Conservation Hawai‘i

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – Living

Jack Johnson sings about it, our kids preach about it, it is the new motto of our times.  Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. It breaks down the green movement into simple instructions.  And although it is an easy mantra to learn, it is one that it is a little harder to live.

We have been raised in an age of limitless possibility and potential – what seemed like infinite resources and boundless opportunity.  What we are realizing however, or have been slow to awaken to, are the limits we are bound by and the common and finite resources that we share.

The world’s population has exploded and we have seen the decimation humans can inflict on the earth.  We know now that we will deplete resources in the near future and that we bare responsibility to each other and to the planet.

People around the world are now changing their lifestyles to reflect more consciousness about our current predicament.

Reduce
Reducing is the cornerstone of the green movement.  While innovative new products reduce fuel consumption, use recycled materials, or are more eco-friendly, reducing our consumption would eliminate our over reliance on fuel and natural resources and eliminate unnecessary waste almost entirely.

There are some simple ways to reduce in our everyday lives.  If it is available, public transportation is a great tool that is often underutilized.  If public transportation is not an option, carpool, or bike ride or walk if the distances aren’t too great.  Support companies that have less packaging.

If you are only buying two or three objects at a store, skip the plastic bag.  At home, turn down the thermostat and put on a sweatshirt. We have also learned to like large portions -  dish up smaller plates and go back for seconds if you are still hungry.  Carry around your own water bottle to avoid buying bottled water.

Another thing that I did recently was to eliminate junk mail. The amount of useless catalogs and credit card offers we received was obnoxious and hugely wasteful.  There are a couple of websites that you can visit that can help remove you from junk mailing lists.

Reuse
Try to throw out as little as possible.  Before you put anything in the garbage think about any alternative use you might have for it.

My dad would always take clear glass bottles and glue their lids to the underside of the shelf on his work bench.  He would fill the bottles with screws and nails  and then screw them to the lids.

My kids are constantly using cardboard boxes and plastic bottles for art projects.  Wash out plastic bags and use them again.  My old shirts become work shirts, then they become rags, and then they become bedding for the chickens.

Yes, we have chickens, which coincidentally eat all of our kitchen scraps and live in a coup made out of reused lumber.

Recycle
Land fills are stinky sink holes that hide the results of our consumption.   Recycling programs have helped to reduce this problem, but many people are still reluctant to recycle their waste. It does take a little more effort to separate your garbage, but the good it does is well worth it.

Besides reducing the amount of garbage that is being put back into the earth, it gives many waste products a second or third life.  There are several products that are now made from recycled materials and often these materials can be used over and over again or will outlast comparable products that are made from first generation materials.     Make sure that when you purchase something made out of plastic, that it is the type that can be recycled. There are seven different types of plastic specified by the American Society of Plastics Industry, if you look at the triangle symbol on the product you can determine which one it is:

1. PET or PETE (Polyethylene terephthalate). The most common type of recycled plastic, these containers are marked with a “1″ . These typically include the likes of soft drink bottles, water bottles, plastic peanut butter jars, plastic wrap, and salad dressing bottles.
2. HDPE (High-density polyethylene). This type marked with a “2,” is also commonly recycled plastic. These types include some plastic milk cartons, juice bottles, shampoo bottles, and liquid detergent containers.
3. PVC (Polyvinyl chloride). While recyclable, containers marked by a “3,” are sometimes not taken at local recycling centers. In this group are clear food packages, liquid detergent containers, and many construction products including particular traffic cones.
4. LDPE (Low density polyethylene). The “4″ marked plastic, is used in certain bread and frozen food plastic bags, rubbish cans and  can liners.
5. PP (Polypropylene). Plastics marked with a “5″ usually are used in the automobile and construction industries, they include some car battery casings, oil funnels, and drinking straws.
6. PS (Polystyrene). A less common type of plastic, marked by a “6,” includes select packing foam, cutlery, protective packaging for electronic equipment and children’s products.
7. Other. Plastics labeled as “other” or with a “7″ can not be recycled as they commonly are made up with the above types of plastic, or with a different type of plastic other than the ones listed. The exception to plastics marked with a “7″ that you can recycle, are some 3 to 5 gallon water containers.