Have you ever thrown a banana peel or an orange peel into the brush while camping? Confession time – I have. “Why would you ever do such a thing,” my horrified self of today asks my oblivious past self?!
I didn’t really think it was that big of a deal back then. I mean, after all, won’t some cute little squirrel appreciate an easy snack, I would ask myself? Or I might also think, it’s food – it will decompose quickly – it’s fine!
Am I the only one who just didn’t know…..? Anyone?
Well for those of you in the back over there too shy to raise your hands – I see you. Let me share some things I’ve leaned that changed my habits and will maybe help you change yours.
Food. Yes, things like banana peels, orange peels, or shells from nuts and seeds to name a few, are natural. However, that does not mean they are natural to the area you may be recreating in. Nor do these things decompose as quickly as you might think. Trash like this can negatively impact wildlife and their habits and health. I don’t know about you but I certainly do not want a bear showing up at my campsite because it smells the orange peel I left on the ground. I also don’t want the cute, but sometimes annoying squirrels to get lazy and forget they need to gather food on their own instead of relying on humans to leave them scraps. I want the wildlife to stay away and not get too comfortable with humans….for both their sake and ours.
Now let’s talk about how quickly these items decompose. Banana peels = 2 years. Orange peels = 6 months. Sunflower seed husks = 3 years (minimum!). Outer shells of nuts such as pistachios = 3 years.
Crazy right?!
What about other common items you might find at some point while you’re out exploring? I’ve seen aluminum cans in campfires and fished one out of a stream on Sunday. These suckers take 250 years to decompose and your campfire probably doesn’t get hot enough to melt them. This past weekend while out exploring, we saw several red solo cups up on a mountain trail we were on. Those take anywhere from 50-450 years to break down depending on the material. Plastic grocery bags (10-20 years), plastic water bottles (450 years), and glass bottles (1 million years in the environment according to the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services) are other common items I see while out recreating. Even things like toilet paper and paper towels aren’t good to leave out. They can take anywhere from 2-5 weeks or more to decompose.
Whoa.
Once I educated myself on the impact these most common items have on the environment, I knew I needed to make a change. Am I perfect? Of course not, but each time I’m out, I notice more garbage I need to pick up – from others and ourselves – and we pack it out. We have these cute little reusable bags I’ve started to keep disposable gloves and extra garbage bags in. They can easily be thrown in the van or our packs to have handy. We’re more than happy to get you some for your own use if you’re interested – just drop us a line for details!
Together we can have a positive impact on the public lands we are fortunate enough to get to enjoy. Giving back in this way is a small price to pay for the continued use of these natural resources. Educate yourself and then take action. It’s really not too tough and can quickly turn into a good habit.
