P’lovers the Environmental Store (Port Perry)

I asked my daughter what she wanted to do for the hour that my wife and son were in karate class.  Expecting to read books, play in the yard, or ride bikes, I was surprised when she said “Let’s go to the waterfront and pick-up garbage, Daddy.”

So that’s exactly what we did!  Armed with gardening gloves and a large (recycled plastic) garbage bag, we dropped the ‘karate kids’ off at their class and headed for Joe Fowler Park, on the shore of Lake Scugog.  Since this lovely, naturalized shoreline trail and park was established several years ago, the kids and I have spent dozens of hours enjoying nature in the heart of our bustling little community. 

One this day, however, our little oasis in Port Perry was anything but.  In fact, with the amount of garbage thoughtlessly strewn everywhere, it looked more vandalized than naturalized.  It took Elora and I exactly 34 minutes to completely fill our garbage bag to overflowing and I would estimate we didn’t have to walk more than 50 feet from our car to do it!

A rather unscientific garbage audit revealed that the vast majority of the garbage came from the three fast food restaurants within close proximity to the park — Tim Horton’s, Wendy’s, and Dairy Queen — with loads of water bottles, beer bottles (several broken), and cigarette packs thrown in for good measure. 

While I was silently appalled at the mentality of the person who would toss their refuse amidst the bushes and perennials, my 6-year old was a shade more vocal in her opinion.  “These people are slobs!” perfectly captured the essence of the moment.

This, unfortunately, is only the tip of the proverbial ‘garbage iceberg’ that is threatening to overwhelm our society.  It did get me thinking a little more about Extended Product Responsibility, the fancy term for requiring garbage-makers to be financially and/or physically responsible for the products and packaging they produce. 

If the immense and very real cost of dealing with the garbage generated were actually factored into the cost of that blizzard, take-out coffee, or cheeseburger, would consumers take an extra moment to re-think their purchasing choices?  Would producers use their immense purchasing power and invest in more sustainable, biodegradable packaging options that will ultimately benefit everyone? 

Admittedly, with trees to climb, a small “forest” to explore, and birds to watch (four male red-wing blackbirds were putting on a stunning display as they competed for the attention of a lone female), I decided solving our society’s garbage problem will have to wait for another day.

Happy Earth Day!

-Steve