Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, & Be Resourceful — Creative Reuse and Recycling

We’ve all heard of the three ‘Big Rs’—reduce, reuse, and recycle—established as easy-to-follow guidelines for practical sustainable living. These are so simple, but their value remains relevant. There are so many items that discretely litter our daily lives that do not live up to their potential for creative use, so I’ve added resourcefulness into the mix of the ‘Rs’ to remind us that living sustainably requires a bit of education, effort, creativity, and even personal emotional investment in incorporating these into our lifestyles. Due to my financial duress during the pandemic, and my love for creative thinking, I’ve really gone full throttle with my efforts to be sustainable in as many ways as possible (for myself and the environment), and I’ve discovered so many new ways to save money, get creative, and cut down on many sources of waste. I was also pleasantly surprised at how the fun activity of putting creative thinking skills to the test decreased aspects of my anxiety about the environment that I never thought I’d be able to escape.

Every time I throw something in the garbage or recycling, I vividly picture the amount of space that those items will take up in a landfill somewhere, and I think about the amount of time it will take for those items to decompose and the effects they will have on the surrounding environment. While this isn’t a mood-boosting practice, it has helped me to acknowledge the reality of the waste that I produce and to be proud of my progress in decreasing that waste. I prefer this to the anxiety- and guilt-producing cycles of just buying everything I want, no matter how it’s packaged, and then trying to pull the wool over my own eyes regarding the impact I’m having on the environment. Garbage doesn’t disappear the moment the garbage truck takes it away, and recycling is often not as efficient as we all like to think. In this post, I will focus first on the reality of recycling and waste management, as well as some interesting statistics (since it is something many of us feel we should value despite a seeming lack of education on the topic), and then I’ll share a few opinions and ideas about creative reuse and resourcefulness.

According to an Atlantic article entitled, “How Useful Is Recycling, Really?” “One of the few things Americans largely agree on is recycling. This simple act is popular with Democrats, Republicans, free-market diehards, and environmental advocates alike, data consistently show. And among recycling enthusiasts, one group is particularly keen—people already concerned about climate change” (Source 1). “According to the EPA, Americans are still returning about 68 million tons of raw materials back into the manufacturing market every year. And that means, in the case of paper for example, fewer trees cut down, less carbon burned hauling logs to mills, less energy and water used to pulp those trees and an overall net gain for the environment. Recycling is good. Recycling works. And we need to keep recycling” (Source 2). Leading a sustainable lifestyle doesn’t seem so overwhelming, ambiguous, and unachievable once one begins to understand and prioritize the basics of our waste systems.

“Despite the carbon involved in collection, transport, and processing, recycled aluminum, for example, is about 95 percent less energy-intensive to forge than its raw alternative” (1). That’s an incredible amount of saved energy, and all we need to do is throw our cans in the right bin. “For recycling to truly make an impact, however, it needs to be more effective. In 2018, national rates had dipped to 32 percent of total municipal waste, according to the most recent data available from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—out of almost 300 million tons of waste generated that year, only 69 million tons were recycled. Paper and paperboard are among the more recycled materials, while glass has stagnated at about 25 percent. Plastics recycling rates remain under 10 percent” (1). An NBC article from 2019 states that “while the EPA estimates that about 75 percent of waste produced in the U.S. is capable of being recycled, the U.S. recycling rate has plateaued at about 34 percent — and that hasn’t changed since 2010” (2). “Curbside recycling currently recovers only about 32 percent of what is available in single-family homes, according to TRP. If the remainder were recycled each year, based on calculations through the EPA’s Waste Reduction Model,… that ‘would also reduce U.S. greenhouse-gas emissions by 96 million metric tons of carbon-dioxide equivalent’” (1).

Many people still ‘wish-cycle’ by choosing which items to recycle based on blind hope instead of their local recycling guidelines, which can further hinder the recycling process and contribute to the calamity of landfills. Examples include “foam containers and thin film plastic, like plastic bags or saran wrap, [which] are actually very difficult or impossible to recycle and end up in landfills even if you put them in the recycling bin” (2). In case this important fact was missed, landfills are not cool, and the garbage we produce is going somewhere. “If one million metric tons of waste are landfilled, direct emissions equal about 274,000 tons of CO₂-equivalent” (1). In addition to this, “the average American discards seven and a half pounds of garbage every day, [and] this garbage, the solid waste stream, goes mostly to landfills” (3). A proactive step we can take to help with this problem is to simply look up your local recycling guidelines and put them in a visible location near your recycling bin for easy reference. A little research can go a long way, and we shouldn’t let the basics slip through our fingers and into our Earth.

Since recycling varies so much by locality (hence the strong presence of climate activism in politics), knowing how your local waste management programs work will likely give you some real incentives to participate in or change these programs if you like trees and polar bears. “In regions like Boulder, Colorado and Saint Paul, Minnesota for example, recycling companies are independent non-profits who operate with the mission of recycling as much as they can. But in other parts of the country, especially in East Coast cities like Washington D.C., the recycling system is run by large waste hauling monopolies where the focus isn’t on recycling; it’s on profit… Big companies in places like Washington DC are carting waste to facilities far outside the cities they collect from and then mostly shipping their low quality contaminated processed materials out of the country to China” (2).

One city that is really putting forth a valiant effort, which is paying off for most everyone, by the way, is Austin, Texas. On my visit to the captivating city of Austin last year, I was on the verge of dropping everything to move there, simply because they had such a stellar recycling program. I witnessed the yearly “large waste pickup week,” during which people were able to put furniture, scrap metal, etc. on their curbside for pickup by the respective waste management facilities; for me, it was like Austin turned into the biggest free thrift store I’ve ever seen. Neighbors were able to take the items that they wanted or needed that were no longer desired by their original owners. Austin has even more proactive approaches for ameliorating its negative impacts on the environment, including charging people for the amount of landfill waste they produce in order to promote recycling and composting — genius!

“Though we could be doing a much better job, even a little bit of inefficient recycling is better than no recycling at all” (2). Many Americans believe, “If something is to be done, let it be done right!” Right? I fully support this patriotic value in this instance, but be warned before you single-mindedly embark upon your mission to be the most sustainable person in your neighborhood: “A reliance on recycling… can draw attention away from prioritizing ‘reduce and reuse,’ which do far more to lower emissions” (1). It came as a surprise to me that “a 2020 Greenpeace USA survey found that plastics with resin codes #3–7 are virtually impossible to recycle, because of limited facility processing capabilities and insufficient market demand. Lawsuits are currently ongoing against Walmart and Keurig Green Mountain, arguing that those companies have violated Federal Trade Commission guidance by presenting plastic items as recyclable” (1). Let’s perfect our ability to recycle so we spend our energy creatively reducing and reusing!

One of my favorite mottos for life, instilled by my nature-loving parents, is, “Focus on what you can control,” and while the extension of that motto becomes a bit blurred when it comes to the environment, reducing, reusing, and recycling are all within our practical control. Simply being mindful of waste—integrating more reuse into your daily lifestyle, for example—really is worth so much, but it boils down to lifestyle. “We have to stop thinking that recycling is “enough” when it comes to the planet. In truth, recycling is arguably less important than re-using and reducing. Yes, without question recycling is an essential aspect of a healthy planet and clean environment. But it should also be our last resort… The fewer items you have drop in the recycling bin, the less you have to worry about whether or not those items will be recycled efficiently or whether or not the commodities market is currently demanding them” (2). It all starts with a genuine concern for sustainability, and the rest will start to fall into place as you think about your daily practices within that context.

Recycling starts to blend with the concept of reuse when we consider more than just the bins in our kitchens and next to our garages. Reuse is perhaps better than recycling because it doesn’t require so many extra resources and middlemen for completely creating new products from the remainder of others. Hipsters should get some credit for their frequenting of secondhand and thrift stores. In my opinion, this is one of the best ways to reuse clothing and used goods that are still perfectly functional while saving tons of money, thereby decreasing clothing waste and increasing your chances of finding some really unique, stylish, and storied items. I have seen some mass exchanges of clothing in my life which have resulted in happiness for both parties, and I’ve also seen so much clothing waste as with the excessive production and consumption of special event tees that people wear once and throw away, etc. Furniture and electronics are more items that deserve special consideration for reuse. If you’ve ever taken a trip to your local dump, I wouldn’t recommend staying for more than five minutes unless you have a heart of steel and like to watch people throw giant, beautiful pieces of furniture into a giant demolisher. On the other hand, I try to stay away from the dump because I am always tempted to take the creative material and ‘retro’ goods for projects when I go, although it’s apparently illegal to take things from those beautiful piles of handmade artistry. People throw away some of the most amazing things, hence the idea that one person’s trash is another’s treasure.

While it isn’t likely possible for everyone to salvage or repurpose everything, there is often a sheer lack of effort and thought when the time comes to get rid of items that just make us sick to look at because they’ve past their expiration dates for joy (or literally). Just making an attempt at reuse is worth so much for our environment, as it is an oft-successful way of sparing our landfills from heaps of toxic garbage. Outlets for reuse can include apps such as Mercari or Poshmark for selling clothes (I’ve had a wonderful experience and made a good bit of money with the easy-to-use Mercari app), sites such as Facebook Marketplace or other social media for letting others know about basically any items you may be done with, regifting, and donating to thrift stores. There’s a plenitude of outlets for either selling or donating old items instead of throwing them away, and techniques for recycling or reusing most items are just a Google search away.

I’d like to share some fun and useful ways to reuse everyday items (more points if the items aren’t easily recyclable). As someone who is obsessed with spices, herbs, and essential oils, I have personally gotten a ton of use out of empty spice containers for herbs that I’ve grown and dehydrated myself, such as basil and the lion’s mane mushroom powder I make, as well as for my collection of seeds for gardening. On the thread of gardening, there are so many beautiful jars and containers that can be easily turned into small herb planters or pots. Inspired by our pile of about a hundred egg cartons, which was the centerpiece of our kitchen in Greenfire (our sustainability club at Lawrence University), my family now saves egg cartons and returns them to our farmer friend who provides us with eggs using the reused cartons; many egg cartons are, unfortunately, non-recyclable styrofoam. Glass milk jugs can make a stylish coin bank. Many food containers can be reused as storage containers for leftovers or whatever other random items you may need to store.

If you’re an artsy person, there are unlimited possibilities for creative projects you can make with what would otherwise become garbage, including fabric (if you can sew), things you can paint to make gifts, and other homemade décor (or even furniture like shelves, stools, or lighting, if you’re really handy) that can be a lot cooler than the stock stuff you find at the store. Because we are living in a world with circles of people who are caring more and more about sustainability and reuse, handcrafted projects could also be gifted or sold on a site like Etsy. In short, before purchasing something new from the store, consider alternatives and creative possibilities, because there are a lot of ways to makeshift your own solutions to many problems.

Reduce, reuse, recycle, and be resourceful! If you have any creative ideas for reuse or photos of repurposed items you’re proud of, please leave a comment or click the Contact Us button at the top of the homepage. Thanks for reading, and keep up the love for our world to the best of your abilities!

All the best,

-Josh

Sources:

1. Crunden, E. A. “How Useful Is Recycling, Really?” The Atlantic – ‘Planet’. January 28, 2021. https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/01/recycling-wont-solve-climate-change/617851/.
2. Biba, Erin. “Everything Americans thought they knew about recycling is probably wrong,” NBC News – ‘Think’. April 14, 2019. https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/everything-americans-think-they-know-about-recycling-probably-wrong-ncna994261.
3. “Frequently Asked Questions: Benefits of Recycling.” Stanford University. https://lbre.stanford.edu/pssistanford-recycling/frequently-asked-questions/frequently-asked-questions-benefits-recycling#:~:text=Q%3A%20What%20are%20the%20environmental,and%20reduced%20landfill%20by%2035%25.