How does everyone handle trash onboard?

[gonesail]

we take small amounts of trash to the dumpster every day .. usually in a plastic grocery bag. sometimes more than once a day. I try not to bring any glass aboard.

[jmh2002]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Researchers conducted a study of Newfoundland harbours. It found a large, and growing problem of junk littering the bottom of almost everywhere they looked.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfo...land-1.4412203

A photo from your link, which I guess pretty much reflects my earlier simple maths calculation

There are so many cans that it almost looks like too many to be real. Frightening.

[Fuss]

hey, what’s the problem here, they’re under the water, no one sees them for heavens sake!!... it’s not as if they’re in the environment.

[a64pilot]

If you look those are aluminum, just based on how quickly a steel ship wreck falls apart I wouldn’t think a steel can would last very long.
They have been lined since at least WWII, but I thought it was tin.

Apparently steel cans are Tin coated, makes sense as they seem to be called Tin cans, US cans it seems still are, but the cans from the UK are plastic coated (BPA).
The seams used to be sealed with lead and in 91 US cans are no longer, but some overseas cans may still have lead in them?
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel_and_tin_cans

[jmh2002]

I don't think it especially matters what the cans are made of or how it takes for them to degrade.

I would like to hope that members here could understand that it is the sheer quantity that is becoming the issue, but perhaps not...

[a64pilot]

It’s one thing to be coastal cruising and knocking around the Bahamas etc where you are only a week or so away from having a place of dispose of thrash.
And another if your months away from a place to dispose of trash.
Then take a look at how it’s disposed of, very often there is no recycling of anything at best it’s burnt.

[thinwater]

When my daughter was elementary school-intermediate school she always kept a saltwater aquarium of critters that we had found. Crabs, small jellies, tiny horseshoe crabs, fish etc. Once time I noticed a barnacle-encrusted Corona bottle, nessled in the eel grass and commented. There was a small crab living in it. She said that was "natural" in shallows of the Chesapeake Bay.


She had me. She also has a well developed sense of sarcasm. She's 25 now.

[AKA-None]

Remember it’s reduce, reuse, recycle. Recycle is the last on the list

[Auspicious]

Originally Posted by AKA-None

Remember it’s reduce, reuse, recycle. Recycle is the last on the list

No argument from me. Note that stripping packaging at point of sale or on the dock is not reducing - it's just moving the point of disposal.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

It’s one thing to be coastal cruising and knocking around the Bahamas etc where you are only a week or so away from having a place of dispose of thrash.
And another if your months away from a place to dispose of trash.
Then take a look at how it’s disposed of, very often there is no recycling of anything at best it’s burnt.

It's true that some land-based garbage systems are worse than simply disposing of things in the ocean. The solution to pollution is dilution, so it would be hard to measure any negative impact from the relatively small amount of garbage tossed well offshore by the small number of cruising vessels. Conversely, concentrating garbage in a port which has poor infrastructure for dealing with the stuff may, in fact, be a worse option.

But I believe this accounts for a small percentage of cruisers and boaters. Generally speaking, if you had space to bring it aboard, then you have space to store it for later, hopefully better, disposal or recycling.

Originally Posted by Auspicious

No argument from me. Note that stripping packaging at point of sale or on the dock is not reducing - it's just moving the point of disposal.

Very true, although if it becomes the retailers' problem to deal with all the junk, then it might it may encourage them to reduce their level of packaging in the products they offer. Currently they can externalize the costs of this over-packaging. If you leave it with them, they are forced to deal with it.

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

...Very true, although if it becomes the retailers' problem to deal with all the junk, then it might it may encourage them to reduce their level of packaging in the products they offer. Currently they can externalize the costs of this over-packaging. If you leave it with them, they are forced to deal with it.

In the retailer's defense, I seriously doubt they over package just to waste money create waste. They do it because shiny packages sell.


The problem with "reduce, reuse, recycle" is that the first two are in direct conflict with the "more stitches, more riches" meme that pyramids GNP. Personally, I find emotional reward in living smaller.



I agree with you. But it is the consumers that need to change. And maybe leaving the packaging on their door is a hint, but I seriously doubt that makes it to corporate.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by thinwater

In the retailer's defense, I seriously doubt they over package just to waste money create waste. They do it because shiny packages sell.

The problem with "reduce, reuse, recycle" is that the first two are in direct conflict with the "more stitches, more riches" meme that pyramids GNP. Personally, I find emotional reward in living smaller.

I agree with you. But it is the consumers that need to change. And maybe leaving the packaging on their door is a hint, but I seriously doubt that makes it to corporate.

True. It's a complex cycle driven by profit maximization. As consumers we have few options to influence the cycle. The best one is simply don't buy. But often that's not a viable option if the product is needed. Dumping the unwanted packaging is another way we can send a market message. But it requires a lot of people doing it. Otherwise it won't be noticed, and is simply a nuisance.

Our modern capitalist societies rely on consumers spending, and of course capitalism relies on perpetual economic growth, so we are all well trained to be good consumers. The concept of living with less is tantamount to blasphemy.

[Bentwings]

My dog and I live aboard but are parked at a Marina
It’s an express cruiser rather than a house boat. I take trash up to the dumpsters. There are small wagons assigned to each pier. Used oil usually goes back to the store for recycling..
water is more an issue as my water system froze while I was in the hospital. I have plans for a new system to be built in the spring. For now the submerged hose will have to do. Showers are done with daily exercise at the “YMCA”. Laundry is the local car wash-laundramatt.

[369thegoose]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

I do wonder about the practice of tossing metal cans over the side. My view is that if you took it out on your boat, then you have space to carry it back with you. I toss organic material (food scraps), but not inorganic, even though common wisdom says tin and aluminum oxidizes pretty quickly in salt water.

But I'm not so sure. And based on your comments I'm even less sure.

So... a quick net search turns up a pretty constant factoid that both tin and aluminum takes many decades, if not centuries, to oxidize away. I think that's a pretty strong argument against simply tossing your cans over the side.

Here's a factoid graphic from NOAA which puts some numbers to how long it takes for our garbage to "disappear"

We love the water let’s keep it clean
Take off what you bring on

[DanaTucker]

Originally Posted by 369thegoose

We love the water let’s keep it clean
Take off what you bring on

Yep, 100% what they said!