10 News Takes a Sneak Peak at Our 2012 Quality of Life Dashboard
Encinitas resident Carris Rhodes is conducting an unusual
experiment. She calls it the “Pack Your Trash Experiment,” an invitation
extended to all San Diegans to join her in eschewing garbage cans and collecting
all trash they produce in one week.
“I am fascinated with trash,” Rhodes says. “Where does it go? How can we reduce, reuse and recycle? Why is there so much of it!?”
Having attracted some 50 fellow “Pack Your Trash” experimenters, Rhodes’ campaign also attracted the attention of KGTV San Diego’s Channel 10 News. (Click here to watch!)
Rhodes’ timing couldn’t be more fitting, as Equinox Center will next week unveil its 2012 Quality of Life Dashboard for the San Diego region, an annual publication that takes a closer look at waste production, among other issues. One of the key findings this year’s Dashboard will show is that after four years of progress in producing less waste, San Diegans are now producing more trash per day. Just over 6 lbs. per person per day, to be exact. That’s well over one ton per year for each of us!
Of course, trash varies widely between cities in San Diego County. Want to know how your city stacked up against the others? Find those and other details in our 2012 Quality of Life Dashboard, to be unveiled January 25. (Click here to have a free copy emailed to you.)
What’s striking about our region’s waste production is that it is markedly higher than almost every other county in the state, including even Los Angeles, as our 2012 Quality of Dashboard uncovers.
New landfills to take care of San Diego’s increasing garbage piles are difficult to site due to neighborhood and environmental concerns, and they are expensive to build. What’s more, 60 percent of all waste disposed of in landfills is actually reusable, recyclable or compostable. Feeling inspired to reduce the amount of trash you produce each day? Here’s what you can do:
- Join the Pack Your Trash Experiment to get a
better understanding of how much waste you produce, and where you can cut back.
- Refuse,
reduce, reuse, recycle. Carry your own reusable water bottle and decline single
use plastics such as utensils, food packaging and plastic bags.
- Compost. More than 30 percent of waste that goes
to landfills is organic and could easily be diverted through composting.
- Check back next Tuesday, January 25 to download your free copy of the 2012 Quality of Life Dashboard for the San Diego region, to learn more about how to cut back on waste, and how our region and your city is doing on key quality of life issues.