When deciding what you can reduce waste, ask yourself, “How much of the stuff that I buy do I use? How much of it do I need?”
According to a study done by USA Today, the average American adult spends $1,497 a month on nonessential items.
This includes take out food, bottled water, impulse purchases, and nonessential clothing.
Most of us have more than we need, so make it your personal mission to buy only things you absolutely need for not only your wallet but also the environment.
Reduce Landfills
According to the EPA, each person produces 4.40 pounds of garbage each day.
This adds up extremely quickly and there are about 230 million tons of municipal garbage produced each year.
This garbage ends up in landfills that create water pollution, air pollution, and generate a horrendous smell that affects all the communities that surround it.
These landfills will be around much longer than us, as plastic takes up to 100-400 years to breakdown entirely in a landfill.
Therefore, we need to reduce the number of things we all use, slowing the growth of landfills.
Save Energy and Resources
There is less energy used to recycle materials compared to making new materials.
In fact, recycling one aluminum can save enough energy to power a television for two hours.
Resources like aluminum, petroleum, and trees are all used to make new materials such as cans, plastic bags, and paper packaging.
These resources are nonrenewable and we will run out if we keep using them at the rate we are now.
Safer Future
Mining and manufacturing processes emit dangerous greenhouse gases.
Our climate is changing. By reducing our waste we can lessen the impact on our agriculture and freshwater locations.
We can even lower the frequency of natural disasters that are affecting our communities internationally.
Climate Change
Lessen the impact to our agriculture and fresh water locations.
Lower the frequency of natural disasters that are affecting our communities internationally.
Protect endangered species.
Lessen Landfill Impacts on Surrounding Communities
Landfills create water pollution when the trash is saturated with water and certain particles cannot be removed through a water treatment process. This is dangerous to the surrounding communities because their drinking water is contaminated.
Air pollution is created through the natural gasses that are released from the decay of materials. Being surrounded by these toxic gases can be a factor in lung and heart complications.
