Land-Filled

With curbside pick up and “single stream” recycling, being environmentally aware seems simple. However, this sense of responsibility towards the planet when using trash services like curbside pick up becomes relatively insignificant after seeing where trash goes after it is conveniently carried away and thrown out. Because this separation from the amount of waste any one person or a household creates is so immediate, the effects of seeing a literal mountain of trash is shocking. Unfortunately, this separation is encouraged; being a garbage man is not something you hear many kids aspiring to be. The distance growing between general knowledge of trash disposal and the average American is effecting the way we view our waste, or in this case, don’t view it. The “out of sight, out of mind” setting America is operating within becomes completely dismantled after visiting a landfill and being immersed in man-made waste.

            Upon arrival at DADS, we were asked how many of us had ever been to a landfill before. Including myself, there were about four of us who had. I had only been to the composting site in Utah where we pick up mulch; others had taken tours with their schools. Out of a class of fifteen students, only four of us had come close to seeing where our waste was being “disposed.” Using our class to represent the American population allowed me to truly comprehend how little the average person knows about trash disposal. We were given statistics about how many tons of garbage is brought to DADS, along with the fact that almost 75 percent of it could have been recycled. Because we were hearing these facts while simultaneously seeing where all this waste was going, they were highly impactful: separation from them was nearly impossible. However, when hearing these facts in almost any other setting, distance is easily attainable.            

Seeing the landfill greatly changed the way I view both recycling and waste disposal, as well as my view on separation as a community or population. I am greatly saddened by how ignorant or unwilling to learn many Americans are. We do not do research regarding what can or cannot be recycled at our curbside, and if it cannot be recycled at our convenience, we simply throw it away. David Orr recognizes this desire for separation from our waste and says, “In reality there is no such thing as a ‘side effect’ or ‘externality’. These things are threads of a whole cloth” (1-2). Orr recognizes that separation from waste is not only occurring in homes, but occurs within the scholarly world as well. He believes the educator must be educated in order to stop the seemingly inevitable continuation of a constant waste stream. Understanding the much-needed link between higher education and the ever-growing problem of waste management allows the student an open opportunity to change, along with the educator. Visibly, separation is unattainable; even while standing on a giant mountain of trash, I separated myself from the very visible plastic bottle (which could have been recycled). Even with the few inches between this bottle and I felt more secure – because this wasn’t my bottle, I should not have to stand next to it. Look closely however, and I have dirt on my shoes. This dirt is covering the trash, trash I have made.