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Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Recover
Garbage gone but not forgotten!

Most of our garbage is sent to landfills, dumps or municipal incinerators. But with more and more people producing more and more waste, landfills are filling up faster than we can find new sites for them. And landfills create new types of waste. As garbage decomposes, moisture filters through it producing a toxic liquid known as leachate. Modern landfills are designed to reduce the amount of moisture that reaches the garbage, and many have a system to collect and treat the leachate.

Decomposing garbage also produces two greenhouses gases: carbon dioxide and methane, and invisible, odourless, and highly flammable gas. At some big landfill sites, methane is now being collected and burned to produce energy.

Water and oxygen are required to break down garbage. But water and oxygen in short supply deep in a landfill, so decomposition takes place very slowly. In fact, when researchers cored down into a landfill in the United States, they discovered newspapers over 30 years old still in readable condition!

Incinerations are sometimes used to burn solid waste under controlled condition. They reduce the stress on landfills, but they create other environmental problems. The ashes must be disposed of, either at a landfill, or, if they are toxic, at a hazardous waste facility. Burning garbage also produces acid gases, carbon dioxide and toxic chemicals that must be treated with expensive air pollution control equipment to avoid contributing to acid rain, ozone depletion and air pollution.

Recycling is just one way to reduce wastes. To be really effective, we have to incorporate the 4Rs- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Recover into our daily routine.

Reducing the amount of waste we produce is by far the most effective way to battle the flow of garbage into the landfill. Packaging makes up about half our garbage by volume, one-third by weight.

When you shop, try to find products that have little or no packaging.
What we cannot Reduce we should try to Reuse.

Repair you old radio rather than buying a new one.
Use jars, tins, and plastic containers to store leftovers, bulk foods and household items.
Buy durable, good quality products that will last.
Materials and packaging that cannot be reused should be recycled at home, work and school. You can contribute to recycling by purchasing recycled and recyclable products.

At the store, ask yourself these questions: Can this product or its packaging be reused or recycled? Was it produced form recycled materials? Whenever possible, choose products that meet these criteria.

Finally, Recover energy from wastes that cannot be used for something else. This fourth R is difficult to put into practice by individuals, and is geared more toward industry.

SOME TIME IN THE DISTANT FUTURE, AN ARCHAEOLOGIST LOOKING BACK AT LATE 20TH CENTURY WILL MARVEL AT WHAT A WASTEFUL SOCIETY WE WERE. THINK BACK THROUGH YOUR DAY: THE EMPTY TOOTHPASTE TUBE, THE CEREAL BOX, THE POP CAN IN YOU LUNCH, YOUR GUM WRAPPER, THE FOOD YOU LEFT ON YOUR PLATE AT DINNER. NATURAL RESOURCES SUCH AS WATER, WOOD AND FOSSIL FUELS GO INTO THE PRODUCTION AND TRANSPORTATION OF ALL THESE THINGS. WHEN WE THROW THEM AWAY, WE ARE THROWING AWAY OUR VALUABLE RESOURCES. NO WONDER THE ARCHAEOLOGIST OF THE FUTURE FINDS US WASTEFUL!

Did you know?

About 1/3 of our waste is paper and paperboard. Another third is yard and kitchen waste. The rest is divided among glass, metals, plastics, textiles, wood and other materials.

Reduce, reduce reduce!

There are many things you can do to reduce the amount of waste you produce.