5 Steps to a Waste-Free Lunch at Work
Photo by Topsy at Waygood, under a Creative Commons license
Waste of any kind makes my eyeballs itch; one-off disposables even more so. Despite the recent upswell in conversation about energy independence and the need to wean ourselves off foreign oil, few people seem to realize that plastic bags, clamshell takeout containers, and that iced-coffee cup are petroleum-derived conveniences—ones we don’t need festering in our landfills for thousands of years. (Methane, a greenhouse gas found in landfills, is 21 times more potent than carbon dioxide when it comes to trapping heat in our atmosphere, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.)
I usually pack lunch when I travel into the city for another bout of in-house editing at some magazine or another, but I’m laxer when I know I’m going to be in midtown because I love the hot-food counter at one particular organic deli on Park Ave. South. (I’m addicted to the sweet-and-sour seitan.) It’s easy to get swept up in a maelstrom of difficult-to-recycle plastic waste, but you can step around it with a bit of diligence.
1. Bring your own Tupperware: Because of the recent hullaballoo about toxic chemicals leaching from plastic, I’ve taken to toting along a stainless-steel container to fill up with hot foods at the organic deli. The lovely gent at the register weighed my empty container last week, so I don’t have to pay for the extra weight.
2. Bring your own flatware: One thing this world doesn’t need is more disposable plastic cutlery in the landfill. I have a fork-and-spoon set in a reusable pouch that I just toss into a bag with my lunchbox.
3. Choose wrapper-free snacks: A juicy organic Anjou pear or Gala apple doesn’t have any packaging to dispose of. I save the core for our weekly trip to the community garden’s compost heap.
4. Bring your own bag: I love my Whole Foods ChicoBag. When I’m done putting away its contents, I simply stuff the bag back into the attached pouch and throw it into my purse. No fuss, no muss, and no forgetting to pack a bag.
5. Bring your own water bottle/commuter mug: Apparently Chris Meloni from Law & Order: Special Victims Unit banned plastic bottles from the set and bought everyone reusable water bottles. What a guy.
Simon said,
September 25, 2008 at 3:18 am
Well done. It aint rocket science is it? It’s worth adding that you can feel quietly pleased yourself - but not in a smug way!