Before you throw anything in the trash, ask yourself...
- have I gotten all the use I can out of this?
- could it go in the recycling bin instead?
- could I use it for something else?
- can someone else get more use out of it?
- can I fix it?
Why Rethink?
According to the EPA's 2008 Municipal Solid Waste fact sheet, each American generates
about 4.5 pounds of trash a day and only 1/3 of that trash is recycled or composted. The rest
goes into more than 3,000 landfills across the country. Besides the simple equation that
if we keep generating so much trash that goes into landfills, we'll eventually run out land
to fill, a more immediate concern is that many landfills contain hazardous waste which can release
toxic chemicals into ground water and the rivers and lakes located nearby.
- saving money by getting as much use as possible out of an item before it is discarded
- preventing some of the pollution that occurs during the production of consumer goods
- reducing the consumption of potentially limited natural resources used in making those consumer goods