Why Do Montanans Throw Away More? January L&L Recap
The third Wednesday of each month, Home ReSource hosts free Zero Waste Lunch & Learns, inviting our community to learn and discuss different waste reduction topics.
In January, we explored “Why Do Montanans Throw Away More?”. Kelli Hess, Home ReSource’s Executive Director, discussed some contributing factors to why Montanans throw away an average of 8 lbs of trash per day, in comparison to the national average of 4.9 lbs. Here are the highlights:
- Waste Management is a systems issue, meaning that we lack the policies and the infrastructure to be able to manage our waste the best we can.
- Robust systems like curbside compost services, deposit incentives for recycle ($0.05/can in other communities), and community-led clothing swaps and no-buy groups are powerful tools to reduce waste.
- Every single thing we have has come from the earth in some way. Take a pencil, for example. Can you trace back where the graphite, wood, paint, aluminum, and rubber came from?
- Some things are designed for the dump. Single-use items are manufactured to be thrown away and fill landfills. Redesign and reducing (not buying these products) are essential first steps in reducing waste. Especially plastic.
- Folks statewide are helping make changes to improve our waste systems and change policy! Let’s help by talking with our friends and neighbors and seeking out alternatives to the landfill like reusing, repairing, and reducing the amount of stuff we consume.
- Home ReSource is our local sustainability center and is building infrastructure to help our community participate in changing the system. Our ReUSe Store is a great place to donate used building materials. We accept hard-to-recycle items like CFL and 4-ft fluorescent tube light bulbs. There are year-round opportunities to responsibly dispose of household chemicals at our facility that opened in 2024. Home ReSource is also consistently updating our Waste Wizard Tool for folks to look up where items could go instead of the landfill.
Thank you to everyone who attended this Lunch and Learn and brought their own experiences and expertise to share with others. We are looking forward to seeing you all at the next Lunch and Learn!
Recap drafted by Kate Folkmann, Education & Outreach Coordinator