I can't figure out for the life of me where my trash goes when it's taken away, but chances are it ends up in a landfill, on a barge, burned, or in the ocean. And that's a major improvement from some of the third world countries I've been to where the trash ends up in streets or ditches.
Trash that ends up in a landfill - even trash considered biodegradable - probably won't actually biodegrade for thousands of years, since it is covered with pile upon pile of trash, and/or dirt, preventing the microbes from getting the sun and air they need to break down the trash.So. How can I reduce my trash? Yes, I have the reusable bags, try to avoid packaging, and recycle, but my trash can still ends up full. Composting would be ideal.. .but I live in an apartment, for goodness sake. I don't want rotting veggies and fruit flies next to my wine glasses and sock monkeys.
The solution: this nifty indoor composter. Yes, another gadget... but I can't see my condo association approving an outdoor compost bin like the one we had when I was a kid. (Not to mention the fact that my dad used to hide behind it and scare the bejeezus out of us kids - that's one part of childhood I don't want to relive... ok, actually it was pretty fun.)
This way the only trash I'll be throwing out is bits of plastic, meats and fishes (Mr Goldfish has to get flushed), and pits (like avocado, peach, nectarine, apricot, plum, and peach pits), since you can put all vegetable and fruit matter in the bins, not to mention my daily coffee grinds, egg shells, and tea bags.
Yep. This indoor composter is going on my "wish list." Maybe I can put all those $0.05 credits I get for bringing my own bags into my piggy bank and eventually get the $300 necessary for the indoor composting magic.. until then my trash will continue to pile up.
I'll save my green in order to be more green in this little piggy
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3 comments:
My friend just told me that the City of Cambridge has a program which they will take your seperated items of garbage that can be composted from you and use the compost eventually around the City of Cambridge.
So Cambridge actually sorts the trash, or you have to sort the trash yourself? It's pretty common to have twice yearly periods where the city will come pick up waste designated as "yard waste," but I suppose if that were on a weekly basis, it would support composting! Yet another reason to move to Cambridge...
That indoor compost device looks nice and seems to work quick (compost every 2 weeks). Still, $300 is a bit much to pay for a container that allows nature to do its thing...much cheaper to have a big outdoor compost and just move stuff into it every day or two.
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