Nature New Hampshire Wildflower Magazine | Page 34

zero waste lifestyle

by nocera range

Humans on average make about 4.38 pounds of trash every day. That means the average family of 4 is producing about 17 pounds of trash every single day. That’s 6,200 pounds of trash in a landfill per year (“Top 10 to Get Started.”) Zero waste is a lifestyle that means you produce little to no waste a day. People are going zero waste to help protect the environment to build a better world for future generations.
About 42% of all greenhouse gasses come from the production and use of goods. So, reduce, reuse and recycling will be a key part in reducing the impact of climate change. In order to use raw materials, you first must extract them. Extracting them uses up huge amounts of energy and produces pollution. Not only that but the raw materials then have to be processed which uses up even more energy and

more pollution. Then after they are used the products just get dumped in a landfill or burned in an incinerator. Both contribute to the destruction of the environment. Zero waste lifestyles conserve natural resources and reduce pollution. By reducing and reusing less products are made and more are made to last. Recycling prevents waste from ending in a landfill and supplies manufacturers with a recycled material instead of a raw material.

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