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How much garbage do you produce each week?

Discussion in 'Anything goes' started by Inky_Wretch, Apr 22, 2008.

  1. three_bags_full

    three_bags_full Well-Known Member

    Most people on post recycle, although I don't think it's mandatory. What I was saying is that it's probably contracted to the town outside the gates.
     
  2. Norman Stansfield

    Norman Stansfield Active Member

    I don't know why, but that's the one item I still find myself never thinking to recycle. It's just become habit to throw it in the garbage, even though there's paper recycling bins all over the office.

    And gotcha, t_b_f.
     
  3. Jones

    Jones Active Member

    It's funny this thread comes up now. There was a story recently in the local paper about a retiree and his wife who put out one bag of garbage... EACH YEAR. It weighs about 4,000 pounds, because he grinds down some stuff into a powder that makes it one dense-ass bag of garbage, but that's all they put out.

    Now, I'm a recycling nut -- everything that can be recycled in our house is recycled, and Ottawa has a pretty good program in place -- but we still put out two bags each week. A lot of that has to do with two kids in diapers (I can't do cloth, as much as I'd like to say I would), but after reading that story about the older couple, I was like, We have to do better about the crap we put out on the curb.

    Now that it's summer, we're going to start composting at least. We don't have a green box program like Toronto, so we'll buy a little thing for our yard and go from there.

    And I will note, not in any kind of accusatory way, that Canada is ahead of the recycling game than most places in the U.S. I think every city of any size here has a recycling program. It's just part of the deal. A can or a bottle in a trashbag actually weirds me out unnaturally.

    A lot of this starts at the, um, start, too -- three Rs are in order of preference: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Consume less in the first place, and less will come out the other end. That's true of your shitpipe, and it's true of your house.
     
  4. Moderator1

    Moderator1 Moderator Staff Member

    When the kids were at home, I couldn't keep up with all of it. Taking trash and recycling to the curb was a project.
    Now that we're empty nesters, I can do both in one trip. One bag of trash, one container of recyclables. Less now that there's no newspaper in there.

    When I checked into my hotel in Toronto some years ago, there were three recycling bins (and a case of Labatts). Only hotel where I've seen that.
     
  5. Inky_Wretch

    Inky_Wretch Well-Known Member

    Get one of the yard composting boxes that are enclosed. It'll cut down on rodents in the yard.

    And no dairy products in it either.
     
  6. 93Devil

    93Devil Well-Known Member

    Jones, you are correct, it does start with your local government.

    In Pennsylvania (where the municipality picks up your garbage and you pay things like taxes) my mom has a regular can and a blue can for all bottles.

    In Virginia, where I work still has a bin for green glass. You have to drive 20 miles to find mixed paper.

    Where I live in Virginia, I drop off mixed paper, 1 and 2 bottles, plastic containers and cans, corrugated cardboard and grocery bags at the Food Lion.

    It all starts with the local government, and at this time recycling costs a public government money. So if you are living in a bottom line, no tax, no fat state or area, recycling is a service you are not going to have.

    Jones, pitch that to your editors. Compare the differing recycling programs across North America. In America, I think you will be shocked at the disparity.
     
  7. Depends if they need a sidebar and a notebook.
     
  8. GoZags!!

    GoZags!! Member

    Nice thread topic.

    We have 4 small bags a week of trash -- grocery-store-sized plastic bags. That includes cat litter cleanup.
    There are 2 in my household.

    We're pretty conscientious. Others in our area are not. Grates on me to be at a friend's house and see them put an aluminum can in the trash ... but what can you say to them in their house? Nothing.
     
  9. mike311gd

    mike311gd Active Member

    I live alone and use plastic grocery bags in place of garbage bags. It's my little part of recycling and saving money -- everybody wins. On an average week, I probably go through three to four bags.
     
  10. Angola!

    Angola! Guest

    I live in a town of 100k in a metro area of 220k and there is no recycling here. They still don't do it in the Boise suburbs either.

    I know in Washington - at least the Seattle area - it is mandatory and you can get in trouble for not recycling.
     
  11. 93Devil

    93Devil Well-Known Member

    Virginia will buy New York City's garbage and dump it in the Northern Neck of Virginia.

    Bring that up to a proud Southerner sometime.

    I have a feeling the more North you go, the more recycling you will find, but that has a lot to do with the taxes assessed. People in the South get what they pay for, and it ain't much.
     
  12. mdpoppy

    mdpoppy Member

    Where abouts in Wisconsin? I'm in the capital city and everything goes in the same bag for me -- no recycling bin outside my apartment.
     
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