A TikToker released a video of an array of perfectly useful school supplies in the trash behind a school.
The footage was posted by Anna Sacks (@thetrashwalker), who has 421,000 followers and describes her community as discussing "all things waste. Trying to create systemic change."
"I did gasp when I saw this," Sacks says in the video.
@thetrashwalker Comments disparaging teachers are not welcome, helpful, or fair. We need better *systems* #nyc #donate #donatedontdump #dumpsterdiving #haul #shopping #recycle #climatechange #reuse #thrift #decor #free #zerowaste #eco #sustainable #ecofriendly #school #schoollife #publicschool #ny #healthadepopit ♬ Debussy "Moonlight" Piano Solo(829473) - LEOPARD
In the video, which was apparently recorded behind a New York City school, the narrator begins by showing a bunch of brand new calculators in a garbage bag with the caption "sells for $89 each."
She goes on to find a light sensor that is said to be worth $69, which appears to have never even been taken out of the package, and an ultraviolet light sensor worth $119 that also looks like it is still in its original packaging.
Sacks even finds some money while also discovering a temperature probe ($40), some unopened watercolor pads, index cards, markers, crayons, unused sketch paper, and more.
Each year, American households produce nearly 300 million tons of trash, of which only about 5% gets recycled, per a Greenpeace report.
Many of the materials the popular Redditor found were also entirely or partially derived from plastic, much of which ends up in the oceans each year — estimated to be 8.8 to 11 million tons. This is harmful to aquatic animals, including whales, dolphins, and sea turtles.
Sacks also found extensive amounts of intact unused paper. Paper accounts for anywhere between 13% and 15% of wood production. This requires the chopping down of trees, a process that also warms the planet since trees absorb the planet-warming gases human activities release into the atmosphere. Fewer trees means more pollution and more global warming.
Commenters on the post were at a loss for words.
"As an art teacher who has to buy a lot of my own supplies … I am fuming," one person wrote.
"Instead of throwing them all away, donate to countries that need school supplies. It's sad how these stores/schools just easily throw stuff/food away," another added.
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