I’m back!
From the beginning, the Green Garbage Project has been our response to a world where trash is everywhere, even in the most pristine wilderness places. I don’t want to see a world where the oceans are dead, suffocated under a floating blanket of plastic. I don’t want to see the great apes and whales and countless other species go extinct. I want us to treat the planet and its resources like the gift it truly is.
I can think of no better way to celebrate the end of our trash-free year then with a trip to the wilderness, to enjoy those wild spaces we are working to save. Adam and I just spent a week backpacking and hiking through Olympic National Park in northwest Washington. What a week we had! Just in terms of wildlife, we hit the mother lode: sea otters, a mated pair of bald eagles, bears, coyote, elk, deer, and tidepools teeming with sea critters.
We visisted the western-most tip of the continental United States, taking an easy hike to a gorgeous lookout called Cape Flattery.
We saw this weird fish sculpture in Seiku, a small fishing village we passed through. Her name is Rosie, apparently.
We hiked for miles on some well-used trails and on some deserted ones. The most memorable moments from the trip came during the time we spent hiking along the Olympic coastline. To reach much of the coastline, you literally have to hike in – there are no access roads.
We visisted Forks, famous now due to the Twilight series and teeming with teen girls.
In case you can't read it ... this is the Vampire Threat Level sign.
We ended our trip in the Hoh Rainforest.
And yet, while we were trekking through the wilderness, we still encountered … garbage. And lots of it. Even when we were the only people around, outnumbered by eagles 10 to 1, we still found human trash everywhere. Tires, buoys, bits of plastic. We even found this plastic bag lodged inside a tidepool.
I guess there’s still work to be done, which is why we continue to live trash-free.
Week 10
Week 10 of Green Garbage Project has been marked by more unpacking, my second week of school, and a lovely weekend spent with old high school friends and hiking at Mount Rainier.
Our house is almost unpacked, which has been a major accomplishment for us. We hate living in boxes, not being able to find anything, and generally having our house in disarray. I realize that I haven’t spent much time discussing how we actually managed a garbage-free move, so let me address that a bit. First, we’ve always gone to Safeway for free boxes to use for packing. I was surprised to get some reader feedback that some grocery stores charge customers to take empty boxes from the stores, because we’ve always gotten these for free in the produce department. Ask at the customer service desk or ask one of the produce aisle employees and they should point you in the direction of boxes. It’s first-come, first-served and the best time to get boxes is late at night or early morning. These are great boxes because 1) they are heavy-duty and 2) they are recycled. Incidentally, we now have a boatload of boxes that are free for the taking should someone be interested (as long as you’re willing to recycle the boxes or pass them along when you’re done). We’re in Dallas, Oregon and these boxes are available to anyone who wants them. Send me an email and we’ll arrange a pick up, if interested. We’ll be posting them on Craig’s List shortly, thanks to a suggestion from another reader. Normally, we’d just break down our boxes and recycle them. Now they’ll hopefully be used a third time.
Now, we packed our stuff carefully into boxes and found that we didn’t need much tape. When we did need tape, we used fiberglass reinforced paper tape, which must be wetted in order to stick to boxes. Once wetted, it’s super-strong. This can be found at any office supply store or through an Internet source. You can take a look here.
For wrapping our valuables, we used old newspapers from Adam’s office. Later, I received a phone call from my aunt and uncle in Independence, Oregon. They had just picked up the first box containing airplane parts for the plane they are building. Parts of the plane were wrapped in off-white craft paper, which they gave to us for packing. This paper is also up for grabs, or we can recycle it. I’ll use the un-crinkled paper for wrapping Christmas presents in.
I also found that reusable grocery “green” bags are great for packing oddly shaped things in, like shoes. We got creative with some of our packing materials, making sure that anything empty was filled with moving stuff. This includes the plastic bags under the sink I haven’t taken to the store to recycle yet, an old plastic zippered case sheets came in, gift sacks, etc.
Generally, moves generate lots of trash because moving is a great excuse to purge belongings and simplify. Anything we wanted to get rid of we donated to the Goodwill if in good condition. Otherwise, we’re eeking more life out of things we might usually throw away – perfectly good things we are just tired of or didn’t want to move. These came with us, which took only a little extra effort and saves landfill space.
On the classroom front, I’ve received reader suggestions that I look into fountain pens or colored pencils for grading, both of which are excellent and welcome suggestions. My new challenge – dry erase markers. I don’t have access to a chalkboard, use PowerPoint slides whenever possible, but I like to write a daily agenda on my white board for the students to see. Eventually, these markers will run out. Any thoughts?
I also took my first Master Recycler class on Thursday and enjoyed myself immensely. The class runs for 8 weeks and includes several field trips which I am really looking forward to. I’ll be able to visit a waste-to-energy plant, an industrial composting facility, a biofuel manufacturer, and a place that turns plastics into fuel. The first class was really interesting but basically served as an introduction to what the class would cover. Nothing new to share yet.
Finally, Adam and I went on a hike with my parents this weekend. We hiked to a fire lookout on Mount Rainier, made sure we were on the mountain at twilight, and spent some time watching mountain goats poke around on a grassy mountainside. We ate dinner surrounded by trees, the setting sun, the goats, and some rocks – nothing more. And I was reminded that nature, in its beauty and majesty, is really the reason we’re doing what we’re doing. That scene should be preserved for future generations – it would be a great tragedy to see it trashed and ruined. Hiking, I think, is the original no-trash challenge, thanks to the Leave No Trace principles which guide hikers in leaving nothing behind in the wilderness.
And before I forget, I want to say something I’ve been meaning to say for weeks, ever since our project started gaining publicity. I’ve learned, since we were on the news, something I suspected all along – that there are pockets of individuals and families all over the country and especially in other countries who are living garbage-free lives. A site I recently discovered (and that I found tremendously helpful) is http://zerogarbagechallenge.info/ I am proud to join the small ranks of those who live garbage-free and I hope that one unique aspect of our project is that we show everyone that average Americans can live garbage-free, too. It doesn’t take a radical effort.