America is going "green." The word on saving the planet's natural
resources, reducing waste and conserving energy has gotten out in a big
way. From environmental reality shows such as HGTV's "Living with Ed,"
to former Vice President Al Gore's Nobel Peace Prize recognition for his
work on global warming, America is waking up to environmental concerns.
Southern Maryland, too, is doing its part. While recycling may be the
first thing people think of to help the environment, there's much more
to going green. Industry experts use the three-tiered approach: reduce,
reuse and recycle.
Reduce
Each person creates roughly four-to-seven-pounds of trash per day and
waste experts suggest that if each of us reduced that amount we would
save natural resources and reduce personal and community costs.
Waste prevention - or source reduction as it's called in the industry -
is ideal because it keeps trash out of the landfill and avoids expensive
handling costs.
"There's a lot that people can do, but it's changing lifestyle," said
Richard Tarr, solid waste recycling manager for St. Mary's County.
"Think of ways in the house and at the store (to reduce). Buy in bulk -
that reduces the amount of waste. Most waste comes out of the kitchen,
so compost at home if you can."
Tarr explained that in a disposable society we often don't consider the
waste that comes from the products we buy.
"Do I buy the two-liter bottle or the 12-pack? Make the decision to buy
the two-liter," he said, noting it is less trash going into the waste
stream. "If you buy plastic water bottles, recycle them. Or, purchase a
cooler and thermos instead of using all these plastic bottles."
Saving the environment may cost a bit more initially, but Rob Plant of
Blue Wind Gourmet in Lexington Park pays a cent extra for the cups he
buys made of 100 percent corn plastic. He said it is worth it in the
long run since these cups are biodegradable, meaning they won't sit in a
landfill for 500 or more years.
On the waste industry side there is a real financial benefit.
"Cardboard and paper (recyclables) can generate revenue so there's a
demand for it now," Tarr said. "It's cheaper to make cardboard from
recyclables. There's a big demand for electronics now. 'What do we do
with all these used electronics?' The industry recognizes the need and
now there's a demand."
While Calvert, Charles and St. Mary's counties all have recycling
programs, only Charles County continues to actively use its landfill.
The 90-acre Charles County Landfill in Waldorf opened in 1994. A third
cell at the facility is currently under construction.
"There are four original cells and you build them as you go because it's
so expensive," said Dennis Fleming, chief of Charles County's Solid
Waste Division. Each landfill cell costs about $4 million and meets the
government's Subtitle D requirements, he said. That includes a
high-density polyethylene liner, which is the same material used to make
plastic milk jugs. The liner serves as a chemical-resistant barrier
preventing soil and groundwater pollution.
Fleming explained that the modern-day landfill is a highly complex,
highly regulated facility with regular environmental checks monitored by
the Maryland Department of the Environ-ment. He added that if all goes
as planned, "this landfill can be re-circulating" and the first cell
will be able to be mined for top soil, metals, plastics and then used
again.
Calvert and St. Mary's counties currently keep their landfills in
reserve. Tarr said St. Mary's closed its municipal landfill in 2001. "We
currently have a permit to expand if we choose to construct it," he
said, however, it's "based on economics. We're sending all of our waste
to a mega landfill in Virginia where rates are extremely low."
Calvert County officials are taking similar actions.
"With the majority of the county's waste being transferred out of state
for disposal, only a minimal amount of trash is deposited in the
landfill per year," said Barry K. King, chief of the Calvert County
Department of Public Works' Bureau of Utilities. "Obviously, this
arrangement has saved valuable landfill space and has extended the life
of the landfill."
While reducing waste is one approach to living a green lifestyle,
experts also recommend reusing materials.
Reuse
In a perfect world no one would ever need to throw anything away and
there would be no trash created. While trash is a reality for most of
us, reusing old items instead of adding them to the solid waste stream
is a real option.
People like Christine Reese, who try to be environmentally conscience,
can join the Freecycle Network™ - an entirely nonprofit Web site of
people who give and receive free items in their own counties.
Reese has given away old pots and pans to college students; baby clothes
and items to other mothers; and received items for her children
including a unicycle, a hamster cage and a mini-trampoline.
"I'd rather give my (old things) to someone who I know is
environmentally conscience," Reese said.
Cara Fogarty didn't know what to do with her old chain link fence, so
she posted it on Freecycle.
"We had to make room to get (heavy) equipment into our backyard. I had
one long section rolled up and I didn't want to take it to the
landfill," she said. "I got 16 to 17 responses."
An animal rescue group from Prince George's County came and picked up
the 60 to 75 feet of fencing, providing one more example of trash being
diverted from the garbage pile.
Other options for reuse include Charles County's Reuse It Barn, thrift
stores and vintage stores, which are on the rise. Michelle Radez started
the Vintage Source in Compton where she and her two business partners
sell repurposed and/or re-beautified household items and furniture.
Repurposing old items has become a popular concept in the home and
garden arena and it's environmentally sound.
Recycle
A last option to reducing the solid waste stream is recycling. Calvert,
Charles and St. Mary's counties have all been working since the 1990s to
divert as much trash as possible into their recycling programs. The
Maryland Recyclers Coalition and the Maryland Department of the
Environment spearheaded a voluntary statewide waste diversion rate goal
of at least 40 percent by 2005, and all three Southern Maryland counties
have increased their rates since 2001.
Calvert County's 2001 waste diversion rate was 16 percent but increased
to 52 percent in 2006. In Charles County, the 2001 rate of 29 percent
went to 45 percent in 2006. St. Mary's County's 2001 rate of 20 percent
jumped to 36 percent in 2006.
"Environmental problems can seem (and often are) so complex that an
individual county resident can feel that the impact of their individual
conservation efforts, including recycling, are too small to matter,"
King said.
But that's not so.
"Contrary to this belief … problems such as solid waste generation
require group action - every contributor matters," King said. "Every
pound of waste reduction and recycling is one less pound of waste going
into a landfill. Each recycler… should gain pride by their participation
in an effort to protect the environment and improve society. The energy
savings observed routinely outweighs the energy created as by-products
of incineration and landfilling."
For Zoa Conner and Walt Roscello, recycling is a final step in their
conservation efforts since they work hard to reduce and reuse. They use
Charles County's regular recycling services, but they also use Freecycle
and make other similar efforts to reduce.
"Recycling is the last resort," Conner said. "We recycle as much as we
have, but we work to reduce as much as possible. We don't use grocery
store plastic bags, we use reusable cloth bags." She said she explains
on every trip that she doesn't want the store's plastic bags.
Roscello said about half of their non-recyclable trash "goes in compost
- fruit peelings, cores, leftovers - any food that's not meat or dairy."
After their waste reduction efforts, they have only one small kitchen
bag of trash per week.
To encourage more recycling by those who are not as conscientious as
Conner and Roscello, most counties have made things easier for residents
by going to a "single stream" recycling program where cans, bottles and
newspaper can all be tossed in a single bin, to be separated later at a
sorting facility.
St. Mary's County switched to single stream recycling in December 2006.
"You can mix all plastics, glass, metals, tin, steel, newspaper,
cardboard, phone books, junk mail, office paper and magazines," said
Tarr. "Put it all in one container, you don't have to presort it
anymore. A contractor hauls it to Baltimore and they sort it. It's all
automated now with conveyor belts and screens."
Tarr said some residents and officials were skeptical of single stream
recycling at first, but "(our) elected officials went to the processing
plant to see for themselves how it was done."
Driving to the top of the Charles County Landfill, one of the highest
elevations in the county, where a trash compactor machine with steel
wheels drives over freshly-dumped garbage, Charles County's Litter
Control Recycling Superintendent Lowry Phelps said, "Environmental
education is of utmost importance to us; the children are the stewards
(of the future). I feel like I'm making a difference for our future.
It's not just a here and now thing."
TIPS FOR GOING GREEN
o Switch to fluorescent light bulbs.
o Use cold water when possible to wash clothes.
o When replacing major appliances, buy more efficient models with Energy
Star labels.
o Compost kitchen foods such as egg shells, fruit peels, etc. (no meat
or dairy).
o Buy in bulk to avoid more packaging waste.
o Recycle newspaper, magazines, junk mail, narrow-neck plastic bottles,
glass and aluminum cans.
o Reduce your amount of junk mail at www.dmaconsumers.org.
To reduce credit card offers call 1-888-567-8688.
WHAT'S RECYCLABLE & WHERE?
Check with your county's solid waste or recycling center to find out
what's recyclable and where:
Calvert County: http://www.co.cal.md.us/residents/waste/recycling/
Charles County: http://www.charlescounty.org/pf/sw/recycling/
St. Mary's County: http://www.co.saint-marys.md.us/dpw/recycle /recyclingprograms.asp
WHAT'S NEW? ELECTRONICS RECYCLING
Don't let all your old electronics equipment end up in a landfill -
recycle old televisions, VCRs, computers, keyboards, cell phones and
more. "There's recently been a big push on electronics in the last two
to three years," said Richard Tarr of St. Mary's County. "Federal and
state governments are evaluating the effect of all these electronics on
the environment." Visit your county's recycling Web site to find out
what is recyclable and where and when to drop off items. |
