We often think that we need to drive less, or buy a more fuel-efficient automobile to lessen our dependence on fossil fuels. At least that’s the general rhetoric we hear from pundits.

Of course, I’m all for conserving our resources, so I have nothing against driving less, and using less gas. (I even encourage efficient driving.)

However, I’m wondering how many people know that another all too convenient consumer product comes from oil.

Plastic.

Plastic Comes from Oil

It’s true that recently, there are plastics made from organic materials (such as the Biobags that are made from corn, mentioned in my composting post) but the vast majority of plastic still comes from petroleum.

Therefore, if we really want to conserve our oil supply, we should each do our part to dump as little plastic into our landfills as possible, since dumping plastic is like dumping oil.

Here’s how:

• Ask for paper instead of plastic - when possible, of course. Here in San Francisco, the city Council passed an ordinance requiring paper bags be used by stores over a certain size.
  
• Better yet, bring your own (reusable canvas bag)
• Recycle as much as possible (instead of dumping it in the trash) – trash goes to landfills, recycling goes to recycling centers.
• Take packaging into consideration when making a purchase – meaning, decide if there’s an alternative product that uses less packaging, or use material that can be recycled easily (like paper).
• Buy less stuff – probably worth an entire post to discuss this.
• Consider buying recycled products – such as those by Recycline, found at stores like Whole Foods Market and Trader Joe’s, these include items like toothbrushes and razors, to cups and plates, to name a few, all made from recycled plastic. Plus, they can be recycled as well.

Plastic Consumption in Perspective

If you’re still not convinced that buying less and recycling plastic is a good idea, here’s a link to artist Chris Jordan’s photographic work. He has a series of photographs depicting the amount of stuff we (in the United States) use, and a lot of the stuff is made from plastic.

It really puts things in perspective.

Here in San Francisco, we happen to have an extensive residential Recycling Program, one component of which is the composting of all food scraps and wastes from the kitchen.

Biodegradable Bags – great, but expensive

Early on, after we had used up the complimentary supply of biodegradable bags to line the “kitchen pail”, I started looking for them at our local stores. These “biobags” are actually made out of mater-bi, a type of bio-plastic derived from corn. The biobags are actually breathable, and have a really different, stretch-y feel than normal plastic bags, and are designed to break down in about 10 days after exposure to the elements. Perfect for composting.

The thing is, they’re quite pricey right now — about $6.50 for only 25 of these 3-gallon bags.

I know that as more and more cities adopt a household food-scrap composting program like San Francisco, more people will buy them, and due to economy of scale, the price should (in theory) come down.

Low Cost Alternative

While we wait, though, here’s another cheaper alternative:

Save (and request) paper bags from your grocers. Folded over, a regular large-sized paper bag (the ones with the fold-up handles) will fit inside one of those compost pails.

Take a look:

The Kitchen Compost Pail is about three-quarters the size of a standard paper bag.

Fold over the top opening edges of the bag inside out, about six inches, to form a smaller bag. (The “smaller” bag was previously fitted into the kitchen pail, which explains why the bottom’s all mushed.)

It takes some doing, but a little bit of massaging, the bag will fit inside the container. Once inside, to prevent liquids from eating through the bag too quickly, simply line the inside with a few torn out sheets from a magazine or catalog.

Voila!

In the “Beginning”, We Were Farmers

The United States started out as 13 colonies, where one of main focuses was farming, since everyone had to eat. Households had farms that provided most of their needs, and any excess can be used for barter, trading, etc. Only with adequate food could there have been development of trade, much less the Revolutionary War. I’d say farming was king.

Unparalleled Growth In the Intervening Years

Over the ensuing decades, social, economic, and technological development resulted in increased populations, and mass production of foodstuff. Industrialization resulted in a multitude of products. Cars and planes brought helped make the world a bit smaller. We got a couple of World Wars, the Baby Boom, the Golden Age of Television, the Age of Information. During these times, most of our foods came from giant corporate farms who supplied massive factories, fast-food chains, etc. They still do now.

Coming Full Circle In Recent Years

But now, we are learning to shop local farmers’ markets, end the use of chemical fertilizers, go organic, reuse, recycle and compost (I’m all for that).

Wanting to escape from the modern “rat race”, some families even move out of the big cities, onto their own land.

To farm.