Zero Waste Just Got a Little Harder


Let's be honest. I am never going to be completely waste free. I'm not going to have a little jar full of trashy bits that I collected over the course of the year. Mostly because that's bullshit, I mean it's just not realistic. But I've been trying to follow the 5 Rs: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose, Recycle. I've been working diligently on reducing my consumption, but when it comes down to it, it's the recycling portion that picks up my slack. That is, until now.



My city just announced that they are cutting the number of items that will be accepted in their recycling program. In particular, they're no longer taking glass. That may not sound like a big deal, but think about it.

For those of us who switched our lifestyle, opting to buy things in glass containers—because (we were told that) recycling glass was less polluting than recycling plastic, it sort of throws a wrench in the works.

On top of that, the city is taking away all of their recycling drop-off points in our town. Why? Because China stopped buying our trash. And the next country that has offered to buy our trash, charges us for heavier items (like glass). So my city, along with countless others in the country are having to change what they can recycle. To be clear, I don't think China is the bad guy in this scenario. I think political machinations are. If it wasn't China, it'd be the next country we outsource our trash to.

Here's the thing—sure, it may have just gotten a little harder for those of us conscious of or eco-footprints. But how conscious of it were we really, if we were sending our recyclables all the way to China? Seriously, I never thought about it beyond the big truck picking up my VERY full recycling bin every other week. I saw that recycling bin as my duty—an easy thing I could do to help the planet. (Insert pat on the back here.)



In truth, maybe I was fooling myself. MAYBE, the fact that China is refusing our refuse is a good thing—because now, I have to make a choice: Throw glass items in the trash & send it to the landfill, return to plastic consumables (only some of which can be recycled & potentially increase the pollution levels), or just stop buying stuff in packaging.

The last bit sounds extreme, but what do I buy in glass, really? Mayonnaise? I can make that. Salad dressing? I can make that. Spaghetti sauce? I can make that too. Just about everything I buy in glass (or any packaging for that matter), I can make at home with ingredients that use packaging I already reuse or recycle.

Things I Could Make Rather than Buy



Things I Can Grow

  • Herbs
  • Berries / Other fruit
  • Vegetables
  • Beans / Legumes
  • Mushrooms

Stuff That I'll Buy From Local Sources


  • Milk / Butter / Dairy
  • Eggs
  • Meat
  • Fruits & veg that I don't grow
  • Flour / Other Grains (if possible)
  • Honey
  • Soaps & Shampoo bars


Stuff That I'll Continue to Buy From Other (less local) Sources

  • Sour cream (until I can find a local source)
  • Fish 
  • Canned tuna
  • Soy sauce / Aminos / Miso
  • Vinegar
  • Oils—if possible, buy in bulk and reuse glass containers
  • Avocados
  • Citrus (lemons / limes) - if I can't grow them
  • Oats / Flours / Rice / Other Grains
  • Baking powder / soda
  • Nuts—buy in bulk to eliminate plastic packaging
  • Salt
  • Sugar / Brown sugar
  • Maple syrup


So, while I'm not a fan of the policies put forth by this administration, causing ripples throughout the world and harming the environment, it has forced me to step up my game and reduce my reliance on consumer goods.

I don't think I'm the only one facing this frustration or making these choices.

I no longer have faith in our agricultural and food pipeline. I can't in good conscience support corporate farms. I can't support efforts that undermine environmental efforts for financial motives.

And as someone with very little power, there is not much I can do to change the system.

What I can do is choose not to play as big of a role in the structures that were created to benefit from my compliance. I don't have to be a consumer. Or, at least, not as big of a consumer as I have been. I can choose to have a relationship with and buy from local farmers. I can choose to make my own food rather than buy the packaged varieties from the grocery stores. Hell, I can choose to stop buying from national chains altogether and invest in my community instead.

None of it is easy. It all takes a concerted effort on my part, but I'm tired of playing a role in the systems that are causing or perpetuating harm.




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