I have a severe case of the recycling blues. And I don’t think it will clear up anytime soon.
Everywhere I turn, I am being told to “Save the planet.” It is akin to the advertising campaign, “Only you can prevent forest fires”, but on a larger scale. Plus, there is no Smokey Bear to cheer me along.
It’s not that I don’t want to save the planet. But the twin forces of money and greed appear to be thwarting my meager efforts leaving me mired in frustration.
I don’t believe I’m alone in these feelings. Does this situation sound familiar? I’m standing in my kitchen trying to locate a tiny triangle on some plastic box or bottle. Once found, the number in the triangle is impossible to read. After several attempts, I get my reader glasses. The number is a 6. More frustration sets in, and here’s why.
All various plastics are universally categorized into seven major groups. Although easy to recycle, number 1 can be recycled only once. Numbers 2, 4 and 5 are considered the safest to recycle using standard recycling procedures. Numbers 3, 6 and 7 cannot be recycled using standard recycling procedures, and if recycled, may cause harm to the health and environment.
Bottom line: No matter how hard I try, this is a disaster. In addition, my local recycling center only takes numbers 1 and 2. Driving miles and miles to recycle 3, 4, 5, 6 and the evil 7 seems beyond ludicrous.
To make matters worse, plastics are only one part of the recycling nightmare in America. Where do those lightbulbs go that are supposed to last 14 years and burn out in three? And how about that perfectly good shirt except for the frayed collar? Or the tattered old teddy bear or that spare roll of carpeting that no longer matches the original?
Since I don’t live in a country like Sweden where recycling is a national priority and almost everyone in residential areas is no more than 300 meters from effective recycling stations, I have to find a way to cope.
My plan is as follows:
- Take a deep breath.
- Recycle to the best of my ability.
- Pour a generous glass of wine.
- Drink the wine.
- Remember that I am not Atlas and can’t hold up the entire world on my shoulders.
