Conserve - Soil
ECOLOGICAL
Out of air, water and soil, the latter is the least talked about in general public. Somehow, we feel how are we responsible for its degradation or its improvement? Again, here also we are an everyday contributor to its degradation. We cannot underestimate the garbage that goes out of our house but goes somewhere - to the landfills and is a huge environmental issue. We need to leave ‘out of sight’ to ‘out of mind’ kind of approach. My discharge / garbage is very much my responsibility and my ecological footprint.
The milk pouches, plastic covering over packaging, pet bottles, the empty pizza boxes, discharged cells, there are so many things which we conveniently throw into our dustbins. The logical argument there is no segregation requirement or even the agencies which pick-up the waste mix the waste. At very few places proper segregation, disposal and recycling is happening. Again, at our end, can we do ‘nothing’? Here are few counter-questions which I want to ask,
1. Why inadvertently we throw the pet bottles, cardboard boxes, wrappers, cells in our daily garbage?
2. Why do not we collect them and give it in scrap for recycling?
3. Why do not we recycle everything possible?
4. How do recyclable stuff make it to landfills if we do not conveniently pass it on into our garbage?
Earlier, taking out collected recycling material was a monthly or quarterly ritual in most houses. Though meagre money was obtained, that generation valued it, and it served many purposes, small money input from waste for households, business for scrap guys and recyclable waste not ending up in landfills. Now this activity has reduced a lot in cities. Why? Who has the time and intention to first collect the recyclables, store them and then give to a kabadi wali (scrap guy) to get 100-200 rupees? Why bother? Now with the attitude of convenience, everything one click away, throwing in the dustbin is just so easy but so unhealthy practice for the environment and ultimately for us. We should start managing our waste better.
Many throw leave waste and other dead plants from their gardens, that will make future nutrient rich top-soil in your gardens which is so precious.
Plant waste, actually this is a misnomer - we should be calling it plant treasure will decompose to give nutrients to the soil, so just put them back in your pots or gardens. Many times, for some plants I don't use any manure, and it is simply the leave waste falling from the same plant or others. It is simply not waste so stop treating or calling it like. The green plants dumped back into soil will release nitrogen on decomposition. On one hand we throw them ain the garbage and on the other we buy N,P,K based fertilizers. Peels of bananas, potatoes are rich in Phosphorus (P), orange, banana, apple, watermelon peels are rich in Potassium (K). These can go back to the soil and enrich it while little less waste will reach landfills. So think and act after reading!
We need to wake up from this slumber. It is important to come out of ‘out of sight’ ‘out of mind’ approach. Own the responsibility for whatever you use and discard / throw.