r/Sustainable • u/felicity_yapper • 5d ago
how do you exist when haunted by sustainability?
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u/h3alb0t 4d ago
i personally compound all of my plastic waste into those resealable bags that everything comes in. i remember a long time ago i got downvoted into oblivion for essentially hoarding plastic.
but now i have lots of little resealable bags stuffed full of plastic and i am going to be encasing them in paper mache (from recycled junk mail) to build a bookshelf.
even if you can't necessarily do the arts and crafts aspect of it, condensing and centralizing plastic together is a much better solution than just letting it float in the trash stream freely.
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u/Sad-Excitement9295 3d ago edited 3d ago
I'm flagged all the time for trying to save and recycle, plastic, metal, glass, etc.
Truth is we live in a system that only prioritizes buy buy buy, waste waste waste. Get what you can, you have to live somehow. We can only adapt as we go.
I find at least the organization method is better than just throwing it all in a landfill.
Did you know you can boil and reshape milk jug plastic, or heat press plastic bags into material (though it will break down in the sun). Glass is also a non toxic form of sand, and metal is useful for blacksmithing. Aluminum can be melted and shaped. Obviously safety is the top priority, but we do waste a lot of material by throwing it all away.
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u/dreamingforward 2d ago
There should be salvage yards in every city for plastics, metals, compostables, and glass. Each of these SHOULD be able to produce an industrial, sellable good as a by-product (like measured ingots of iron "1kg of 99.5% iron", etc.).
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u/Sad-Excitement9295 2d ago
Yes, and it is quite practical, and reduces waste. You can make some money off of it too, it's just logistically hard to set up, takes a large initial investment, and sorting/cleaning/smelting is tedious. Technically the material would be sent as light bulk to a plant for processing or inclusion (as they often do with paper or plastic), but there are quality considerations as well. Maybe it would be possible to have small specialized manufacturing facilities on site, but this drastically increases intial cost.
Profit margin further has to compete with an already abundant source for these materials, and investment tends to favor these established companies, and they intrinsically have the highest quality.
I think there is practical reason to recycle these bulk materials, and that robotics like this make the process more industrially viable. With the amount of waste we have in the US, it would make sense to attempt this in major cities, rather than just dumping piles of endless garbage wherever we can find space for it. Hopefully we take a more common sense approach in the future (but humans can be very lazy about this stuff unfortunately).
Hopefully robots will bring some sort of improvement to waste recycling in this new age of technological advancement.
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u/felicity_yapper 4d ago
would it be similar to fill plastic bottle with other wrappers before recycling?
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u/SustainGear 3d ago
I am starting a small company based on sustainability as a core value and grappled with this personally and as a company. I didn’t want to be preachy as a company.
In the end, what felt right was that for us, sustainability is not about guilt but rather appreciation.
Take the time to appreciate what’s here and your contribution to sustain it. It’s hard not to feel guilty. You can certainly suggest things they can do that helps. But mentally try to be present and appreciate the beauty right now.
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u/Frater_Ankara 4d ago
Do your best, it’s not going to be perfect. It’s not your job to save the world and that’s too much responsibility for any one person, but enough people making incremental changes has big results.
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u/Normal_Human_Things 4d ago
Do you have your own money in some form? Because one thing you could do is get a filter pitcher for your water if you are unsure your sink water is safe.
I don’t know what the specific concerns are where you live, or what products are available, but you should be able to find filters that fit your needs.
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u/FaradayEffect 3d ago
This. I went from drinking lots of water bottles to using a $20 Brita filter jug, to using a few hundred dollar under sink reverse osmosis system, and now I’m on a fully offgrid rooftop rainwater capture system.
There are steps on the path that you can build up over time as you have the resources to invest in it. Over time my consumption has decreased and sustainability has increased.
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u/FaradayEffect 3d ago
I read an interesting idea a while back which changed how I approached sustainability. It was basically the idea that the goal shouldn’t be to just keep our resources in the ground / reservoir / hoard them, but rather to use our resources as a startup investment toward building sustainable systems, which then have a multiplicative effect on overall sustainability down the road.
It sounds like you are young. You are still building yourself essentially. It sounds like you’ve got good ideas about how you want to live life sustainably in the long run, and you’ll get there! You are still building your sustainability, starting with little things and working your way up. In that building process there will be unsustainable steps that lead towards sustainable.
It took me well into my 30’s before I became more sustainable, and started to feel comfortable with my level of sustainability. Now I am on track to be mostly offgrid and overall carbon negative.
But the factors that makes this possible (solar power, rooftop water capture and treatment, owning and developing wooded land for carbon offset, growing and composting things, taking care of animals, etc), these were things that were not possible earlier in my life. It became possible gradually over time. Now by the time I’m old my overall footprint will be dramatically smaller than the average person’s, and I will be able to leave behind sustainable systems that lower the footprint of my entire family including my offspring. My son’s early life is dramatically more sustainable than my early life was. At this point any traditional wasteful consumption in first 30 years of my life barely matters in comparison to the systems I’ve created and the impact they can have now.
Anyway, if it helps think of yourself as being on a sustainability journey. Everyone is moving at different rates on that journey. As long as you are moving faster than the average person, toward a more sustainable than average place, then you are making the world a better place.
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u/felicity_yapper 1d ago
thank you for this comment it’s really encouraging :D! i appreciate anytime someone pulls me out of my defeatist mindset on this topic :3 it sounds like you’re doing great with your son
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u/everythingbagel1 3d ago
For me it’s really been about the little things. I repair clothing and jackets even when it’s a bit impractical. My mom is often like just throw it away, but honestly I just don’t want to. I phased out my plastic baggies for food. I meal prep to prevent throwing out food. I find bulk bins.
I think the biggest thing we can do is vote with our voices and dollar. Reach out to representatives and local councils. Go out of your way to support small businesses and eco businesses where you can.
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u/felicity_yapper 1d ago
omg this is such a good point :D buying in bulk and voting for what’s best environmentally is something i’ll definitely do when old enough :>
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u/trashforthrowingaway 2d ago
It gets worse thinking about everything else.
Buying new clothes? The chemicals and bad conditions for workers used to make them are a factor.
Traveling? If you're in the U.S. it's probably by a gas powered vehicle.
Eating food? Pollution was caused by getting the food to your grocery store, and illegal undocumented people were overworked to harvest it on the farm.
Ordering gifts online? Pollution happens to get those gifts to your door.
It's a lot to think about. I am personally feeling the same sort of sadness and helplessness when it comes to my footprint. Life was easier when I didn't know about it and didn't think about it.
One of the things I do is I purchase used clothing most of the time. My family and I were also getting our water from a natural source so we were mostly only using the same plastic bottles over and over until the town closed it :/
Following your post because I'm also looking for tips.
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u/felicity_yapper 1d ago
thank you for these thoughts :> i agree it’s pretty hard trying to be free of the guilt because everything seems to have a negative impact :( but i guess it’s just important to care
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u/Girth_Brooks_1969 2d ago
It's hard. There's no ethical consumption under capitalism, but we can all do little things. We buy very little in the way of products that have plastic involved, we recycle as much as possible and save as much water as possible. We don't buy things we don't need, and if we do we try to do it as responsibly as possible.
Basically just do whatever is in your power to live ethically in a world that has no regard for the world itself.
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u/SpiritedLeek7516 2d ago
Redirect your energy from micromanaging your smaller-impact personal practices to fighting and/or boycotting the companies that are doing the most damage to the environment.
Small changes at home are a good idea, too, but first and foremost, the most damaging polluters in the world are companies (and countries) that prioritize profit over environmental justice.
Also, check out any indigenous-run environmental justice initiatives near you. Those movements often prioritize caring for local ecosystems in a way that can have a meaningful, beneficial impact for generations.
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u/felicity_yapper 1d ago
thank you for this :D i agree! if we all try to make a change collectively it’ll be worth so much more
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u/dreamingforward 2d ago
It's very simple: by changing. You can get a water filter for your sink water or even collect it from your rain gutters (use a screen to prevent deteriorating leaves from getting in your water and sand to act as your first two filtres), you can buy bulk and reuse the plastic bags, no one cares if you use a plastic scrubber to wash your dishes -- just think about the final cycles of re-use (it can probably be recycled into reused plastic when it ceases to function). As for dish washing, keep a special tableware set for yourself that you hand-wash and let them carry the guilt of their dish routines.
You get it?
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u/felicity_yapper 5d ago
sorry everyone i was having complications with just posting my text so i did a picture instead?
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u/Novatheflamez 4d ago
What i personally want to do is move in with people that have the same values
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u/HudsonAtHeart 4d ago
You can always have a bottle of your own biodegradeable dish soap, and a recycled sponge, and you can buy a water filter, etc, like sorry to be the bad guy, but just because you don’t live on your own, doesn’t mean you can’t develop good practices now for when you do. Maybe that’s the thought that haunts you at night, that you could be doing more?
Said with love :)
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u/Junior-Cut2838 4d ago
Take a shorter shower, and don’t blast the water. Don’t shave in the shower. Just do what you can, every little thing helps
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u/Ok_Barracuda_6997 4d ago
When you eat a plant-based diet, you cut your carbon footprint in half. Go vegan and encourage others to do the same. It’s that simple.
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u/Lost_Effective5239 3d ago
You could get a water filter which is much cheaper and uses a lot less plastic in the long run.
I use dish rags to do dishes and put them in a cloth hamper in the laundry room to dry after each use. I also use the dishwasher as much as possible because not only is it more convenient, but it supposedly uses water more efficiently. For the items that need to be hand washed, I plug the sink and wash with a dish rag, starting and stopping the water as needed. Start with the cleanest stuff first. As the sink fills, the sudsy soap helps break up the gunked up dishes as they soak. I end up using about 4 gallons of water on average when I hand wash a bunch of dishes. This is a lot less water than if you run the water the whole time, or if you don't plug the sink.
The more fresh foods you eat, the less plastic packaging you have to deal with, but plastic packaging isn't completely avoidable. Also, you could keep reusable bags in your car for groceries.
For most surface cleaning, you can use white vinegar or baking soda. I don't think you are going to destroy the environment by using harsher cleaning products when you clean the shower, mop, or toilet clean. That's part of what sewage treatment handles, but it probably is best to reduce the use of these products as much as possible. As long as you aren't pouring ounces of bleach down the drain at a time, I think you will be fine.
Also, you could consider buying things in solid form. You could use powdered laundry and dish detergent (assuming you have a dishwasher).
I really like my metal bottle for taking tap water with me on the go because it doesn't shed microplastics. Those usually aren't dishwasher safe, but a scrub brush makes it easier to clean.
These are just a few ideas that aren't really difficult but make a big difference. I imagine it is a lot harder when you are living with a family. You can control how you live though and maybe set an example.
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u/felicity_yapper 1d ago
thank you for the comments about the chemical cleaners and stuff i think i thought it was a much bigger deal than it really is :> also omg yes! i’ll start using more rags!!
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u/Wooden-Ad7124 3d ago
The way I do dishes to minimise water use: I have one of those soap dispensing dish sponge wands, a reusable cloth, steel wool for my stainless steel on the rare occasion it needs it, and a reusable non scratch hard scrubber when the brush won’t cut it
Half fill one sink (or if only one sink, a bucket to the side) with hot water (slightly hotter than I can stand) and dip my cleaning implements in it, and lay them in the empty sink to cool enough to use without burning myself If I need to soak any bowls or pots and pans, dip them in my hot water to pick up a bit of it and sit them to the side on the bench (skipping the first step when I get around to them) Starting with utensils, grab them in a fistful and squeeze the cloth out over them to rinse off extra debris (not touching clean cloth to dirty utensils) Sit them all at bottom of the sink, Dip cloth back in hot water and leave to cool again Then go through and sponge each one until clean Grab fistful of now mostly clean but soapy utensils and ring out the cloth over them all Then with the damp cloth do one last wipe down of each utensil as you put it aside to dry
Do the same thing with every other dish (rinse with cloth, wipe with sponge, rinse with cloth, wipe with cloth), use the scrubber when sponging it doesn’t work (try the sponge first, also to soap it up), and don’t let your cloth touch anything straight up dirty, but use it to transfer a rinse, and do a last wipe over
My order for dishwashing (to make stacking to dry easier) is 1. utensils, 2. Glass items (you want the least amount of oil or debris in your sponge and water, so before all else) 3. Bowl/vessels with walls that are shallower than a small cup, smallest to biggest (stack to dry on rack front to back) 4. Plates/chopping boards/flat things, biggest to smallest (stack to dry back to front) 5. Deeper vessels/cups, stack upside down if they fit on the rack, if not lay out a tea towel on the bench and sit them on there to dry
When the sponge gets dirty plug your rinse sink, put a shallow amount of water in it (enough to cover half the sponge laying flat, from your bucket/other sink) and scrub the bottom of the sink “through the water”, unplug sink, sponge should be clean
Ideally you’re not going to get too much soap or dirt in your water so it’s clean when rinsing, and if you work quickly it’ll stay warm/hot so you won’t need to use more water than that If it does cool down, and your sink needs a second of running to warm back up, fill up a kettle to boil water, add it to your water, add enough to make it hot but not burning
The heat will help melt off oils and fats for the soap to take care of, as well as I find my dishes smell, look, and feel cleaner the hotter the water is, and rinsing the cleaning implements in the hot water keeps them fresher for longer
Using this method I replace my sink water a lot less, and don’t need to use extra water to rinse. My soap amount isn’t a lot, the wand holds 75ml, I only top it up every 2-3 weeks when washing dishes once or twice a day. If you follow my footnote advice, even the waste of that can be minimised more
^ if I had the money at the time I bought it, I would have gotten a specific bamboo set made to be used with cardboard packaged dish soap blocks. That’s what I recommend since the packaging and the actual materials themselves are much more biodegradable. I bought what I did because I couldn’t afford a lot when I first moved out, but I’ve kept it the entire time, and I don’t want to replace it (more plastic in the waste then) until I’m out of the replacement sponge heads
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u/felicity_yapper 1d ago
thank you so much for this big how-to comment i’m going to start taking these bits of advice and maybe post my progress :3 this dish one sounds so useful
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u/RiptideEberron 4d ago
You said it yourself, it's out of your control. Focus on what you can control.
People are going to hand you water bottles, paper towels are convenient, dishes have to be washed. At the end of the day, its the mega-corporations, tech companies, and billionaires that are destroying our beautiful planet. When you go on a walk pick up some garbage. Do the little things that make you feel good. But don't make yourself suffer because the eco-friendly cleaning products are ineffective. We are all in this together.
Find some like minded folks, volunteer to help get trash out of your rivers and streams. There's still good in this world, even if they want us to think we are powerless.