The Tilsons

I’ve been hoarding our soft plastics for over a year now hoping that I would find some place that would recycle it all. The two boxes we’ve accumulated are full of food and product packaging that is almost impossible to avoid in our plastic obsessed, consumerist society. I finally found Happy Stan’s Recycling Services after calling the Recycling Council of BC’s Hotline (604.732.9253) yesterday.

Now the trick is to get our two boxes of plastic to Happy Stan’s facility in Port Coquitlam using less resources than will be gained from the materials recovery. I am sensing a bike adventure in the spring or perhaps building-wide monthly pickup.

The move toward zero waste is progressing. The goal for our household from March 15 to April 15 was one small bag. Lisa and I made it to April 30th before needing to empty. Six weeks!

We are raising the bar and aiming for one bag in two months. Our carbon neutral wedding is coming up in a month which may add up as we can’t control what people bring for gifts. We have asked that there be no wrapping or creative recycled wrapping at most. Packaging is still the primary contributor to our waste and is extremely difficult to get away from. We have been buying more items bulk and bringing our own bags which has taken a little retraining but has been effective in reducing packaging waste. I also learned how to make phad thai seasoning from scratch this month so I don’t have to buy it in packages anymore. If anyone wants the recipie leave a comment and I’ll post it.

To keep everything foul out of the garbage, all vegetable waste, paper scraps, receipts and dust get composted. To deal with a chicken carcas after it was boiled to make chicken broth, I tossed it in the blender with some water and turned it into a liquid paste that would rapidly compost in the outside bin while not attracting vermin.

Once upon a time in a far away land, an email was sent out demanding that the King (or Queen) of recycling step forward to take his or her rightful place place in the court of the land of Waste-Not-Want-Not. Can they be we, the king and queen of recycling, we wondered, staring wide-eyed at the email. YES THEY CAN ! What perfect canditates for the positions ! Since the fateful day that we decided to reduce our garbage to one bag per month, we have discovered that we completely underestimate how much garbage we produce, and with a little bit of creativity, could we produce hardly any at all ? Today, May 1st, 2007, we are starting a new bag to see how long we can go ! One day the words shall ring out over the land, « I now pronounce you, Justin and Lisa, King and Queen of recycling… »