Green-Age Wasteland

Consider eco-friendly alternatives for your Labor Day festivities

By Jeff Schnaufer
CTW Features

Image courtesy istockphoto

If a neighborhood block party or backyard picnic for friends and family is on the books for Labor Day weekend, don't let your good times go to waste.

"When groups of people come together for events, they can generate a tremendous amount of waste, mainly from disposable utensils and plates, food waste and beverage containers," says Caroline Mitchell, the community outreach coordinator at Boulder, Colo.-based Eco-Cycle. "In 2005, 1.9 million tons of paper and plastic cups, plates and food-service products were thrown away in the U.S. That's 3.8 billion pounds of disposable food-service products and packaging filling our landfills, much of it from special events."

That kind of statistic can ruin a party mood. But doing dishes for dozens of guests is no fun, either. So what's the solution?

Consider throwing a Zero Waste party, which literally means exactly what it says. A variety of earth-friendly utensils, plates, cups, napkins and even trash bags are flooding the market faster than your grandmother can make her special potato salad.

Many of these items can be found at supermarkets, including Seventh Generation's recycled line of paper towels, paper napkins and trash bags. Preserve also features a line of plates, tumblers and cutlery in a variety of festive colors that are made from 100-percent recycled plastic and can be washed and reused or recycled in communities that recycle No. 5 plastic.

For a more serious benefit to the environment, consider using cold drink cups made from corn, which, unlike petroleum-based products, will compost. So will plates and bowls made of 100-percent renewable sugar cane fibers, as well as corn-and-sugarcane based containers and utensils made from vegetable starch. Another alternative is bamboo veneerware, utensils and even sporks.

If you want your purchase to go toward a good cause, consider ordering your compostable cutlery, plates, cups and bags from Eco-Cycle, one of the nation's oldest and largest non-profit recyclers. But more importantly, Mitchell says, plan ahead after the party.

"A key factor to hosting a Zero Waste event is composting the food waste and compostable products after the event," Mitchell says.

Look for a commercial composting facility in your city or consider a backyard compost pile of your own. Of course, going green doesn't mean going overboard in buying new partyware - compostable or not.

"I'm a firm believer that the greenest product is frequently the one you don't buy," says Leslie Garrett, an Ontario, Canada-based author of "The Virtuous Consumer" (New World Library, 2007).

Compostable products, Garrett also points out, sometimes require a higher temperature to compost properly. And, depending upon the cost, there's always the eco-friendly option of renting partyware or using your existing plates, utensils, etc., and washing them afterward.

"However," Garrett adds, "I'm also a firm believer that there are 'shades of green' and I'd rather see people turn to compostable party wares than the usual petroleum-based plastic or polystyrene."

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