Recycling thoughts: why don't we do it more?

A friend of mine is working to bring our attention locally to recycling, in hopes of making us more aware of environmental concerns in general. In a recent e-mail, she wrote:

"My friend who runs the recycling center in N-- basically told me that it's hard to get anywhere in [this state], and that until everyone starts dying of diseases from pollution, nothing will be done. He said whole subdivisions are built on landfills and that vile gases escape from underneath people's homes. Places in the river bubble up from buried filth. People won't bring in their paint cans and hazardous wastes to be disposed of "properly" because it takes time. And others just pour these things down storm drains in the streets so it goes into our rivers. New York used to dump all their garbage barges into the ocean. It all makes me nuts. I feel like I'm a lung cell who can't get the body to stop smoking."

Pause for reflection. Powerful analogy, eh?

So. Where are your old batteries? What do you plan to do with those leftover paint cans? No, I know that everyone who reads my blog is an responsible citizen and knows his/her hazardous waste disposal location. Perhaps it the neighbors we could help out? "Hey, I'm heading over to the hazardous waste disposal place next weekend. Here's a list, if you'd like to know more about where to take your old paint cans and other hazardous stuff." I'll bet my kids would like going door to door with information sheets!

We've got to start somewhere. It may not make a huge difference, but these small things surely spread an awareness. There's a self-proclaimed "crabby environmentalist" in my life keeping me honest. I like that. She keeps me on my toes. I think about how to reuse things. I go ahead and rinse out my old ricotta cheese containers (from that nasty dessert the South Beach Diet had us making), and stick them in recycling.

I use both sides of copy paper for my drafts. I even rinse out cheapie resealable plastic sandwich and storage bags before tossing them into the recycling bin...not that I'm bragging. I'm just becoming more aware.