Waste

Recycling in Long Island is Changing

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Recycling in Long Island is changing. The U.S. used to sell much of its recyclables to China. But last year, China banned the import of most recyclables. Suddenly, municipalities including our local LI towns, had no place to bring their recyclables. The recycling center in Brookhaven actually shut down due to this change. Several towns switched back from single stream recycling (where paper, plastic and glass could all be mixed together), back to “dual stream,” meaning households must sort paper vs plastic & glass.

  • Three LI towns have stopped picking up glass: Brookhaven, Smithtown, and Oyster Bay (though residents can drop off at Smithtown drop-off locations).
  • Three LI towns — Brookhaven, Smithtown, and Southold — have also limited their plastics recycling to plastics numbers 1 and 2 (numbers are found on the bottom of plastic containers).
  • These above three Towns, as well as Huntington, Islip and Hempstead, do not accept plastic #6 which includes Styrofoam as well as many sushi takeout trays.
  • Plastic bags (made from plastic #4) are recyclable — at grocery stores — NOT in your blue bin municipal pickup.
  • All LI Towns accept rinsed out aluminum trays and cans. No aerosol spray cans.

Always rinse out containers. Another issue is "wish-cycling" or “aspirational” recycling, meaning putting items in the bin that are not recyclable. This can contaminate the pile, which is too difficult to sort, so the pile gets thrown out. Examples of this are paper milk or juice containers that are lined with wax or plastic. Note that many towns offer recycling of electronic waste (e-waste) at drop-off facilities. Recycling programs will continue to change as the U.S. improves its domestic recycling opportunities. Always check your Town’s website and calendar for details of days for pickup, and toxic substance disposal.

CLICK FOR SIMPLE COMPARISON OF LONG ISLAND TOWN RECYCLING:

Green Strategies for Pet Care

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Throughout human history, we have shared our lives with animals we call “pets.” For practical reasons such as herding or for recreational joy and companionship, pets have been integral in our lives and are now often considered family members. To care for their well-being, we can support products and lifestyles that protect and respect them and our natural world:

  • Healthy Food:
    • The ingredients in some brands may be produced via unsustainable methods of raising meat or have been manufactured with pesticides, antibiotics, artificial ingredients, or hormones. Such foods result in duller coat, insufficient digestive processes, weaker bones and teeth, decrease in energy, and the risks go on.
    • Horrifically, some brands actually have been known to use the meat of cats and dogs euthanized at shelters in their pet food.
    • By utilizing local or organic ingredients (fruits, grains, vegetables) that are safe, clean, and grown naturally, it may cost a bit more, but it means better health and less money spent at the veterinarian’s office. Buying products that use questionable methods of production will not encourage companies to improve their practices.
    • Look for labels that state the percentages of organic meat in the food, or if the product is USDA or FDA approved.
    • Cats can be vegan as long as they are supplemented with the amino acid taurine.
  • Poop Management:
    • Pet food brands that do not opt for ingredients run the risk of causing higher amounts of chemical toxins in their your pet’s waste. This causes the stool to take longer to decompose naturally.
    • Cat litters with clay in the sand do not break down easily and may build up in landfills.
    • Using regular plastic bags for clean-up exacerbates the issue. Consider purchasing biodegradable bags derived from plant components.
    • For cats, search for litters that use grains, vegetables, or newspapers, and silica for longer lasting utility.
  • Healthy Soaps & Flea Treatment:
    • Dogs’ skin and coats are sensitive to chemicals used in soaps or shampoos, and may lead to skin irritations and/or digestive issues if accidentally ingested.
      • Some shampoo chemicals may also contaminate local water bodies.
    • Always read the ingredient list labels on the soap bottle to determine the safety of the product’s components.
      • Avoid: artificial preservatives (Paraben, Isothiazolinone, formaldehyde), alcohols, sulfates, and polyethylene glycol.
      • Look for: natural ingredients and essential oils (lavender, rosemary, lemongrass, peppermint, chamomile), aloe, vitamin E, and/or apple cider vinegar.
    • For fleas, vacuum regularly to pick up eggs and choose boric acid or diatomaceous earth powders, or essential oil/herbal based treatments. Avoid insecticides, which may be nerve toxins.
    • Consider purchasing dog paw wipes that do not irritate sensitive paw skin, and are 100% biodegradable (look out for similar ingredients above).
  • Natural Pet Toys & Accessories:
    • Leashes, collars, and harnesses utilize nylons or leather, materials that can restrict a pet’s range of movement and comfort. Nylon is also not biodegradable.
      • Many companies now offer vegan materials such as organic cotton and hemp (applies to beds as well).
    • Toys made from plastics may be hazardous to your pet’s health due to the ingestion of small particles when chewed on. This could lead to health complications such as intestinal blockage or chemical poisoning.
      • Consider toys made from hemp or organic cotton materials.
    • If you choose plastic toys or accessories, look for recycled plastics to help protect the environment.

Having a pet is a serious responsibility and there are many complexities on how best to care for animals. But for all the effort, they equally provide us with a love and care, and help keep us physically and mentally active. A nurturing attitude towards a pet can be one personal step in making our natural world a better place for all creatures. It takes a single step; start with investment into the greater welfare of our four-legged, upcycled-frisbee-catching family member.

Helpful Links:

To hear our radio show on organic pet care, listen to our interview with Delta Farrington of Eco Dogs & Cats.

Vote for the Environment on Election Day

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The 2018 November midterm election is Tuesday, November 6th and is crucial as we vote for congressional leaders that that can either strengthen or weaken national environmental laws. As voters, we should be aware that our votes have far-reaching consequences. Though not well reported by mainstream media, the current federal leadership has been actively rolling back multiple environmental policies within the United States established by prior administrations over the last 2 years. The Trump administration has been responsible for changes through the following acts, including, but not exclusive to:

  • EPA: Cutting major departmental funding to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by 31% (a roughly $2.5 Billion decrease), resulting in the loss of about 50 government-issue programs and 3,200 jobs that protect our air, water and endangered species;
  • Energy: Trump removed the United States from an International Climate Agreement that had taken decades to develop, leaving the U.S. as the only major nation not to participate in agreed upon greenhouse gas reductions; and also removed the Clean Power Plan which would have lowered the carbon dioxide emitted by electric power generators. This administration is emphasizing more resilience on coal, which is a high soot and carbon emitting fuel, rather than investing in cleaner renewable methods of energy sources, despite documented economic growth in the clean energy sector;
  • Water: enacted an executive order to allow the Administrator of the EPA to revise or rescind the Clean Water Rule, a section of the Clean Water Act offering protections for streams and wetlands;
  • Climate Change: Refusal of recognizing the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the world’s leading scientific body on the subject, and other authoritative scientific research in energy policy creation. Instead The administration relies on a partisan non-for-profit organization, the Institute for Energy Research, as their informational basis. Trump’s first pick for EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, who has since resigned due to an ethics related controversy, had a history of supporting pro-fossil-fuel interests;
  • Parks & National Monument Lands: Reduction in protected acreage, and opening up public lands and bodies of water (including breaching Native reservations) to access coal and oil reserves;
  • Vehicle Fuel standards: rolling back the Obama administration’s fuel efficiency and emissions standards for passenger and light duty vehicles which would have increased the average fuel economy of manufacturers’ fleets to 50MPG by 2025.
  • Lead paint: though experts agree lead regulations need to be made stricter, Pruitt asked for a waiver to delay revising current regulations for 6 more years;
  • Pesticides: Pruitt denied a petition to ban Dow’s chlorpyrifos pesticide, though research has shown that even small amounts of chlorpyrifos can disrupt the development of fetuses and infants;
  • Endangered Species: Cut funding to States for protections of endangered species;
  • Plastics: However, on one good note, in October, Trump signed Save Our Seas Act targeting plastic marine waste. More of this would be welcome;

Voters should hold our elected officials accountable for policies that pose a threat to human health and the sustainability of our water, air, land, and wildlife. We have the power to choose nominees that help create positive dialogues in Congress towards a cleaner environment. Please share this information and be sure to vote at your designated polling place on November 6, 2018. (Green Inside and Out is a non-partisan organization.)

“Unveiling Fashion”: Addressing the Hidden Problems of Waste, Environmental Sustainability, and Labor Issues One Garment at a Time

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George Washington University, Washington DC, Sept. 29, 2018

 

Even after years of hearing and writing about sustainability issues in the clothing industry, I still shudder at the enormity of the problems. But, I also feel inspired by the innovative thinkers who are helping to solve them, some of whom were at the Unveiling Fashion event I attended on 9/29/18 at the George Washington University Textile Museum, run by the DC Sustainable Fashion Collaborative. (I was happy to be a sponsor and raffle off the Green Wardrobe Guide!) It is extremely gratifying to see how interest and solutions are growing in the field of fair, eco-fashion! From the amazing expert speakers, I learned these 15 surprising facts all clothing-wearers should know:

  1. 1 in 6 of the world’s laborers work in some aspect of the fashion industry, and 80% of garment workers are women. A recent NY Times article highlighted how some big name luxury items are often produced by people earning $2/day. There is modern slavery happening in garment-producing countries, and female workers are threatened with violence if they attempt to unionize. Fashion Revolution ran a campaign called Who Made my Clothes? to pressure companies to institute better transparency. They also have a program to offer clothing swaps and promote upcycling at high schools.
  2. Fashion industry = 5-10% of global greenhouse gases
  3. There are now “sewbots” that can sew basic clothing together like sheets and socks, which may bring big change to the garment industry.
  4. There is a product called Guppy Friend that helps take polyester microfibers out of your laundry.
  5. Household waste has grown overall 6% since 2000 but textile waste has increased 71% in that time, due to “fast fashion” (or “junk food fashion,” as one speaker put it) that keeps us buying cheaper goods that don’t last.
  6. Only 1% of textiles are re-made into new fabrics. 85% ends up in landfills. Thrift stores can only handle about 20% of donations so 80% end up being shredded into “shoddy” for seat cushion stuffing or sent overseas where it disrupts local economies.
  7. Though product producers and distributors like Amazon create a lot of packaging and shipping waste, they are not responsible for dealing with the waste – municipalities are, which means more taxpayer dollars spent for hauling and disposal. Re-Thread DC is an initiative to collect and repurpose disposed textiles to reduce waste. DC has passed a law that producers must take back at least 10% of the products they sell for recycling. There is a great economic development opportunity in materials re-use…
  8. India has banned genetic engineering of food crops, but that does not apply to cotton. One Indian farmer trapped in a cycle of expensive chemical use commits suicide every half hour.
  9. 52% of organic product shoppers are millennial so this is not a trend that is going away anytime soon.
  10. There is a “Regenerative” movement that is going beyond organic to focusing on replenishing depleted soil so it can better sequester carbon; soil from which our food and clothing fibers are grown.
  11. Stretch fabrics like Spandex are hard to make in an eco-friendly way and often cannot be recycled.
  12. Some textile dyes can be made using seaweed.
  13. Vogue magazine Australia, just hired a sustainability editor – (which is a big deal for a magazine that usually promotes many not- eco-friendly products)
  14. Greenwashing – sometimes stories told about products are misleading- one speaker said sometimes Guatemalan women may give up their handwoven textiles for a few dollars to put food on table, only to have them resold in the U.S. for hundreds because they are traditionally hand-made items.
  15. Idea: To help customers shop sustainable items, couldn’t Amazon have a sort function based on various standards such as Fair Trade?

So what are shoppers to do? There is no perfect answer right now, but as I said in the Green Wardrobe Guide—don’t buy what you don’t need, shop in thrift stores, seek out plant-based fabrics with natural dyes, and mend, donate or swap your clothes so they hopefully get another life. Do your homework and ask questions—consumer demand brings about change!!

Kudos to the DC Sustainable Fashion Collaborative! If you want to know more about the above, here are the groups to follow that are making a huge difference towards a more sustainable, equitable world:

5 Gyres

Brooklyn Fashion + Design Accelerator

Fair Trade America

Fashion Revolution

Fashionista

Fibershed

Free the Slaves

Goodweave

Green America

Guppy Friend

Lady Farmer

Metawear – Founded by author and ecopreneur Marci Zaroff

RRS Recycle

Textiles.com

#unveilingfashion #sustainablefashion #5Gyres #BFDA #FairTrade #FashionRevolution #Fibershed #FreetheSlaves # Goodweave #GreenAmerica #GuppyFriend #LadyFarmer #Metawear #MarciZaroff #Recycle #Textiles #Green_Wardrobe_Guide

85% of Textiles- That’s What We Waste

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At the recent Textile Waste Summit in New York City, there were fashion designers creating patterns that produce fewer fabric scraps, the NYC Department of Sanitation talking about their Donate NYC app to find clothing collection bins around the city, and nonprofit organizations helping to educate and create markets for recycled fabrics. It was all to address a major area of waste—textiles.

According to the NYS Association for Reduction, Reuse and Recycling (NYSAR)’s Re-Clothe NY Campaign, the average NY resident puts 70lbs of clothing, shoes and other textiles in the trash each year (it’s an average 80lbs/pp nationwide). That adds up to:

  • 1.4 billion lbs of clothing and textile waste per year in NY (NYSDEC)
  • 15 million tons wasted annually in the U.S. on whole.

Almost all fabrics can be recycled – pure fabric fibers can easily be recycled into new fabrics, and fabric blends (meaning those that combine cotton with polyester, for example) are a bit more difficult to recycle because the materials must be separated out, but it can be done. Unfortunately most of this waste is put in landfills, some is incinerated, and some is used to make car seat stuffing and insulation materials.

What is the best option for consumers? Only buy what you need and make it last. The second best option is clothing donation. Clothing that is clean and wearable can be donated to various thrift stores for resale such as Goodwill or Salvation Army. Anything that does not get sold within a certain time period is usually sent to developing nations for their second hand market.

For more info see:

Hear my radio interview with Dan Lilkas Rain of NYSAR here.

Live in NYC?

Apartment buildings with 10 or more units can sign up for refashionNYC, a partnership between NYC and Housing Works that provides convenient, in-building drop-off service for clothing, accessories, and textiles. Free donation bins available. NYC has a goal of zero waste to landfills by 2030! #0X30

Earth Day tip: Stop Food Waste!

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apples

Movie review: “Just Eat It”

Did you know that about 40% of food produced globally goes to waste? That before it even makes it to market, 20-70% of fruit gets discarded just because of aesthetics? And that households, not restaurants or grocery stores, are the largest source of food waste?

All food contains embodied energy and resources – for example, a 1/3-pound burger requires 660 gallons of water.[1] In addition to the ethical issue, 97% of the food wasted goes to landfills, where it ends up creating methane, a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. People often think that the “sell by” or even “best by” dates are the date by which it must be consumed- this is not the case. Food is often good for days or weeks after that. All of this is highlighted in the recent film, Just Eat It, which follows an American couple who lived off food waste for 6 months — not buying any food, only eating what was discarded. Seeing them find trash bins full of fresh food was depressing and eye-opening.

So what can we do?

  • Take stock before shopping so you only buy what you need
  • Prioritize perishables in your fridge, and store them in Green bags that keep food fresher longer (debbiemeyer.com/products)
  • Freeze and label leftovers
  • Support groups like Community Solidarity which rescues food and gives it to those in need right here on LI
  • Help raise awareness; that’s what led to legislation like the Good Samaritan Act of 1996 which encourages food donation to nonprofit groups

For more tips on not wasting see:      foodwastemovie.com

Books on Food Waste:

  • American Wasteland, by Jonathan Bloom
  • Waste, by Tristram Stuart

[1] http://www.latimes.com/food/dailydish/la-dd-gallons-of-water-to-make-a-burger-20140124-story.html