by Beth Terry
My plastic waste is way down this week. As far as I know, all items are non-recyclable. It’s really eye-opening to see just how much plastic we use that cannot be recycled.
Items used this week but purchased before the plastic project began:
- 1 Kleenex pocket pack tissue wrapper.I still have quite a few of these packs left; I just don’t use them very often.
- 1 wrapper from a package of “D” batteries.
- 8 Refresh Endura single-use eyedrop containers (#4 plastic).
- 1 Santa Cruz organic applesauce cup. (#7 plastic) I have 4 more of these left to use up.
- 2 prescription bottles (both #5 plastic).I asked the pharmacist this week if they could take the bottles back to reuse them and was told no. I think it may be against the law in California for pharmacies to reuse prescription bottles. I don’t know if these are recyclable or not, so I’m keeping them to reuse in some other way.
- 1 Whole Kitchen frozen dinner tray and film.
- 1 Soy Delicious mini frozen sandwich wrapper. Still have a few left in the box.
Now for the new plastic waste:
- 2 Seeds of Change frozen dinner films. I’m making a commitment this week to be more conscious of my time and food preparations so that I can rely less on frozen foods. I have no more frozen entrees left, and I’m not planning on buying any more for a while.
- 1 inner plastic bag from a box of Cashbah organic couscous. I had no idea there would be a plastic bag inside the box. From now on, I’ll stick to Trader Joe’s whole wheat couscous. I know for sure there is no plastic in that box (surprisingly, since TJ’s is so enamored with plastic in general.)
- 1 plastic zip lock bag from a sample of Preserve toothbrushes that Recycline sent me. Ironic, no? I’ll resuse it. But still.
- 4 feet of packing tape from said box of Preserve toothbrushes.
New plastic purchased this week which is destined for my plastic purgatory in the future:
- 1 Haig’s spicy hummus container.
- 1 block of Trader Joe’s English Coastal cheddar wrapped in plastic.
- 1 glass jar of active dry yeast with a small plastic seal around the metal lid.
