Grimm consumption series 1

Sustainable consumption Wins and Losses on the TV show, Grimm

I recently have become interested in consumption examples in TV shows and movies. Grimm is filmed near my home, so I thought I should probably take a look. (We had always meant to watch the show anyway, but I, traditionally, have a hard time with "scary" shows (I have nightmares) and we missed some of the episodes when it first aired, so we never watched it.) I really enjoyed the first season-it's fun to see places and references you know. Now, I'm totally hooked!

This is the first in a series of posts that looks at some of the highs and lows, consumption-wise on the show.

I didn't have to wait long to find something to comment on. These screen shots are from the second episode in the series. Juliette brings home some food-take out and Voodoo Donuts. Unfortunately, the take-out is in a plastic sack. I'm curious to see if they'll use plastic disposable bags again this season, seeing as Portland has banned them. Let's hope not! (And if they do, perhaps they need me to come on set and help out with some more sustainable consumption choices for the props?)

Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch) brings home take-out
and Voodoo Donuts for Nick  (David Giuntoli)

She sets down the bag.
The useful life of the average plastic bag
is estimated to be less than an hour. 

Already forgotten? At least there's Voodoo Donuts!
AND donut boxes compost, so there's that...

If the TV show needs some reusable bags that are authentic to the Portland area, I can certainly hook them up. Stay tuned for some more glimpses of sustainable (and not-so-much) consumption from the show. 

Why won't you guys take my rigid plastics anymore?

A primer on China's "green fence" and reducing consumption.

Q: Why won't recyclers take rigid plastics anymore?
A: No market for the material. All recycling decisions are based on whether or not there is a market for the material. If you, as a recycling processor, don't have anyone buying the stuff from you, you'll quickly be swimming in it. Ewww...

Q: Why isn't there a market anymore?
A: China's Green Fence Policy. In February, China erected a virtual "Green Fence" and became more stringent with enforcing regulations governing contamination in bales of recycling.

Q: How long will this last?
A: Hard to say. Some are speculating at least until the end of the year, others are saying the changes are here to stay.

Q: So, then, what do I do with this stuff?
A: Put it in the garbage. Until new recycling markets open up, these materials are "true trash." (See above about recycling decisions being based on markets.) All of the answers here are for our market (Clark County, WA) and I would urge you to always check with your own local hauler for questions about recycling. 

Q: But, isn't it bad for the planet to throw stuff in landfills?
A: Not really. Landfills, while not perfect, are the best disposal option we have at our, well, disposal (pardon the pun) at this time, given how much waste we create.

Q: I don't love these answers.
A: We don't either. But, without a market for these materials, these are the best, truthful answers we have for you at this point in time.

Q: What can I do about this? Who has control over these decisions?
A: Honestly, the best, most expedient thing you can do is to REDUCE your consumption. Everyone likes to focus on recycling (we've been taught to) but recycling, even at its best, is not a silver bullet for all our waste woes. You, as a consumer, have immediate control over one thing: how much (and what) you buy. Need to take cookies to a meeting and don't want to have to throw away the clamshell? Make them yourself or buy them in bulk from your local bakery. 

Clamshell packaging does not
have a strong market currently.

Beyond reducing consumption, an investment in domestic markets is also, arguably, needed. Perhaps writing letters to local and/or federal decision makers, urging them to invest in green jobs would be a worthwhile use of your time? The other way to help is to vote with your dollars-make sure that what you do buy has post-consumer recycled content. If you are buying stuff made from recycled content, you're signaling to the markets that the cost and effort of recycling will be worth it. (But, again-only what you need!) Finally, Thurston County (our neighbors to the north) have a great page all about what can be done (in general) about waste.

Q: Any silver linings to all of this?
A: Absolutely! 

1. There is evidence that when recycling is readily available, consumption increases. So, when we find ourselves in a situation like this one, it's reasonable to extrapolate that consumption may decrease and that's certainly a good thing. 
2. The end of readily available markets that weren't too stringent about contamination may mean that domestic recycling infrastructure investment (that doesn't get to take shortcuts) becomes more economically viable. 
3. This article addresses some of the pros/cons of Operation Green Fence for domestic recyclers.

Bottom line: if you aren't buying the stuff, you don't have to worry about the end-of-life of the stuff. 

Q: What is the worst item mistakenly placed in recycling carts?

The answer may surprise you.

Then again, maybe it won't. Hopefully, by this point, you've heard that plastic bags are a huge issue for recyclers. Try this test at home: twist a plastic bag until it becomes like rope, then try to break it. Surprisingly strong, no? Plastic bags and other types of plastic film get clogged in the sorting machinery that separates all the paper products from the containers.

When the machinery gets clogged, it has to be shut down and cleaned by hand, as seen in the photo below. How often would you guess this cleaning takes place? Once a week? Once a day? How about every two hours. This cleaning accounts for more than a quarter of labor costs at sorting facilities such as the one in Clark County.  If you only care about one thing when it comes to your recycling cart, let it be this. Your recycling handler and your planet thank you.


-The Reuser

Modeling the norm on the show Arrow

Felicity uses a reusable water bottle while working out.

TV show Arrow does it right when drinking water.

Recently, Not-hubby and I watched the first season of Arrow.

I noticed this moment where Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards) and Dig (David Ramsey) are training. (Felicity's character had gotten into a few scrapes in earlier episodes and she's starting to get her badass on...) When they've finished, Dig picks up a pink reusable water bottle and hands it to Felicity. The show could have easily used a disposable water bottle but someone (production, props, actors?) decided to use a reusable water bottle instead. Nice job, Arrow!

Huge news for the recycling industry

This plastic bag likely has a recycling
symbol on it. The announced changes will
help to eliminate confusion from using
that symbol.

Apparently, the ISTM has announced a change to the resin code system (the little numbers that you find on the bottoms of plastic products that tell you nothing about recyclability, while everyone thinks they do...)

For anyone not in recycling, this might seem like "no big deal" but for people who do what I do, this is giant and welcome news. Nice!

Modeling the norm

An open letter to some of my favorite celebrities:

I might make this into a series, but for now, I'm going to pick on two of my favorite shows, Mythbusters and Castle.

What is modeling norms? Simply put, it's the concept that you model the behavior you want to see from others. For too long, people who care about the environment (including me) have tried to use facts, figures and, frankly, guilt to get people to change their consumptive habits. You know what works better though? Living your life in a way you're comfortable with and letting the others around you see that. To that end, I'd really like to include celebrities and entertainment in this. Sure it's great that I carry my own utensils with me so that I don't have to use disposable ones, but how much larger of an impact would it have if millions of people tuned in and saw Castle hand Beckett a reusable coffee mug instead of the disposable ones that are a part of seemingly every episode?

Now, with Mythbusters, this is the moment that really got me: In Episode 183-Battle of the Sexes, they had men and women grill various food items to see if one gender is better behind a BBQ. The unfortunate thing, though, is that they used paper plates and plastic utensils to try to eat steak! If you go to a fancy restaurant for steak, you'd probably leave if they tried to serve it to you on a paper plate with a plastic knife. Why not use REAL plates, knives and forks, Mythbusters? If it's a question of budget, I'll come shop for you guys. I'll buy you some durable knives and plates from the thrift store. Problem solved!

While trying to find some pics/gifs of Castle and Beckett with their coffee cups, I came across this discussion. It's...interesting. I'd like to think that they use real mugs now because I tweeted Nathan Fillion awhile ago to ask him to do that. (see below) However, even though I think those folks have way too much time on their hands, I can't argue with this logic from the top comment:

Recall what Raglan said about ceramic mugs and how they warm your hands. Ceramic is more solid and comforting than paper cups. More real, not disposable. Castle and Beckett's relationship is real. They are 'in it to win it', not a disposable relationship.

In other words, symbolism of the relationship or no, ceramic mugs and real steak knives (durables) are always more elegant than their disposable counterparts. I know we have an addiction to convenience, but if I can make changes in my life (like carrying my own utensils) so can these characters, right? And think of how much good it might do!

@nathanfillion Nate, LOVE Castle. Pls consider using reusable coffee mug when bringing Beckett morning coffee. #lessWaste #beTheExample
— Terra Heilman (@waste_not) April 17, 2011

The Pope hates food waste

Here, an almost full bottle of
tomato juice is seen in a recycling bin.
Food waste is a major issue for
our society, never mind this
being a completely unacceptable
item for recycling carts.

This new pope and I seem to have a lot of the same concerns*. Now we can add food waste to the list. 

*We certainly don't agree on lots of issues, but I'm liking this guy more and more.

Coolest Thank You gift ever

When you're a teacher/educator, there's nothing better than knowing that what you were trying to teach got through to your students.

Remember a few weeks ago, I posted this, saying that I was working on a new presentation about consumption? The group that I gave that presentation for was the Master Composter/Recycler class of 2013.


This is the Thank You gift they sent me for my presentation. It shows not only a thoughtfulness, but the pillow case and string are from Goodwill, so they took my words to heart. What a wonderful way to say thank you. It means a lot to me.

Just wanted to share with you.

Lonely shoe reuse

What do you do with a bunch of single shoes? Connect with an amputee organization, that's what!

I stumbled across this post from 211 info and thought it was a cool and creative fix to what could have been a "waste" problem.

Earth home tour

Earth homes demonstrate a way to live in more harmony with the planet. Let's take a look at one:

Some of you that know me on a personal level know that I recently* went to Wisconsin for a week. My good friend and former Green Drinks partner, Laura, moved back to her home state about six months ago*.

sunlight shows through a banana leaf
in the solarium of
Ann and Wayne's home.

Awhile ago, we had been discussing her aunt and uncle and the fact that they had built an Earth Home. I've been fascinated with Earth Homes at least since I was in college. I don't remember how I first heard about them, but I do remember this crazy hippy book where someone had basically built themselves a shelter out of whatever they could find in the woods. I've read a ton about them since then but had never actually been inside one. I casually mentioned to Laura that I'd love to see their place if it wasn't too far. It was luckily only about 1/2 an hour from where we were and her Aunt (Ann) and Uncle (Wayne) were gracious enough to let us wander around and take photos of their home.

I took lots of photos, but a few came out blurry and I also somehow neglected to take a photo of what the whole house looks like from outside. (How could I have missed such an important shot? Well, my only defense is that I was so excited about touring my first Earth home, I just plain forgot!) Originally, I was going to post a bunch of shots in this post, but I think it makes more sense to just link you to the web album and let you enjoy the photos at your own pace.

I want to say a very special Thank You to Ann and Wayne. They are such sweet and gracious people. This was one of the highlights of my trip!

Enjoy the tour! If you want a full travelog of our trip, scroll to the very end*.


*Sometimes I suck as a writer. I get an idea in my head of how I want a post to go and then the post ultimately suffers for it, because it never gets published. (Perfectionism, much?) I'm sure this is true of all writers, but I sincerely wish it hadn't happened to this post. I wrote this post I think almost a year ago (sheesh!!!) and am finally posting it today... I had wanted to get it "just right" but ended up just never posting it, period. Shame on me. At least you can now enjoy the photos. Also, the travelog was something I had intended to post as well, but that got dropped half way through the trip (was having too much fun) and it has a bunch of missing data. Anyway, I had a great time in WI-Laura went way out of her way to pack a ton of fun into my trip and I'm happy to say I get to go back at the end of this month to see her again.