Intro vols and waste

Waste not, want not: a PERC News series on waste

By Elise S.

When we contemplate environmental problems their magnitude is often overwhelming. Understanding our individual role in furthering or solving these problems is not an easy task. Online resources, such as those listed on Environment Canada's ecoACTION website http://www.ecoaction.gc.ca/tools-outils-eng.cfm, can help individuals to quantify their environmental footprint in many areas of consumer behaviour, like water usage or carbon emissions.

One such behaviour, waste creation, is easier to quantify than others as it can be measured by what turns up at the curb, from week to week. This waste is also highly visible on a community level. We can witness the problem every week and many cities struggle to find landfill space to accommodate increasing waste production.

A PERC News series, �Waste not, want not� will focus on our personal responses to the issue of waste production. If you have ever thought about the waste you create or what your garbage says about you, this is a great way to share your thoughts with fellow volunteers. Share your challenges and successes in trying to reduce what turns up in your bin, from week to week. Tell us how you creatively respond to our societal waste problem. PERC News readers benefit when we share our thoughts and actions to improve our community of change.