(Ed. Note: The following article is reprinted with permission from "The Sometimes Monthly Recycle Rag," the newsletter of Garbage Reincarnation, Inc., P.O. Box 1375, Santa Rosa, CA 95402, 707-584-8666.)
Real Activists don't just recycle. They reduce and reuse instead. Further, most solid waste laws mandate source reduction over recycling. Since that's the case, we would expect to see more programs aimed at reduction and reuse than recycling. So, why isn't it so?
Unfortunately, some policy makers think recycling is interchangeable with source reduction. Or else, they underestimate the contribution source reduction can make. It's "invisible" - you cannot see what you don't produce - so they are unaware of source reduction's effectiveness.
Source reduction must be implemented first because recycling alone doesn't change the fact that Californians simply produce too much garbage: 8.2 lbs. per person per day, an amount that has doubled in our lifetime. In creating all this garbage, we've increased the mining and harvesting of our natural resources, increased pollution and increased toxic byproducts created during processing. Little of this is alleviated by using these items briefly and then dropping them in a recycling bin.
Source reduction costs less than recycling. Isn't it cheaper to not make waste in the first place, than to pay to produce it and then pay more to get rid of it? Source reduction costs less than recycling because it doesn't incur the financial and environmental costs of trying to manage waste after it's produced.
The Sonoma County cities of Healdsburg and Petaluma spend $750 per ton to recycle mixed household paper at curbside. That is 800% more than Garbage Reincarnation's commercial office paper program costs. And, markets for mixed household paper are scarce. At the same time, no local education exists to reduce mixed household paper. We encourage communities to complement their collection programs with the most effective methods of managing their waste stream; that is, reduction and reuse with a strong education program that emphasizes practical ways to do so.
Copyright Mendocino Environmental Center 2004
Permission granted to excerpt or use this article if source is cited