I started a compost pile in my backyard last summer. It’s a fantastic way to avoid sending natural food waste to the landfill (where, contrary to popular belief, it is not helping other trash biodegrade). Yet even with a compost pile at home, I still threw away compostable lunch items while at work. That’s until I saw the light…
Last week, I realized that I can create a garbage-less lunch. Hear me out: I packed – in my reusable lunch bag – a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in a reusable plastic container; an apple, banana, tangerine and diet pop. After I ate the sandwich, I put all the peels, seeds and cores from my fruit back in the empty plastic container. The pop can went back into my lunch bag with the fruit waste. When I got home that night, I put the can in the recyclables and the food waste in the compost pile. Voila…the garbage-less lunch.
During these times where typical Americans generate nearly four pounds of trash each day, I’m happy to say that I’m doing my part to bring down that average. Maybe you can’t bring home your compostables, but consider ways to reduce your trash output each day: Pack your lunch in a reusable bag; reuse plastic silverware; reuse your morning towel; use those orange newspaper bags to pick up dog poop – you get the point.
Last week, I realized that I can create a garbage-less lunch. Hear me out: I packed – in my reusable lunch bag – a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in a reusable plastic container; an apple, banana, tangerine and diet pop. After I ate the sandwich, I put all the peels, seeds and cores from my fruit back in the empty plastic container. The pop can went back into my lunch bag with the fruit waste. When I got home that night, I put the can in the recyclables and the food waste in the compost pile. Voila…the garbage-less lunch.
During these times where typical Americans generate nearly four pounds of trash each day, I’m happy to say that I’m doing my part to bring down that average. Maybe you can’t bring home your compostables, but consider ways to reduce your trash output each day: Pack your lunch in a reusable bag; reuse plastic silverware; reuse your morning towel; use those orange newspaper bags to pick up dog poop – you get the point.
4 comments:
i live in a townhouse and don't have a yard to make a compost pile. is there anything i can do with my scraps? i hate throwing them in the garbage, but i can't have a compost pile! help, green-kristine :)
A comment from a reader sent via email:
I was wondering if you or any of your readers are aware of any companies that sell biodegradable coffee filters. I started composting last fall and I would really love to include my coffee grounds because they make fantastic compost – they are a good natural pest repellent too. Another LCR member who is my composting mentor told me she goes to Starbucks to ask them to save used coffee grounds for her and she can go pick them up. They re-bag them in the five pound bags that the beans are originally shipped in to the store. She said if you spread the grounds around the foundation of your house they form an all-natiral, non-toxic barrier to termites, carpenter ants and other damaging pests. I’m not ready to take that step yet but I would like to stop throwing away my coffee grounds every day. I use unbleached coffee filters and have tried tossing a couple into my composting bin to see if they break down but, sadly, they do not. I tried our local health food store but they also don’t carry any that are biodegradable. If you have any suggestions about a website that may be of help in my quest, I’d surely appreciate it.
Ashlee and Mrs. Riehle (who sent the comment about coffee filters),
Thank you for your comments. Please check back soon as I will research your inquiries and post some of my findings!
- Green Kristine
I might have a tip for Mrs. Riehle....If you're up for it, you might want to try kicking up your compost pile a bit with some red wigglers. The red wiggler is a cute name for a special type of worms used in vermicomposting. Red wigglers need some bedding usually made with shredded newspaper, but shredded, unbleached coffee filters would work as well.
Here's a couple of places on the internet where I've found the best prices on red wigglers:
Early Bird Worms
Happy D Ranch
Composters.com
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