How could you have a zero solid waste (aka garbage) lifestyle?

Now, take a look into your trash can. If you mostly see food packaging and food scraps…not good.

There’s an easy fix to this, and it’s called a zero waste lifestyle. Today, I’ll share my tips on how to avoid this kind of garbage – and hence – reduce the amount of your trash that ends up in the landfill.

THE ZERO WASTE SHOPPING ESSENTIALS

Zero Waste shopping requires some preparation and a little investment. You’ll need:

• Reusable grocery bag. It’s no surprise that plastic bags are enormous harm to our environment. It’s easy to make the switch to reusable bags. Just be sure to stash a few where you’ll remember to take them before shopping.
• Cotton/Hemp Muslin Bags. These are great for produce, nuts, beans, grains, etc. You can find them on Amazon.com or DIY.
• Glass/Stainless Steel containers. They work best for meat, seafood and poultry by keeping food fresh.

I love the idea. I have trouble seeing myself washing glass containers (how many fit in my dishwasher?), lugging them back to the store, and convincing someone to refill them. That sounds heavy for one thing, and I go to the store on foot. I tend to think my not driving to the store negates the environmental harm of a few plastic bags. Still, I like the idea. As we travel to stores less and have more stuff delivered, it could start to make sense. You have a standardized container for everything. At the same time the delivery company delivers your new containers full of stuff, it is willing to pick up your dirty used containers and take them away to be washed, sterilized, and reused. We used to all do this with glass bottles, of course, but the economics of plastic packaging seems to be more advantageous. Of course the economics work, in part, because the consumer rather than the manufacturer is paying the disposal cost, and we are all collectively paying the environmental cost. If we had the political will, we could regulate or tax these external costs and see if that tipped the system back towards reuse. Or we can wait and see if automation and the increasing popularity of home delivery tips the economics again.