Garbage follows us everywhere we go. We generate
waste at home, work, and school. In fact in one week, the average Minnesotan throws away more than 40 pounds of garbage. The garbage generated in Minnesota in one year would fill four lanes of trucks, bumper-to-bumper, stretching from Albert Lea to International Falls. Even with our best efforts to recycle and compost, the amount of garbage keeps increasing every year.
Packaging amounts to 32 percent of Minnesota’s garbage. Typically, the more packaging a product has, the more expensive it is. You can save up to 50 percent of the cost of a product by buying the least packaged product.
The good news is that everyone
can do something to reduce the amount of trash they throw away. Even while at school each of us can have a major impact on
the amount of garbage produced in our state by becoming aware of how much we throw out and changing some of our habits when buying and using things.