Research Essay: Claire Nord

Turnip Green Creative Reuse

What are the Consequences of Landfills and How is Turnip Green Creative Reuse Making an Impact?

Most of the time when people throw something away, they are not thinking about where that item is actually going. Living in a large city, I have noticed people will throw just about anything away if it means they do not have to deal with finding a new place for it. When I thought about what I wanted to do for my service project, the issue of sustainability and the environment came to mind. I knew that landfills were harmful but did not realize what a large negative impact they have on the community until researching. They cause endless health and environmental issues that I, and most people, are not aware of I then discovered Turnip Green Creative Reuse and their great efforts to reduce landfill overflow in Nashville. As stated on their website, “We foster creativity and sustainability through reuse. We provide a welcoming, inclusive space to divert materials from the landfill and connect them with people who need them such as teachers, students, artists, and more ” (Turnip Green). Turnip Green takes what could be considered trash and turns it into an opportunity for creativity and education for everyone while striving for a cleaner and less wasteful community.

Each year, U S landfills are filled with 139 6 million tons of waste (Mcdonald) There are over 3,000 active landfills in the U.S. and 10,000 closed ones, causing an array of environmental and health issues. One problem is that they release methane gas, which contributes significantly to climate change and harmful ground-level ozone. They also produce carbon dioxide, water vapor, oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, and nonmethane organic compounds, which can all lead to smog. Landfills negatively impact the environment for animals as well, and 1,800,000 acres of habitat have been lost due to their immense damage. Plastic liners of landfills can leak, which causes the liquid leachate to be released This liquid contains ammonia, which can be nitrified to produce nitrate, leading to eutrophication, or lack of oxygen, in nearby water sources. Dead zones are then created, which are areas where no animals are able to survive (Vasarhelyi). Landfills not only cause damage to the environment and animal habitats, but they affect humans as well. Being exposed to high levels of ammonia in the air can cause irritation of the eyes, coughing, headaches, and several more issues (“Important Things to Know about Landfill Gas”). There was a study conducted in New York that discovered a “12% increased risk of congenital malformations in children born to families that lived within a mile of a hazardous waste landfill site” (Vasarhelyi). Imagine waking up every day and being greeted with odors, risks of harmful gasses, possible health issues, and an increased number of bugs in the area. Unfortunately, these problems, and many more, are the reality for people living near landfills. These issues are more prevalent in low-income areas because they do not have as many resources to help with the damage caused by landfills or the means to move to a safer location (Vasarhelyi). The problem of landfills is occurring throughout the United States and may not seem relevant in Nashville, but it is. Nashville houses the Southern Services landfill, a 77-acre landfill that is the final destination for most of the city’s trash. This landfill is located in Bordeaux, a historically black neighborhood located Northwest of downtown Nashville (Wadhwani). Residents of this area have been complaining about the significant issues they are facing, but their efforts have been mostly unsuccessful. Southern Services decreases property value, increases health issues, and overall negatively impacts the lives of Bordeaux residents. Vincent Dixie, a Nashville Democrat living less than a mile-and-a-half from the landfill, states, “This area was built because the middle and upper-class professional black people had nowhere else to build homes The land and dirt were not good, but we made the best use of what we had And we made it a thriving community. This issue of the landfill continues to depress the values of our homes, in most cases our biggest asset, so we have to do something about this” (Wadhwani). Residents of this area struggle daily with the monster that is Southern Services, but fortunately, there are organizations trying to help with the problem of landfill overflow.

Turnip Green Creative Reuse has been taking donations, offering after-school art programs for children, and providing a space for artists to display and sell their work since 2010 In just 2021, 377,689 pounds of waste were diverted from the landfill and there were 3,472 education program participants (Turnip Green). They also have an open studio where anyone is able to come and create anything. Turnip Green allows customers to purchase materials at a name-your-own-price, which allows people with all economic backgrounds and situations to be a part of their community and have a creative outlook. After speaking with the employees, I learned that Turnip Green caters to struggling artists, people in the Nashville community, and homeless people They strive to provide a space for people in need while simultaneously helping the environment. However, they are not only limited to Nashville, and one employee told me they have people from all over the United States, and even other countries, come and visit. They take donations of everything from art supplies to wood scraps to office supplies to record players. Turnip Green is not only a place for people to come shop but a place for volunteers. According to their website, there were 4,397 volunteer service hours across all areas of the organization in 2021 (Turnip Green). Turnip Green’s connection with the Metro Nashville Public Schools is impactful and important to the Nashville community They host after-school programs where students learn about the importance of reusing, as well as crafts and science experiments (Turnip Green). Teaching children who may not have access to strong art programs in their schools is crucial because all children deserve to have a creative outlet and the ability to learn about reuse and their environment. Some of Turnip Green’s specific programs include teaching people how to sew, work with leather, and create paper out of recycled materials. In addition to the many other ways Turnip Green is serving the Nashville community, they also have a partnership with Southwest Airlines through their program “Repurpose with Purpose ” This program is a global sustainability initiative in which Southwest Airlines takes parts from retired airplanes and donates them to organizations that will work with artists to turn them into new products. Turnip Green’s partnership is called Turnip S.E.A.T. (sustainability, education, arts, and transformation) because they specifically receive old seat leather from Southwest. They sell this material in the shop, use it in art kits for Nashville Metro Public Schools students, and allow people to create their own pieces with it in the open studio Also, local artists have used the leather and made accessories such as bags and wallets, which can be bought in the Reuse Center (Turnip Green). Overall, Turnip Green Creative Reuse is accomplishing its goals in the Nashville area by diverting waste from landfills and providing education for children and adults in need. The practice of reuse and recycling is vital in order to maintain a clean and healthy life. Recycling benefits the environment, economy, and communities. Environmental benefits include the reduction of greenhouse gasses, and less use of natural resources such as timber, water, and minerals (“The U S Recycling System”) As stated earlier, recycling and keeping waste from landfills saves animals’ habitats as well. The economy has benefited from recycling because it saves energy. This is due to the fact that recycled products usually take much less energy to be turned into reusable materials. The final benefit of recycling is through individual communities The growth of recycling industries provides jobs, which in turn allows for more people to have a stable income, benefiting the community as a whole The market size of the United States recycling facilities industry has grown by about 5.1% per year from 2018 to 2023 (“Recycling Facilities in the US”). Additional ways to reduce landfill waste are to compost, avoid-single use plastic, and reuse (“The U.S. Recycling System”). Reusing is the act of taking old and used items that could be thrown away and finding a new use for them. Examples of practical reuse include bringing reusable bags to the grocery store, using a reusable water bottle instead of plastic, donating old clothes to people in need, and giving other old materials to places like Turnip Green Creative Reuse. Turnip Green advocates reuse and inspires people to take something old and create something new. While volunteering at Turnip Green, I saw many items for sale that I would have thought to throw away. For example, plastic Easter eggs, used thank you and birthday cards, tissue paper, and bubble wrap, just to name a few. It is amazing how someone can look at an item and see trash, while others can create something completely new out of that item. This is exactly why reusing is important and why non-profits like Turnip Green are making such a positive impact, especially with their Turnip S E A T program where old leather airplane seats can be turned into accessories to buy and materials to be used by young students and adults. Reusing and recycling are two of the main ways to prevent landfill overflow and should be practiced by everyone every day.

Speculations about whether or not items actually get recycled when placed in recycling bins are ongoing and are still a current issue, especially with plastic. Six times more plastic is incinerated than is recycled and only eight percent of plastics were recycled in 2017. Plastic is hard to recycle because it is often contaminated by food or other products (Cho) All recycling is often placed in one bag at restaurants and stores, causing more of the plastic to be contaminated than if it were separated out. To fix this issue, more technology is required to sort recycled products (Cho). Another easy fix for people to start helping this problem is to donate plastic items that are not contaminated such as straws, bottle caps, and containers to places like Turnip Green. Turnip Green takes recycling very seriously and has particular methods for how they do so When I volunteered one day, I was in charge of deconstructing binders They had a surplus of binder donations around back-to-school time, so we had to get rid of some, but instead of just throwing them out we manually cut all the binders to separate the cardboard from the plastic parts. This way, the plastic can be recycled properly and will not end up in landfills or the ocean. Turnip Green’s strong efforts to recycle properly are just another example of how they are positively impacting the environment and trying to make changes starting in the Nashville area that will hopefully make a difference around the world.

Volunteering with Turnip Green has opened my eyes to the detrimental effects of landfills on all aspects of our lives. Communities are forced to live in unhealthy conditions, animals are losing their habitats, and so much is going to waste that could be reused. While at Turnip Green, I was able to witness people who did not have the ability to buy brand-new craft, building, or office supplies find what they needed in a sustainable way. I was also shown how there are so many different ways to be creative and why providing a creative space to people of all ages should be more common and is extremely necessary. Recycling and reusing are crucial to keeping our planet clean and healthy, and that is why organizations like Turnip Green are so important. From their name-your-own price, easily accessible shop, to their phenomenal partnerships with Southwest Airlines and Metro Nashville Public Schools, they are taking great strides to help the Nashville community divert waste from landfills. I hope more organizations like Turnip Green continue to be created, and that the horrible impacts of landfills eventually come to an end

Works Cited

Cho, Renee. “Recycling in the U.S. Is Broken. How Do We Fix It?” State of the Planet, Columbia Climate School, 18 Oct. 2022, Web. Jan 27 2023 news.climate.columbia.edu/2020/03/13/fix-recycling-america/.

“Important Things to Know about Landfill Gas.” New York State Department of Health, Web. Jan 27 2023 www.health.ny.gov/environmental/outdoors/air/landfill_gas.htm#::text=Short%2Dterm%20exposures%20

McDonald, Juliana. “How Much Trash Does the U.S. Really Produce?” How Much Waste Does the U.S. Produce? | Dumpsters.com, 2022, Web. Jan 27 2023 www.dumpsters.com/blog/us-trash-production#:~:text=Every%20year%2C%20U.S.%20landfills%20are,to ns%20of%20paper%20and%20paperboard.

“Recycling Facilities in the US - Market Size 2005–2029.” IBISWorld, 10 Feb. 2023, Web. Jan 27 2023 www.ibisworld.com/industry-statistics/market-size/recycling-facilities-united-states/#:~:text=past%205%2 0years%3F-,The%20market%20size%20of%20the%20Recycling%20Facilities%20industry%20in%20the,av erage%20between%202018%20and%202023.

“The U.S. Recycling System.” EPA, Environmental Protection Agency, Web. Jan 27, 2023 www.epa.gov/recyclingstrategy/us-recycling-system.

Turnip Green Creative Reuse, turnipgreencreativereuse.org/.

Vasarhelyi, Kayla. “The Hidden Damage of Landfills.” University of Colorado Boulder Environmental Center, 15 Apr. 2021, Web. Jan 27 2023 www.colorado.edu/ecenter/2021/04/15/hidden-damage-landfills#:~:text=Environmental%20Impact%20of %20Landfills&text=Along%20with%20methane%2C%20landfills%20also,create%20smog%20if%20left%20 uncontrolled.

Wadhwani, Anita. “Elected Officials Add Voices to Debate over Nashville Landfill in Black Neighborhood.” Tennessee Lookout, 23 June 2021, Web. Jan 27 2023 tennesseelookout.com/2021/03/24/elected-officials-add-voices-to-debate-over-nashville-landfill-in-black-n eighborhood/.