Beyond Earth Day: Simple Ideas for an Eco-Conscious Lifestyle

Earth Day may have passed, but there's no reason to let the goal of becoming more environmentally minded slip into the rearview mirror along with it. If your household is seeking ways to protect the planet that extend beyond the "reduce, reuse, recycle" mantra, here are some simple ideas to support an eco-conscious lifestyle. Composting This is a basic one, but it's also easy to overlook. Food waste takes up unnecessary landfill area when it can be used in beneficial ways elsewhere, like fertilizing gardens. Buy a countertop compost pail or use a covered bucket in your garage or on your porch to dispose of compostable items. If you have a large yard, learn how to start a compost pile or use a bin to collect the scraps. Research the areas in your community that collect compost, such as the town's transfer station, a community garden, or even local farms that will feed vegetable waste to animals. Want curbside compost pickup? Check out companies, like Black Earth Compost, that will come to grab those scraps and compostable items right from your sidewalk. Bonus: Your trash will be less full, less stinky and less messy. Textile Recycling Textile waste is another huge use of landfills. Donate your usable clothing and textiles to a thrift store or charity shop, or you can often donate old towels and blankets to your local humane society. If its stained, ripped or dirty clothing that can't be resold, find an area collection bin that will recycle it instead of throwing it away, such as Ecosmith Recyclers Inc. of New Boston, whose general manager Jonathan Franklin told me via email when I reached out about my own textiles: "As a small, family-owned business, we rely on the thoughtful nature of local communities and people to allow us to continue on our mission to keep quality material out of the waste stream and in the hands of persons in need overseas." He offered these resources: "Conveniently, we have several bins in the Keene area. Depending on where you tend to travel, your best bet will likely be either the town's transfer station, the high school at 43 Arch St., the middle school at 167 Maple Ave., or Agway (now Blue Seal) at 80 Martell Ct." To learn more, visit ecosmithrecyclers.com. Utilize Buy Nothing Groups Practicing behaviors that reduce overall consumption is immensely helpful to the planet. Local "buy nothing" resource pages are a fantastic way to both give away items you no longer use, or to find items you need. Search freecycle.org for items in your neighborhood or find local "buy nothing" groups on Facebook to post and find items. You can also search Facebook Marketplace for free or low-cost items you need or practice the age-old hobby of yard sale shopping in the warmer months. Thrifting has also gained popularity over recent years as the Gen Z crowd became infatuated with vintage clothing, but it's another great option for all ages in reducing consumption and saving money at the same time. Don't sleep on estate sales as fantastic places to practice sustainable living. From home decor to tools and household items, they can be a massive resource that doesn't get much attention. Visit estatesales.net or search Facebook Marketplace (check out last week's Pick & Pokin' column) to find sales in your area. Local Plastic Collection & Ecobricking Did you know that the Keene Lions Club collects plastic bags to recycle into Trex park benches? They do, and one has already been added to the Keene Dog Park! Here are the details they posted on their Facebook page about the collection process: "If you save your plastic (see eligible items below), weigh them, and send us a photo of you dropping it off at Hannaford, in their collection bin, we can add the number to our tally towards this effort!" Visit facebook.com/keenelions to learn more about eligible items. Plus, the Keene Lions Club also accepts donations of used eyewear, another way to keep unwanted items out of the landfill. Ecobricking is an alternate way of managing plastic waste that has recently been gaining traction online. The process involves inserting and packing down clean, dry, non-recyclable plastic waste into plastic bottles (like milk jugs) to create dense, durable blocks. The blocks can then be used as building material in a variety of projects with the goal of keeping microplastics from items like candy wrappers out of the environment. Visit ecobricks.org to learn more. From organizations that collect stuffed animals to the recycling of Crayons, markers and Legos, there are countless efforts being made to collect and repurpose items that were once simply thrown into the trash. By practicing some due diligence and applying a little extra effort, we can all do our part to leave a smaller wake of trash behind us in the world.