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06 Dec 00 - Christmas presents; diazinon; Enviro-Ware; alternatives to toxics; over-packaging ** WASTE PREVENTION FORUM ** -- A project of the National Waste Prevention Coalition -------- Forum archive: http://www.reuses.com/nwpcarchive -------------------- The first four postings are in response to the 12/5/00 message from Paul Devine, saying that he gets called "Scrooge" and "Grinch" because he questions why people should continue to buy presents for each other at Christmas. -------------------- From Pete Christiansen, Washington Department of Ecology, Bellevue, WA: In response to "Scrooge" Devine: Christmas is a particularly tough holiday to practice waste reduction. And common sense. And avoidance of wanton consumerism. No one wants to be "Scrooge," and children are so attuned to getting presents that it is difficult not to give. Well, last year I had enough. My kids have far more material needs than they have the right to, and I just couldn't get into giving them more. My wife and I gave our kids presents that wouldn't accumulate, but would truly be enjoyed - gift certificates for future "outings": a movie with a friend, a movie with the family, admission to an arts event, admission to a sporting event, 10 hours of model building, pick the camping spot, pick a weekend getaway, etc. We printed up nice certificates on the computer. My two boys were 7 and 10 last year. Surprisingly, they thought Christmas last year was the best they ever had. And it was the gift that kept giving, because they cashed in their certificates throughout the whole year. They still have one or two left. I even got my parents to give the children savings bonds for college instead of yet another set of Legos. Not only for Christmas, but for their birthday as well. The nice thing is we did more things together as a family. This pulls us a little further away from the hectic treadmill of life that we sometimes find ourselves on. It forces us to respond to our kids' need for more quality time. And it is an investment that pays off so well for all of us. Next time the relatives/friends ask what they can get you, invite them to an outing, their treat! You'll get to enjoy a new adventure, and the presence (as opposed to presents) of their company. I bet it will work. E-mail: PCHR461 ( A T ) ECY ( D O T ) WA ( D O T ) GOV -------------------- From Jeff Laufle, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Seattle, WA: I just recently noticed an ad in the Seattle Times' Sunday magazine for discounts at a long list of museums, theaters and other "experience" venues as a way of promoting "waste-free holidays" -an alternative to traditional presents for Christmas. I believe King County Solid Waste Division was associated with this. E-mail: Jeffrey (D O T) C (D O T) Laufle (A T) NWS02 (D O T) usace (D O T) army (D O T) mil Note from Tom: Yes, this is a King County program, called Waste-Free Holidays. The slogan for the program is, "Give an Experience Instead of Stuff." For more information, see the website at: http://dnr.metrokc.gov/swd/resrecy/wfh.htm or e-mail project manager Sharon Aller at: sharon ( D O T ) aller ( A T ) metrokc ( D O T ) gov -------------------- From Polagaya Fine, Snohomish County Solid Waste Division, Everett, WA: Holiday giving is about thinking of others and sharing yourself. These are wonderful ideas and, personally, I encourage them. That said, many of us have more than enough. Some don't and I encourage generous giving to those who are struggling. What to do as holiday gift giving time draws ominously nearer? Next time someone asks, "What can I get for you, or your wife, or your kids?" the answer isn't, "Nothing," but better, "No things, please." "Let's go caroling together." "Help me get the floors waxed." "Let's decorate the Christmas tree together." "Watch the kids so I can go to a movie some Friday night." "Give me a hug and kiss." "Phone me to talk about nothing." "Give the kids ballet tickets or ballet lessons." "Let's take the kids and all go to the Art Museum on Thursday." "Can you be a resource for my kid's World War II project?" "Will you record your remembrances of what it was like growing up during the depression?" "Help me get my photos collected in an album or on a CD." For the more community minded: "Let's spend an afternoon packing boxes at the food bank." "Let's go serve coffee and cookies to blood donors." "Let's spend a night helping out at the women's shelter." Or even: "How about if you send $50 to the Toys for Tots program this year instead of buying the kids toys? Or ask the kids to which charity they would like a donation sent? I'll do the same for your kids." When folks ask, speak up for gifts you want from friends, loved ones, the community. Most of us don't need or want more "things" to put on a shelf. We want and need acts that strengthen the bonds between us and between us and our community, that give us a better appreciation of our world, that give us time out to enjoy the abundance around us. Happy Holidays to you all. E-mail: polagaya (D O T) fine (A T) co (D O T) snohomish (D O T) wa (D O T) us -------------------- From Renee Kimball, "Enuf! - The Planet's Favorite Band," Portland, OR: Recycling Advocates here in Portland produced a Waste Free Christmas brochure several years ago, which I think is still available. You can e-mail them at: info ( AT ) recyclingadvocates ( DOT ) org Or, contact them from their website at: http://www.recyclingadvocates.org/ We've declared "game over" as of this Christmas and are sending out cards early with our "presents" enclosed. We are giving "tickets" for meals at Sister's of the Road Cafe or certificates that say we have made a donation to the organization in that person's/family's name. For our out-of-town folks we are including a brochure about Sister's. We are also giving certificates for donations to Loaves & Fishes. For those who don't know about Sister's - it's a cafe where homeless folks can get a great meal for $2 and either pay with a "ticket," in cash, or by working. Loaves and Fishes is an organization which provides meals and a friendly visit to home-bound seniors. In our cards, along with our "gift" we are requesting that, in lieu of a present to us, people donate to their favorite charity. Friends of mine solved the children's presents thing by having a tradition that each child choose a toy/game/clothing to give away for each new one they receive. Don't think "money" gifts get them out of it either. For each gift of check or cash they receive, they have to give something away of equal value. The unexpected spin-offs included the kids discouraging gift-giving of family and friends (especially for their birthday). They much prefer "experience gifts" (tickets to events, etc.) and are VERY aware of the value of gifts they do receive. E-mail: rrrRenee ( A T ) aracnet ( D O T ) com -------------------- Link to article by Randy Lee Loftis in the 12/6/00 Dallas Morning News about the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's plans to phase out the pesticide diazinon (related story was forwarded by Gerty Coville): http://www.dallasnews.com/national/231543_diazinon_06met.html -------------------- From Sharon Aller, King County Solid Waste Division, Seattle, WA, responding to the 12/5/00 message from Tom Watson about Enviro-Ware plates and bowls (a new product made from cultivated grasses, and said to be biodegradable), wondering if there was a waste prevention advantage to them: I pretty much agree about the new Enviro-Ware plates, but their TV commercial with the woman pushing the tree stump through the grocery store sure got my attention! E-mail: sharon (DOT) aller (AT) metrokc (DOT) gov -------------------- Excerpted from an 11/18/00 press release from the Worldwatch Institute, Washington, DC (first seen in the Green Business Letter): ALTERNATIVES TO TOXIC CHEMICALS Synthetic chemical pollutants that are poisoning both people and wildlife could be largely eliminated without disrupting the economy, reports a new study by Anne Platt McGinn for the Worldwatch Institute, a Washington, DC-based environmental research organization. Evidence from three sectors that are major sources of these pollutants - paper manufacturing, pesticides, and PVC plastics - shows that non-toxic options are available at competitive prices in today's markets. In the paper manufacturing industry, 94 percent of the world's bleached paper is made using chlorine - a process that spews out dioxin and hundreds of other dangerous organochlorines into water, soil and the paper itself. Chlorine-free technology, which is significantly cheaper in the long run, has been available for ten years, but has been slow to be adopted. Polyvinylchoride (PVC) has become the second most common plastic on the planet, with an estimated 250 million tons in use. The entire cycle of manufacturing, consumption, and disposal of PVC throws off enormous quantities of toxic byproducts, yet there is a substitute for virtually every use to which PVC is put. Farmers will use 2.5 million tons of pesticides on this year's crops, pesticides that are 10-100 times more potent than formulations used just 25 years ago. A growing number of farmers, however, are adopting integrated pest management (IPM) techniques. These methods, which in many cases reduce costs and increase crop yields, use a combination of natural pest control methods, with limited use of pesticides as a last resort. The full press release is at: http://www.worldwatch.org/alerts/001118.html To order the report, go to: http://secure.worldwatch.org/cgi-bin/wwinst/EWWP0153 -------------------- Excerpted from message from Bill Sheehan, Athens, GA, GrassRoots Recycling Network: Below are some of the responses to the query on excessive over-packaging. And the winner is.... Lunchables! - I think one of the worst offenders is Lunchables. A plastic tray with individual compartments for erstwhile food items, wrapped in plastic with a chipboard label. Three (and some items like sauce packets have four) layers of wrapping to get to the foodstuff. Plus, it is often used for kids' lunches - teaching them that this is optimal. While this is a small item, it is sold in huge volume and is truly a "poster package" for needless overpackaging. I have heard - although I couldn't give a reference for this - that there are even some schools that have banned this product from their cafeterias. - Laura Neuman, St. Louis, MO - Lunchables are right up there at the top of the list. Several individually-wrapped items all wrapped up in more packaging that's not recyclable. The new Frito Lay product with the salsa and chips individually-wrapped in plastic is a beaut, too. It's really a ton of work to buy a bag of chips and a jar of salsa! I think if you were in a hurry, and wanted to get to the food fast, it would take longer to open the Frito Lay snack pack than it would to open a bag of chips and a jar of salsa. Haven't timed it, but I could be persuaded. Campbell's quick lunch microwaveables are also a waste. The container is a mix of metal and plastic, has both plastic and aluminum lids, and is definitely destined for the dump. Breakfast Mates was my all-time favorite, but Kellogg's discontinued the product, because it wasn't selling. People saw through the ruse.... Unless you're into crazy crafting, the M and M minis that come in hard plastic tubes are a huge waste. My niece sent me a whole box of these. After I ate the candy, I peeled the wrapper off the tubes and saved the tubes. I'm still trying to figure out how to use them. Suggestions? Over-the-counter medicines and vitamins are generally another good example. There's a box, then the bottle with an inner seal and a bunch of cotton. In the spring, I put the cotton in a suet feeder and hang it where the birds can glean nesting material. It generally disappears. The box and the bottle are recyclable, but why the box if it's not really needed? - Charlotte Becker, Portland, OR - I truly get upset when I'm at Costco and see phone cards (we all know how big they are) wrapped in enough plastic to choke a horse. - Jim Haynes, Spokane, WA - America Online's new promotion mailer is a CD in a black plastic case measuring 7.5 X 5.25 x 0.5 inches. These are being mailed unsolicited by the millions. This packaging waste is grotesque. Even worse is the fact that the product, so over-packaged, will be tossed. This is my submission for most cynical, waste-generating, business in America. - John D. Curtis - My personal favorite: Kool-Aid Kool Bursts. - Jean Lundquist, Mankato, MN - Dentyne Ice Gum comes in a paperboard package and uses foil and plastic inside the paperboard. I won't buy it. - Elyse Olson, San Diego, CA - Newman's Own Organics chocolate bar - wrapped in three separate papers. - Debra Lombard, CT - Mentadent toothpaste is very over-packaged. - John Jakupcak, West Hollywood, CA - I recently ordered two books from Amazon.com. Apparently, if you place an order for more than one book, or other product, the company will ship the products as they are available, instead of holding the products until they can ship them together. - Amy Jewel - I recently bought a 2000 Ford Focus, and while the car didn't come with any excess packaging, they sent me a "thank you" gift I couldn't believe. It consisted of a horrible, pink sports watch thingy, in its own box, with a little instruction manual in 3 languages that was almost bigger than the watch itself, a cardboard photo frame you could Velcro to your dashboard, and a series of promo cards for upgrades - the $189 pet care package (heated blanket, water bowl, etc.) or the $89 dashboard poetry and hippie stickers come to mind. The whole thing came in a cardboard box the size of a shoebox. - Terri Steen Bill Sheehan's e-mail: zerowaste (A T) grrn (D O T) org - end -