Environmental Rant
I know I've mentioned part of this before, but one thing that really bugs me about my work place (and possibly other places do this as well) is that while they do their best to make the process as environmentally friendly as possible, and try to give off as pollution as possible, they are horrible in that way in the office. The janitors change EVERY SINGLE GARBAGE BAG ever day! Even if there's just a small apple core or something in it - change the whole bag! That's a shitload of extra plastic that need not be added to the landfills, but is!
So what do I do? I walk 5 feet, and put my garbage into my neighbour's can. I figure, I'm here for 16 weeks, and I didn't figure out they changed it every day till the second week, so for 15 weeks, 5 days per week...that's 75 garbage bags that I'm saving from going into the landfill! Compared to the rest of the plant, that's not that big a percentage, but it's still a significant number! I just wish more people would realize this, or better yet, garbage bags be emptied only once per week!
Now, this same neighbour is LAZY. And throws all his pop cans & bottles in the garbage all the time, which really annoys me! I said something, and he just shrugged it off. Then one time, we were talking to the janitor (b/c I told her about my throwing garbage into his can, to save a few bags) And he made some comment like "I'm going to be a chemical engineer, so I'm going to ruin the environment anyway." WTF??? First off, while chemical engineers do design processes, a lot of the designing tries to make things as environmentally friendly as possible. Plus, he was originally going to go for an environmental option, but now that he's not, he apparently doesn't need to worry about it. Such ignorance with stuff like this really pisses me off!
While I'm on this rant, one other thing. I went to the gym last night - there are 2 gyms that I can go to with my membership, and we went to the other one for the first time. With both gyms, they want you to clean off the equipment when you're done - makes sense, you don't want a stranger's sweat on the machine you're about to use! So the gym that I normally go to has actual towels that can be washed and re-used. Whereas the gym I went to yesterday had paper towels, which is such a waste. :S
So what do I do? I walk 5 feet, and put my garbage into my neighbour's can. I figure, I'm here for 16 weeks, and I didn't figure out they changed it every day till the second week, so for 15 weeks, 5 days per week...that's 75 garbage bags that I'm saving from going into the landfill! Compared to the rest of the plant, that's not that big a percentage, but it's still a significant number! I just wish more people would realize this, or better yet, garbage bags be emptied only once per week!
Now, this same neighbour is LAZY. And throws all his pop cans & bottles in the garbage all the time, which really annoys me! I said something, and he just shrugged it off. Then one time, we were talking to the janitor (b/c I told her about my throwing garbage into his can, to save a few bags) And he made some comment like "I'm going to be a chemical engineer, so I'm going to ruin the environment anyway." WTF??? First off, while chemical engineers do design processes, a lot of the designing tries to make things as environmentally friendly as possible. Plus, he was originally going to go for an environmental option, but now that he's not, he apparently doesn't need to worry about it. Such ignorance with stuff like this really pisses me off!
While I'm on this rant, one other thing. I went to the gym last night - there are 2 gyms that I can go to with my membership, and we went to the other one for the first time. With both gyms, they want you to clean off the equipment when you're done - makes sense, you don't want a stranger's sweat on the machine you're about to use! So the gym that I normally go to has actual towels that can be washed and re-used. Whereas the gym I went to yesterday had paper towels, which is such a waste. :S
posted by Jill at
8:56:00 a.m.
4 Comments:
It’s a great to realise early that our environment is in trouble. But you have to pick the right battles. My plant is a rubber extrusion company. They generate tons of waste in sheet metal and rubber (plastic) every day. Because of polical and cost factors, it is not recycled. I know a lot of it can be reused if the effort were put in to shipped and processed properly, but it costs money that the company cannot afford… it upsets me to see it everyday. Your coworker sounds like a real squarehead who drinks too much sody pop. Stay way from him haha.
By
Anonymous, at 10:24 a.m.
Wow.....i saw the janitors doing that at my last coop job as well!! Its rediculous.....i mean, common sense is often lacking in situations like these. Brainless duties, and stupid strict rules are i suppose, the cause of this. Meh, its good you're trying to help out whatever way u can.....again, i dunno....the more i learn about people and the stupid STUPID things we do...the madder i get!! Lol, later jill,
Sophie
By
Anonymous, at 1:39 p.m.
Hey Lou - I realize that there are times that you have to throw a lot away, but in general, companies like ours try to do their best to recycle what they can, but yes, sometimes it’s just not feasible. However, I think that wasting all those garbage bags every day can be done, and to have the general idea that “I’m a chemical engineer so I’m going to kill the planet anyway thus I don’t need to recycle” is just plain ignorant.
Hey Soph – the janitor herself even said it was stupid, so I think it’s b/c of the company that she does it. A lot of places will empty the garbage into a bigger bag every day, and change the bag itself like once a week, which just seems so much more sensible! And yes, people are stupid. No doubt about that.
Talk to you both later!
♥
By
Jill, at 1:49 p.m.
I hear ya Jill! Power to you! Rise up against the environment pollutin' sons of biatches! Seriously though, make official requests or something - if nothing else, mention how the plant could save money by not buying a new garbage bag for each person each day.
By
Maureen, at 7:31 p.m.
Post a Comment
<< Home