Earth Day a day late

Jessica has a daily calendar with a green tip every day and she shares it with me. It has been our goal this year to get a little greener and surprisingly there are many ways that take little effort. Of course recycle and re use is one of the best things we all can do to help our planet. Here is a list of the time it takes for some common items to decompose in a landfill.

Glass bottle 1 million years
Monofilament fishing line: 600 years
Plastic beverage bottles: 450 years
Disposable diapers: 450 years
Aluminum can: 80-200 years
Boot sole: 50-80 years
Styrofoam cup: 50 years
Tin can: 50 years
Leather: 50 years
Nylon fabric: 30-40 years
Plastic film canister: 20-30 years
Plastic bag: 10-20 years (???)
Cigarette filter: 1-5 years
Wool sock: 1-5 years
Plywood: 1-3 years
Waxed milk carton: 3 months
Apple core: 2 months
Newspaper: 6 weeks
Orange or banana peel : 2-5 weeks
Paper towel: 2-4 weeks

There are many items on this list that are now being recycled into alternate items. Last night I was at a preview for the new children's zoo and the entire exhibit has a green theme. The shingles on one of the housings were made from recycled diapers and rubber tires. The wooden structures were made from a material straw based which is a quicker renewable resource for building than trees. The list went on and on about how we can re use some of the items that are polluting our planet. We just need our eyes opened sometimes. Earth day is a good time to see how each of us can make a difference.