Repurposing our ‘waste’
One valuable thing I’ve learned over the past couple of years is that being environmentally friendly doesn’t start with recycling. And though I’ve been able to write a few features lately on the recycling initiatives in Calhoun-Gordon County, I personally believe sustainability begins with reducing and reusing.
The concept of “reducing” has really challenged my consumption patterns, and while I have yet to achieve perfection, I’ve spent periods of time buying less, consuming less and trying to produce less waste.
And learning more about “reusing” has challenged me to minimize my waste. I’ve turned used water bottles into pencil cups, made envelopes out of old magazines and cracked coffee mugs into pots for plants. I think one of the misconceptions among those interested in being more environmentally conscious is that you have to make fast, huge changes in order to make a big difference. But I don’t buy into that.
First, I think acting swiftly and making huge changes are neither sustainable nor long-lasting. And as my favorite “Lord of the Rings” character Treebeard always says, “Don’t be hasty.” Second, I think the best way to intentionally make a difference is to spend time in the transitional phase, to embrace being in the uncomfortable middle.
So in the spirit of environmentalism, I want to provide a few eccentric examples of how to reuse what you might otherwise think of as “trash.”
1. One of my favorite ways to communicate is to send letters, actual hard copies of a handwritten letter that you find in your physical mailbox. I know — it’s rare these days. I have a few friends who still send me snail mail, and one thing I’ve been able to pass along to some of them is making unique envelopes. Why not make an envelope out of a magazine page with an interesting picture, or an old coffee bag (and have your letter smell like coffee beans)? It doesn’t matter that it doesn’t look standard, but it’s a creation unique to you! And it uses that coffee bag or magazine page one more time before tossing it out.
2. Instead of throwing out or trying to recycle glass jars or bottles, scrape off the paper label and use it as a flower vase or put your collection of cool rocks in it.
3. If a plate or mug breaks or cracks, you can use the remains (pieces without sharp edges) as yard decorations. My mom has done this (intentionally hammering a mug I handmade, painted and gave to her for Christmas in high school, but no hard feelings) and created concrete tiles with colorful ceramic pieces in them. The tiles are stepping stones in her garden, and my sister and I can point out pieces of an old bowl I had, mugs we bought on family vacations, plates we used to fill our cabinets with. It’s a great way to reuse old ceramic dishware instead of just throwing them out.
4. If you have too many mugs (and trust me, I used to have a pretty extensive collection) and want to minimize, you can pot some small plants in a mug. Currently in my room, I have succulents and cacti in old coffee pots, a tin cans and stained mugs. You can pretty much pot plants in anything, just make sure to put rocks in the bottom for drainage and put your newly designated “pot” on a plastic or terracotta plate so it doesn’t leak.
5. If there’s a piece of clothing you’ve worn out but have significant memories attached to it, use it to make something else. You can always default to using an old T-shirt for a cleaning rag, but you could also repurpose it. I’ve turned an old flannel into a purse and a meaningful t-shirt into a patch on my backpack, and only with scissors, a needle and some thread.
6. Throw food scraps into a compost bin, and once that material is decomposed, you have your own free soil fertilizer!
Recycling should be the last ditch effort once consumption has already occurred and waste has already been produced. It’s always better to divert waste into something that has functional value than toss it in the landfill, or even into that recycling bin.
My friend Ralph Hogan from Kaikoura, New Zealand, can fit all of his landfill trash from one year into a medium-sized biodegradable bag, and I don’t know about you but I think that’s pretty admirable. He once told me there are more than three R’s for environmental awareness: refuse, reduce, reuse, repair and recycle. And I want to add on Calhounite Angie Gravitt’s “replant” to that list.
If we challenge ourselves to repurpose our waste, maybe we can help make a positive impact on how we’re treating our planet — and channel our inner artists along the way!