Taking out the trash: How to waste less

Joann Elizalde
November 1, 2011

Introduction

We are living in a new age. Our lives run along at such a fast pace that we rarely stop to think about what we are doing and where we are going.

Take, for example, what we throw in the trash. I don’t stop to think about the choice I am making when I step on the silver pedestal attached to my kitchen’s waste bin. I just do it. I throw something in there so I can be done with it. I bet you are just like me.

Let’s stop for a moment to ask ourselves a question: have we considered where our trash is going? Most of us know. It’s going to a landfill and that’s the end of it. We assume the smart folks that created landfills have figured out what to do with all that trash.

Well… they are doing their best. If you learned how landfills work, I think your habits would change at least a little, especially if you realized a small change in your behavior might save your kids, and our future generations, plenty of headache.

Here’s the problem. Landfill space is limited. We are running out of room. How can that be possible? Doesn’t trash break down making room for more? It turns out that is not the case. Trash needs three things to break down or decompose: air, water, and sunlight. Landfills aren’t good at meeting these requirements.

Landfills are good at containing instead of decomposing. In itself, this knowledge changed my view of landfills. I treat them differently. Thus, my habits are changing over time.

How long do landfills keep our junk? Landfill studies out of the University of Arizona estimate that food decomposes at a rate of 50 percent every twenty years. They also found “still-recognizable 25-year-old hot dogs, corncobs and grapes in landfills, as well as 50-year-old newspapers that were still readable.” Other objects stick around longer. Plastic bags are estimated to last between 500 to 1,000 years in a landfill before they break down. If that same bag were exposed to air, it would only take 10 to 20 years. (http://www.divinecaroline.com/22355/49745-landfill-trash-really-last/2#ixzz1cJ5zyldM; http://environment.about.com/od/recycling/a/biodegradable.htm)

As you can see, garbage does break down in a landfill, but the process is painfully slow. This leaves us - and future generations - in a bind, scrambling for more space to put our unwanted stuff.

What can be done to address the space problem we face with our landfills?

How about destroying our trash? Burning might be an option… but wait! Incineration does reduce required space, but it causes higher levels of carbon dioxide, contributing to global warming, another environmental threat.

We don’t want to fix one problem while creating another. You could argue that methane gas can be, and is already, harvested in many landfills with the goal of tapping another energy source. We forget that much of our waste remains after this harvesting has taken place.

Here’s an interesting fact: Did you know the John F. Kennedy and La Guardia Airports were built on top of landfills? Yep. The problem with doing this is that the waste underneath these airports is probably going to be around longer than the airports themselves. (http://www.divinecaroline.com/22355/49745-landfill-trash-really-last/2#ixzz1cJ5Tf4tT)

A more sensible solution would be not to create so much waste in the first place. According to the EPA, 40 percent of our waste is paper, 17 percent is yard waste, 8 percent is plastics, and 7 percent is food waste. These items can be composted or recycled. Food waste alone is huge in the U.S. One study shows 40% of food is not eaten, enough to “fill the Rose Bowl every three days,” or 29 million tons each year. (http://www.divinecaroline.com/22355/49745-landfill-trash-really-last/2#ixzz1cJ5mGllZ; http://www.culinate.com/articles/features/wasted_food)

Let’s be realistic. Eliminating all waste is not doable. That said, we should seek out or create new ways to get rid of our trash in ways that will benefit everyone in the long run.

Technology exists for landfills to be designed to promote decomposition through injection of water, oxygen, and microbes. Another solution could be for landfills to sort out organic matter and compost it, creating an additional income source if it was sold as black dirt. The biogas from organic waste could also be harvested and used in vehicles or for electricity. (http://environment.about.com/od/recycling/a/biodegradable.htm).

Interestingly, I discovered England is running out of landfill sites. An online article points out how some studies are actually mining landfills as a resource. It says this is, “less intrusive for the community than incineration and more environmentally sound.” They point out how energy and material prices will rise in the next 20 years and are trying to master technology making mining both practical and profitable (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/businessandecology/recycling/8849010/Tipping-point-what-happens-when-our-landfills-are-full.html).

With this new knowledge about waste and landfills, I expect to make better choices in the future. I see how creating less garbage is so important and the significance that composting and recycling actually have. I will strive to support technological improvements that reduce, eliminate, or use our waste products.

Can I encourage you to join me and not leave this problem for our kids to figure out?

What do you guys think? Do you have practical ideas for handling waste?