According to the EPA, Americans produced approximately 245.7 million tons of Municipal Solid Waste in 2005. Much of the trash we throw away ends up in landfills, but with just a little bit of creativity, artists are proving that we need not doom so much of our waste to this fate.

Art has a long history of examining society and leading to change. Many artists today have "gone green" as environmental consciousness grows. Some artists (such as Andy Goldsworthy) create art with natural materials in a natural setting, some use more traditional media to share an environmental message, and others turn trash into art. Recycling materials to create art isn't exactly new. For example, Marcel Duchamp created "Readymades" from found objects and gave them new meaning in the early 1900s. Today's artists are becoming more and more interested in creating art that not only serves as a commentary on society, but makes constructive use of society's waste as well.

One contemporary artist who turns trash into treasure was inspired by a National Geographic documentary on the trash climbers leave on Mt. Everest in attempts to lighten their loads. Jeff Clapp, a Maine artist, traveled to Nepal and brought back a load of discarded oxygen bottles left by Mt. Everest climbers. He began turning the oxygen bottles into beautiful bells, bowls, and ornaments, forming a company called Bells From Everest. He uses every part of the oxygen bottles in order to reduce waste, even using the tinsel-like strands of shaved aluminum that streams off of his lathe to create ornaments. Jeff's work has led to an increased awareness about the trash left on Everest and efforts to clean up the mountain.

In a recent AP Story on Bells from Everest, Jeff discussed his plans to do even more for Mt. Everest and the people of Nepal.

When his supply of oxygen cylinders runs out, Clapp doesn't plan to retrieve any more of them. By the time he uses them up in a few years, he'd like to return to Nepal to show locals how to create the bells to make money for themselves.

There are many artists like Jeff Clapp who are making the world a greener place through their work. Many such artists are featured on Green Museum, and online environmental art museum that showcases the work of artists who have an environmental focus. The art ranges from site-specific "earthworks" to art made from reclaimed or recycled materials.

Art can be more than just an object of beauty, it can be incorporated into the landscape itself to reshape and reclaim places for public use. Artist Mierle Laderman Ukeles turned an expired landfill into a beautiful public park that utilizes many recycled materials in Cambridge, MA. She used recycled glass bottles, rubber, and aluminum for various paths and structures on the park. She designed a landscape and planted native plants to reclaim an ugly landfill into a work of art that everyone can enjoy.

These artists and others like them inspire the world to think twice about the stuff we throw away. In every bit of "trash" we can choose to see useless waste or a wealth of creative opportunity. Sometimes, one person's trash becomes another's art!