I am technologically challenged, but am blessed with amazing computer geeks in my life. Lynn from Green me up Scotty did up this map. A million thanks to Lynn. She is the best. It is just a start. There are many more places come.If you know of places that make it easier to be trash-free, please leave a comment or email me and I will add them.
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Say No to Trash · Attempting to eliminate our household garbage production. Refuse refuse!
Say No to Trash 
Wow! I read the Globe and Mail article this morning and was blown away. I will be following you efforts and wish you the best of luck!
Hi Sarah and Kyle!
Love this idea…In fact we need to talk more about it! I produce The Paul and Carol Mott Show at NewsTalk 1010 CFRB and we’re hoping you can come into studio this week for a 1\2 hour to discuss.
Drop me a line if you can!
Thanks
Cale Fair
cfair@cfrb.com
Sarah & Kyle,
I love what you are doing — I can’t wait to go home tonight and talk to my family about your journey and encourage them to follow in your footsteps. Please keep the tips coming to help others get involved in setting similar goals. You are incredibly inspiring!!! I will definitely do my best to let everyone know what you are doing. Thanks for working so creatively and energetically towards such a noble goal — you are truly making a difference.
Keep the entries coming…
Be well,
Rob Grand
rob@GrassrootsStore.com
Wow! What an inspiring idea! I am coordinating the Student Christian Movement at U of T and would love it if you would be willing to come and speak to us. I’m not sure how to get a hold of you though. Please email if you get the chance!
Best of luck!
Thanks for all your support people. And Rob Grand, that’s amazing!!!It’s such an honour to have you say that we inspire you! Your store is the reason we can do this project.
Just wanted to let you know that I live in the community of Riverdale in Edmonton, AB. Riverdale is famous for its large number of environmentally conscious residents. With your permission, we will be running exerpts from your articles in our local newsletter and encouraging others to adopt your ideas and lifestyles. The ripple effect of planting seeds of knowledge and alternative ways of living will go a long way towards creating sustainable existances. Thank you for commiting to make a positive difference in our world.
Many Blessings to you!
Inspiring! I know your friend Collette from Regina…I live in Regina…
I will tell my T.O. friends about this great guide.
Thanks Sarah and Kyle!
Jen
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Hi Sarah & Kyle….
I manage the Grassroots webstore and I’m so inspired by the trail you’re both blazing that I thought I’d feature you on our February homepage with a quote from Kyle and your blog address.
Check it out: http://www.GrassrootsStore.com
Thank you for shining the spotlight on this important issue!
With gratitude,
Jenny Vasiloff
hey sarah
i’m a student of michelle rumballs and she has briefly told me about you and kyle
what a brillant effort!
i find it very inspiring…keep it up!
also, i thought you and kyle might me interested
in this contest. here’s the link: http://www.truths.treehugger.com
life and love
conk
Hi:
I have a question…what do you do during your period? How do you manage to go through your cycle without producing waste?
Britanni
I use reuasble cloth pads. I have talked about where to get them and other non-disposable period supplies on What I do in the bathroom https://nomoregarbage.wordpress.com/2007/01/09/what-i-do-in-the-bathroom/
Hello Sarah,
What you guys are doing is very good. I think it is inspiring to lots of torontorians. I hope all the people of toronto follow the same thing because it is in everybody’s interest. I wish you good luck in your pursuit.
On Drying Bags
I airdry mine. I smear my washed, wet bags against the backsplash in the kitchen. I make sure the bag’s two sides are separated, and the open end is pointing down to let the water drip out. It dries in a day or so.
A woman who traveled in Africa told me about this method. She said the bag should fall down when it dries, although mine rarely do.
I used to do that too. I didn’t like it because it took so long and we had so many bags. That’s why we tried different methods. We really like the method we use now. ( Kyle waving the bags around in the air for awhile then leaving them open to dry on the counter for an hour or so). Thanks for all your bag drying suggestions. There are lots of options out there. We’ve got it covered now though:)
were you aloud to recycle or not.how mouch times did you start again.
dear,sarah and kyle
dear sarah and kyle,
I think you did a great job living without throwing garbage away.you are a great rolemodel.
Going garbage-free is a fantastic idea! I can’t wait to try it out. It’s one of those things where you wonder how you’ve never heard it discussed as a goal. I’m also looking forward to sharing this with my kids. Congratulations on your inspiring lifestyle.
I think we should all be focusing on refusing to make garbage — recyclable or not– and I applaud your efforts. I am sending a copy of an e-mail I just sent to Mayor Miller on this topic. I wonder if you can encourage people who visit your web-site to launch a letter writing campaign to pressure the different levels of government to ban non-reusables. Also I am thinking of making a little information flyer to hand out to people at public events and such. If I get it together perhaps your readers could also distribute them? In the meantime, here’s the e-mail I sent:
Dear Mr. Miller:
I believe that you are a politician who truly cares about the environment and the health of our city. While I realize that you can’t do everything all at once, I am dismayed at all the plastic non-refillable containers that Torontonians use and toss ( into the blue bin, the garbage or onto the street). Since plastic uses so much energy to produce, and it creates such a hazard to the environment after its (usually) one-time use, I find it difficult to understand why we are not banning plastic non-refillable containers.
I attended two city events this past weekend and I was dismayed at the the waste I saw. At the Toronto Outdoor Art Festival vendors were selling bottled water and the city was not there providing any easily accessible alternative. The next day I went to our local Environment Day and I was shocked to see the city staff at the solid waste management booth with bottled water!!!!!!!!! Below is a letter from the Mayor of San Francisco which illustrates the steps they are taking. I hope Toronto can follow suit.
Sincerely,
Donna-Marie Batty
46 Eleventh Street (letter below)
Office of the Mayor Gavin Newsom City & County of San Francisco
Executive Directive 07-07
Permanent Phase-Out of Bottled Water Purchases
by San Francisco City and County Government
June 21, 2007
San Francisco is proud of its historic role as an urban leader in environmental protection. For decades, our local government has provided environmental stewardship of the surrounding region’s water delivery system. This water delivery system consistently provides among the purest, safest drinking water in the nation from spring snowmelt stored in the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and flowing down the Tuolumne River .
Over the last decade, San Franciscans have responded to marketing campaigns to purchase bottled water and record amounts of bottled water have been purchased by San Francisco consumers and local government at the expense of the environment. Such marketing has suggested that bottled water is safer than better-regulated, pristine tap water delivered by San Francisco government to its residents. As the city advances its Local Climate Action Plan to combat global warming, it is paramount that we initiate policies that limit the most significant contributors to climate change.
The rise of the bottled water industry is well documented and visible throughout San Francisco and the entire world. The global consumption of bottled water was measured at 41 billion gallons in 2004, up 57 percent from the previous five years. This consumption increase occurred despite the fact that bottled water often costs 240 to 10,000 times more than tap water. In San Francisco , for the price of one gallon of bottled water, local residents can purchase 1000 gallons of tap water.
Data suggests that the environmental impact of the bottled water industry has been profound. According to the Container Recycling Institute, supplying the plastic water bottles that American consumers purchase in one year requires more than 47 million gallons of oil, the equivalent of one billion pounds of carbon dioxide that is released into the atmosphere. More than one billion plastic water bottles end up in California ’s landfills each year, taking 1000 years to biodegrade and leaking toxic additives such as phthalates into the groundwater. Additionally, water diverted from local aquifers for the bottled water industry can strain surrounding ecosystems.
Furthermore, transporting bottled water by boat, truck and train involves burning massive quantities of fossil fuels. All of this waste and pollution is generated by a product that by objective standards is often inferior to the quality of San Francisco ’s pristine tap water.
By virtue of the power and authority vested in me by Section 3.100 of the San Francisco Charter to provide administration and oversight of all departments and governmental units in the Executive Branch of the City and County of San Francisco , I hereby issue this Executive Directive to become effective immediately:
• Beginning July 1, 2007, there will be a prohibition from any city department or agency purchasing single serving bottles of water using city funds, unless an employee contract specifies usage. This prohibition will apply to city contractors and city funded and/or sponsored events. There will be no waivers from this prohibition.
• By September 30, 2007, all city departments and agencies occupying either city or rental properties will have completed an audit to determine the viability of switching from bottled water dispensers to bottle-less water dispensers that utilize Hetch Hetchy supplied water. City departments will work with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC), Department of Real Estate (DRE) and the City Purchaser to conduct the audit. Staff from the SFPUC will contact you shortly to begin the audit for your department.
• By December 1, 2007 all city departments and agencies occupying either city or rental properties will have installed bottle-less water dispensers that utilize Hetch Hetchy supplied water. Waivers will only be granted by the SFPUC based on legitimate engineering, health and fiscal concerns.
For questions concerning this Executive Directive and its implementation, please contact Laura Spanjian, Deputy General Manager of the San Francisco Public Utilities (415-554-1540, LSpanjian@sfwater.org)
Gavin Newsom
Mayor
PS: I got this info. from a really informative group:
activistnetwork@stopcorporateabuse.org
Do you know where/how I can dispose of/recycle clothes too worn/paint-stained, etc. to give to charity shops? I’ve held on to them thinking I’ll re-use them as rags, but it never happens. So, how can I off-load responsibly?
Yes, Good Will takes rags, so just put them in a bag marked “rags” and drop em off 🙂
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Just a quick note about the St. Lawrence Market. Domino Foods (http://www.stlawrencemarket.com/vendors/vendor_detail/64), the bulk food store in the basement, has always been very good about me using my own bags. One of the women told me they used to sell re-useable cloth bags, but they weren’t too hot of an item.
Thanks for putting this resource together, it’s something that I’ve been searching for, and hope that I can grow.