by Beth Terry
15.4 oz Plastic Waste [11.9 oz new/3.5 oz acquired prior to June 2007]
Someone commented a while back that my plastic trash tallies were getting boring because there was so little each month and it all looked the same. After 3-1/2 years of collecting plastic, I was kind of getting bored too. So, here’s 4 month’s worth, all saved up. It might be boring, but at least not as often. :-)
Beth’s January through April 2011 plastic waste collection
Plastic purchased before June 15 2007 and used up in the last month (3.5 oz):
- 4 plastic spice bottles, 4 plastic lids, 2 plastic shaker tops. Still using up spices in plastic containers and filling glass jars from the bulk bins when I need to restock.
- Plastic lid from metal spice container.
- SIM card from old mobile phone. Sold the phone.
- Venus razor cartridge. As you know, I use a metal safety razor. But I did keep my old plastic Venus razor and a few cartridges for traveling. Double-edged razor blades would not be allowed in my carry-on luggage. I’ve used this cartridge very sparingly, and it’s finally worn out after over 3 years.
- Cracked credit card holder. I think it came with my gym membership card many years ago. It’s worn out.
- 4 ripped up foam headphone pads. I already wrote about how excited I was to crochet replacement pads for my headphones.
New plastic waste (11.9 oz):
- Plastic packing tape and label pouch from corks ordered from The Cork Store. I found some glass pitchers at a thrift store without the plastic tops that go inside them, so I ordered big fat cork stoppers. I did request no plastic packaging, but still the envelope came covered in tape.
- Two vials of Vectra flea treatment for cats. This is a new one we’re trying. Read about our flea dilemma here. I’ve gotten suggestions to try rubbing diatomaceous earth directly on the cats’ fur, but honestly, I don’t want to breathe that stuff, or allow my cats to breathe it.
- Twenty plastic envelope windows from various sources, including financial institutions that don’t offer online banking yet. Learn about what plastic envelope windows are made from.
- Five prescription bottles and caps. Preserve’s Gimme5 program will accept the #5 bottles for recycling. But sadly, the state of California will not allow pharmacies to refill them, which would be the ideal solution to me.
- Plastic bottle, cap, and foam seal from 2 bottles of BalanceIT cat food supplement. Read about our homemade cat food here.
- “Biodegradable” plastic package from Kaiser prescription order. Biodegradable plastic is baloney. I’ll have even more info on that topic in a future post. I usually pick up my prescriptions from Kaiser, but this was sent while I was out of town.
- Two “Biodegradable” plastic dry cleaning bags. Argh! This one made me mad because I specifically requested no plastic bags. We took all of our bedding, curtains, futon cover, etc. to be cleaned after dealing with fleas all winter. They wouldn’t fit in the ClothesNik dry cleaning bag we normally use. And for some reason, I used a different cleaner than usual. When I complained the cleaner said, “I know you said you didn’t want plastic bags, but these are biodegradable.” There’s a new study out about biodegradable polyethylene and what a crock it is. I’ll report back to you after I’ve finished reading it.
- Toothpaste cap and threads from Tom’s of Maine aluminum toothpaste tube. The aluminum tubes are recyclable, but sadly, Tom’s has switched recently to all plastic tubes. Once I use up my last few aluminum tubes, I’ll be looking for a good alternative recipe that won’t take the enamel off my teeth. Baking soda doesn’t work for me.
- Five Bandaids. I think I’ve used more Bandaids in the last few months than all year last year. One boo boo after another. Here’s a tip for you: Do not take a very hot glass of liquid out of the microwave and add cold water to it. Oh, you already knew that? Of course you did. I’m just lucky to still have my fingers.
- Three unwanted plastic straws. Plastic straws do happen to the best of us sometimes when we’re not on our toes.
- Two tiny plastic liquor bottles. Flying back from Maryland after my mom’s passing in February, I did what I needed to do. No apologies.
- Wrist band. From a Devo concert at the Warfield. Yeah, you heard me right. I said Devo. I am such a good wife. You should have seen all the plastic hats.
- Barnes and Noble gift card. Birthday gift. Sadly, it cannot be refilled. But do read about recycling gift cards.
- Two stickers from cardboard box of EcoDent dental floss. Read about EcoDent here.
- Plastic condiment cup and lid. I don’t even remember receiving this, but it’s in my collection, so I must have.
- Plastic seal from a glass bottle of hot sauce. The stopper is wood, but sealed with a little plastic.
- Two shrink wrappers from Snapfish photo books. I made photo books for my Dad and me to document our cross country trip last year. The books were cloth bound and delivered in cardboard mailers without tape. The shrink wrap was the only plastic.
Well, that’s 4 month’s worth of plastic. Have you started collecting your own plastic waste? Come on. Take the challenge. Help me fill in the World Map of Challenge participants!
Hi Beth! I'd mostly come in contact with food grade calcium carbonate behind the scenes at Oakland Museum, where they buy it in bulk, and hadn't yet looked into how/where to buy it for myself. So a brief look online took me to ebay, where one can get a one-pound package of it for under $10, including shipping. It may also be available over the counter, but I'm not sure where. If you see it over the counter, make sure it's food-grade, or "precipitated," which is purified, as opposed to just chowing down on a hunk of limestone. :-) Wanna split a package? I'm in Oakland too.
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