No plastic straws| No plastic water bottles| No plastic bags
No straws|No plastic bottles|No plastic bags
I’m trying my hardest to transition myself into a more ethical lifestyle. I’ve already discussed how I’m trying to improve the sustainability of my closet in my post Why you should shop ethically: Sustainable Fashion but now I want to talk about ways I have cut plastic out of my life.
I want you to know that I still use tons of plastic and end up with a lot of plastic waste. It’s unfortunate, but it still happens. My goal is to find ways to cut out plastic almost entirely. It’s a hefty goal. Plastic is used in almost everything. But if I can cut down on my plastic usage and inspire others to do the same, maybe there will be a slight difference.
So, here are the ways I’ve cut out plastic from my life:
No plastic straws
So, this one is actually inspired from a friend of mine who has kind of conditioned me into this one. Many restaurants and eateries cater to their customers by offering plastic straws. However, you can opt out of this fairly easily.
My friends and I attend a girls night every three weeks or so, and the friend that inspired this particular habit has reusable straws which she brings to our get-together every time.
This is great because it prevents everyone from attending from participating in plastic waste.
Now, I’m sure you’ve seen a lot of those “save the turtles” adds and T-shirt’s which promote reusable straws as opposed to plastic ones. It’s great and all, but I know many people in the middle of the country (or just not close to the coast) know that no sea turtles are going to be affected if we throw away plastic straws.
Truth is, they’re right. The majority of our trash ends up in landfills (and unfortunately, sometimes in nearby creeks, forests, and lakes). However, that’s just as bad! So reusable straws are beneficial to our immediate environment. But...more so for the nearby ecosystems sake than for the sea turtles...
Reusable straws are actually becoming a fairly popular thing amounted younger generations, so I’ve noticed. People use silicone, aluminum, paper, and metal straws more frequently. I personally favor the aluminum and silicone straws. But to each his own fancy.
I appreciate this because they’re reusable (not paper...which is why it’s my least favorite).
According to Alan’s Factory Outlet, plastic straws can take up to 500 years to degrade! Aluminum on the other hand can be recycled and repurposed into something else, whereas most plastics can only be recycled once or not at all.
So I’ve been working on cutting out plastic straws.
If you’re interested in participating, I highly recommend purchasing some reusable ones.
Another important factor to consider is something that my friends and I actually need to work on.
Saying “no.”
Last Friday, we had another girls night and we used our reusable straws. However, we did not cut out the plastic waste. Why? Because the straws were placed on the table. Once the straws were on the table, they had to be thrown away. It’s the same rule as food going across the counter. We could have easily prevented this had we told the waitress no thank you upon her handing us plastic straws.
No plastic bottles
I cut out plastic bottles back in August, I think. I got a water filter for our sink that does wonders and stopped purchasing water bottles. The water bottle I do have was a gift from someone and is reusable. Downside? It’s hard plastic.
It is reusable, however. I’ve used it for months now; and I’ll likely be able to use it for many more. Though, one day it will end up in a landfill or maybe it’ll be recycled once. And it will take 500+ years to degrade.
I do own another aluminum water bottle which I am proud of. Aluminum or glass reusable bottles are the better option when it comes to reusable bottles.
But let me tell you: since I stopped purchasing plastic water bottles I have saved so much plastic waste. I know I’m just one person. I know that packages of water bottles are still being purchased by others. But for me, cutting down that much waste is a huge success!
I’ve also saved quite a bit of money too. I no longer pay that extra cash towards buying bottled water. The spout mechanism itself was a one time fee and I only have to change out for new filters a few times a year.
I know that water filters aren’t practical for everyone. My family lives in an area where their sink water comes from a well and not the city. Now, as admirable as this is, well water can often have a lot of sulfur and other chemicals in it that are hard to filter out. The water tastes pretty bad and smells just as awful.
I’ve heard of some people purchasing large containers of water and utilizing indoor water fountains in their homes. (I don’t know how best to describe them. I’m talking about those big plastic containers of water that can be exchanged at your door). Those seem to work pretty well and certainly reduce the amount of plastic waste you procure. But it definitely doesn’t erase it.
I’m really conscientious about how much trash I’m producing. Especially plastic waste. Packaging is the biggest culprit. So if I can cut out all of the fancy wrappings as well as these bottles, then that’s a win for me.
(Still working on how to epilate all of the excessive wrapping from my exchangeable filters)
No plastic bags
I started using reusable cloth bags after I moved out of my parents house. I only own two, but I only grocery shop for myself so...I don’t need much. One bag is cloth and the other is made from recycled materials.
I bought one for $0.99 at Target and the other at the zoo.
And I love them both.
I can pack so much more into them! They’re massive. They’re durable. They look cool. And they’re reusable!
I’ve always hated plastic bags. They pile up, can only hold so much, and are annoying as heck.
I will admit, there are times when I have walked out with a plastic bag or two. And I get angry at myself. It’s like dieting. You’ve got to train yourself into making the smart decision a habit. So I’m still working on it.
I’ve looked into smaller cloth produce bags, as well as reusable bags for raw meat (harder to find and I have to be aware of cross contamination). The reason being is simply for organizational purposes. I want to be able to separate my groceries when needed.
As I said before, I’m still working on ways to cut out plastic packaging from my life. I’m finding that reusable bags fix the majority of those problems.
I do struggle with the packaging that comes from raw meat. I’ve actually cut out red meat almost entirely from my diet. Though, fish, chicken, and pork still come in the same amount of excessive plastic and styrofoam packaging. I’ve read up on some places that try to be more sustainable in this area. However, they are often a bit pricier.
A goal of mine for the Ethical posts in this blog is to find cheaper alternatives that provide the same outcome. I want to eliminate plastic. I want to reduce waste. I want what I buy, and what I use to be more sustainable and efficient.
There are a number of ways that I can better myself and reduce the amount of waste I produce. I’ve been doing some research in areas like, cleaning supplies, personal hygiene, groceries, clothing, and non-essential products to see where I can improve.
So, I suppose you should expect more posts from me in regards to ethical and sustainable living.
2 comments
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