It is time for my annual — ‘garbage after Christmas’ letter’! I think that it is important for us to become ‘sustainable’— using earth’s resources in such a way that we do not exhaust their supply, or cause harm through their use. One example is single use plastics – we should all reduce our use of it by not buying products that are made with plastic material, and reuse or recycle them what we do. Maria and I have stopped buying milk in plastic containers. Yes, it costs more to buy milk in glass bottles, but those bottles are washed and reused, and therefore do not become products in our waste stream. I am sure that there is some ‘one thing’ that you can do to reduce your waste flow too.

Due to recent NJ laws, the sight of plastic bags in our streets, or hanging from trees is virtually non-existent, but we still buy plastic water bottles and litter our public spaces. Restaurants stopped putting leftovers in Styrofoam containers, but many of the new containers are recyclable #5; not the best recyclable source. Bars and restaurants still provide straws and we take them. We may recycle at home, but as soon as we go out, we forget and throw our recyclables into the garbage. And we do not seem able to reduce their household garbage. How does one create four containers of garbage every week?

How can we continue to increase our annual garbage and fail to recognize that a day of reckoning awaits? The plastic ocean islands continue to grow, and sea animals continue to ingest and get ensnared in plastic. We need to REDUCE our purchase of single use plastic, REUSE what we do buy, and RECYCLE all that can be recycled. The Center for Biological Diversity estimates that Americans increase garbage production 20 percent during the holidays. Why? There is no reason for garbage pick-up after Christmas to be any more than usual. Maria and I create one 18” high metal can’s worth of garbage weekly, and our Christmas week garbage is no different. How much garbage do you create?

All wrapping and cardboard gift boxes, cards and envelopes are paper that should be recycled or reused. Amazon, FED EX, and USPS packaging can be reused as garbage bags. I do not understand buying garbage bags! Don’t we get enough bags that can be reused through our purchases? Electronics, box Styrofoam and scrap metal pieces, gently used children’s toys, wine corks, and worn-out Christmas tree lights, can be brought to the Westfield Conservation Center. There is no reason to wrap a Christmas tree in plastic netting when we buy it; there is no reason to wrap it again when we take it down!

Reduce our holiday garbage production by not creating it in the first place. I hope that we reduced our need for and consumption of ‘stuff’ at Christmastime; that we bought long lasting gifts and experiences to be enjoyed instead. Bought real Christmas trees rather than artificial. Real trees are reused as mulch, and new trees are planted. When artificial trees ‘die,’ they are just more garbage or air pollution. The National Arbor Day Foundation will plant trees as Christmas gifts if you ask them.

In these days when we complain about high taxes, and pay for our garbage by weight at the incinerator, and air and water pollution our health, I urge all of us to remember that the two thoughts go together. If we reduce the amount of garbage we generate, we pay less for it in our taxes, and we make ourselves and our earth healthier. Let us see if we can reduce our garbage footprint after the holidays too, and give our earth a break.

Bill Nierstedt
Garwood