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Not long ago on a planet not too far away, things were far different than they are in the industrialized world here today. People on that planet made do without plastic, aluminum foil and disposable paper cups. Instead they relied on glass and ceramic storage, waxed paper and other preservation techniques. Those who do home canning borrow a lot from them and don't use all that throw away plastic that others use. Many cultures worked out ways to preserve food without all the intensive wrapping that we do here that is turning our planet into a waste dump.

In our rushed work-a-day world of tight schedules and shortage of time, we have become increasingly reliant on convenience packaging. Thus we pile up large amounts of refuse on a daily basis. Do an experiment. For just one week, save and sort all the various packaging that you peel from your purchases and sort it into piles of paper, plastic, metal and other. It is amazing just how much accumulates, from plastic shopping bags, produce bags, Styrofoam clamshell, plate and cups, plastic bubble and stretch wraps, paper bags, paper cups, newspapers, flyers, magazines, receipts, junk mail, regular mail, water bottles, pop bottles and tins, milk cartons, used oil, food cuttings like bones and carrot tops and so on. It is quite staggering! One family of four can produce a prodigious amount of plastic, glass, paper metal and other waste, much of which goes to a landfill. Now take the family of four and multiply it by 125 million and you begin to see the picture. These days, a lot is recycled, but this accounts for only about 30 to 50 percent of the total depending on the region. What happens to the rest?

Plastic bags get carried off by the wind, to eventually wind up in the ocean. Far out in the Pacific Ocean exists a "Sargasso Sea" of floating waste consisting of mainly plastic, wood and other floating flotsam that is twice the size of Texas. The accumulated plastic winds up being eaten by fish, sea birds and sea mammals. Many wind up dead of starvation because their stomachs are filled with plastic, leaving no room for food. It is estimated that 100,000 sea mammals die each year from ingesting plastic. The toll on fish and birds is even higher; and that just from plastic that ends up in the oceans. These days, storm surges wash up huge amounts of plastic, which in reality is only a tiny fraction of what is out there. Plastic bottles and bubble wraps that are either not recyclable or are not recycled end up in

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