Taking care of the planet - Glimpses of the Past with Karen Webster
When the first European settlers came to the area, their main concern was survival. To achieve that, they needed to feed their families and livestock, as well as have a way to earn money. For most of them, the answer was to grow crops, but the deep, dark forest that they found themselves in was a stumbling block. After they had used up lumber for a cabin to live in and a shanty for any animals, the rest of the trees on their land were in the way of creating a farm. All of the neighbours were in the same situation, so there was no market for lumber. As a result, tree after tree was cut down with axes and then burned when dry enough. Weeks and weeks of brush burning would have resulted in a great amount of air pollution.
With the exception of the wasteful time of clearing the land, for the most part, people were very careful with their resources, using every bit of a substance until it was no longer feasible. Clothing was made of cloth or wool that had been spun and woven locally. Once a child grew out of a garment, it was passed down to the next child in line. Adults’ clothing could be cut down for a smaller person, Collars could be carefully removed when becoming frayed and then turned and sewn back on. The next step for clothing beyond wearing was to be pieced into a quilt. The final use of a garment would be as a rag to be utilized in keeping the household clean. Tears in clothing were patched and holey socks were darned.
To the generations who lived through the Depression and two World Wars, the idea of conservation of resources was what people generally lived by; reusing items as often as possible, as well as saving “things that might come in handy someday.” Most households had a ball of used string knotted together.
As prosperity grew for most people and industries started manufacturing goods with shorter lifespans than in the past, there followed a period of intense consumerism. In other words, when goods were relatively cheap, it was expedient to throw away the old and purchase new.
The three Rs of waste management came into common usage in the late 1970s in response to the oil price crises, pollution and the growing amount of solid waste.
The first Earth Day was held in April of 1970 when huge rallies were held in the United States where people expressed their concern over pollution. Rachel Carson’s 1962 book Silent Spring was a wake up call for many. It chronicled the fate of birds’ eggs failing to hatch fledglings as a result of the use of the pesticide DDT. In Canada, spokespersons like David Suzuki have led the way for thoughtful people to take action to save the planet.
One response that every person could take to further the cause to protect the environment was covered by the mantra of the “three Rs: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.” An aftermarket for recycled materials must be found to make the system work.
Though the term the three Rs is frequently the motto, there are actually five Rs.
Refuse: consumers are urged to make conscious choices about what they purchase (this also includes how items are packaged). Once the domain of little old ladies, the cloth reusable shopping bag is an excellent example to this concept as consumers could forgo the ubiquitous plastic bag.
Reduce: the amount of goods that would have headed to the landfill. This ideal takes many forms; for example, in purchasing, it could be asked, “how many pairs of shoes does one person need?” It could also apply to food usage: could those leftovers become a stew, rather than be thrown in the garbage?
Reuse: for example, food containers could be washed and then used to freeze soups, etc.
Repurpose: people are being urged to find new life for goods rather than tossing them away.
Recycle: when all other options are exhausted and a person has no more use for certain things, they could put them in their recycling bins. As well, things like clothing, furniture and books can be donated to organizations for resale.
The world’s first curbside “Blue Box” recycling program occurred in Kitchener, Ontario as a pilot project in 1981.
In 1989, Ontario’s Ministry of the Environment announced specific targets for waste diversion, which became the Waste Management Act 1992
Locally, in 1990, it was reported that the Blyth Festival theatre staff was making an effort to reduce waste. Because Blyth had no recycling options at that time, some staff members were carrying recyclables to their own municipality. Peter Cook was credited with being a leading force in the effort. Additionally, their printer, Blyth Printing, was requested to use recycled paper for program booklets.
In 1991, Blyth Village Council remained against instituting a recycling program citing excessive costs to do so, but, by 1994, contracted with Bluewater Recycling Association to pick up recycling materials, as well as garbage. Extending the lifespan of the landfill was the deciding factor in the decision.
In 2026, Waste Management Services has the contract for Blyth, as well as the rest of the Municipality of North Huron. Garbage (in clear plastic bags) pick-up is every Tuesday with recycling materials, placed in blue boxes, collected every second week according to a published schedule.
If every person were to become more thoughtful of their use of resources such as food, clothing and appliances, perhaps we all can survive on a healthy planet. Something to think about as Earth Day rolls around on April 22.
Part of this column will be found in the history book that is being written about Blyth as it nears its 150th anniversary in 2027.