Article August 10, 2009 Issue

Prayer for a 'no waste' environment

BY GEORGIANNA PFOST

As I write , a larger-than-Texas swirl of plastic debris is choking sea life in the Pacific. In some areas, collected recyclables are warehoused or headed to landfills because demand for these materials is slumping as a result of the economic downturn.

Elsewhere, policy discussions of the possible benefits of more nucleargenerated electricity are weighed against how to safely dispose of its long-lived hazardous waste products. Failing auto manufacturers may be reconsidering planned obsolescence, even while that same marketing strategy increases the amount of electronic "e-waste" communities must handle.

Some jurisdictions are promoting new laws to restrict the use of plastic shopping bags, a primary component of roadside and coastal litter. People are being encouraged to compost food scraps as another way to save space in landfills. Around the world, the economic recession has corporations, governments, and households seeking ways to minimize waste of funds and other resources in their operations.

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