Letter: We should all think before we throw

Posted 1/27/21

All my adult life I’ve been obsessed with trash.

In 1986, as a young, very pregnant woman in Brooklyn, my husband and I went door to door, distributing informative pamphlets in our …

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Letter: We should all think before we throw

Posted

All my adult life I’ve been obsessed with trash.

In 1986, as a young, very pregnant woman in Brooklyn, my husband and I went door to door, distributing informative pamphlets in our neighborhood about the then voluntary recycling program set to begin in New York. At the time, the mantra was — REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE — still good advice to live by.

Every time we buy something, we should ask ourselves, “Do I really need or want this?”, “Can I possibly repurpose something that I already have?” and, most importantly, “What will I do with what’s leftover when I am finished with it?”

Our Ocean State is indeed beautiful, and it is up to each of us to take care of it. The Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corp. (RIRRC) website is an important resource for every citizen, as its A to Z list gives direction on how to responsibly recycle many household trash items that you may have thought were destined for your green bin.

The Phoenix article of Jan 14, pointed out that our town consistently exceeds its limit of trash dumped at the Johnston Central Landfill, which will reach its capacity in less than two decades. I am guessing that the increase in “tipping fees” somehow gets passed on to the taxpayer. It makes sound economic, as well as environmental sense, to examine our trash disposal habits.  

Gently used household items and clothing and electronic waste can be donated at designated drop-offs in the area. Clean plastic bags and film, and some Amazon plastic mailing envelopes, are accepted at supermarkets and big box stores. Styrofoam packing blocks, cups, and meat trays, amongst other items, can be saved up in clear plastic bags and then dropped off at the RIRRC on a road trip to Johnston.

Healthy Soils Healthy Seas RI is a grant-funded project through Clean Ocean Access, whose mission is to create awareness for the ways that we can improve and protect our ocean health. It has partnered with Rhodeside Revival Compost Program, in which, for a reasonable annual fee, you can bring all your food scraps, including meat, bread, bones and citrus, to their drop- off hub sites. “Black Gold,” AKA compost, is then made from your food scraps.

Imagine, no food in your trash bin!

Be creative. Search for ways to lighten the waste load. In these days with the news going from bad to worse, we can feel helpless and discouraged. But, let’s focus on things we can do to make a positive difference.

As I’ve been telling my kids all their lives, “We never really throw things away. We just throw things somewhere else.” Zero waste is an ambitious goal, but one worth working towards.

Jean Sharac
Bristol

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