American generates over 4 pounds of trash each day for the landfill. Between take-out dinners, shampoo bottles, convenience coffees, and daily Amazon deliveries, I can see how this is quite possible. Ideally, we can reduce that number by at least the items that can and should end up in the recycling can.
Once I understood the recycling fundamentals, I knew it was time to take the extra step and research for myself what recycling looks like in my county and its environmental impact. As I researched, I was shocked to find out where these materials ultimately end up and how they get there. The journey to my recycling can is just the beginning.
All of the recycling for my county and the surrounding area is transported to Tacoma, a city just outside of Seattle, to be sorted. From there, it is put into bales and sold to domestic and international buyers. If the bale is clean and uncontaminated, the processors are willing to pay a higher price. This leads to a rebate on the county’s garbage and recycling bills. However, if the bale is contaminated or cannot be sold, the processors will want to be paid to take it. If it is not sold, the bale will have to be re-sorted and decontaminated.
Even before my sustainability project, I had heard that if someone neglected to thoroughly clean a container before tossing it into the recycling can, it could contaminate an entire load of otherwise clean recyclables. Ever since I have put extra effort into making sure that the items I recycle won’t contaminate everything else, which, if you’ve ever tried to clean out a peanut butter jar, you know is quite an effort.
Unfortunately, the long journey for my county’s recyclables does not end in Tacoma. The plastic containers (bottles, jugs, and dairy tubs) are taken to a “secondary” facility in Canada to be sorted again. From there, the plastics are sold to manufacturers all over the world. While I’m very excited that recyclables are given a second life, the many steps, the distance traveled, and the energy required is almost overwhelming. To make matters worse, when the price of oil is low, manufacturers are less likely to use recycled plastics and more likely to use virgin plastics.
But wait, there’s more. Some of the paper recycling, food boxes, and cartons are able to be sold to other parts of the state. But the rest ends up in places like India, Malaysia, or other countries in that region — a long way for paper to travel just to have a second life!⁸
The outlook for metal cans is better. They can be recycled repeatedly and will be back on the shelves within a couple of months! I wonder if I’ve ever bought a can that was made from a can I’ve bought before. Tin cans used in my county are processed right here in Seattle. Aluminum cans must travel further and are often recycled in the southeastern part of the United States. While that seems like a great distance, it’s not nearly as far away as Asia!
Aluminum, according to some reports, is the most valuable material in your recycling can. It’s commonly found in beverage and food cans for both man and animals, in baking trays, and of course, in aluminum foil. Sadly, Americans throw away about $1 billion worth of aluminum each year! The demand for aluminum continues to grow and when it is recycled, it saves 90% of the energy that would be used to produce new metals. If you throw away an aluminum can, instead of recycling it, the energy wasted is equivalent to filling the can halfway with gasoline and dumping it on the ground. On the other hand, if that same can is recycled, the energy saved is enough to power a 100-watt light bulb for almost a whole day, power your TV or computer for 2-3 hours, or play a full album on your iPhone. Fortunately, aluminum is a highly recycled material and about 75% of all aluminum processed in the US is still in use. That’s great, but we still have a way to go, because every three months in the US, we throw away enough aluminum to rebuild our entire commercial air fleet.
Glass is another infinitely recyclable material. These recyclables don’t have a clear journey but are usually purchased by a buyer. I found it interesting to learn that the glass is crushed in processing and “is sometimes purchased to serve as an ‘alternative daily cover,’ which is a material placed over the surface of an active landfill to control pests, fires, odors, and blowing litter.” When you consider all the work we do to keep recyclables out of the landfill, it seems painfully ironic that some of these materials end up there on purpose, even if it is to serve an albeit important one.⁹
About 10 million metric tons of glass are disposed of in the US each year, but of the 33% that is sent for recycling, only about 40% of it will actually be recycled. Most of it will be thrown away. The US throws away enough glass each week to fill a 1,350-foot building. In contrast, some European countries, like Germany and Switzerland, have a glass recycling rate closer to 90%. Improper cleaning, cross-contamination, or misplacement into the wrong recycling bin results in a lower rate in the US and other countries. Consumer education and regulations to increase recycling rates could help raise the US and overall world rates to ensure that this infinitely recyclable material has the chance to be so.
As I clicked away from the county website, I realized with frustration that although I knew that the recycling centers weren’t “just around the corner,” I had never stopped to consider that they might actually be “around the world.”¹⁰
The Plastic Problem
While learning about recycling is important, I felt that I needed a deeper understanding of the problem, so I spent some time getting familiar with one of the biggest banes of the sustainable world — plastic.
The first iteration of what we now call “plastic” was created in 1907. As the science surrounding plastic developed, the uses for this material grew. More new plastics emerged in the 1930s and by the 1940s, plastic was being used by the US military during World War II. As a result, plastic production almost quadrupled, from 213 million pounds at the start of the war, to 818 million pounds by 1945. When the war ended, the production of plastic continued to expand.
New York hosted the first National Plastics Exposition at the end of that decade, and thousands of consumers, who were weary of strife and scarcity, came to see how new plastic products could lead to an era of abundance. When the Chairman of the National Plastics Exposition announced, “Nothing can stop plastics,” the excitement was real and palpable. In retrospect, however, we can see how prophetic he was.
In 1955, Life magazine released a story titled “Throwaway Living,” which featured an image of a family throwing dozens of common disposable items into the air while smiling broadly. The article begins, “the objects flying through the air in this picture would take 40 hours to clean — except that no housewife need bother. They are all meant to be thrown away after use.”¹¹ None of the ideas expressed here have aged well. The feature goes on to list the items pictured, ranging from vases to water wings to ashtrays — all meant to be thrown away after use. Just a few decades ago, this was considered to be the height of luxury; to be able to dispose of things once they had fulfilled their purpose. Convenience was king. In many ways, we share this attitude today. Unfortunately, the idea that things can be thrown “away” reveals little about where the “away” is, and how much disposability it can accommodate.
Since the 1950s and the Life magazine feature, 10 billion pounds of plastic have been produced. And production shows no indication of slowing, as half of the plastic ever made has been made in just over the last decade. In 2018, 400 million tons were produced and production is projected to quadruple by 2050. As we’ve learned, some of this plastic gets recycled, but the majority of it ends up in landfills, ditches, oceans, and incinerators, and too much of it is in the environment breaking down into microplastics (we’ll get to that shortly).
The explosion of plastic and its appearance in countless items we buy and use today was encouraged by advertisements like “Throwaway Living.” As the use of plastic grew in those early years, our knowledge of its impact has grown in the more recent ones. Many people consider plastic to be the most scorned material of our day. In fact, American novelist Norman Mailer went so far as to refer to plastic as “a malign force of the universe… the social equivalent of cancer.”
The recycling rate for plastics currently hovers around 14%. That fact, and the fact that only 30% of the plastics that have been made are still in use today, means that innumerable plastic items have been tossed into landfills, dropped along roadways, or left floating in rivers, lakes and oceans. Many of these items will take about 450 years to break down.
People began to wake up to the plastic problem a few decades ago when it was just a fraction of the problem it is today. To compare, the world produced 50 million tons of plastic in 1977, and in 2015 it produced 322 million tons. And we know that most of the plastic produced from 1977 to the present still exists. Yet we continue to produce hundreds of millions of tons of new plastic on top of the thousands of millions already in existence. The plastic and the plastic problem will continue to grow, cumulatively, every single year.
The amount of plastics produced each year weighs about the same as all of humanity. And that’s how much humanity actually weighs now, not humanity at its goal weight. That’s a lot of plastic that will break down, pile up, and wash onto our shores.
Did you know that the equivalent of 5 grocery bags of plastic waste for every foot of coastline currently ends up in the ocean each year? And if we continue on our current trajectory, the amount of global plastic waste is predicted to triple.¹²
Um, yikes.
If plastic pollution isn’t slowed or stopped, by 2050 it will outweigh all of the fish in the ocean combined. Trust me, those sharks down there weigh a lot.
Speaking of sharks, I have long been terrified by the simple fact of their existence. They are a consistent theme in my worst nightmares (so much so that I even check backyard swimming pools before jumping in!). The fact that sharks rarely kill humans has never helped. The number of reported deaths by sharks per year varies wildly, somewhere between 0 and 6 people per year, on average. However, the number of sharks killed by humans is pretty consistent — about 100 million sharks per year. Or about 11,500 sharks an hour. Turns out, we are the real predators. And although the vast majority of those sharks are killed by things other than pollution, it is definitely one of the factors. A research team from the University of Exeter determined that hundreds of sharks die after getting tangled in drifting “ghost nets” and other plastic waste.
The sad reality of how man’s lifestyle impacts marine life does not end with sharks. 54% of marine animals will become entangled in plastic in some form and 100 million will die from plastic pollution each year. Above the water, a million seabirds will die as a result of plastic pollution and it’s estimated that 99% of seabird species will have some form of plastic in their stomachs by 2050.¹³
The plastic dumped in the oceans every year is equivalent to a full garbage truck of plastic being emptied into the ocean every minute of every day, all year. And even if you live far away from the ocean, about 80% of the plastic in the ocean comes from land and only about 20% actually comes from boats and the people on them.
The plastic pollution in the ocean is so prevalent that an average of 46,000 pieces of plastic are floating per square mile of the ocean’s surface. If you’ve ever seen a picture of the earth from space, you know that surface is pretty vast. And the problem doesn’t end at the surface. The book How to Give Up Plastic landed a second staggering blow other than that sent me down the path to my sustainability project when it discussed this topic. It reported that Greenpeace ships, which have been testing for ocean plastics since the 1990s, have been finding ever-increasing amounts of plastic. In fact, “from the frozen Arctic tundra to the deepest trenches in the ocean, scientists have found plastics almost everywhere in the world…”
Microplastics
Plastic isn’t the only problem. It is also the tiny microplastics that plastic breaks down into. Microplastics are pieces of plastic measuring less than 5 millimeters and many can only be seen under a microscope. Recently researchers have even begun talking about nanoplastics — fragments of plastic smaller than 1,000 nanometers. There is no way to eliminate these particles and they will continue to break down into smaller and smaller pieces over time.
As the research by Greenpeace indicates, the problem is widespread. Research done in 2019 found a substantial amount of microplastic in the snow in the Arctic. And the effect of microplastics doesn’t fall solely on the environment.
The average American adult unknowingly consumes about 110,000 particles of microplastic each year, the size of a credit card every week. I definitely didn’t count the 52 credit cards I would be unintentionally consuming this year in my health plan, and I don’t think that it’s in line with any recommended diets. The amount we consume isn’t surprising when you realize that microplastics have been found in beer, salt, seafood, sugar, alcohol, and honey. They also end up on food that was stored in plastic packaging and result in our ingesting the microplastics along with the food.
Not only are microplastics in our food, but 81% of the world’s tap water is also contaminated. Since plastics are generally made from petrochemicals, they easily leech into our water and, from there, enter the food chain. If you drink solely tap water, you may only receive about 4,000 plastic particles from the water you drink. However, if you drink primarily bottled water, you will consume closer to 90,000 plastic particles each year.¹⁴
We even inhale them like dust.
The effect of these microplastics in our body remains to be seen and certainly varies depending on the type of plastic we ingest. However, as Pete Myers, Ph.D., and chief scientist at Environmental Health Sciences has pointed out, “there cannot be no effect.” Like smog in the atmosphere, microplastics are undeniably there, and the long-term consequences to our bodies and our health are unlikely to be positive.
The microplastic problem is the perfect example of how the plastic issue not only affects the planet globally but also affects us individually. We all suffer from the impact of plastic pollution.
Water treatment plants may be able to filter out about 99% of microplastics, but of the 8 million tons of plastic that make it into the ocean each year, they account for approximately one-fifth. They affect marine microorganisms by altering their feeding behavior, reproduction, and larval development, which, through the food chain, can impact the health of the whole marine ecosystem. If microorganisms are consuming plastic instead of the nutrients that they need, the deficiency will multiply up the food chain.
And it does. At least two-thirds of the world’s fish currently suffer from ingesting plastic in some form. But it doesn’t stop there. People will eat those fish or possibly even the bigger fish that ate them.
It is staggering to think of the change plastic has brought on the world in a little over 100 years. While this can be very disheartening, it serves as an important reminder of the great positive change we can make over the course of the next 100 years. Taking intentional action with the goal of making a difference is certainly more work than passively consuming, but at this point, we have few other options.
Humanity has lived without plastic before, and not that long ago. There was a time in our recent past when disposable was not the default and throwaway was not an option. While plastics, and our demand for them, will never completely disappear, we can take a lesson from history, and work to diminish the negative, while maximizing the good, and using what we have learned to create a plan for the future.
Soft Plastic Isn’t A Solution
Plastic bags and plastic film, which is wrapped around products you buy online, cannot just be tossed in the recycle bin. At least, not in most places. But once again, be sure to check your local recycling requirements.
Most plastic bags — like those you get from the grocery store (although hopefully, you won’t continue to use those when you have finished reading this book) or bread bags can be recycled, but not through curbside recycling. Most soft or filmy plastics like candy wrappers, the film from the top of a microwave lunch, or cellophane from a baked good cannot be recycled. They are trash.
If you live in a place that doesn’t accept plastic film in curbside recycling, that’s okay. But it is still important to take the extra step to learn how and where to recycle it — and then take the necessary additional step to follow through. You may know of a local drop-off location for plastic film. If not, you can visit plasticfilmrecycling.org to find a location. Although walking into the local Walmart with a plastic bag full of other plastic bags may feel awkward at first, it will eventually become second nature. And you will appreciate having use of the space under the sink that currently houses an accumulation of plastic bags.
Additionally, please don’t toss soft plastics into the recycling can if you know they aren’t accepted. This is “wishcycling,” which can clog up the recycling machinery at your local processing plant and cause other, potentially larger, issues.
Wishcycling
When you toss something into the recycle can, more out of a hope that it will be recycled rather than knowing that it will, you are wishcycling. This practice is also known as aspirational recycling. While innocent on the surface, wishcycling can be dangerous and detrimental. An entire load of recyclable materials may end up in the landfill because of one misplaced item.
Unfortunately, this is a pretty prevalent problem. The National Waste & Recycling Association reports that contamination rates are around 25 percent. Recycling centers can sort recyclables from non-recyclables, but this extra work leaves them with trash to deal with.
Contaminants could be the plastic film mentioned above, paper coffee cups, pretty much any items that aren’t cleaned properly, or even perfectly good recyclables disposed of in a plastic bag.
This is important! Don’t put your recyclables inside a trash/plastic bag. Or at least, don’t try to recycle them that way. Recycling numbers exist to help determine what should be put in your recycling can — and what shouldn’t. Always do a quick search to determine which numbers and other materials are accepted in your neighborhood recycling program.
If you aren’t sure if something should go into the recycling can, check. Lots of materials can be recycled, but not through curbside recycling. Tossing these items in the can would definitely be wishcycling. Instead, search your local area for programs or places that accept these items for recycling. And if you can’t find a way to recycle them, unfortunately, it is probably best to toss them into the trash can. They will probably end up in a landfill but won’t take a load of recyclable material with them.
The more often you come across something to dispose of, the more sure you will become of how to properly dispose of it. And that is also the perfect opportunity to consider reducing your use of that recurring product, item, or material, if possible.
The Cycle
Before we dive into the rest of the year, and all the things that I learned and did throughout my sustainability project, I wanted to take a minute to share about the “cycle.” Once a product has been manufactured and sold, I think of it as having joined the cycle of all the other products that exist. We currently live in what is, for the most part, a linear economy. Things are produced, sold, consumed, and then disposed of. Some research suggests that 99% of the items people buy are disposed of within 6 months of purchasing them, and the material is not recovered for reuse.
On the other end of the spectrum is the idealized circular economy which focuses on recovering materials that have reached the end of their current use and preventing excess waste and preserving energy by keeping items in use for as long as is feasible. There are different theories as to how to make this practicable, and theories as to how to enact the different components — energy preservation and management, materials recycling, and so on. On the whole, to transition from the more linear economy that we have now, to more of a circular economy, we need to focus on designing, developing, and distributing products with longevity that can be easily repaired or remanufactured.¹⁵
This is important because a lot of what I have learned about living a more sustainable life comes back to making sure that you are adding as few new things into the cycle (linear or not) as possible, or even as few components as possible. When you use or buy something that has already been used and produced, and thus is already part of the cycle, nothing new is being added.
So many things are bought, used, and disposed of, with no second life or continuing purpose. Thanks to recycling, some materials can be reused or remade into new (or sometimes the same) things. However, when we can make the cycle even more circular and reuse, repair, resell, and recycle, the cycle becomes tighter and fewer things spin out of it into the landfill.
I struggled with this idea at first, because I thought of all the large and small stores across the country, full of products. It was difficult to think that purchasing shampoo in a bar instead of a bottle (fewer waste components produced) could make a difference. After all, someone else would come along behind me and buy the shampoo in the bottle. But I realized that when I don’t buy the shampoo in the bottle, and you don’t buy the shampoo in the bottle, and maybe a few other people who read this book do the same, we are making a difference! We are also sending a message with our money that we want to purchase environmentally friendly products.
Even if you feel as though you are the only one reaching for the sustainable option, paying more for it, and you don’t fully know what impact your choice will have, that is absolutely not a reason not to take action. It will make a difference. It will have an impact! It is one less bottle in the cycle and, ultimately, one less bottle in a landfill.
Recycling as a Long-Term Answer
Unfortunately, recycling is not the long-term solution that we’ve been led to believe it is. Many businesses involved in the plastic industry have invested lots of money to make us believe that recycling is the answer — or at least a big part of the answer. And as long as we believe it is, there will be no reason to look at or address the real issue — the continued production and consumption of plastic. Plastic is less recyclable than we’ve been led to believe, and recycling as a whole is not a sustainable solution. Yes, we need to recycle the things that can be recycled, and we need to make sure that those items are clean so they can be processed properly. But unfortunately, managing the problem is not enough to achieve true sustainability or efficiency in the long run.
As we now know, only 9% of recyclable material is recycled. The other 91% ends up in an incinerator, landfill, or the environment. And much of what is recycled is too contaminated to be properly processed. In early 2018, China stopped accepting all recycled materials with a contamination rate of 0.5% or higher. Unfortunately, even the best processing facilities in the United States have a contamination level of approximately 4%.
