Thursday, March 22, 2012
Friday, February 24, 2012
Did I Do That?
It’s difficult to wrap my head around the staggering statistics that explain the world’s trash production, as featured in Rachel Botsmans’ and Roo Rogers’ What’s Mine is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption. In chapter one, the authors describe the largest of many floating conglomerates of trash collected in whirlpools in a remote area of the Pacific Ocean. This phenomenon, known as the Great Garbage Patch, consists of 3.5 million tons of garbage, roughly the size of Texas that extends 100 feet into deep (Botsman & Rogers, 2010). People obviously contribute to this mess, but how much of the responsibility falls on my shoulders? I mean, I recycle.
I planned to carry out an experiment that would chronicle my destructive contribution to the world's garbage. The experiment would be similar to one done by David Chameides, who saved a year's worth of trash in his basement in order to discover ways to change his destructive habits and adapt a more sustainable lifestyle (Botsman & Rogers, 2010).
My experiment would be carried out on a smaller scale and have a more narrow scope; I would record the garbage generated by patrons during a single shift under my watch as a bartender for a country club. Because of the difficulty in quantifying the total trash output, I focused on beverage containers.
I chose to examine the tendencies of the country club because polystyrene cups, known as Styrofoam®, are the primary beverage containers used at my station. Polystyrene is a non-sustainable, non-biodegradable, non-recyclable petroleum based product that is filling up landfills faster than paper (TheWayToGo, 2008).
I also recorded the disposal of other beverage containers, such as glass bottles and aluminum cans. The club encourages the recycling of aluminum, glass, and paper, but the bin's distant location makes the trash a more convenient option - especially during peak hours. I wanted to replicate the transactions of a typical day, so I fell on habits to before reading What’s Mine is Yours, and proceeded to trash everything.
During a five-hour shift, I recorded the number of containers I threw away: 37 polystyrene cups; 24 aluminum cans; eight beer bottles; six large glasses (two liquor, four wine); and five plastic six-pack rings.
I sent an average of 15 beverage containers per hour to landfills, out to sea, or to incinerators. Based on a 25-hour work week, I estimate that I trash 18,000 containers a year. I’m just one of five employees at my station, and one of 50 plus employees at the club, and my company operates 150 clubs worldwide.
According to sociologist Robert K. Merton, cited in What's Mine is Yours, my behavior is consistent with "the law of unintended consequences." My actions have unforeseen and unintentional repercussions, caused by sources of ignorance, and immediate interest (Botsman & Rogers, 2010). My actions derive from ignorance, because I did not comprehend the magnitude of the damage that a single person can cause, even though I was vaguely aware that trashing the planet was a problem. Immediate interest refers to "instances in which an individual wants the intended consequence of an action (or product) so much that he purposefully chooses to ignore any long-term unintended effects," (Botsman & Rogers, 2010, pp.10). I don’t personally insist on using polystyrene or make decisions about how beverages are served; our corporation is entrenched, and I’m just one employee among many. As a company, the country has demonstrated that convenience is more important, and perhaps more profitable than worrying about the long-term effects of being green on trash.
Now that I have a handle on how much waste I personally produce, I want to find out where my trash goes. From its birth behind the bar to its final resting place (this kind of waste never dies), I want to track my trash and record its movements like a UPS® package. In upcoming entries, I will follow my trash’s incredible journey, study the practices of my employer, and explore a more efficient and sustainable model.
References
Botsman, R., & Rogers, R. (2010). What’s mine is yours: the rise of collaborative consumption. In
“Enough is enough” (pp. 3, 9-11). New York: Harper Business.
TheWayToGo. (2008). Polystyrene fast facts [Fact sheet]. Retrieved from
Additional Resources
The Great Garbage Patch
Chris Jordan photography
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