The benefits of moving away from plastic are endless. The switch may be hard at first since plastics use is such a part of our everyday lives. But once you’ve made it a habit, you’ll feel satisfied knowing you’ve broken the cycle and contributed to making the world a better, less plastic polluted place.
Read also: How to Stop Wasting Food in Your Kitchen
Here are some easy to follow steps to reduce plastic pollution:
1: Recycle
It may seem like we’ve all been recycling for decades, but you may be surprised to see how much plastic still ends up in the landfill. The biggest consumer-driven culprit, besides failing to recycle at home, is throwing plastic in the trash when we’re out and about.
Recycle at home. It only takes a minute. And, when you’re out and about, throw that empty water bottle in your bag, to recycle when you get home if there aren’t any public recycling containers available.
2: Stop buying water
If you’re used to buying large packs of bottled water at your local warehouse store, this may be a challenging task to take on. Resist the urge. Purchase a few attractive, medium capacity, ergonomic water bottles to take with you wherever you go. This will help ween you off of the water bottle case purchase.
3: Avoid plastic cutlery
If you can, use your own cutlery. You might get some weird looks but stay confident in the message you send everyone else by bringing your own cutlery to dining establishments that use plastic. At home, don’t use plastic cutlery at all. It may seem like a hassle. But if everyone stopped using plastic, the positive impact in your community would be noticeable.
4: Do not consume gum
Reduce plastic pollution by quitting gum. That’s right. A large majority of gum is made from resin, a type of plastic! Simply cutting it out sends a clear message to manufacturers that you don’t accept plastic in your food products. And for goodness sake, if you do chew gum, don’t swallow it!
5: Shop at farmers’ markets
In many parts of the industrialized world, we sadly suffer from a case of product over-packing. Much of this packaging consists of plastic, which is especially plentiful in grocery stores and other markets.
Shopping at farmers’ markets allows you to support your local economy while cutting down quickly on plastic consumption. It’s a win-win!
Did you enjoy this article? Share it!
