The saying “one man’s trash is another’s treasure” is sometimes less an axiom about how different people value different things in life and more just a literal fact.
A recent Reddit post falls into the latter category. On a Dumpster Diving page, a user posted two photos showcasing 28 discarded speakers they found.
Photo Credit: Reddit
Photo Credit: Reddit
“$10,000 retail value and some are brand new along with scratch and dent open box,” they wrote in a caption.
Who knows why these seemingly brand-new speakers were thrown out? The best-case scenario and most likely explanation is that they were left over from someone’s job and are just occupying too much space in either their home or place of work.
But in the grand scheme of things, the reason why they were discarded matters much less than the fact that they were at all. If not for this intrepid dumpster diver, they would have been tossed in a landfill, unnecessarily contributing to an already horrendous American trash problem.
Whether organic matter, plastic, or other materials, this waste would have contributed to the production of planet-warming pollution.
According to the Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks, cited by the Environmental Protection Agency, “Landfills released an estimated 119.8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent of methane into the atmosphere in 2022; this represents 17.1 percent of the total U.S. anthropogenic methane emissions across all sectors.”
Methane has 80 times the warming potential of carbon dioxide, per the Environmental Defense Fund, making it a huge factor in the rapid rise of global temperatures — which makes extreme weather conditions longer and stronger.
Dumpster diving is one way for individuals to combat the scourge of landfills. The practice can lead to legal consequences, particularly if done on private grounds. But if you are safe and know your local laws, it can be very beneficial to society and your wallet, as the OP proved here.
Many comments on this post were variations on two statements: “Wow,” and “are you selling?” to which the OP mostly responded, “I agree,” and “yes!”
“What the actual f***!” one user exclaimed. “Those ain’t cheap.”
“Thought I was dreaming looking into the dumpster lol,” the OP replied.
Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don’t miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.