The definition of the word civilized according to the Free Dictionary is as follows:

1. Having a highly developed society and culture.

2. Showing evidence of moral and intellectual advancement; humane, ethical, and reasonable.

3. Marked by refinement in taste and manners; cultured; polished.

A highly developed society and culture would wish to live at the highest levels of efficiency. According to the above definition, this would mean zero wasteful trash. Why waste resources? Why create a toxic, fowl smelling, lumpy sludge that needs to be buried in a heavily lined pit and buried? Why use something once and throw it away? The manufacturers of such products advertise the ease of use and the so called efficiency of single use products and non-durable goods. In fact, these products are far from efficient. There are a variety of different plastics on the market, which take any where from a REALLY LONG TIME to FOREVER to degrade. At the same time, plastic is an indication of a cheap and shoddy good. How many plastic gadgets have you had break long before they lived out a healthy life time?

The American Chemistry Council lists on their website numerous “good virtues of plastic” and with many of them I agree. The availability and flexibility of plastics manufacture has been a boon to medical science and treatment. Communication and transport have been greatly facilitated by the existence of plastic. So why do plastic goods have the image of being cheap? Most plastic goods that we encounter in our daily lives are single use and or non-durable goods meant to last 3 years or less.

Plastic is a product that seems to last forever, yet plastic goods have immensely short lifespans. What is wrong with this picture? Why aren’t plastic goods built to last? Any culture in my book that shows evidence of moral and intellectual advancement out to see a problem with the life span of the average plastic good. Or with any other single use good that provides no more than a momentary blip in the life of its user.

If you are bothered by the above dichotomy, No Impact Man has set a little task for you this week. Save your trash for a week. When the week is up make a little archaeological excavation of your wasted goods. The goal is to pin point the things in your trash that your really placed little or no value on to begin with, such as the plastic fork that came with your Chinese take out. Next work out a plan to eliminate unwanted waste from your life. Read about this project in more detail here and then leave your thoughts on this experience with other readers of the No Impact Man blog.