Is Zero-Waste Living Possible?

 

                                                  Photo by Tom Fisk: https://www.pexels.com/photo/bird-s-eye-view-of-landfill-317434

The consumption-heavy growth-at-all cost model that humans have been following for a few centuries now has made matters come to a head with the planet drowning in its own waste. We have defiled the very air we breathe and the water we need for sustenance. Land has been contaminated with poison in the shape of pesticides and disfigured and utterly damaged by mining, construction and the cutting of forests. This has resulted in what we know as the global climate crisis with its attendant problems in the shape of more frequent flooding, heat waves of increasing intensity, unprecedentedly large forest fires and the outbreak of disease and as we recently witnessed, a global pandemic.

One of the major problems associated with environmental degradation and pollution is the appallingly high level of waste generated on account of the way we mass-produce and consume goods, regardless of whether we need them or not. This might make economic growth figures look good, but the mountains of waste which we are unable to dispose of in an environmentally friendly manner that result on account of this, take our planet inexorably towards its doom.

For instance, electricity, which is the engine of the modern way of life, is generated largely by burning fossil fuels or by building environmentally damaging dams that help produce hydro power. Nuclear energy, for its part, comes with the risk of radioactive contamination. In fact, most modern industrial and business activity adds to the problem of waste creation not just on Earth but in space as well, which is increasingly getting clogged with innumerable communication satellites.

There is waste everywhere-in our seas and oceans, deserts and mountains, as well as our cities, towns, villages and islands. We are literally drowning in waste, but are not aware of it, as it hasn’t reached over our heads yet, at least figuratively. This situation, as one might imagine, is simply not tenable, and we need to do something about it right away. Something like living the zero-waste life. Quite radical, you would say-but is zero- waste living even possible?

The Zero Waste Living Approach

Zero waste living may not be something which is practically possible, as the very process of living creates waste in some form of the other, but the zero-waste living approach is something that can help the human race save themselves and the planet they live in from impending ruination. As a matter of fact, the zero-waste approach has become a worldwide movement that has helped more and more people understand what is at stake in this epic battle against waste that threatens the future of all life on earth. They have come to understand that they can adopt a zero-waste centred lifestyle by making mindful and intentional choices that help substantially reduce, if not eliminate, waste from most, if not all, aspects of life.

Here’s how you can approach a zero-waste approach to your life and help save your world as part of a global movement geared towards getting rid of most waste.

Learn to say no

The bane of modern living is that we have far more than we need. Instead of having to hunt for food or forage for it on the forest floor as our ancestors did, we just need to walk to the refrigerator and choose from a bewildering assortment of packaged food that is terrible for our health. Say no to that and try to source fresh food that you can yourself proceed to cook- far healthier and produces less waste too.  Say no, also, to the abomination that is quick or fast fashion and take to wearing durable clothing that lasts for a long time. There are so many other things you can say no to. Like not driving in your car to your place of work and using public transport or riding a cycle instead. If you make a list of things you could say no to, you will discover that it is a very long one indeed.

Consume less

We could all consume a lot less than we do and reduce the awful burden we place on our planet by way of the extraction of scarce resources. It is not for nothing that gluttony and lust were counted amongst the deadliest of sins. Our forebears were on to something elemental about ensuring human survival, which we have clearly lost sight of, given that people in positions of power and authority who should know better go on and on about increasing growth, never mind if that is a one way ticket to oblivion.

We consume too much food, buy more clothes than we need, travel more than we need to and consume way more energy than we need to. This amounts to living on debt and imagining that the bill will never come. Not only are the bills coming in thick and fast, but they are coming with heavy interest and penalties.

Reuse

The use and throw culture which is supposed to deliver convenience, but is really serving the needs of rapacious business houses threatens to thoroughly make the environment increasingly unconducive to all forms of life including our own. One of the best ways to fight this is by taking to reusing everything from clothes and electronic gadgets to water bottles and utensils. One should mend, stitch, darn and repair whatever we can and use it for the longest time.  It’s heartening in this regard that Gen Z finds shopping at thrift stores both fashionable and economical. That is the way to go, and the older folks would do well to take a leaf from their book.

Recycle

Recycling products that have outlived their utility is one of the best ways of tackling the problems of dealing with the gargantuan amounts of waste generated by human activity. Doing so has two benefits- that of dealing with waste in an environment-friendly manner and contributing to the economy by using waste as raw material for all-new products. Examples of recycling waste are numerous. These range from using waste water from homes for watering plants, refashioning plastic straws as footwear, storing spices, buttons, coins and nails in glass containers instead of plastic ones, composting kitchen waste and using it as fertilizer for plants, and using refill jars and bottles for shampoos, detergents and hand wash. Similarly, donating old clothes or repurposing them as bags and repairing old gadgets instead of outright replacing them is something that you can incorporate into your way of life.

Choosing the sustainable lifestyle

The zero waste approach to life is basically following a sustainable lifestyle. This is in stark contrast to the ultra-consumerist approach to life that has been heralded as normal over the centuries leading up to the planetary level disaster that stares us all in the face. Nature has its own cycle of growth, decay and renewal, and we are meant to adhere to its timeline. If we don’t, we ultimately risk our own annihilation, for as surely as the sun rises every day, nature will destroy us and replace us with something else. So, if we don’t want to go the way of the dinosaurs, we need to realign and reimagine the way we live, and zero-waste living is the way to do that.