Boxed in by Packaging

As Madonna once said, "we live in a material world". One of the byproducts of the majority of stuff we buy or use is packaging. While much of this packaging is necessary, there are alot of products that have excessive packaging, or there are 'less packaging alternatives'.

To identify ways that you might be able to tackle the issue of packaging and thereby lighten the load landfill sites and decrease the energy and materials associated with manufacturing consider the '3Rs' approach.

Reduce: Of all the 'Rs' reduce is the most favourable. Some ways to reduce packaging include:

• Buying some items in bulk and then breaking them out into smaller portions at home. On the upside, items bought in bulk should be less expensive; on the downside it might require additional storage space, especially in terms of freezer space.
• When faced with two similar products, choose the item with less packaging. Hopefully, eventually manufacturer will respond to the consumer demand for less packaging.
• Use reusable bags to carry your purchases rather then the store provided new bag.

Reuse: Reusing sometimes takes creativity.

When purchasing items consider if the container it comes in can be used for something else later. For example, margarine containers make great tupperware substitutes. If an immediate use is not known, but you think an item might come in handy, save it until the space is needed. You never know when that package would be 'just perfect' for something.

Recycle: While this is the easiest of the Rs, it is also the weakest option as energy is required for recycling.

One step that is sometimes forgotten with recycling is the handling of materials such as Styrofoam that are not usually accepted in the standard municipal waste programs. However, municipalities often have alternative depots that will accept these materials if you are willing to drop them off. Rather than throw out these types packaging materials, try to save them until there is a 'load' worthy of a trip to the depot. By just diverting the Styrofoam alone will make a significant dent in the waste sent to landfill.