Ohh Brother!

After replacing my P-touch label cartridge, I looked at the old cartridge which is made of plastic and wondered if it could be recycled like printer cartridges.  So I wrote Brother an email to ask.  They got back to me right away to let me know that they do have a program to recycle consumables. http://www.brother-usa.com/environment/TonerInkDisposal.aspx

They subscribe to the 5R Concept:

Refuse:  Avoid purchase of environmentally burdensome materials whenever possible
Reduce:  Reduce waste material
Reuse:  Reuse waste material without processing
Reform:  Reuse materials in a different form
Recycle:  Reuse materials as resources

Their program to dispose of toner, ink, and used consumables is very easy.  You print out a free prepaid shipping label, and ship back the toner, ink, or P-touch cartridge.  According to their site, some of the components are remanufactured, some are reused, and unusable items are processed through WTE (waste to energy).

 

As I like to say, it never hurts to ask :)

K is for KleanKanteen (or similar reusable water bottle)

Americans buy more than half a BILLION bottles of water every week! Enough to circle the globe more than five times!   And the funny things is, 1/3 of bottled water is actually filtered tap water, such as Dasani and Aquafina.  Other bottled water, that comes from freshwater springs, rain forests, and groundwater undergoes less testing than your tap water. Yup, that's right, Federal and state regulations require that municipal water sources, ie your tap water, be tested for bacteria hundreds of times per month, yet bottled water plants have to test their water once a week!

So for the convenience of drinking water that is not tested as frequently, we actually pay about $1-2 from vending machines, concerts, airports, etc.  That's about 2000 times more than the water from our own tap.   WHAT!?!  If that sounds crazy, it is!  Would you pay 2000x more for an apple, a banana, or a pizza?

And please don't  forget the plastic bottle that contains the convenient water...Americans throw out 38 billion empty water bottles a year, more than $1 billion worth of plastic. The oil used to make the plastic water bottles is equivalent to the amount of oil and energy to fuel 1 million cars.  And additional energy and fuel is required to ship these bottles around the Earth, and keep the bottled "gold" cold.  Then after all this water is consumed, there is the plastic bottle disposal issue.  80% of the bottles are disposed of in landfills or incinerated (resulting in toxins being released into the air), and it is estimated that it takes thousands of years to break down plastic.  

And if the plastic water bottles are made of oil, what about the chemicals that may be leaching out of plastic water bottles, and ingested?  There has been much press about this issue, and the single use bottles made from #1 polyethylene terephthalate (PET or PETE) are often reused when they shouldn't be.  When reused, they can leach chemicals such as DEHA, a possible human carcinogen, and benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP), a potential hormone disruptor. So unknowingly, by trying to reuse the bottle which you can't clean well enough, you are risking drinking harmful bacteria and chemicals with each sip.

So, bringing your own water on the go is sounding better and better, right?  Much less costly, much less impact on the environment, and healthier....

When choosing a reusable water bottle be aware that many are made of polycarbonate plastic, which may contain bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical linked to reproductive problems and heart disease. Look for bottles advertised as "BPA-free" products, and if you aren't sure, recycle that old plastic water bottle.

While there are many brands of reusable water bottles, I'm particularly impressed with KleanKanteen.com. Their stainless steel water bottles do not have a lining to scratch off, they are free of BPA, phthalates, lead and other harmful substances, dishwasher safe, and I like that the company takes sustainability seriously, and is a member with of 1% For The Planet. In addition, all of their packaging, from the hang tags on the bottles to the boxes and other materials to ship their products, is recycled from post-consumer waste or made from materials certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).  And finally, they've adopted a green shipping program to offset the carbon footprint from all orders placed through their online retail store.

So carrying your own clean "canteen" or reusable water bottle is totally hip and worth it :)  Do your research, pick a good stylish, healthy reusable water bottle, and say yes to your own tap water.  You'll stay hydrated, be saving money, and the planet in the process. 

sources:
http://storyofstuff.org/bottledwater/

http://environment.about.com/od/healthenvironment/a/plastic_bottles.htm
www.thegreenguide.com/'
http://www.nrdc.org/  (Natural Resources Defense Council)

www.kleankanteen.com

recycling on the road

Well, it's been awhile, but we are still thinking and doing green deeds even though it's summer!  We're just back from a trip to the Jersey Shore, we had great weather and fun on the boardwalk, rides, at the waterpark and of course the beach.  Too bad we had obnoxious teenage neighbors above us who disturbed our sleep each night at horrible hours!  But we didn't let them ruin our fun :)  

So while we were on vacay we continued to recycle the items that NJ recycles such as cans, bottles, and glass. However, it just didn't feel right to toss out the cardboard and paper goods, juice boxes that need to go to Terracycle, and aluminum foil from our lunches on the beach...so we brought them home and recycled them here!  I drew the line at the compostables though and they did not make the trip home :) 

It's Official

It's Official!  I'm an eco-geek :)  We were out running some errands and we ended up eating dinner out at Panera; our lemonades came in plastic cups...sigh...At the end of the meal as we prepared to leave, I realized that the 6 plastic cups would end up in the trash.  So....I poured the ice into the bowls, and took the plastic cups home and put them in our recycle bins. Funny thing is, the kids didn't bat an eyelash!  I guess they've come to expect my zany eco-idiosyncrasies.

Potato, Po-ta-toe, Tomato, To-ma-to

You say potato, I say po-ta-toe, tomato, to-ma-to....let's call the whole thing off...or not!


So I've blogged several times about one of my pet peeves, packaging, and the amount of packaging that ends up in the trash....http://peaceloveplanet.blogspot.com/2010/04/talkin-trash.html and http://peaceloveplanet.blogspot.com/2010/04/packaging-pet-peeve.html

and I've shared how some packaging can be recycled and also benefit a charity such as Nature Conservancy, via Terracycle, http://peaceloveplanet.blogspot.com/2010/04/time-has-come.html .  When I contacted our local recycling company, and was told that frozen food bags could not be recycled, and many other types of packaging, I didn't want to take "NO" for an answer...so I took it one step further and contacted Ore Ida, which is owned by the Heinz Company (clever since you need ketchup with your french fries!!!) to ask if their packaging was recyclable or not.  They did get back to me, and here is an excerpt from their response to me, 

     "The packaging of the Ore-Ida Potatoes is not recyclable. It is made of composite plastic to allow it to be strong and flexible in the freezer environment.

  

    We support the use of recyclable materials.  Unfortunately, there are currently few acceptable materials available that meet the stringent requirements of food packaging and still fewer systems in place to utilize the end recycled material."

I was happy to hear back from them, yet their materials are not recyclable?  Why can't a composite material be recycled, that makes no sense to me.  What is in it that can't be recycled?  I mean our recycling is plastics 1-7...I hope I can get additional information.  I'll keep you posted. 

Avatar

I finally watched the movie Avatar, and it was much different than I had imagined.  I actually liked it!!! Not for the animation or cinematic reasons (but I did find it neat how the actors and animations were combined, and appreciated the anti-war message), but for the deeper message about Mother Earth, how all organisms are connected, how we need to protect the planet we inhabit, and work together to keep our planet healthy.  

Can you imagine if those who rape the rainforests and natural resources of the world felt those actions acutely in their own souls?  

Can you imagine if each and every individual had to stop and think before using resources, and think about the impact it has on the common good?  

For example, can you imagine if and when a person decided to use a papercup, or tissue that the pain and sorrow of the tree that was sacrificed to make the items was felt by the human race?  If oil that is sucked from the Earth to make various plastics, styrofoam coffee cups, plastic grocery bags, gasoline, oil to heat our homes, etc. was felt as though we were giving our own blood?  If we were connected to our planet as intimately as the Navi people are to Pandora, we would defend and protect our planet, and consciously make good decisions instead of wasteful ones.   Our decisions would lead to peace, serenity, and a healthy planet and World. 

I applaud director James Cameron for the messages he has woven throughout Avatar.  To quote Cameron, "Avatar asks us all to be warriors for the Earth. This beautiful, fragile, miracle of a planet that we have right here is our land. Not ours to own, but ours to defend and protect."  Here's to Peace, Love, and our Planet!  Bravo! 

Some Serious Green

Some serious GREEN.....

The time has come for companies to step up their game, for marketers to generate new markets for even more recycled goods, for manufacturing experts to make things with less packaging, the least environmental footprint, with the least waste, and in the process make some serious green$$$!!!

At our house, we recycle as much as we can, yet there is not a market for some of the plastics that we should be able to reuse/recycle...look at all the plastic packaging I've collected.  I contacted our local recycling company, and was told that it can not be recycled, but has to go in the trash!  

However, we know that sustainable packaging is possible, and that biodegradable packing is possible (SunChips bags).  Unfortunately it is not common practice to have such packaging, and that is a crime against humanity because it all ends up in the landfills creating a toxic soup.    Thankfully there are some companies that have stepped up their game to find useful end of life uses for packaging, but we need more of them. 


If you haven't checked them out yet, TerraCycle, founded in 2001 by a 19 year old Princeton University student named Tom Szaky, makes eco-friendly products from varied recycled products.  http://www.terracycle.net/  Things such as Frito-Lay bags, CapriSun drink pouches, Elmer's glue sticks, Nabisco and Keebler cookie packages, etc.  You can join a brigade, collect the items and receive money towards a charity of your choice which can be your school if the school is participating.  Szaky's ingenious idea to upcycle things that would normally end up in landfills is what is needed.  Now to get TerraCycle to take some more "waste" like plastic bags from frozen foods, plastic cereal bag inserts, etc.  I've already sent them some ideas, we'll see what they think.  

Some interesting statistics from TerraCycle:

• people collecting trash  9,639, 059
• waste units collected 1,821,678,773
• products from waste 178 
• money for charity $829,462.19

Now that's some serious GREEN for charity!!!

Packaging pet Peeve

Ok, I guess I'm peeved about packaging overall!  

There is sooo much waste involved in packaging, and honestly I think other consumers are annoyed with the excessive packaging as well.  Most of the packaging is plastic, and that comes from oil, which is of course a non-renewable resource and our oil dependence is ridiculous as is.  I wonder how many pounds per person per year is wasted on packaging...and I'm willing to bet a majority of that packaging is overfilling the landfills and eventually leaching all kinds of toxic nasties into the groundwater and soil.  

I will admit that I am anal about recycling the plastic and cardboard bits, but honestly some of the plastic packaging doesn't have a symbol on it, and I put it in the the recycle bin anyway since our recycling company takes plastics 1-7.  I've begun making a bit of a pest of myself contacting the company when I'm uncertain about things such as the inner cereal box bags....can I recycle it without clogging up the system?  If not, then perhaps my next step will be to contact the cereal companies to tell them my concerns.  And why not?  In the last month or so, I've researching sustainable packaging and sustainable packaging coalitions.  I've also been contacting other companies to let them know if their product has too much unnecessary packaging, and to let them know about alternatives that are less toxic (eco foam), and the benefits of less packaging such as less shipping costs.  Who knows, maybe my pet peeve about packaging will somehow make a difference? 

Schools need to learn/teach more about recycling - Day 12

Ok, so it makes NO sense that in the kids' lunchrooms they do NOT have recycle bins! What kind of example is that? Why wouldn't they have bins? No one wants to empty them? I mean it would cut down on the amount of garbage, and that would save the schools money. They do recycle paper from the classrooms, so why not plastic bottles, yogurt containers, fruit cup containers, plastic spoons etc? I mean most families recycle in our town, so the kids already know the system, and if they DON'T recycle at home, they should....those that didn't already know about recycling could LEARN it at school and teach their families. Hmm I wonder how hard it would be to convince the schools to recycle?