Thoughts on plastic, waste, and what really needs to be done.

Welcome to Plastic Free July. After a little bit of thought, I decided to jump into it this year. In doing so I realized that I've been at this for a while.

Whenever I see some nifty new vegetarian or vegan product, I have three reactions. The first: "Ooh, I've got to try this." The second: "Ugh, there's so much packaging." (FYI, the second one isn't usually articulated with words as much as it is a visual of me trying to dispose of said packaging, and let's be honest, we know that most of it isn't recyclable but will simply end up as garbage.) The third: "Maybe I can buy the ingredients to make this myself? That will probably be cheaper anyway." As much as I love grocery shopping--I'm an anomaly, I know--that bit of dialogue gets exhausting after several years (or decades).

When I initially heard about this challenge, I curled my lip. I compost, I make an effort to be realistic about the waste I'm producing, and for the last two years one of the most disheartening things I face is how much recycling my family produces. I'm already conscious, I'm already trying, go bother someone else.

However, after seeing so many people talk about this on the internet, I decided to give it a shot, and I've been pleasantly surprised by how much better I feel. Proactively eschewing plastic means that I don't enter into my local food co-op with a vague sense of uneasiness. It also means that I now no longer have that feeling when I'm in my kitchen that my packaging is going to leap out and touch me. Finally, it doesn't hurt that most of the items without packaging tend to cost less (the revelations of bulk shopping deserves its own post).

But having said all of that, I'm calling b.s. on the entire thing.

Unfortunately it's not that simple

The American economy is dependent on consumption, and as such it behooves us as consumers to be conscious about what we're buying, where it comes from, and where it goes when we're done with it. It's nothing to be proud of that we're also a throw away culture, especially because most of what we're throwing away ends up landfills. Let's be conscious, let's be thoughtful, and in general let's buy less.

But let's also be objective. We are a throw away culture because our products have planned obsolescence built into them. Our smartphones--these powerful miniature computers that are so advanced most sci-fi couldn't have conceived of it--aren't meant to last more than three or four years. (Please; we all know it's really two.) Same with laptops, and if you are the person who happens to stretch out your consumer tech, people look at you not with admiration but pity; why are you holding onto something that went out of date six months after you bought it? And if you decide to buck convention and repair something rather than toss it, you're told that it's "not worth it" because the repairs will cost more than buying a new version. I speak from experience: the slightly cracked screen the broken camera lens on my phone aren't worth the expense of fixing, the Acer Chromebook I bought about two years ago is unusable because no one--including Acer--makes a replacement for the power cord which stopped working nine months ago; and I've been the owner of a convection toaster oven since September when I decided that it was ridiculous that I was looking at my third fix for my oven igniter in four years. (I'm not joking--this is what happens when you bake as opposed to buy for your family.) And before you ask, yes, I did have to use the warranty to exchange the toaster oven already.

I am not going to solve any of these problems by not using plastic straws or bringing my own utensils when I get take out. And while the real solution for a lot of those issues is now in reach for my family--make an investment purchase in something that will last a decade and not a year--that's a recent development and I would never suggest that that's the answer for many people because it's just not possible. When we're debating whether people should get a living wage or a minimum wage, it's ridiculous to insist that they spend hundreds of dollars on something they can barely afford to spend tens on.

Finally, know this: even if every consumer in this country stops buying things packaged in and/or made of plastic, we're still going to have a plastic pollution problem because we're more than just a bunch of consumers. Think about the plastics used by medical, construction, hospitality, computer and electronic manufacturing, apparel, fishing, printing, and almost any other industry you can think of. Now ask yourself how they dispose of them, even if it comes down to tiny widgets. That adds up as well.

None of this is to say that we as individuals shouldn't do our part, but we need to recognize that our part doesn't end with not using a plastic bag. It's the least sexy solution in the world, but talk to your family, friends, and representatives about limiting or eliminating plastic not only for consumer products but also for industry. And keep talking about it, because plastic isn't going anywhere any time soon.

Green Illusions : The Dirty Secrets of Clean Energy and the Future of Environmentalism (Our Sustainable Future) by Ozzie Zehner

Two decades ago, I took a class called Environment and Society. Required reading for that class was State of The World 1990. What that book clearly laid out was that technology was not the answer to our problems with energy; to solve the problem, we'd have to rethink our systems, not just create new technology. There was a place for renewables, but ultimately the answer was using energy more intelligently.

Unfortunately, that's not what we we've been told. Many of us have been dreaming of a day when a combination of solar, wind and hydro power can replace coal and oil for all of our energy needs. That is, if we haven't been convinced that hydrogen, nuclear power or (non-existent) carbon capture are the keys to solving our energy problems.

The first part of Zehner's book slams down those arguments. While he points out many of the drawbacks inherent in renewable technologies (I'm not likely to look at photovoltaic panels again and not think about the waste associated with them), the most damning pieces are his exploration of how hydrogen and "clean" coal came to dominate the energy discussion in the last decade, reaching its most intense pitch during the 2008 election cycle.

The technology, however, is not the real problem and it never was. While our energy delivery systems need to be made more efficient- over half of what is generated is lost before it reaches consumers- the real roots of the problem are population and consumption. Zehner is sensitive to the fact that many population-control measures have been ham-handed at best and draconian at worst (read Mara Hvistendahl's Unnatural Selection for more on that); what he argues for (as many others have for decades) is a comprehensive program that improves women's rights and education. Once empowered, women tend to choose to have fewer children. That's easier- and less tragic- than forcing couples to reproduce at certain levels.

 Perhaps because I'm a mother of younger children and teenagers I found the exploration of marketing to children to be particularly disturbing, but I suspect others will too. Anyone who wants to argue that consumption should be the engine of our economy should read about the way children are stalked so that advertisers can figure out the best ways to market to them, or the way poorer city children are exploited so their tastes and habits can be sanitized and marketed to more affluent youth as a safe form of rebellion. And why is that relevant to a discussion about adult buying habits? Because children become adults- and advertisers want to make sure that they are socialized as early as possible to become consumers.

While the picture many paint is bleak (and rightfully so), Green Illusions points to places where energy is being used more efficiently. Zehner notes many of the efficiencies available in the Netherlands- and big cities like New York City. While this may fly in the face of the DIY model of self-sufficiency that asks us to envision ourselves on rural homesteads, city-dwellers are among the most energy-efficient in the world. The reason that isn't touted more? Because there is nothing sexy (or salable) about small apartments, public transportation or shared furnaces. However, those are the things that consistently work.

Highly recommended for anyone concerned about energy use.