A while ago, it was difficult to obtain home testing kits for Covid-19. We worried that we might not have test kits if symptoms developed and were checking a variety of sources to obtain the kits. When we saw available kits, we picked up a few. At the church we stockpiled several kits so that tests were available for singers and other worship leaders. At home we started to keep several kits on hand so that we would have them when needed. Not long afterward, the kits became more widely available. We obtained kits in the mail after requesting them from the post office website. There were free kits available at our public library.

When we had cold symptoms, something that happened several times during the pandemic, we would test ourselves to make sure that we weren’t suffering from Covid.

Recently we were cleaning in our bathroom and I took a look at the collection of test kits in a bathroom cabinet. I noticed that several of the kits had expiration dates that have already passed. What looked like a healthy supply of kits yielded only two boxes, for a total of four tests, that had not passed their expiration dates. We talked about what to do with the expired kits. I did a little quick research on the Internet and found that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not recommend the use of expired kits. There is an increased chance that the kits will indicate a negative result when the virus is present after the expiration of the kits. False positive test results could lead an infected person to inadvertently spread the virus.

A little bit more research, however, led me to discover that the FDA has extended the expiration dates on several brands of tests, including the ones that we have. Despite the dates printed on the test kits, they are considered to be effective months later. You can follow this link for the list of authorized home test kits and the effective expiration dates of individual brands. The bottom line is that it is a complex process to be responsible when it comes to at home testing for the virus.

We have been trying to avoid single-use items. Each week truckloads of trash are hauled away from our neighborhood, headed toward landfills. All of this trash creates problems for the environment. In addition, the consumption of so many items results in using too many of the earth’s resources. Our culture encourages overconsumption and mountains of useful items end up being buried in the ground. Discarding plastics results in more rapid consumption of fossil fuels which are in limited supply and are related to global warming and the climate crisis that is affecting people around the globe.

The covid test kits contain quite a bit of plastic. In addition to the chemical vials, swabs, and other necessary kit components, many brands have plastic packaging. While some plastics can be recycled, there are many plastic items that end up in landfills. Because of the chemicals involved and the fact that they are considered medical waste, none of he items related to the Covid test kits can be recycled.

The pandemic is directly related to a dramatic increase in medical waste across the country. Many face masks are single use and although we do re-use masks, they are designed to be disposed of on a regular basis. Most masks are generally designed for single use. While most of the masks are made of paper products which biodegrade, most have plastic components in the straps and the materials used to bond the straps to the masks.

Hospitals generate mountains of waste. In efforts to prevent the spread of infection, many hospital workers discard multiple pairs of gloves each day. While there are a few systems in place to recycle medical gloves, most hospitals, clinics, dentist offices, and other places where gloves are routinely worn simply dispose of the gloves in garbage that ends up in landfills. Urban areas are encountering increasing problems due to the lack of space for the increasing mountains of garbage.

We try to take advantage of all of the recycling services of which we are aware. In addition to the curbside recycling offered by the company that hauls our trash, we pay an extra fee for another company that specializes in recycling items that the trash collection company cannot. Recycling is important, but recycling alone is insufficient to solve the problems of excess consumption. The real key to living more responsibly is to consume fewer of the earth’s resources in the first place. In our case, the starting point is to be much more careful of what we bring into our house in the first place.

By being careful, we have been able to reduce the amount of garbage we put out to be hauled to the landfill. We no longer need weekly pickup services. Even with every-other week garbage pickup, we generally have the toter provided by the collection service less than half filled. Although our service requires garbage to be bagged, we are able to get by with one or two bags per week. And we are working to reduce that amount.

In the United States, we have a problem with excess consumption of clothing. Fashions dictate ever changing wardrobes and many people discard clothing that is in good shape and could be worn many more times. Clothes are not one of our problems. We don’t pay much attention to fashion and we tend to wear our clothes for many years. Susan is a good seamstress and she can usually repair our clothes when they need mending. With four grandchildren who live nearby she almost always has at least one zipper replacement project waiting.

In the scheme of things, I suppose that discarding expired covid tests is a pretty small thing. Still it seems wasteful. It makes me feel a little guilty for having hoarded so many tests. I probably took more than we needed out of fear of not having a test when we needed one. I’ve still got a lot to learn when it comes to living responsibly in this world of limited resources.