we all have huge kuleana to recycle and reduce enviromnental impacts of the dump

The dump on Maui is a great example of kuleana. Though we can proclaim that it is a disgusting eyesore, all of us have contributed to its ever growing destruction. Taking responsibility for the trash you create by consuming a product should be made of the utmost priority. The individuals who demand products wrapped in packaging, need to understand the proper disposal methods to limit the waste that ends up in landfills or scattered throughout our lands and seas. The gasses and chemicals released from landfill sites are harmful. As rain washes through dumpsites, solids dissolve and mix with liquids which create an acidic and contaminated fluid that can pollute and contaminate drinking water. The bacteria from the breakdown of organic matter in landfills, such as fruit scraps and vegetable peelings, create a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming.  These are just a few of the effects of waste mismanagement.

Individuals can sort the components of their trash and discard materials properly to severely reduce the millions of tons of trash that is produced each year by the nation. Home recycling does take a trivial dedication of time, but offers more than sufficient benefits to the homeowner and the environment. Recycling in the home can make a difference on both a local and global level.

The basics of recycling should be reviewed to ensure practical sorting skills. Papers and Carboard include newspapers, magazines, glossy printed flyers, phone books, envelopes, computer paper and paper packaging. Remove any rubber bands or plastic wrap. Carbon paper, stickers and laminated materials should not be included in paper & cardboards. Effort should be made to recycle all plastic waste. Plastic goods, bottles, grocery bags and polystyrene packaging should be carefully separated by the specific type of plastic. Glass containers are recycled according to color: clear, green and brown. Light bulbs, sheet  glass, mirrors and pyrex should be kept separate from traditional glass jars and bottles. Aluminum, Steel and Copper recyclables include food cans, aluminum cans, aluminum foil, foil packaging, copper, bronze and brass. Paint cans and aerosol are recyclable but are hazardous and need to be kept separate from other metals. Electronic goods like printers, computers and hardware along with cell phones and rechargeable batteries should be reused or deposited at appropriate e-cycling centers.

Some tips for home recycling; Visit your local recycling center, find out what is accepted at which specific centers on the island. Set up your home recycling bins according to these categories. Once a storage bin system for recyclables is established, recycling becomes an easier chore. Labeling these bins will ensure materials are separated correctly. To reduce your production of waste, purchase products with the highest percentage of “post-consumer” recycled content. Post consumer means the materials used in the manufacturing process were returned by consumers and successfully recycled. The Freecycle movement is a great idea, you can give away for free what you have and don’t need and you receive for free what you need, but don’t have. This free cycling of goods keeps lots of useful stuff out of the landfill and is about thinking globally and recycling locally. We must reduce consumption and demand only products made primarily with recycled content, so that the materials we recycle are put to use, and these markets are sustained.

Compost is one the best things that all of us can recycle. It includes scraps from our food prep, leftovers and anything that is natural or from the yard like branches, pruning waste, yard clean up waste. The best thing to do if you have space or a garden is to set up a compost area in our yards. We put all this stuff into a compost pile and after time and minimal management of the pile it turns to humus soil....the best nutrition on earth, for soil, plants and our natural ecosystems, made by Mother Earth, it is excellent for our gardens, fruit trees and anything that grows and needs nutrition. It is truly amazing to make our own compost into soil. It is alive and benefits our planet instead of becoming green house gas in the land fill. There are many helpful websites, books and local people to help us start to do our own compost. So please get educated and help us to be a sustainable island and reduce Mt. Opala......we all thank you for your contribution because it takes all of us to really have dramatic impacts that are measurable. We owe this to our children and the next generation, and our 'aina. This is an example of one of the most important things that each of us has kuleana to do, especially those of us who buy into the modern mentality of American consumerism. We have to or no more clean 'aina for our future....we cant just blame the ugly American way because we are all part of it weather we like it or not and we must prove to the politicians and controllers that Indigenous and native sustainable and organic methods are the only hope for our survival.
resources: 
Maui refuse aka the dump
http://www.co.maui.hi.us/facilities.aspx?pagenum=50&RID=5&Page=detail
This is from the maui recycling group and is awesome...you have to scroll down to read it and it is great
http://suphttp://www.menehunemagichawaii.com/technicaldata/Everything%20You%20Always%20Wanted%20To%20Know%20About%20Compost%20But%20Were%20Afraid%20To%20Ask.pdfak.com/organic_gardening/organic_hawaii/compost.htm

 This is one of the most positive pieces of information I have read in a long time because it tells me that young people really care and want us to care.....Kuleana people...mahalo for paying attention.

http://envisionplastics.wordpress.com/2011/10/31/recycling-is-important-a-young-persons-appeal/