IDEAS Shape our future???.

[Guest]

It seems from the beginning of the human race. That its really been the ideas then blood, sweat, and tears that have shaped the human races future?. Pyramids have been built, but not before someone had an IDEA. So Ideas could be the most important part of our survival?. Ideas could be a great subject to study? The more we can understand how they happen the better.
I believe the human brain really can only concentrate on one thing at a time, which is why many people have a hard time multi-tasking. If this is true it makes me wonder how many IDEAS come from the brain when were at work in the city, compared to being in a tropical climate?.
If anyone around here has ever studied any of this or simply knows answers to some of my questions please chime in. It feels to me that we have many environmental attributes out here for creative ideas. Why does it feel to me that most peoples greatest talents are never seen or shared?. Is it because most are tied up working for others in a mundane position that stymies the creation of the brain?. Anyway we all probably have ideas all the time that are just wasted, forgotten, or not shared. This thread may be a place to share them?

I will start with an idea towards the future of our RECYCLING program. Could the state sell or hand out large burlap sacks to haul or hold our bottles and cans?. See my cans or bottles go into my white plastic grocery bags. Then into medium white garbage bags, before I have to sort them into large black plastic garbage bags. All this and still I cant seem to keep the bugs out longer than a week.
Now if the state made there own burlap sack bags with going green, or moving towards the future logo's, or even cheesy advertising. They could sell them for $5-10 dollars each and reimburse you $1.00 every time you use them. This of course would encourage folks to buy them and use them. This would save all of us from buying more PLASTIC, which is one of the worst for our landfills, beaches, roads, ect.. If you use these sacks 10 or more times you would break even and not have to use plastic or be subjected to all the bugs. The advertising on the bags could make the state money if done correctly?. Right now we spend roughly $12 a month on these plastic bags for this purpose of collecting and hauling our own + gas = environmental enemy. Just my 2 cents on this idea.

[4antares]

Why not just get a large plastic container or garbage can for recyclable bottles/cans and skip the bags in bags in bags? All you have to do is rinse it out when empty and it can be reused for years without adding to the landfill, involving the state or making things unnecessarily complicated. It's also more bug resistant than any burlap bag.

life is short. enjoy it

[Rob Tucker]

I don't use disposable plastic trash bags at all. I use trash cans with lids.

[jlgerk]

I use 5 - 20 gallon plastic garbage cans. 1 for cans, one for large plastic bottles, one for small plastic bottles, one for Mixed stuff, one for glass. When any one is full, off I go. Very easy.

[Guest]

Thanks for the ideas. At this time it seems more ideal to use bags because they fit into the trunk of my car easier. Practically, it would be great to have a truck and use large garbage cans and go once a great while. It would save gas and lots of bags.

[Guest]

After thinking about it, I think you guys are taking the approach of, "If you cant beat em join em." See I bought a car and sold my truck to save on oil and gas, I bring up burlap for not wanting to use plastic at all. You guys seem to have bought bigger vehicles that use more gas and oil, and you all bought larger thicker plastic that wont break down for your lifetimes. Although the county and state have done a tremendous job with these recycling centers. With the roads here only becoming more con-jested maybe we should think about county recycling trucks to come pick up bottles, cans, garbage, ect.. Anyway my garbage cans don't fit in my corolla so it's PLASTIC bags and bugs, or buy a truck and plastic cans. I wonder what island in the state buys the most trucks and larger vehicles?. When I am on Oahu I see a lot of small gas saving cars. And here, well half of us probably could not leave our house or come home without a truck. If we give the county or state a million-dollar business like this current recycling program or green harvest for that matter. What would be there incentive to pave our roads, or pick up our cans and trash like what's done on Oahu in the future?. Or make something legal now after they are so dependent on the money brought in by these medical, and harvest programs?. I would like to see the county and state work for the people, not hold us back from a better future. I may be mistaken but I believe a gentleman by the name of Mike Gleason who worked for the ARC came up with the recycling program. At first the idea was To give folks with disabilities an opportunity to work. Well it did not take long for the state to take over and now I see county workers at these stations earning there fat retirements at dumps. Maybe some of you know more than I about this?. Maybe there is still a kick-back to the disadvantaged that I don't know of from our recycling.

[peteadams]

"I believe the human brain really can only concentrate on one thing at a time, which is why many people have a hard time multi-tasking."

While I don't want to hijack a thread on recycling, your premise about humans ability to concentrate is likely wrong, based on some older, but well known academic psychology research: "the number of objects an average human can hold in working memory is 7 ± 2." Maybe folks are more capable than you believe.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Magical..._Minus_Two

[csgray]

Gypsy
My husband hauls our recycling in his little beater Toyota, not a big truck. We use those rubber maid tubs with tight fitting lids, not plastic bags, and it works great. They can be washed when they need it, and they are fire ant proof.

You might want to walk back your assumptions that everyone else on this thread is driving monster gas guzzlers just so they can use plastic bags and heavy garbage bags to take their recycling to the dump. Rob is a farmer and a contractor, both professions require trucks, as do many others. Many of the hybrid trucks get better mileage than little cars, so don't assume that you are "greener than thou" just because you drive a car, not a truck. Everyone makes choices and has trade offs in navigating living on this island without leaving a monster footprint of waste, no one should assume they know the complete picture of how much impact others are making, all you see from the outside is a small corner of the whole picture.

As big as Puna is, and as thinly settled as all of the islands are except for Honolulu, curbside recycling as a government program is highly unlikely. Most of us don't mind taking our bottles and cans to get the refunds, it is the mixed recycling that a lot of people don't bother with.

Carol

[Guest]

Thank you CSGRAY, It's time to get off my assuming, and not such a good idea anyway. Maybe others have better ideas we can share? What's one of your many?.

[nani1970]

I just put all my recycling in 8 gallon tubs with lids, that go in my Toyota Echo in the trunk.
However, while I am running around recycling and using reusable bags etc, etc. etc.,
I work for a store in Hilo that throws away so..................................much plastic, hard plastic.
No recycling.
Today, 2 giant plastic kayaks were cut up and dumped into the dumpster.
It really boggles my mind.
Anything returned is destroyed and put into the the dumpster.
Where is all the stuff going after it leaves the dumpster?
If it is on our island it is going to fill up soon.
Anyway, not to sure about burlap. It would make a nice home for rats and cockroaches.