Top 10 ways to enjoy a zero-waste summer

by Iris Sela

In this town, it’s pretty easy to watch your waste-footprint. Here’s a little how-to guide for eco-friendly summer fun.

Skip the bottled water
Before you reach for that bottled water, swallow this: We use 17 million barrels of oil each year to produce the half a billion bottles of water Americans consume every week. Of those, only 20 percent are recycled! Plus, most bottled water companies are just bottling tap water and in the process using three liters of water for every one liter they bottle. Instead, arm yourself with a stainless steel reusable water bottle, a filter on your tap and skip the waste

Curb your greenhouse gas emissions by composting
When sent to a landfill, organic materials like food break down without oxygen and create methane, a greenhouse gas with 72 times the heat-trapping power of CO2 in the short-term. No matter where you live, you too can compost. Learn how at www.ecocycle.org/compost.

Nourish your lawns and plants with Microbe Brew compost tea
Soils depleted? Want to save water? Let Microbe Brew come to the rescue. Eco-Cycle brews a concoction of worm castings (a.k.a. worm poop) and highly oxygenated water to produce a liquid soil amendment teeming with living microbes and beneficial plant-growth compounds. It can turn your dirt to soil, help with water retention and make your plants heartier and more resistant to pests! Find out where to buy it and how to use it at www.ecocycle.org/compost.

Participate in a zero-waste event
This summer, there are more than 20 local public events going for zero waste with Eco-Cycle, including the Boulder Asian Festival, the Lafayette Peach Festival and both the Boulder and Longmont Farmers’ Markets! Check out these events and let the vendors know how much you appreciate their efforts.

Nix the waste at your summer get-together
Make this summer’s barbeque, birthday party or picnic zero waste with Eco-Cycle’s 100 percent-compostable Zero Waste Event Kit. You select all the utensils, bowls, plates and cups you need, and they’ll pull it all together and provide you with a compost container and guidelines. Visit their website for more on the award-winning kits.

Throw an eco-birthday party for your child
With disposable plates, cups, napkins, utensils, toys, gift wrap and party favors, kids’ birthday parties can get pretty wasteful! Let Eco-Cycle throw a “Party with the Planet Birthday Party” for your child. They offer four fun themes to choose from with eco-inspired games, activities and take-home goodies tailored to your child’s age group. You provide the kids and cake, they’ll provide the party! They can also provide compostable tableware or tips for how to go zero waste on your own. Learn more at www.ecocycle.org.

Drink, bike, and support zero-waste businesses
Whether you need a bike or a tasty brew, Boulder County has plenty of zero-waste businesses to support while you get your fun on. Thank them for their commitment to the community. Check out University Bicycles for some new wheels, the St. Julien Hotel & Spa for some live music and happy-hour delights, dine and jam at the Boulder Outlook Hotel’s Home of the Blues, or indulge in a latte at the Folsom St. Coffee patio. Find the full list of zero-waste businesses on the website.

Read the A-Z Recycling Guide
Time to retire your snowboard? Computer go bust? Don’t throw it out! Check out the A-Z Recycle guide at www.ecocycle.org/htrg for how and where to recycle the unwanted odds and ends in your life.
Donate your cool stuff to the Reuse Eco-Auction
Give your retired but adored, your huddled possessions yearning to be free, to the Shabby Chic Eco-Auction! They’re looking for one-of-a-kind, cool but unwanted stuff you know someone else would just love. Donate items at www.ecocycle.org/auction.

Join the Eco-Buzz Network
Looking for even more ways to lighten your impact on the environment? Join the Eco-Buzz! Each month, they’ll notify you about a different campaign on topics like reducing wasteful “to-go” packaging, ditching the bottled water habit, purchasing for the planet, and more.  You’ll receive e-mail alerts twice per month, and you’ll find weekly posts on Facebook or Twitter. Sign up at www.ecocycle.org.
Iris Sela works with Eco-Cycle.

Respond: info@boulderganic.com

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