Sustainability Spotlight - February 2022 - Coloradans, Our State is Too Beautiful to Waste
When you picture your home in Colorado, do you think of mountain vistas, wide prairies, and sparkling creeks? Do you think of fresh air, sunny skies, and clear starry nights? Maybe you think of prairie dogs, coyotes, mule deer, elk and magpies? So what actions will you take to protect our colorful Colorado?
Colorado is beautiful, but it is also trashy. Over 84% of items we bring into our homes we send to Colorado’s landfills, which is higher than the national average of around 68%. Some landfill use may be unavoidable, but we should plan for the landfill as the last option, as these facilities have challenges. Here’s a list of a few landfill limitations:
- Large source of greenhouse gas emissions
- Emit gasses that decrease air quality for people who live nearby
- Leak waste into groundwater
- Expensive to manage and build
- Limited years of operation and space (30-50 years) – landfills serving Wheat Ridge opened in the 1980s and 1990s
- Not best use for land – average landfill is 600 acres
- Social, environmental, financial impacts
So, let’s take steps to manage our waste with two important steps:
- Waste reduction (preventing unnecessary waste in the first place)
- Waste diversion (keeping most items out of the landfill).
Waste reduction is something that we all can help control. It includes reusing home goods and reducing what we buy. It can sometimes require extra effort, like bringing a napkin and silverware out with you or bringing grocery and produce bags. But, it is worth the extra effort to preserve what we love about Colorado’s natural beauty.
Waste diversion, including recycling, can be challenging in Wheat Ridge. It includes composting food scraps and leaves, recycling glass and cans, or bringing Styrofoam blocks to a hard-to-recycle center.
Hopefully, the resources below can help your household take steps to reduce waste and limit what goes to the landfill.
A simple first step is to identify what you are throwing out, what you are already keeping out of the landfill, and where you need support/resources.
Take Action
Join a waste reduction challenge for residents of Wheat Ridge.
- Step 1: Take stock of what you’re throwing out through a home waste audit using our handy waste audit guide.
- Step 2: Share your findings from your audit.
- Step 3: Pledge how you plan to reduce your waste this month!
Visit our Solid Waste & Recycling webpage on the Wheat Ridge City website to watch a short video guide on conducting an audit! We’ve also posted the directions for how to conduct the home waste audit and where you can share your findings and pledge.
Become a #WasteWarrior and commit to using the #LandfillLast.
For those who aren’t ready to take the plunge on the home waste audit idea without some more background, let’s talk. You might be surprised with what you find, and we encourage you to share data and feedback in our waste audit survey.
Remember the 5 R’s:
REFUSE - Don’t buy or accept products that are harmful to the environment, or that you don’t need.
REDUCE - Use less.
REUSE & REPURPOSE - Use something you already have instead of buying new. Examples include refillable water bottles, reusable coffee mugs, and reusable grocery bags.
Use something for other than its original purpose. Get crafty! Examples include using GOOS (Good On One Side) paper from home or office that only has print on one side for scrap paper, or think of all the incredible ways you’ve seen people utilize pallets.
RECYCLE - Then, after you’ve done ALL the other Rs, consider how to recycle nearly everything you use: paper, plastic, metal, glass, electronics, clothing, and even food and yard waste can be recycled through composting.
February Sustainability Updates
- The City of Wheat Ridge is partnering with Resource Central to bring the popular Garden in a Box program back for 2022. The first 100 Wheat Ridge residents who purchase a qualifying garden from Resource Central will be offered a $25 discount. Sales of the gardens begin March 1, 2022, on the Resource Central website.
More about Sustainable Wheat Ridge
Sustainable Wheat Ridge is a resident-led committee that was established in 2018 to provide the city with recommendations to enhance the environmental sustainability of Wheat Ridge. Included in these recommendations are goals around preserving Wheat Ridge’s agricultural history, improving energy and water efficiency practices, and establishing partnerships to support local food production. Check out the full Sustainable Wheat Ridge action plan here!
