People who are interested in recycling and waste reduction should be interested in the "freegan" movement or freeganism -- an approach to living premised on the idea that one can, if one is determined, meet a lot of life's necessities without using money. Freeganism encompasses everything from reusing a galss jar for something else to, well, dumpster diving!

A woman by the name of Carrie Oakley sent me the link to an article on her website entitled “Recycled Reads: 50 Freegan Living Blog Posts We Can All Learn From” ( http://www.onlinecolleges.org/recycled-reads-50-freegan-living-blog-posts-we-can-all-learn-from ).

This article is potentially something that will interest our magazine's audience. I suggest you follow the link and read up on this interesting alternative way of thinking and living. Even if you do just a bit of it, you'll save money and tread more lightly on this earth.

Posted by Guy Crittenden at 04:23 AM | Permalink

Okay, I couldn't resist that alliterative headline! Sorry!

In a letter to the media and consumers, Joseph Cattaneo, President of the Glass Packaging Institute in Alexandria, Virginia (www.gpi.org) extols the virtues of vitreous vintages. Glass does make sense as a packaging material for many products, wine being a good example. I thought it worth sharing the letter and the link to the GPI website where you can read up on glass facts. Please note that the next edition of Solid Waste & Recycling magazine (October/November) will feature a cover story about two new programs in Canada (on in BC and the other in Atlantic Canada) for bottle-to-bottle recovery and refilling for wine bottles, and implications for other parts of the country (e.g., Ontario).

Here's the letter:

Greetings!

The Glass Packaging Institute (GPI) has released information about the environmental and health benefits of choosing glass for wine, beer, and food products: http://www.gpi.org/packaging/. Studies show that glass containers provide superior health and environmental benefits over alternative packaging materials. Glass bottles and jars are 100 percent pure and are "generally recognized as safe" by the U.S. FDA.

Further, glass containers can be recycled endlessly from bottle-to-bottle. Recycling glass saves energy, reduces use of raw materials, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. The glass container industry set an ambitious goal to use 50 percent recycled content in the manufacture of new glass bottles and jars by the end of 2013, which will make glass bottles even more sustainable.

Thank you for your time. Please call or email me with any questions.

Sincerely,

Joseph Cattaneo, President
Glass Packaging Institute
571-527-3119
jcattaneo@gpi.org
www.gpi.org

Posted by Guy Crittenden at 04:35 PM | Permalink