More trash

I grabbed the camera yesterday afternoon, looking for the possibility of something interesting to picture at the park, when I noticed my pond clean-up work was far from over.  So I grabbed some bags instead and picked up loads of litter along the pond.  Just in one 50 yard stretch I hauled in over 40 plastic bottles.  It was particularly disturbing to see a muskrat's home entrance on the banks of the pond practically blocked by loads of trash.

In observing the litter I'm increasingly in favor of a ban on polystyrene cups and take-out containers.  It would also be good to see a 5 or 10 cent deposit on plastic bottles.

Earth Day 2014... not pretty!

Earth day trash pick-up

I was saddened to see just how much litter had collected on about 100 yards of the pond's shoreline at Bassett Creek Park.  What disturbs me most is the wasteful one time use items such as polystyrene coffee cups, that might have a use of 5-10 minutes, and then be discarded. After being tossed it may take nearly an eternity to decompose.  There is also considerable up front environmental cost to producing such throw away products.

Pictured at left is the trash I was able to pick up in about an hour and a half yesterday.  I would encourage all to do your part in cleaning up the environment and lobbying for less use of styrofoam and other such disposable products.

How about 10 cents a plastic bag?

Loved reading an editorial in the New York Times suggesting that retail and grocery stores charge ten cents per plastic bag, "Ten cents a bag, That's about right."  Given how many of these bags find themselves littered throughout our landscape, and that they my virtually never be fully decomposed, this seems to be a step in the right direction.

I would also like to see a ban on polystyrene, commonly referred to as styrofoam.  These cups and take out containers also have a very short time of use, but potentially a lifetime littering our landscapes.

Change is possible!

I was delighted to learn that a petition started on Change.org may of helped to prompt United Airlines to stop using styrofoam coffee cups on flights.  The petitioner, Dominique Kalata, received the following response from United Airlines...

Dominique Kalata: United is stopping using styrofoam cups on flights, starting in March!

I got a tweet today from United saying:

"@dominiquekalata Hi, we've replaced our Styrofoam cups with an Eco-friendly alternative. Read more here: http://bit.ly/1d32oOj . "

The new cups, according to United, are made of 50% recycled materials and are fully recyclable.

Thank you everyone! We showed that when people come together we can made a difference and positively influence change. I'm sure all of us, working together, helped move things along at United.

New York City Council votes to ban single use Styrofoam.... Hip, Hip, Hooray!

Rock on NY City!  I see way too much Styrofoam in walks around the park, and elsewhere, that will not decompose for who knows how long. It is nice to see the environment get a win every now and then!

A brief article, Win! New York City bans Styrofoam, describes the ban.  It is expected that Mayor Michael Bloomberg will sign the bill into law by year's end.

New York mayor is saying no to polystyrene!

Polystyrene cups found littered in the pond
at Bassett Creek Park

Hats off to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg for suggesting a ban on polystyrene, sometimes called Styrofoam.  (Bloomberg pushes for plastic-foam ban in 'State of the City'.)  I hope that this catches on elsewhere across the nation and globe.  I often see bits of polystyrene and Styrofoam littered around the park that I visit daily.  It is likely to stay in the environment indefinitely. Besides the litter effect, some aquatic animals mistake styrofoam for food, which can be fatal.

If instant gratification or quick, cheap and easy are your priorities, this is a great product to use for a fast cup of coffee or as a takeout container. However, if one wants to factor in the environmental costs, it rapidly loses it's appeal.  Thankfully more people and businesses are now starting to consider the environment and sustainability as they make their daily choices.

How cool it was to read about Mia and Sara Hansen, a mother and her ten-year-old daughter, from Carlsbad, California who started a petition to encourage Jamba Juice to stop using polystyrene cups.  They received more than 130,000 signatures, and a resulting commitment from the company to switch to a more environmentally friendly alternative by the end of 2013.  (Jumba Juice: Stop using Styrofoam cups that kill animals!).

In addition to the pollution that it creates while being manufactured and discarded, polystyrene has also long been suspected as a probable carcinogen (Drinking coffee in a Styrofoam cup? Pour it out. Polystyrene can be identified by looking for the number 6 on containers, which include clear plastic clamshells and coffee cup lids.

Let's quit using styrofoam!

Join me in avoiding styrofoam whenever possible! 

A MOMENTARY use to a styrofoam cup/plate/container can create waste that has the potential to practically be with us as garbage ETERNALLY.

Impermanence of people and things

I had a sernendipitous encounter with a running legend earlier in the week. My wife and I were walking our dog around Bassett Creek Park when we noticed the start of the Cooper High School alumni cross country meet.  As we were passing the runners were introducing themselves. One of the guys with graying hair and wearing a gray USA tea-shirt noted his name was Steve Plasencia, and that he was a 1974 Cooper graduate.  Steve Plasencia, did I hear that right?

This man, just a year older than I, had run the 10,000 meters for the United States in two Olympics.  He's run a 10K in 27:45 and a marathon in 2:12.51.  That marathon time is averaging nearly 5 minutes a mile for 26.1 miles. At age 40 Steve ran the 5,000 meters in 14:02, an American Master's record. That's smoking fast.

We didn't see the whole two mile race alumni race, but I did notice Steve was running right around fifth place.  Not bad for a 55 year-old, but definitely no where near the kind of pace he used to run years ago.  One can stay young and extremely fit for only so long.  In addition to his recreational running, Steve's the head track and field coach for the University of Minnesota.

Watching a running legend become more "human" was a reminder that nothing on this old earth is permanent; including jobs, status, family, home, neighbors, health and life.  If we just stop breathing within just a matter of minutes we, and our loved ones, will be reminded just how impermanent our life on this glorious earth is.

Sadly some of the longest lasting legacies many of us might leave behind are the plastic water bottles and styrofoam cups we've used for beverages. Huge islands have developed in our oceans of this floating junk. I don't think that this is the sort of permanent legacy that any of us want to be known for, is it?

How did we end up with all of this stuff?

"STUFF" collected along the pond yesterday afternoon

I believe we've got the very best, or worst, advertising in the world, depending on your opinion of consumerism.

Some of the worst stuff that we produce/buy in America are those objects made out of plastic and styrofoam.  Stores are still selling styrofoam cups that are made for one time use that will virtually never decompose.  Sadly, when animals ingest styrofoam it often blocks their digestive tracts.  This causes starvation and ultimately death. When cleaning up around the pond I almost always see bits of styrofoam floating around.

 "The story of stuff" is an interesting 20 minute video that discusses the impact on our environment of all our stuff.  A more humorous look at "stuff" is provided by a video of George Carlin talking about stuff.

I noticed an article in the newspaper "Married to Plastic", about a book,  "Plastic: A Toxic Love Story",  by Susan Freinkel.  She chronicles how plastic has become an integral part of our lives and our garbage dumps.
 "Advertising is the art of convincing people to spend money they don't have for something they don't need."                                                                                                 -Will Rogers