9 simple ways to rethink your relationship with plastic

Don’t you love the sound of waves lapping the shore? The salt breeze cooling your face. Treasures that wash ashore with the tides. But what if the tide washed in hundreds of pounds of plastic on your favorite beach? Isn’t it time we rethink our relationship with plastic?

First, read this…

I wrote Plastic, Ahoy! Investigating the Great Pacific Garbage Patch because tons of plastic float in our ocean and wash up on our beaches each year—5.25 TRILLION pieces. The book is my way of persuading you to rethink the way you use one-time plastic—things like cups, water bottles, yogurt containers, plastic bags. It’s no longer enough to simply recycle. We have to use less plastic because we’re drowning in the stuff!

Next, do this…

It’s all about CHOICE, and that’s where you come in. My challenge to you is to choose two of the following action items and pledge to reduce your one-time plastic consumption to begin changing your relationship to plastic:

Skip the straw.

Every day restaurants drop 500,000,000 straws in our drinks—enough to fill 46,400 school buses every year—and virtually none of them are recycled. REFUSE boxed drinks with plastic straws, and REFUSE the straw in every restaurant you visit. In fact, try to get the restaurant to serve straws only on request—or better yet—do away with them all together.

Bring your own bags.

And not just to the grocery store. Everywhere. Toys R Us. Macy’s. Target. WalMart. Bed, Bath and Beyond. If you forget your bag, simply do without one.

Buy eco-friendly school supplies.

Lunch boxes without plastic. Pencils made from recycled newspaper. Pens made from recycled water bottles. Recycled paper. You can find them online.

Ditch the single-use plastic water bottle.

Instead of purchasing large flats of single-use water bottles for parties, school or the office, fill a big urn with water and let people refill their reusable bottles preferably made from stainless steel. If you absolutely need individual servings, consider water in aluminum cans/bottles.

Refuse plastic OJ bottles.

Plastic manufacturers are beginning to make PlantBottles. I see them in the orange juice cooler in my grocery store. Yes, they’re an improvement over regular plastic. Yes, they come from sustainable plants. But so far, they are only 30% plant. And it’s unclear if recycling companies will accept them. I still prefer cartons.

Refuse plastic to-go boxes.

Insist on cardboard boxes or aluminum foil for restaurant left-overs or take-out. Better yet, bring your own containers from home for leftovers.

Recycle every bit of plastic you can.

I recently checked the recycling rules in my hometown and we can recycle a lot of different kinds of plastic. Double-check the rules for your hometown and start filling up that recycling bin! My Target also recyces film plastic — the flimsy clear plastic packaging that encases much of what we buy.

Read Plastic, Ahoy! and Planet Ocean for other ideas and download the educator guides.

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