Carbon Footprint and Packaging

By Jennipher Murphy, Novice Explorer

Carbon offsets and carbon footprints sound scientific and technical so it might be hard for some people to embrace and become connected to this cause. But it doesn’t have to be difficult. I did a little research to find other ways we can make a difference, be connected and have a greater impact. I came across the term, “life-cycle” and “life-cycle sustainability standards” which were new terms for me and refers to the environmental impact of a product through the product’s life cycle; beginning to end. This seems to be critical to the overall success of carbon offsetting because 31.6% of our waste is comprised of containers and packaging. This waste comes from our need to have individual product packaging, products to be delivered safely to our homes and sometimes for our merchandising needs. Other statistics I found around packaging:

• Our landfills contain thirty percent paperboard—American Chemistry
• Over 6.4 billion cardboard boxes were used to ship items via ground or air in 2007 alone—Rapioli 
• Of the 66 million tons of solid waste generated by Californians each year, approximately    one third is packaging—California Integrated Waste Management Board
• 38 billion water bottles enter U.S. landfills every year—Fast Company 

How does this translate to carbon footprints? How do we distinguish between “green” and “eco-friendly” labels? As consumers, we need to begin to demand more transparency and accountability from our manufacturers and more detailed labeling. The more we demand, the more manufacturers will be forced to make changes to meet those demands. A datamonitor survey shows that in the U.S. 67% of people are concerned about heavy packaging and 33% of people would choose another product because of this packaging. This changing viewpoint increases the demand for sustainable packaging and empowers the consumer.

Sustainable packaging does seem critical to making a positive change and making better choices is something we can do to help offset our carbon emissions. For example, we can steer away from the heavily packaged items and buy more in bulk or buy locally to minimize shipping costs, but ultimately, it is the manufacturer’s responsibility to provide consumers with better choices. A good example of a sustainable packaging initiative is from Sunlyte. They are using a three prong approach: energy efficient design, streamlined distribution, and carbon neutral delivery.

Becoming more aware of our purchases and how the packaging is affecting our planet is a good step towards a more sustainable future. Feel like you want to go all out? Check out the interesting and often scary info in The Big List of Things That Suck.

Waste Prevention

By Jennipher Murphy, Novice Explorer

Here at The Offset Project, we work diligently to provide local venues with zero waste management. This includes recycling and composting efforts at many of the premiere special events on the Monterey Peninsula and is done by working closely with event organizers and promoters in the planning of their events. We help reduce their carbon footprint by making the most sustainable choices possible. A lot goes into zero waste management and there are pros and cons to the way we choose to recycle and compost at these events. We are constantly struggling with the choices we need to make while balancing the rewards and successes. As we reflect on our efforts, there are always ways to improve and the secret is to identify our challenges and barriers and to find ways to continually advance our process.

One of our biggest challenges is making sure that the materials that are placed in the recycling and composting bins are items that are correct and not contaminated. The bane of our recycling efforts is “contamination” which are items that are mixed in with the correct items; for example food left over on the recyclable or grease deposits on cardboard etc…. This makes processing more difficult and expensive and can actually decrease the value of the recyclables. Some businesses are turning towards “3-Dimensional Recycling Signs” as a great tool to inform individuals of the proper way to recycle and they place them right at the source. This could be quite helpful but we have gone a step further by having our Zero Waste volunteers manning these bins, answering questions guests have or quickly correcting mistakes in the bins. We also feel that because are bins are very specific, it allows individuals to place items correctly which decreases our time spent on sorting. Another way we are meeting this challenge is to involve a larger participating group, the Zero Waste team, which cuts down on the incorrectly placed items and at the same time, increases our education efforts.

The Offset Project practices these initiatives at every event but we are still falling short. We feel we are still spending too much time correcting guest’s practices so we have begun looking at waste prevention as a way to improve. Waste prevention is simply creating less waste by consuming and disposing less which can decrease the amount of incorrectly placed items and save businesses and events a ton of money. Waste prevention is synonymous with reuse and reduce. We are discovering that planning ahead is one of the most important steps to a zero waste event. Events can be so hectic that event coordinators end up running around putting fires out and spend less time overseeing proper composting and recycling efforts. The planning process is not only about using compostable flatware, plates and napkins but we have come up with a list of other items in our pre-planning checklist:

• Identifying the biggest % of waste produced and setting goals. Is it bottled water or food?
• Communicating waste reduction goals to all stakeholders and getting everyone on-board.
• Defining materials needed for the event and looking at alternatives such as serving bite-sized foods that require no utensils.
• Choosing green vendors.
• Reducing paper usage.
• Educating guests about zero waste efforts beforehand.

The event promoters need to champion their green messaging by ensuring that their internal culture is on board and TOP needs to support them. As we continue expanding our outreach and efforts there will inevitably be more challenges and even more improvements. Please take a moment to share with us other ways we can improve the planning phase by commenting on this blog! Thank you for sharing.

For more information on recycling at events: http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/ and

 http://earth911.com/how-to/how-to-recycle-at-your-earth-day-event/