Voice of the Mid-Columbia | Kennewick, Pasco and Richland, Wash. |
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closeWednesday, Sep. 24, 2008
Green to-go: Packing your lunch a sure-fire way to cut waste
By Loretto J. Hulse, Herald staff writer
Is your lunch green? No, I'm not talking about salads or even fuzzy mold. Instead the question of the day is: How trashy are your totable meals?
Do they produce an endless stream of plastic bags, trays, utensils and bottles? Do you buy your chips, cookies and other treats in single servings or one large package that you portion out into reusable containers?
Do you carry a reusable lunch pail or bag? Or carry it with you in a paper sack that gets tossed into the trash after lunch?
Turning your lunch box green doesn't have to be a lot of work. You simply need to change the way you look at trash, said Gail Everett, environmental education coordinator for the city of Richland.
"It's all about reducing waste," she said.
Start with getting a reusable lunch box or bag. The idea is to get away from using single-use paper or plastic packaging that gets thrown away.
The insulated bags are actually better because they keep the foods inside cool and fresh, Everett said.
Avoid single serving packages. Instead buy one large container or package and refill smaller containers for single servings. You'll save money and reduce the amount of trash too.
You can even go as far as using cloth napkins, just as long as they make it back home.
At the store, choose items that don't need to be packaged like apples, oranges and bananas. They already have an organic wrapper and the apple's is even edible, she said.
Instead of using individual Ziploc-type plastic bags, package your sandwiches in reusable plastic containers. They hold up better and protect your food if your lunch gets accidentally crushed, she said.
And even if you do opt for reclosable plastic baggies, remember you can often reuse them if they just carried veggies, fruit or something like chips. Simply soap them up good, rinse and pop them over a bottle to air dry, she said.
Toss out any bags that were used for foods containing meats, cheeses or saucy foods. They can't be cleaned well enough to prevent any chance of bacterial contamination.
For beverages, reusable water bottles are a better choice than juice boxes or disposable plastic bottles. In fact Everett is promoting a movement to get Mid-Columbians to break the disposable water bottle habit.
Not only will you save money but you'll be doing your part to reduce the 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide produced in the United States to make those plastic bottles, she said.
To pledge to break the habit, and for more information on making your life greener, go to www.newdream.org.
Make your water bottle do dual duty. At night fill it partially with water or juice and stash it in the freezer. In the morning top it off with more water or juice. The frozen portion will gradually thaw but in the meantime will keep the other foods in your lunch bag or box cool.
Reuse plastic utensils too.
"I'm not saying you have to risk your good silverware. Start out with plastic utensils and ask the kids to bring them home. They can be run through the dishwasher and reused for weeks and months before breaking," Everett said.
Once everyone's trained to bring home the plasticware you can step up to actual metal utensils.
The key is to get your children -- and yourself -- to take your reusables home and not toss them into the garbage, Everett said.
And if everyone remembers to clean out their backpack or lunch bag daily and puts the containers and utensils in the sink or dishwasher, that's a bonus, she said.
*Loretto J. Hulse: 582-1513; lhulse@tricityherald.com
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