This year, however, I decided that it was wasteful and sinful to pay someone four figures to store our boat for the winter. Instead, we paid someone to trailer it to our home and drop it in the backyard. And there it sat, November through now, in all its shrink wrapped splendor. It’s not a big, big boat — it’s 27-feet long — but big enough that I feel guilty about all that plastic.

I was gratified to see, however, that the Town of Hempstead this year announced a shrink wrap recycling program for marinas as well as Jane and John Doe — people like me and my husband. According to the Town’s website, it, along with Operation SPLASH (Stop Polluting Littering and Save Harbors), will be collecting used shrink wrap daily. (From the site: 8:30 AM and 3:30 PM Monday through Friday. In addition, residential boat owners may drop off shrink wrap on Saturdays and Sundays, from 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM.)

This weekend my husband started getting the boat ready for the water. As part of that, he pulled down the wrap. It’s sitting in my backyard, but I’ll be taking it over to 1600 Merrick Road tomorrow. And for what it’s worth: This year, keeping the boat in the backyard not only saved us money, but it helped save the environment just a little bit, too.

What's in that gulp of ocean water you just swallowed? This, unfortunately.

One of the things I am most proud of is our household ban on plastic. We don’t use plastic if we can help it. I take reusable bags on shopping trips to the supermarket and the mall, and we recycle any plastic that does come into our home. Every bread bag, every piece of packaging, every toilet paper or paper towel wrapping, every piece of bubblewrap, every dry cleaning bag, shrink wrap — it all goes into a big bag that is then recycled at our local Lowe’s. (You can read more about it here.) It really adds up. I started this family campaign after reading about The Great Pacific Garbage Patch. (Again, you can read more about that here.) To date, I’ve probably kept thousands of pieces of plastic out of landfills.

People think I am crazy. As they point out, this way of life does take some work and commitment. Still, it’s worth it to me. It really hurts when I think about how — by using plastic — we are polluting our oceans and inadvertently polluting our food supply.

I started this family ban a few years ago, but haven’t really heard a lot about the topic lately. Am I making a difference, I always wonder? Are we, as a society, making a dent in the problem? This week, I got answers to these questions when I garnered some time with an executive from Surfrider Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of oceans, beaches, and the surf. Below, Bill Hickman, Surfrider Foundation’s Rise Above Plastics Coordinator, explains how why our oceans are still at risk, and why one person’s efforts really do matter.

KB: Have we seen a decline in the amount of plastic being found in our waterways?

Hickman: Some places yes and some places no. Cities that have passed plastic reduction ordinances such as plastic bag or expanded polystyrene foam bans are starting to see litter reductions. Some cities have done a good job with increased street sweeping, [adding] catch basins for storm drains, and other efforts but overall we are not seeing a decline in plastic pollution reaching the ocean.

KB: What’s are some of the biggest risks of plastic waterway pollution?

Hickman: Plastic does not biodegrade in our lifetimes, it typically photodegrades [meaning it breaks up into tiny pieces but never decomposes into organic matter] into smaller pieces that can easily be confused for food by marine life. Those plastic pieces are good at adsorbing persistent organic pollutants that may be in the water such as PCBs [which act as hormone disruptors and carcinogens] and DDT [a dangerous pesticide], which over time could travel up the food chain and possibly pose a threat to people who eat fish.

KB: Where is the plastic originating from?

Hickman: Not all plastic is bad, but disposable plastics can be devastating. After World War II the United States changed from a society that reused everything possible to one that promoted the convenience of throwaway living and benefits of “no more dishes” without realizing the consequences of these decisions as population soared. Now plastic encases everything from electronics to razors to fruit and veggies that already have nature’s packaging — its skin! Plastic is typically derived from petroleum or natural gas and starts out as pellets or ‘nurdles’ at production facilities that are shipped to plastics manufactures via rail and truck. Those pellets are typically heated then expanded or extruded into products such as plastic bags, bottles, toys, foam foodware, and more.

KB: What can we do to reduce the amount of plastic going into the water?

Hickman: The best way to help prevent plastic pollution is through source reductions such as plastic bag and expanded foam bans along with more states adopting ‘bottle bills’ [requiring a bottle deposit] which help to increase recycling rates.

KB: Can one person really make a difference?

Hickman: Absolutely. Every action helps to make a difference, and on a personal level it’s great to follow the four R’s: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle plastic! Get involved with your local Surfrider Chapter and participate in their beach cleanups and their Rise Above Plastics efforts.

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I finally found a place for all the clutter -- at Best Buy!

We are big tech people. I can’t count how many servers, workstations, gaming consoles, and pieces of consumer electronics that we’ve purchased since we’ve been married. I’ve been recycling the big stuff — computers, laptops, monitors, and televisions — for a while now, but it’s been more difficult to figure out what to do with all the cords, remotes, and other electronic-related items that were left over. Oh, and I can’t forget the plastic gift cards that we used to purchase them. They were invariably thrown into the trash. Until now, that is.

I’ve always known that Best Buy has a fabulous electronics recycling program, but it wasn’t until recently that I realized the store also took stuff that other recycling sources won’t: CDs, DVDs, gift cards, wires, cables, cords, remotes, and controllers. Oh, and the store also has a repository for plastic bags, batteries, and ink and toner cartridges, too. At last! I have a place to get rid of everything — for free! While you might not think throwing away an empty gift card here and a wire there is a big deal, it really is because it all adds up. We, as a society, generate more than 4 billion pounds of e-waste every year, so it’s important to take every recycling opportunity we can. We should be recapturing whatever we can.

My Best Buy epiphany had its roots on YouTube. I found out about the company’s recycling program by doing a search. (I was looking for a place to get rid of all my old CDs and CD-Rs.) Even though I was busy that day, I actually sat through the company’s video about how it recycles. I wanted to be sure Best Buy wasn’t like so many other companies that say they are recycling but simply collect everything and dump it overseas without removing the hazardous materials such as lead, cadmium, and mercury. (It’s a great video, BTW, and worth sitting through and showing to your kids.) I was really happy to see that Best Buy is able to break down all those tvs, laptops, keyboards, and monitors into their most basic elements so they can go back into the supply chain. Who knew a keyboard could go right into a shredder?

Last week I made a trip to Best Buy with my kids. They watched as I unloaded a black garbage bag full of wires and cables as well as a small box of old remotes. When I got home I started a bag for gift cards. It’s sitting in the garage next to my bag of old batteries. While I know I can’t recycle everything, it really makes me feel good to lessen my footprint — if only just a little bit. How about you?

I used to feel really guilty about that, but now that I’ve discovered that kids really don’t want that much, it’s not so bad. For example, I recently got rid of what seemed like a ton of stuffed animals, board games, and puzzles. (Okay, it was only three large bags, but still…) The kids did not even notice they were gone.

Of course, I’m pretty careful when I’m doing my weekly thrift store donation analysis. Before I toss anything I run it through a checklist:

1. Do either of the kids have any emotional attachment to this item?
2. When was the last time they wore it/played with it?
3. Do I know someone who would get use out of it?

The answers help me figure out whether to keep something or toss it. When it comes to emotional attachments, well, my decisions are much easier for Big Girl’s stuff than with Little Girl’s stuff. My little one latches on to stuff in a way that her sister never did. Case in point: Her bed. Right now there are about a dozen assorted animals that sleep with her every night. She knows EXACTLY who should be in there and complains bitterly if they are missing. This, I think, is the most important part of the check list. If there’s no emotional attachment, the decision is really a no-brainer.

Still, I am not an ogre. Just because someone doesn’t swoon over an item doesn’t mean it’s not worth something, so that’s where the time element comes in. My rule of thumb is simple: If it’s been more than a month or two since they played with something I can probably safely squirrel it out of the house. I figure if they haven’t looked for it, they probably aren’t going to.

I use the same lenses when I am pillaging my own closets. Sometimes, I cut too deeply and regret it (WHY did I get rid of those great thigh-high white boots?!?), but for the most part my excavation works really well. How about you? Do you sort and toss often? Once a year? How does that work for you?

I just don’t understand why stores of all variety and sizes continue packing food into plastic that, unfortunately, people probably aren’t recycling. Whenever I go to that particular store, for example, they always try and give me a ton of plastic that I invariably have to tell the person behind the counter to skip. A piece of wax paper is fine, I say. I don’t need plastic clamshells for my cookies, muffins, or danish. They always look at me like I am nuts, but comply.

You’d think the store would want to save a little cash (not to mention the environment), and skip the clambox. But no, that’s just not the case. I asked about it once and was told that customers like their muffins completely unbruised. Putting a muffin in paper, I was told, means the sides might get a little squished. (Are we really so silly that we can’t have a little imperfection when we’re eating our sweets?) It’s sort of like the wastefulness of using a plastic bag for a single item while shopping. Or using plastic wrap instead of a reusable container to put away leftovers. Once you think about it you realize how silly the practice is.

And so, my challenge to you: This week try and avoid using one piece of plastic — wrap, clamshell, bag, or otherwise. Nothing radical. Just a single change. You’ll be surprised at how easy it is.

We got rid of the equivalent of two carloads of stuff from the garage, four large boxes of old electronics (including a 37-inch LCD TV that was broken), two huge boxes full of cardboard, three boxes of dangerous chemicals, fluorescent light bulbs, and paint, our old stainless refrigerator, 70 empty plastic DVD cases, a dead red maple, a bag of old batteries, a pile of stumps and logs, two bags full of clothing, a giant bag of plastic bags, about 200 magazines, and about 10 pair of shoes. Oh, and all of the empty cosmetic and personal care containers I’ve been saving since Janaury.

The stuff from the garage went to the local thrift store. They were happy to get it. The boxes of electronics including old laptops, mother boards, and wires went to the e-waste recycling program. Same with the batteries and dangerous chemicals — they found a new home with the Stop Throwing Out Pollutants (STOP) program. The tree and stumps were ground up and brought to my town’s local compost location. The clothing went to the thrift shop. The cardboard went to my friend’s curb since her town recycles cardboard and mine does not. I Freecycled the DVD cases. Someone picked them up within two hours of my post. The personal care and cosmetics packaging went to the Origins counter at the mall. (They will recycle or burn for energy anything you’d like to drop off.) The shoes joined the other ten I had already dropped off at the Soles4Souls collection at my daughter’s school. The magazines got bundled up with twine. They go out Wednesday night with the rest of the recycling. The plastic bag of plastic bags went into the collection bin at Lowe’s. I sold the fridge on Craigslist.com for $200.

I can’t explain how free I feel right now. I have a clean garage. My husband’s office, which we also painted and rearranged, looks the best that it’s ever looked. I have two completely empty shelves in my clothes closet. Empty! Same with my shoe shelves. My kitchen was already clean from last month’s purge.

In addition to all the purging, we spruced up the house a bit. Big Girl got a gorgeous chandelier in her bedroom. My husband put that in the same day that he spackled a hole in our bathroom and changed the lamppost out front. The previous weekend he put up wire shelving in our coat closet so now the mittens are with the mittens and the hats are with the hats. (Did I mention that he’s truly amazing around the house?!?)

I find it much easier to work — at home, with the kids, with my job — when everything is clean and neat and in its place. And the best part: Everything that used to call my house its home is in the process of finding another home. Nothing ended up in a landfill or an incinerator. There are no heavy metals leeching into the water supply because of my old computers, for instance. It’s a wonderful thing.

It's time to pass all these baby toys along. Sigh.

I’ve mentioned it a few times already, but I thought I’d give you an update on the bag-a-week purge that’s been going on since January.

It’s taken me a long time to admit it, but I am ready to say it: I have too much stuff in my house. Way too much stuff. Too many toys. Too many clothes. Too many electronic components. Too many books. Too many housewares. Something had to give.

Even before January, before I realized that we have too much, I was trying to stick to a one-in-one-out policy. (For every one thing that came in, something else had to go out.) But with the realization that we’ve got too much stuff came a new directive: Get the unused stuff out of here. This cleanse, this mandate is making me dig deep and admit that if I don’t need something, it shouldn’t be in my house.

Take the bag of stuff that got dropped at the thrift store today. That bag contained two yoga mats, a pair of white ski pants, a ton of gloves and hats the kids outgrew, two pairs of snowboots (also outgrown), a few t-shirts, a stroller cover, a Bundle Me, and some books. Aside from the gloves and hats, none of it had been used in years. I have two “good” yoga mats in my trunk, so why did I need the other two in the house? I have pretty, stylish black ski pants, so why was I hanging on to a white bib that I wore in high school? I really don’t know.

The bag before that one had lots of housewares. A brand new thermos, some coffee cups, a clock radio, a router, plastic serving utensils that I couldn’t recycle and won’t use, a child’s game, more outgrown clothing. On Monday I unloaded about ten pairs of shoes at Little Girl’s school. They are doing a Soles4Souls collection, and I was thrilled to be rid of all the sandals and sneakers that haven’t been worn in about two or three seasons.

Could I have sold these items? Sure, but in the scheme of things my time is worth more than the money I would have earned. And the tax deduction that I got was pretty nice, too.

I’m not going to stop until the only things left in the house are things we actually use. (Or that make me happy when I look at them such as a pretty piece of glass or a relic from my childhood. Bottom line, I’ve got to NOTICE something before I’ll let it stay.) This is going to take a lot more digging. For example, even though I’ve gone through my kitchen three times so far, I plan on making a few more sweeps. There are some things in the drawers and cupboards that I wasn’t ready to part with yet. I figure if I keep looking at them, eventually I will give them up. (One of two cookie presses springs to mind as does the giant stack of metal mixing bowls that I haven’t used since I acquired them.)

I’ve also changed the way I look at Big Girl’s clothing. I used to put every single piece of her clothing away. I quickly learned that there are some things that don’t look good on Little Girl, some things that are too trendy to be put away, and some things that I’ll probably want to replace. Now, I set aside classic pieces, and donate anything that I know in my heart won’t be worth pulling out in four years time.

These past few months have been easy. I’ve been getting rid of the low hanging fruit of my closets, drawers, and attic. However, some day soon I am sure I am going to find things that I will have a hard time giving up. However, this is important work because, in the end, I think paring down will actually make my life less stressful. (Especially after we tackle the garage!)

Ever drive around on December 26? You’ll see bags and bags and BAGS of garbage. The amount of trash we produce grows exponentially during the holidays. What’s in most of those bags? Wrapping paper and cardboard packaging. But the front of your house doesn’t have to look like a trash heap since most of the stuff you throw out during the holidays can be recycled or composted.

Take wrapping paper. What’s it made of? Paper, of course. Paper like your old newspaper. Paper like the printer mistakes you recycle. Paper like your junk mail. You can recycle it by simply tossing it in with your regular paper recycling bin. The one exception: Foil wrapping paper, which should go into the regular trash.

There’s other waste, too. We open lots of cans of stuff, empty bottles of stuff, too. In the hustle and bustle of the day it might seem easier just to toss it in the trash. However, if you take the time today to bring your recycling bin into the garage (or place it outside the backdoor), it will be a lot easier to recycle and less tempting to trash.

And how about all the packing materials and cardboard you will inevitably find hanging around the house? Get rid of cardboard with your regular newspaper recycling. (Yes, all those doll and truck boxes, too!) Packing peanuts find a second life at places like Mail Boxes Etc. or the UPS Store. You can find the closest place that accepts them at the Plastic Loose Fill Council’s Web site.

Holiday food such as coffee grinds, fruit, unbuttered veggies, and bread can find a second life in your compost bin.

And what about the scads of plastic bags we generate around this time of the year? Take all the plastic bubble wrap, air wrap, plastic bags from toys and electronics — even dry cleaner bags and good old shopping bags — to a store like Lowes or CVS or your local supermarket where you can recycle them in the plastic bag recycling bins. Not sure where your local plastic bag recycling location is? Check out the American Chemistry Council’s Plasticbagrecycling.org.

And when the dust clears and you’re looking to get rid of your old electronics to make room for your new DVD player, smart phone, or PC? Please be kind to your fellow man and dispose of it properly since all of the above have heavy metals and all sorts of toxic, nasty substances inside. Check out the Environmental Protection Agency’s listing of resources online.

Say no to plastic spoons!

It is no secret that I LOVE Trader Joe’s. Love it. One of my favorite things about the store is tucked way in the back along the left wall: the sample counter. Yesterday, they were sampling Checkerboard Mousse Cake ($6.99.). Are you freakin’ kidding me? So sweet and smushy and yummy. I couldn’t buy it. I will, but not until the day before I will be toting it to my in-laws’ house so I don’t eat it all in one sitting. The other sample was Sweet Potato Pie Bites — layers of fillo dough filled with sweet potato purée, brown sugar, butter, and a candied pecan. Sounded amazing, but I had to skip it since it contains nuts. Last Wednesday they were giving out samples of Fully Cooked Half of a Roasted Turkey as well as pre-made mashed potatoes. I took some of both (and yes, both were good), but I felt SUPER guilty about it. You see, in addition to two little paper cups, I also got two plastic spoons.

It took me less than five seconds to devour those goodies, but those plastic forks will remain forever in our waste stream. Yes, forever, because they are made from traditional petroleum-based plastic, which hurts the environment during manufacturing (petroleum by-products sort of suck — benzene, xylenes, etc.) and during disposal because it’s not like anyone is recycling all those plastic spoons and forks. For example, I know my own town’s recycling program won’t take plastic forks and spoons. In fact, according to the Clean Air Council, enough paper and plastic utensils are thrown away every year to circle the equator 300 times. From a recent press release I got:

“It is estimated that close to 40 billion individual plastic utensils—meaning between 14 and 18 billion plastic spoons—are produced each year… [and] most of them end up in our landfills, beaches and oceans, where they are likely to remain for hundreds of thousands of years.”

Uggg. In the past, I’ve turned down the forks, sticking with the squeeze and suck method to get the food out of the little cups. And it does work for the most part, but I always figured there had to be a better way. This morning I got a press release from a company called EcoTensil, which sells, something that fits that bill: Paperboard spoons that are recyclable and compostable.

Sounds like a great idea, right? The company is making some decent inroads. I was very impressed that Stonyfield Farms is using EcoTensil’s EcoTaster spoons for its event samplings. Recently, Stonyfield used about 60,000 EcoTasters at the U.S. Open! With that kind of backing and visibility I am hoping that smart, eco-friendly companies like Trader Joe’s get the hint and get rid of stupid plastic spoons. (And no, I have nothing to do with EcoTensils or Stonyfield OR Trader Joe’s. I just like this idea.) Until then, I’ll be sticking with the squeeze and suck route. How about you?

I recently discovered PopCorners, an amazingly good snack food made with air-popped popcorn. Flavors include butter, sea salt, kettle, and jalapeno. I’ve got some samples to give out to ten readers who post below. I’ll be choosing winners randomly and “popping” them in the mail by Friday, December 3. Want to be one of the lucky ones? Tell me why you need a new snack fix.

Sure, we’ve been recycling plastic yogurt cups and take-out containers since we first got our yellow recycling pail. But now I’ve started collecting polyethylene — better known as the plastic that bags are made of — too. You know, the ones that comprise a big part of the Pacific Garbage Patch. (Don’t know what that is? Check out this post from last year.)

And it’s not just plastic bags I’ve been stowing away for later recycling. Nope, I’ve been recycling all of the following:

Magazine and newspaper wrap and bags
Paper towel, napkin and toilet paper wrap
Dry cleaning bags
Shrink wrap around food (not to be confused with plastic wrap)
Bread bags including rolls, white bread bags, and English muffin bags
Furniture wrap
Electronics wrap (those plastic bags that are around, for example, a new DVD player)
Cereal box liners
Produce bags (although now I bring my own)
Bubble wrap and deflated air packets (I get a lot of press kits)
Bottled water case wrap (Well, only one since we don’t do bottled water)
Diaper and baby wipe packaging (Again, not really buying this anymore)
General “wrap” such as the film from a roll of wrapping paper, the bags the new phone books came in, and the polybag from my kid’s new toy

I get a big plastic bag and stuff as much as I can into it. After a month or so I take a trip to Lowes like I did today. Then I empty all that plastic into the recycling bin where it is eventually hauled off and made into new plastic bags or plastic lumber. A beautiful thing, right.

Today’s recycling mission was the equivalent of literally hundreds of plastic items. I was amazed as I emptied my bags into the bin. I really made a dent in my own personal garbage stream by taking on that recycling. Trust me, it’s easy to do, and once you get started you just don’t want to stop. Want to learn more about recycling? Check out the official America Recycles Day website. And with that I am off to wish my husband a Happy America Recycles Day! Hope everyone has a good one!

How often do you recycle? If you don’t, what’s stopping you? I’d like to know.