The dos and definite do-nots of going waste free

By Kate Borucz

This article first appeared in print in the January 2019 issue of Revelstoke Mountaineer Magazine. It was part of our January Green Issue supplement, which featured stories with an environmental focus.

Oh, the holiday season! How easy it is for us to get wrapped up in the joyous wonderment of over-spending, over-stressing, over-eating, and, in general, over-consuming. Historically, during this time I would spare no expense or extravagance on my loved ones (or myself), but this year was different. Maybe it’s personal growth, but I thought it would be an interesting social experiment to challenge myself and my friend Hannah to go waste free for one week, perfectly planned for December 10 until December 16. Only nine short days away from the most indulgent time of the year.

Hannah and I met to discuss our goals at La Baguette, one week prior to starting the challenge. The rules were simple: create no new waste – no packaging, no plastic, no paper napkins, no tiny ridiculous clips that hold your bread bag closed. If creating waste is inevitable, find a new purpose for it. If something can’t be repurposed, can it be recycled? Composted? And finally, any waste that can’t be repurposed, recycled, or composted we must carry with us (for visual reference).

Day 1: Monday, December 10 – I’m off to a bad start. I had made plans to drive a friend home to Salmon Arm, but we left in a rush and next thing I know I’m getting a croissant to go (in a paper bag, no less). OK, paper is recyclable, but that should really be the last option. What can I do with this paper bag full of crumbs? I don’t know, let me think on it a bit. On our way back to Revelstoke I get a rumble in my tummy. Feeding time, but I don’t want to create more waste. I can wait until we get home. It’s obvious eating out presents many waste-filled challenges. Time to get proactive. Hannah was in an AST course all day and packed her own lunch (good girl). She had mentioned she finished the milk in her fridge and can return the glass container for a deposit, but what about the plastic lid?

Day 2: Tuesday, December 11 – Truth be told, we went clothing shopping while in Salmon Arm yesterday. So many tags pinned to new clothes, and the tiny little plastic that connects the tag to the clothing. I got creative with the tags and turned them into tags for gifts under the tree (which are wrapped in cloth, by the way). I also stopped into the grocery store on my way home from work, an unplanned trip, which meant I didn’t have the foresight to bring a reusable bag with me. I packed three tomatoes, a field cucumber (not wrapped in plastic), two lemons, a bunch of dill, and soup stock into my purse. Note: leave a supply of bags in the car, at all time! Hannah picked up a prescription from the pharmacy and noted the never-ending packaging, at least most of it is paper or cardboard – perfect for starting fires in the wood stove. I managed to give the crumb-filled bag from my take-out croissant a second life as an organizational envelope to hold pins, tacks, and paperclips in the junk drawer. Crumbs have been removed prior to re-purposing.

Day 3: Wednesday, December 12 – As I’m doing my self-care routine in the morning, I can’t help but notice the amount of waste created in the bathroom. Cotton pads used for makeup removal, swabs for ear cleaning, tissues — all paper-based products. I’m making a pledge to empty the bin from the bathroom into the backyard compost from this point on! With a little planning and foresight, waste reduction is quite achievable. No word from Hannah today, I assume she’s given up and is rolling in a pile of garbage, out of spite.

Day 4: Thursday, December 13 – It’s actually getting easier on a day-to-day basis to create less waste. I have a zero-waste kit in the car at all times which is composed of a reusable bag, a to go coffee mug, a cloth napkin, and a container for any possible leftovers from a restaurant meal. We had made plans with a friend to go for sushi, my favourite! I thought ahead and brought a pair of reusable chopsticks from home. The server at the restaurant was quite impressed and noted that she doesn’t see that very often, but she mentioned that she is seeing more people bring their own take out containers. Yay for re-usability! Boo for Styrofoam!

Day 5: Friday, December 14 – Still no word from Hannah. She has brought shame to her family, no doubt. I am continuing on with the waste free week challenge into the weekend, but this article is due today for print, so this is as far as my journey goes with you, as the reader. I’ve learned a lot so far, and my plans for the weekend are to head to some retail stores downtown to shop for gifts. I am maintaining this waste-conscious approach even in my gift giving, looking for products that are not disposable and will last the receiver a long time. I also plan to go to the Return-It Centre and get as much information as I can about what can and can’t be brought to the depot. The very least we can do as conscious consumers is to recycle, although we should be considering re-purposing, reducing, reusing, rethinking, and even refusing before we even think about recycling.

To learn more about waste consciousness and how living life in the mountains can limit our options check out http://bigmountain.kitchen/life