Wasted

Ally Blick

FSEM: Trash and Zero Waste

Project 1: Reflections on the Landfill

September 10, 2013

            When I was told that my FSEM field trip was a trip to the landfill, I didn’t really know what to expect but when we arrived, it looked completely different than I would have ever imagined. I quickly realized that there were large hills surrounding the landfill but the surrounding area was completely flat. It didn’t take long for our tour guide to let us in on the secret that these hills were almost entirely made of condensed trash. We went to the top of the pile and saw the facility compacting and burying more waste than I had ever seen in my life. On top of the pile, it is a little windy so inevitably some things had avoided being covered in dirt. I saw everything from plastic, one use water bottles that should have been recycled to shoes that probably still had a year or so left in them. Our trip to the landfill was a wake up call to me that most people either don’t know or don’t care what should be recycled and what should be thrown away.

            Seeing how many plastic water bottles were strewn across the landfill was a shock to me. I thought everyone knew to recycle those! It was also troubling to me because it is more cost efficient and better for the environment to buy a reusable water bottle than to buy the plastic bottles in bulk. This made me realize how many people, even just the Denver area, have not been educated on basic rules of recycling. I also thought it was bizarre that people at the landfill do not sort trash in order to take out the things that should obviously be recycled. That would create jobs as well as stunt the growth of the landfill. It was sad for me to see how tall the trash hills were, knowing that a lot of what was buried could have been reused or recycled. My photograph shows the machines compressing the waste down in order to hide it from the public’s eye. I chose to edit the picture to make it look old because I wanted it to look like it was found in somewhere in the trash pile.

            I have always loved the water and the mountains and nature in general so when I learned that those hills had been made out of garbage, I almost felt like I had been fooled. I think hills are beautiful and should be created by whoever or whatever made them in the first place and not made out of the things humans no longer need. From now on, I am going to be a lot more conscious about the things I put in the trash bin.

I believe that sustainability should be a fundamental part of education from early on. As a college freshman, I will admit that I am not entirely sure what should be recycled and what should be put in the landfill but I think it should be common sense for everyone. On page 13 of David Orr’s “What Is Education For?” he says, “Third, I propose that knowledge carries with it the responsibility to see that it is well used in the world. […] Knowledge of how to do vast and risky things has far outrun our ability to use its responsibly. Some of this knowledge cannot be used responsibly, safely, and to consistently good purposes.” Lessons for a sustainable future should be a major part of schooling from a very young age because then students have time to think about and develop ways to fix the problems their ancestors created so later generations can enjoy the earth, too. I hope that we are able to improve our sustainability so my children and grandchildren can enjoy the beauty of nature and not think all mountains are made out of waste.