The Coffee Cup Saga - To Compost, To Recycle, or To Landfill? What is REALLY happening?

I don't buy Starbucks coffee. Yet, I some how get intertwined in figuring out what the heck is going on. 

I do not enjoy their coffee, but more importantly, I do not agree with their practices (how they source their coffee), and their misleading methods and greenwashing - i.e. having bins in their stores to "take-back" their coffee cups, but having them merely end up in the landfill. 

Photo: starbucks.com

So, while these unaware citizens happily place their disposable, plastic ridden, petroleum lined cup in the bin, feeling good because they recycled....the truth is much harder to swallow.

To be fair, it's not just Starbucks, it's all coffee places where they do not have compostable cups but we think somehow they are being dealt with responsibly. 

Of course bringing ones own cup is the best option. But....what I think is scary is thinking we're doing good when we're not doing anything but the same, but only appears different. 

How do we change when we don't even know? When are a blinded and seduced into thinking we are "doing the right thing"? 

How do we get the word out? 

I just played the ol' rigamarole on the phone, being transferred from one person to another, as Starbucks failed to answer my, what I assumed were simple, questions:

1) Where do the cups go that are put in the "take-back" bins that I've seen in stores? 

2) They are meant to be recycled, but are they? 

Below is another exchange I had with them in 2013 but I had one again today, as I look for options for a client that comes into contact with a lot of Starbucks cups. It's frustrating how hard it is to find answers to such seemingly simple questions. Talking to multiple people at head office who are confused and dumbfounded as I ask, again, what I thought were pretty basic questions. 

Why weren't these questions answered from the get-go? As design was taking place? Why was this not on the minds of those who were birthing this? Shouldn't this be the most important thing we consider before we pump a product out into the environment, especially one that's getting consumed so rapidly and being tossed "away"? ....Surprise, there's no "away".

I'd love to tell my client, replace the Starbucks bistro with a local, organic, fair trade alternative....and, you know, I will suggest that...because then, we can be supporting local business, using compostable cups, or heck even refusing to serve in disposable cups - as one brave coffee company did in the US. Much respect their way. 

Maybe they won't take my recommendation, but I sure as heck won't be recommending they put in a bin that "take's back" Starbucks cups, only to then have them dumped into the same bin that garbage is...hauled away by the garbage truck. That's just misleading. 

Why are organizations not held accountable to this? Not liable to this? This is misleading the public. 

Source:Sudhasrinath.blogspot.ca/2010/04/
starbuck-left-me-aloneand-they-say-dotn

Another interesting thing? MMBC now accepts Starbucks (and other) coffee cups in your blue bins as a Metro Vancouver resident (and other areas I believe too). But are they actually being recycled? 

It seems odd to me that they are accepted residentially, but not commercially. Why are they not accepted commercially? Because no recycling facilities exist. But recycling facilities, whether for commercial or residential are all the same - all stuff comes to the same spot...so what is going on? What is  actually happening? I have my ideas, but plan to find out for certain. 

What I do know is, we really need to stop blindly enforcing rules, and actually start asking questions, and following through on those.....what's the point otherwise? 

It is my goal to research this further, look deep into it, and ask more questions - ask the companies, ask the haulers, ask our city councillors and other people involved in these regulations and mandates....do they realize how they play out in the "real world"? 

You can help too! Start asking questions, if you've already been asking them, great! Ask more! Or ask your friends to ask, too....! I don't think it's possible to ever ask enough questions (and that goes for all things in life, by the way). 

Pop into a Starbucks and see if they know what happens to the cups? Then share what you find out. 

Tweet @Starbucks and @RecyclingInBC @MultimaterialBC - ask them what's going on.

Gotta get the word out...... To be continued. 

Email response from CSR at Starbucks - Click to enlarge

If you can't read it in the image, here it is transcribed: 

Greetings Jocelynn!

Thank you for contacting Starbucks.

Thank you for your interest in our recycling processes.  Our disposable hot cups are made out of 10% post consumer recycled fiber for hot cupsused in the U.S and Canada.  I'm not sure if the wax lining is petroleum based or vegetable based, but the hot cups do contain an inner polyethylene lining which offers the side and bottom seam seal when heated.

As for your inquiry about the disposable cups being compostable or not, our cups are not rated as compostable by the Biodegradable Products Institute or Cedar Grove Composting.  However, in some areas local composters will accept our hot cups even though they have a plastic coating.  Your best bet would be to ask your local composting hauler to confirm if they will accept them or not.  Clean cold cups may be accepted for commercial and/or residential recycling, but again, please check with your local hauler for confirmation.

Regarding the actual recycling process, and what the cups eventually become as the end result of the recycling process, we generally have no control over that aspect.  Most of our stores are located in shared spaces like malls, where it is often the landlord who controls waste collection and recycling, not Starbucks.  For more information on this please visit  http://www.starbucks.com/responsibility/environment/recycling.

Thanks again for writing us.  If you ever have any questions or concerns in the future, please don't hesitate to get in touch.

We would love to hear your feedback. Click here to take a short survey.

Sincerely,

Shana G

customer service

Received: 7/25/13 8:55:00 PM MDT
To: <info@starbucks.cust-serv.com>
Subject: Corporate social responsibility

Hi,I'm both personally interested, and on the green team at work and have a few people ask me every now and again at work....and in general, I've been having this conversation/debate with people for a while now... I'm hoping someone can provide me with the answers! It is with regards to your disposable cups! 1) what are they made of? i.e. a % of post-consumer recycled paper, and new paper, and is the wax lining petroleum based or vegetable based? 2) this leads me to my next question which is - can they be composted? My rule was "if you can rip it, you can compost it" ...I can rip starbucks cups... so I've been composting them, BUT not in my own place, I compost by taking my stuff to a drop spot (I have a worm compost too but, the cups don't make it in there)...so I have not yet had a chance to see if there is any plasitcy residual upon composting... can you provide any insight? 3) lastly - what do you do with the cups you recycle in your stores - i.e. those blue bins you've put out, where it notes the cups get recycled - could I please have information on what that process is? how they are recycled, where they are recycled, and what the end recycled product is? Thank-you!

Hide the garbage cans - the rest will follow aka 100% ZERO-WASTE Events

YEAR 1 (for me) - 2013

The Neighbour Savour IV Potluck was set to occur October 8, 2013 from 6-9pm. This year, I noticed that in the event write-up, the words Zero Waste appeared, that of course caught my eye! I was delighted to attend, especially because I saw the words "Zero-Waste" appear in the title.

I was excited to see how the evening would unfold, and how zero-waste would be approached - as the concept can have varied meanings for many people.

There were re-usable cutlery, ceramic plates, glasses, and mugs - a sure sign we were off to a good start. But then it came time for clearing the plates. I realized quickly that there was no spot for compost and my heart broke. I quickly decided I'd convert the glass container I brought my potluck item in (as it was now empty), into a compost holder, surely we wouldn't have that much assuming none of us were wasting food on our plates!

Unfortunately, someone thought that was a dirty bowl that needed washing, depite the sign next to it which read "Compost", dumped it in the garbage, and proceeded to take it to the kitchen. I had walked away and was cleaning up other stuff so I was not there to witness this or of course I would have explained the situation. But as I walked up to check on the scene, this is when I noticed my bowl was gone, and there was a lot headed into the garbage!

Asking people if they knew where it went, or what was going on, I was matched with looks of confusion and chaos as if I was speaking a different language. This confused me utterly because generally folks at a Village Vancouver event, especially one with Zero-Waste in its title would be more aware than most....

Long story short - I ended up taking the garbage  bag home with me (and to be fair, 1 big black garbage bag for 200+ people isn't so bad but....of course we can do better!)....and sorted it at home.

My roommate certainly wondered what the heck I was doing but she knew me well enough by now to not be too shocked to see me walk in the door with garbage - most people leave their front door with garbage.... I like to do things a little different. Actually I don't like it.....because it is the result of humanity being on auto-pilot, and of course it's entirely unsustainable for me to take garbage home, sort it, and clean the recyclables (waste water, no less)  that have been soiled with food waste.

Here are some pictures, diversion rate after I was done with it? 100%....

For comparison sake, what's Metro Vancouver's diversion rate, you ask?

The stats I have, as at the most recent Sustainability Breakfast in Dec 2014, showed a current diversion rate of 60%, which they would like to be at 70% by 2015 (I guess that's this year...felt a lot further away in December 2014), and 80% by 2020.

While it sounds admirable, I say...we can do better Metro Vancouver! Why not aim for 100%? Even if we don't reach it, isn't it better to have a goal of 100%? I think so! And 100% IS possible, I live it every day (so do the other members of the collective house I'm living in), and we did it at these events, too.  Photo evidence, below...it IS possible!

This was the bag that came back home with me. We rode the bus together, along with my friend Peter. A great zero-waste ally. 

Boo was my little helper. She is a zero-waste kitty warrior. :)

This is showing the contents now diverted, bag emptied (was washed to be re-used, as you can see foodbits in the bottom), and the food waste to the right, which was taken to the compost. 

Had this all been sorted before it hit the "garbage", it would not have required as much washing - which is of course why proper set-up is key!

 Here's what we ended up with when all was said and done.

Here is everything that was generated at the event - so all in all a very small load which is great! In large thanks to the re-usable dishware/cutlery. But ALL of it can be diverted from landfill, 100% diversion rate. The plastics/foil-lined/unnumbered hard plastics, and numbers that city doesn't take went to Pacific Mobile Depot through Village Vancouver monthly plastic drop-spot, The remainder composted and that's about it!  

YEAR 2 - 2014 - Better Equip, Lessons Learned

The following year, Neighbour Savour V, and I was ready. I contacted the crew and let them know I'd take the reigns to create and manage a zero waste station. I know what we went through last year, and I didn't want the same thing to occur.

Having these re-usable plates and cutlery is incredibly key! (We did have these last year, too!)

Got there early, and set-up shop, having the help of my good friend was incredibly useful too, her and I sat there a good portion of the night and helped people sort their materials into the proper bins. I also went back and forth into the kitchen to explain that soft plastics with food had to be first rinsed/washed before we could recycle them.

The ultimate step 1? Hide all garbages.  I can't stress this enough. When people cannot find the garbage then they start to think "what can I do with this?" They usually find a better solution to the auto-pilot garbage bag toss. We have become so accustomed to tossing stuff that when a garbage is present, even if it's next to a recycling bin and a compost bin, it will, more often than not, end up in the garbage....we get on auto-pilot, too many other things running through our minds. I get it. So just hide the garbage cans and it will save you a tonne of frustrations and grief.

Our zero-waste station. My friend and I sat on either side, and helped people when they came with materials to renew. 

I made signs for the station, but I made signs in other places too - the bathroom, for paper towel (ideally we'd have a re-usable towel roll, or mini hand towels but we worked with what we had).

This was in the upstairs bathroom (the only one I thought existed until mid-way)

Where the garbage used to be, I put this sign as I figured folks may have remembered from last year a garbage here. 

Shhh, don't tell: Garbages were sill around, (in the below photo they are at the very back and to the left), but no-one will search that hard for a garbage....however, just in case.... I put a little sign on it. Gotta play it safe. 

Garbages hidden? Check

It wasn't until mid-way through, as people started showing up, I learned there was another bathroom, downstairs, this time, genders were seperated. So, I made some signs, ensured the men's was clear and replaced the garbage with the compost collector. :) Phew, close call!

 So - what did we end up with?

City recycling (blue bin, and yellow bag), compost (green and white buckets), and one bucket of soft plastics/foil-lined recycling to go to Pacific Mobile Depot. I was able to take the recycling, and compost as I was living super close to the hall at the time, and Ross was able to take the soft plastics. Thanks Ross! 

A BIG thank-you to everyone who attended the event, used the system in place, and participated in a zero-waste potluck. We couldn't have done it without you! 

200+ people served. 

ZERO-WASTE. 

That's how it's done, yo, that's how it's done. 

Here are some other photos from the Green Party Gala - 2014 Fundraiser; also a zero-waste event. Warms my heart! :) Especially nice to meet and work with the event coordinator who was equally as passionate and dedicated to zero waste as I am - what a treat! 

Garbages? Hidden

Diversion Rate? 100%

...And, of course, Elizabeth May - doing her thing. :)

Loving our mother, earth.

EDIT: reading The Upcycle completely re-opened my eyes, and reminded me that....we don't need to live under the fear of "not enough" or, we have to "minimize our use", when we are working within systems that are interconnected, and regenerating - think: Permaculture. If the water in the shower is heated by our Sun, and then used multiple times before re-entering the traditional water treatement system (i.e used again in the sink, or toilette, then pipped out into the yard where you have a natural grey water treatement area, and the water can then be filtered and soak into your food forest....well that is a completely different story than single use, and water heated by non-renewables...)...just sayin ;)

I recently had a conversation with someone about give and takes re: the environment, and they mentioned that they just loved to take long showers and they were not going to give that up,  it was what they did, they loved them, and it was one area they were not willing to "compromise" in..... but there were other areas they did better in, so, they figured, it all balanced out

I've heard this type of thing more than once, and in fact it tends to be a pretty common thing that comes up. In the moment I've always tended to express gratitude for what they did do, and sort of let the other piece go unsure how to truly handle the comment, feeling uneasy about it but not really sure why, or how to articulate it. 

Here are my thoughts......

It makes me think about how disconnected we are and how we still think of these types of things in terms of "compromise", or "giving something up", as seperate than ourselves. That if we want to be turly "enviro", we have to stop the things we enjoy and to stop all of that would be impossible so we must choose a few.

I am definitely pro taking baby steps, changing one thing at a time, then adjusting your lifestyle around that new change, integrating it, then taking the next thing. And, I recognize it can be very daunting to change everything at once....however, I guess I see that as a continual cycle of change - and maybe even something you changed in the beginning, you may get new information and it causes you to change further down the road....this process to me is not static. Yet in the aforementioned conversation ones mind already appears made up.

To me, what's truly going on here is that we are seeing the issue from an outdated paradigm/mindset. In fact, when you truly feel love for someone, it becomes natural to not want to hurt them. Thus, when we truly feel love for our earth, our mother, to hurt her would not feel right.

This is simply what happens when we love someone, and it's actually quite beautiful how it works.

Where you once maybe got enjoyment from an activity, you now don't because in the very depth of your being, you comprehend that it causes harm, and ultimately, that creates a sense of cognitive dissonance inside us - or....in layman's terms, a feeling that doesn't sit quite right. Usually ones behavior is adjusted accordingly, because we have a desire as humans to not feel this sort of uneasy feeling. We naturally want to feel good - makes sense.

And I think we incorrectly assume that we will feel bad, or limited if we cut certain things out because we think of it only from one direction, from one point of view - of what we are "losing", but we don't think about what we gain, and the feeling we feel when we do what's right for what we love. It might seem counter intuitive for now but actually, we feel good once we stop it, not sad that we don't have whatever it is anymore.

When we love someone, we don't make these sorts of calculated responses.

"Suppose she goes into anaphalcctic shock, well there is a hospital she can go to right, and what are the chances she would die? I can probably keep peanuts around?"

"Well, my mom can't breath properly when I spray this hair spray in the air and it makes her wheeze for days, but I really love this hairspray, nothing makes my hair look as good, and well, I make her breakfast on weekend so, it all balances out right?"

We likely wouldn't even think to this point, our emotions, our feelings, our bodies would speak, they would take over before we started to analyze it because the moment we saw we were hurting someone we loved, we would feel that pain inside, and want to change to remove that pain...and the joy derived from that item, or activity would cease to exist the moment we learned it hurt our loved ones.

When did we lose our deep love for our planet, our mother, our only home, and all our fellow inhabitants - that which gave us life? This very life we're living, The life that allows you to read these words on this page and comprehend.

It's not that I have to tell myself a stern"NO" every moment, that actually, I really want to be doing all these things but I "know" they are wrong and harmful to the environment so I stop myself. It's that I literally do not seek any enjoyment from these things anymore, and in many cases it hurts to do the wrong thing....and not from a place of guilt or shame, but from a place of love. 

For example, if I had to throw compost in the garbage (or anything in the garbage) I would feel tense inside. Why? because I know this isn't the place it belongs, and the only reason I'd be doing it is likely because I don't have time to sit down and seek out where it's proper place should be (i.e. search online what to do with random items I have no idea how to recycle,  or find an artist who may want this item to incorporate into art....as some examples).....and while time does feel very real and has very real implications in our current society, nature does not function on that same time scale...but I digress, because now this could lead into the philosophical realm and I'm trying to keep this grounded (for now). 

People often say "oh just throw it out, it won't hurt...." or "you do so much for this planet already, you can slack a little here" it's getting back to the justification type, wrong or right mentality....but it's not about that, it's not about weighing out the good and the bad - it's about listening to what feels right inside.

I have told people, when asked, that I don't think I would enjoy attending large music festivals anymore because I'd bare witness to all the carelessness, wastefullness, litter and general disregard, and this would quite literally, break my heart. And I should add that large music festivals are things that used to bring me a lot of joy (or so I thought). I went to Sasquatch music festival a few years in a row back when I was younger and loved it so much...but I've changed....the joy doesn't come anymore, because what is in the forefront is the pain I feel. And what's different is it's internal now, not just external. Whereas before I noticed the garbage and thought about it...I now feel it. To me this makes sense, we're all deeply interconnected, and when we hurt the one we love, we hurt too.  Now, some would look at that and say "wow, she is really missing out on life, because she's too intense, just relax, be casual about it"... but to me, I don't see it that way.

How do I see it? 

While it's true, I don't derive the same enjoyment out of activities and items that I once used to, this is only unfortunate if we stop right there. When you take it a step further you see that while  I may not have "fun" like the mainstream world has fun right now, I have ventured down a path that brings me many joyful moments, and honestly they feel more full of joy because I don't have to deny any part of myself while doing them (the part that would know deep down this is wasteful, or wrong, or harmful to mother nature)....it's pure bliss.

So what I wonder is..... where did the love go and how do we get it again? How does love form? 

A little soap for thought - i.e. toxins in our "beauty" products....it's time to just say no! (part 2)

So, as a continuation to my previous blog entry, re: one of the two soaps I found in the blue bin.... while rinsing it out, and combating the quick forming headache from inhaling the scent....I decided to peer at the ingredients just for fun! 

Let’s look at the ingredient list – for those who can’t see it well in the photo (i.e. probably everyone as it's incredibly hard to read and there is glare) I will list it out…prepare yourselves….

First, they let me know that I should not put it in my eyes, but they also try to minimize the effect that that statement has by prefacing it with “as with any soap”…However I gotta be real here for a second, if I put my limited ingredient, non-sketchy toxin bar soap in my eye…it doesn’t burn, I mean it feels a little funky but all in all it’s okay…and I've had Dr.Bronners in my eyes before too, accidentally of course, and it’s been fine..so I’m not sure it’s fair to tell the consumer “as with any soap”…that’s a touch misleading don’t you think? I know of many soaps that won't cause such shenanigans. 

I digress…they go on to share with me the chemical concoction they’ve mixed (i.e. ingrediants) to create this headach inducing liquid soap…the flavour? Vanilla and brown sugar….eliciting in my mind, of course, nice vanilla bean, and some traditional brown sugar…well, that was before I knew the truth...now products like this just make me shudder, both metaphorically, and literally...and extra literally because of the weird neuro-toxins in them.....

Aqua, sodium C14-15 olefin sulfonate, lauramide DEA, sodium chloride, cocamidopropyl betaine, parfum, DMDM hydantoin, citric acid, tetrasodium EDTA, polyquaternium-7, glycerin, PEG-7 glyceryl cocoate, benzophenone-4, hydrolyzed silk, aloe barbadensis leaf juice, yellow-5, red 33.

The bolded ones are some of the sketchier ones that are on lists of ingredients to absolutely avoid. Among the bolded ones above, are formeldyhyde releasing preservatives (DMDM hydantoin - which got a rating of 7 on EWG and noted as a *high hazard*, and petroleum based compounds which can cause a number of issues – skin sensitivity, and also the petroleum ones (PEGs) lead to promotion of greater absorption of the product which …which it’s super sketch when we're talking about other toxic ingredients. I don't know about you but I'd rather not have those get into my body/blood stream. 

The only ingredient I feel fully comfortable with and even then I’m questioning its source, and quality (i.e. is it organic?) it is the aloe leaf juice.

First of all, I understand only one of the ingredients,  second of all, numbers in ingredients (e.g. yellow -5) always freaks me out, third I made soap before, and I have news for all…you do not need such ridiculously toxic ingredients to make your soap. Of course not all the ingredients in that soap are notoriously bad, but some are super sketch, and I think that even just one super sketch one is enough for me. Things also change drastically when we consider that we don't just use one product, once a day...we use a number of products, multiple times per day - that's a lot of exposure....and products don't necessarily get tested from an accumulation point of view. Go figure. 

Compare this to Dr. Bronners – my favourite liquid castile soap around, especially since I can re-fill it and not contribute to excessive plastic bottle waste in this world!

Aqua, cocos nucifera (coconut oil), potassium hydroxide (none actually remains after saponifying oils into soap and glycerine but they are required to say it anyway), olea europaea (olive) oil, cannabis sativa (hemp seed) oil, simmondsia chinesis (jojoba) oil, menthe arvensis extract, menthe peperita (peppermint) oil, citric acid, tocopherol **all are certified fair trade, and certified organic except the last two ingrediants. 

Look at all those different oils – ever wonder why your hands are crazy dry? A lot of the toxins in the former soap (Soft soap), are ridiculously drying…hemp, jojoba, olive, coconut...all great oils for the body.

Long story short, read your ingredient list! If it sounds sketchy, it likely is. Here are some resources to use when unsure as I don't deny, it can be quite overwhelming...but definitely worth the research. 

1.  Environmental Work Group - they have a number of consumer guides on what to choose in certain categories – i.e. cleaning products, sunscreens, they even have a mobile app! There is one specifically on cosmetics (skin deep) and you can actually search based on chemical too so that is SUPER helpful!! – a great one to check out.
2. Goodguide  – not all products are up there, and not all information is available, but it can be helpful if the info is available. They rate products on health, environment, and society so that’s pretty cool. It takes a lot of the burden off the consumer as they’ve done a lot of testing already. For example, I looked this particular soap up, it's not the exact one as they don't have it, but in general similar soaps get a rating of  6.2 (note, too, that that would likely be lower if ingredients were included, under health it says “product has insufficient ingredient information”  - so maybe in this example this isn't the best for all products, but it’s generally a pretty good reference for most things, or high level information/comparatives.
3. I also kept in my wallet as I was learning all this new info, super helpful when going into a shop to acquire a new products as a replacement of an old sketchy one, a print-out of Gill Deacons handy wallet size of “best brands” and “toxins to avoid” found here , as well as a few more I wrote down based on other readings – David Suzuki’s Queen of Green came out with a publication as well, to let us know more about what these toxins truly are and their effects The Dirty Dozen,
4.  There is also the book – Slow Death by Rubber Duck which actually started this action in me the summer of 2010 after reading it. I headed straight to my bathroom and started looking at all my products and thought WOW….they ALL have sketchy stuff in them. I saw for a moment, surrounded by my million and one products catered to my perceived “specific” needs…curly, frizzy, de-frizz, gel, mouse, yadda yadda…I decided I’d cut all this out, but one at a time so it wasn’t as overwhelming (and as wasteful - though there are some products that are simply so sketch that I just recommend saying NO, immediately - e.g. air fresheners or all conventional cleaning products).  My transition ended up being a complete success and a really informative journey, making a drastic difference in my life – i.e. quality of my hair, skin, nails, is fair better…I mean it makes perfect sense too – how can we continually apply chemicals to our bodies and expect there to not be negative repercussions?

So, the next time you have a headache (as I still do now from washing out those plastic containers almost an hour later), while it may be dehydration, lack of coffee, or stress....it might just be because you're been around too many chemicals!

I certainly notice a lot more now that I've cut it out - I liken it to people who smoke, and stop and then try again - their lungs are so much more sensitive, they have lost their resistance - we've all built up a pretty big resistance to chemicals, and until you cut them out and give your body a chance to breath ....you might not notice how much harm you're doing your body.

I’d be happy to talk about this with anyone so just ask, and share too what you have transitioned in your life that you find works great! Having a support network to share in tips and tricks is super helpful when undergoing a purge.

Waste diversion...aka I can't help but look in the bin! (part 1)

Coming home from Groundswell, I came in through the alley as I needed access to our compost since I had brought home our collective food scraps for the week on my bike. If you know me, you know that I can’t be by recycle/garbage receptacles without taking a gander inside…I just can’t.

I found….some binders, a fan that is in incredible condition,  some cords (internet, electrical etc), and a hanger…this was in the garbage. Fun to find, but ultimately sad…sad that people throw this away, especially when it’s in perfect working condition. Anyone need any binders/cables? I think I already found a home for the fan ;). 

In the recycling blue bin I rescued two bottles which had maybe a quarter of their product still inside – i.e. soap. One was a pump bottle for liquid soap which I  was excited about and took since I wanted a bottle to add the bulk liquid soap I got refilled at the Soap Dispensary – I was pretty excited to find this as I really didn't want to buy a soap I didn't really want, and accumulate more plastic, just to get the bottle! So…that’s good. 

The other one I just rinsed out a bit and then put it back, since I figured the city would deem it as “contaminated” and into the garbage it would go.

On that note, I wonder how much we all know about what goes into recycling and what ends up actually being recycled. While we feel good about putting x,y,z in our blue boxes – if it’s not actually an item the city accepts, it will ultimately end up in the landfill. 

So – a recap of what the city of Vancouver accepts (I specify Vancouver since this is where I am and it differs quite drastically depending on which area you’re located in!) Also, this should be noted too that this is only if you get City pick-up if it’s a private recycler (i.e. you're in a business, or condo complex, apartment etc) then what is accepted can be slightly different too. I was going to do my own bulleted list but then this is forever changing, as facilities become better able to accept more items (yay!) so…a link shall suffice

What goes in recycling bins! (see the link!)

What goes in the GREEN bin  (see the link!) --> basically, anything that was living, grew from soil, or would decompose if left sort of unattended, outside of the fridge, outside. I like to project into the future and imagine, if it got wet – would it ultimately mold and decay? Like…a t-shirt - the answer is yes, because it’s cotton (cotton being a plant), and I can visualize a sort of moldy t-shirt. But would plastic? Nope..the water would bead on it but it wouldn’t penetrate. So yes… I like that sort of visual for helping me navigate the potentially muddy waters…or composted soil?

In terms of what is or is not excepted, just want to draw attention to the image of soil/rocks. At first glance I was thinking to my self - "WHAT…that is clearly organic matter"…and then I realized – OH…it’s because you can dump that outside on the grass/soil/plant bed…etc..and if you live in a condo – well actually, if you live in a condo you probably are not having city pick-up it’s likely a private recycler so you’d want to check with them assuming it's of a similar vein, I’d  just sneak it in there anyway…OR …bring it down and add it to your landscaped areas around your building, or share it with a friend ;) there are always ways….always. :) And, it's fun to exercise our creativity and find them!

I digress, my actual point of wanting to write was to note the horrific chemicals in our traditional soaps and body products and I will use this one soap  I found as an example. However since this is already incredibly long....let's take it to a ...second blog post!

Zero Waste in Arusha ...continued.

It's funny how the universe works....and by funny I mean epically appropriate. Just as I was starting to want to do Zero Waste here, I met a guy whose trying to do just that in Tanzania. Check them out Active Green Society.

At work, as part of my quest for zero waste I encountered some alternatives which not only saved the environment, but our pocket book too. As  mentioned in my last post, I found a toner cartridge in the garbage...yikes! So I took it out and made a plan to deal with is responsibly....I ended up finding a place called Galaxy Computers here in Arusha that does re-fills - it took an email and a couple phone calls and I had my answer....all in all it wasn't that big of a deal to spend the extra time...but it seems many of us are too busy to take that time. It's that mindshift again that needs to occur . . .it's interesting where our priorities lie.....and it's also important to recognize how easy we get ourselves into these routines that don't get broken until we pause for a moment - i.e. our process had always been - buy new ink/toner....never refill, it wasn't even on the mind. Anyway suffice it to say, I was pretty stoked that we could refill our ink, and such a price difference too! To refill the blank ink cartridge was 5,000tsh, versus a new one...28,000...boom!

It's fun to find alternatives and feels so good to treat our mother with love and respect. Not to mention, during ones quest for alternatives, you end up meeting some great people that you may otherwise not meet. Start small and you eventually source all your different areas to recycle or upcycle this, re-make or re-work that! :)

On another note, banana leaves are RAD and multi-functional, and I love not having a drawer bursting with twist ties. . . . those pesky twist ties, impossible to recycle because they are both a debatable/indeterminable type of metal, coated in a paper that is debatably coated with plastic residue........and elastics...because all my produce comes bunched with ties and elastic.. . because of course one method isn't enough! I require no such drawer here because of .......banana leafs and creative minds!

I wonder how I can bring this back to Canada.... or what sort of alternative would grow there that would double as a tie to bunch delicious organic produce. . . oh the possibilities! The thought of a grocer without twist ties and elastics....makes my heart happy.

Thoughts?