Hello all, and welcome to the first day of Plastic Free July. I'd like to begin with a brief overview of what Plastic Free July is, and the importance of it. Americans, and people in general, are continuing to consume plastic products at an alarming rate, with nearly no attention paid to the devastating effects that it has. Plastic not only impacts the environment, but also our health, with the average person quite literally eating at least 50,000 particles of microplastic a year, and that's when scientists only considered 15% of caloric intake, meaning the number might be much higher, and is probably only growing. (1).
A big reason for this is the plastic in our oceans. In 2018, there was roughly 150 million metric tons of plastic in the ocean, with 8 million metric tons being added every year (2). Fish can't always tell the difference between plastic and the food they're supposed to eat, so this is one way that plastic enters the food chain. America especially is overusing plastic. In 2020, it was found that we might be adding 5 times more plastic to the ocean than originally thought (3). Because of this, we have a responsibility to address our current use of plastic and see where we can decrease our plastic use.
Plastic Free July is an environmentalist initiative focused on this issue and trying to raise awareness for the importance of decreasing our plastic use. What's important to understand is that the vast majority of plastic use comes from corporations. We need to demand direct action and pull support from non-eco-friendly companies as much as we can. However, some environmentalists only talk about policy changes and collectivist action, which can feel daunting to people who want to create change. So, we're going to be focusing on individual change you can make, while understanding that you are not personally responsible for climate change. Yes, corporations need to be held accountable for their actions, but individual action fuels major changes. Individual action is also beneficial in the way that it creates definitive change, while actions such as voting or advocating for policy changes take time to create change. So, in short, don't put all the pressure on yourself, but don't leave the work to anyone else.
With all that out of the way, let's talk about what is my personal choice for least useful plastic item: the plastic bag. Plastic bag alternatives are a hot topic in the current age, and at least one state (your girl's home of Vermont) has banned their common use in stores. However, as this isn't across the entire country, we still have a huge issue with plastic bag uses. This is important due to the fact that an average 160,000 single use plastic bags are used every second (4). Every. Single. Second.
The good part is that there are a lot of alternatives, but there are pros and cons to all of them:
Buying reusable bags. Pros: Replaces plastic bags, can be decorated, provides the opportunity to promote causes you care about. Cons: Less accessible for those in a lower socio-economic class as they can get pricy, you have to use them a lot of times before the resource per use is the same as plastic bags (though it's unclear whether studies take into account the impact after plastic bags get thrown away).
Making your own bag out of an old shirt. You can either take a shirt you already own, or buy one from a thrift store, and sew the bottom hem together to make a bag. Pros: Replaces plastic bags, you're reusing a shirt instead of it getting thrown away, doesn't have the same resource per use issue as the shirt's already been used. Cons: Not as strong as a bag made specifically to be a bag.
Use any other bag that you have, like a backpack. Pros: Don't have to buy bags, increases the resource per use ratio. Cons: Will wear out your bags faster, the shape might not be suitable for groceries.
Paper bags. Some stores have paper bag options. Pros: Not plastic so it's minimally better, can be used in composting. Cons: Deforestation is still an issue, and these bags also cost money so you could end up spending a lot more money in the long run if this is your choice long-term.
Whatever decision you make for a plastic bag alternative, I hope that you continue to do research about how you can decrease your plastic use.
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