Plastic is everywhere. From drink bottles to grocery bags at the supermarket to toothbrushes; it’s no surprise that over the last ten years humans have produced more plastic than during the entirety of last century.
Sometimes hearing about the magnitude of waste polluting our landfills and oceans is overwhelming and can leave us questioning if our actions really have any meaningful impact. However, by making a few small changes on a day-to-day basis you can significantly reduce the amount of plastic consumed.
Below the simple tips and tricks you can adopt to reduce your usage and help save our planet.
1. Carry Reusable Shopping Bags
Plastic bags are officially a thing of the past. Supermarket chains such as Coles and Woolworths have remained true to their promise of reducing their plastic consumption by removing single-use plastic bags from their stores. The Woolworths Group revealed it hands out more than 3.2 billion single-use plastic bags every year, now they’re hoping to push customers to use bio-degradable bags instead.
2. Ditch Plastic Water Bottles
Think of how many times you’ve walked into the supermarket and purchased bottled water. Now think about the fact that bottles used to package water take over 1000 years to biodegrade, and, if incinerated can produce toxic fumes. As plastic bottles can take more than 450 years to decompose, landfills are rapidly increasing and harming our ecosystem. Instead, opt for a reusable water bottle. You’ll be doing yourself and the environment a favour.
Last year, adidas teamed up with environmental initiative Parley, selling 1 million pairs of recycled ocean plastic sneakers, each of which reuses 11 plastic bottles. Until 8th July, adidas will donate USD $1 per km tracked via the free Runtastic app, up to USD one million dollars, to support the Parley Ocean School program. Read about how you can get involved here.
3. Switch Plastic Straws For Metal Straws
Did you know an estimated 8 to 11 million tonnes of plastic enters our ocean every year? This is the equivalent of emptying a garbage truck filled with plastic into the oceans every minute. In the USA alone, over 500 million straws are used every day. You might be thinking, ‘Its just a straw?’, but most straws end up in the ocean where they are commonly mistaken for food by marine life.
Instead of plastic straws, carry around steel versions in your bag and use them when out at a restaurant or bar.
4. Say No To Buying Single-Use Coffee Pods
It’s hard to imagine that a few coffee pods a day could be harmful to the environment. As it turns out they aren’t recyclable or biodegradable. The chemicals contained in the plastic can leach into the hot water when you’re making your coffee. Gross.
Yet fear not; there are now reusable pods which are both environmentally friendly and affordable.
5. Ditch Disposable Razors
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, each year roughly 2 billion razors are disposed of. Razor blades are made of plastic and are incredibly difficult to dispose of.
Instead, invest in a metal safety razor. We promise you’ll be more satisfied with the result.
6. Invest in a reusable coffee cup
While they may look like they’re made of paper, disposable takeaway coffee cups have been found to contain plastics that do not break down and are damaging to the environment. Coffee cups are estimated to be the second-largest contributor to litter waste after plastic bottles and it’s estimated that in Australia alone, we use 1 billion disposable coffee cups each year. Instead, invest in a reusable coffee cup. Our team love Pottery for the Planet.
Plastiki iko kila mahali. Kutoka chupa za vinywaji hadi mifuko ya vyakula kwenye duka kubwa hadi brashi za meno; haishangazi kwamba katika miaka kumi iliyopita wanadamu wametengeneza plastiki zaidi kuliko wakati wote wa karne iliyopita. Wakati mwingine kusikia juu ya ukubwa wa taka inayolipua majumba yetu ya taka na bahari ni ya kushangaza na inaweza kutuacha tukijiuliza ikiwa vitendo vyetu vina athari yoyote ya maana. Hata hivyo, kwa kufanya mabadiliko machache madogo kila siku unaweza kupunguza kiasi cha plastiki inayotumiwa. Hapa chini ni vidokezo rahisi na mbinu unaweza kupitisha kupunguza matumizi yako na kusaidia kuokoa sayari yetu. 1. Uwe na mtazamo wa kweli Kubeba mifuko ya Ununuzi Inayotumiwa Tena Mifuko ya plastiki ni jambo la zamani. Mfululizo wa maduka makubwa kama vile Coles na Woolworths umedumisha ahadi yao ya kupunguza matumizi yao ya plastiki kwa kuondoa mifuko ya plastiki ya matumizi moja kutoka maduka yao. Kampuni ya Woolworths imetoa zaidi ya mifuko ya plastiki ya matumizi moja ya bilioni 3.2 kila mwaka, na sasa wanatarajia kushinikiza wateja kutumia mifuko inayoweza kuharibika. 2. Uwezekano wa kupata Fikiria ni mara ngapi umekwenda sokoni na kununua maji ya chupa. Kwa mfano, chupa za maji zinahitaji zaidi ya miaka 1,000 ili kuharibika, na zinapochomwa, zinaweza kutokeza moshi wenye sumu. Kwa kuwa chupa za plastiki huchukua zaidi ya miaka 450 kuharibika, machafuko yanaongezeka haraka na kuharibu mazingira yetu. Badala yake, chagua chupa ya maji inayoweza kutumiwa tena. Utakuwa unajifanyia mwenyewe na mazingira neema. Adidas na Parley, kampuni ya mazingira, wamefanya biashara ya viatu vya plastiki vya bahari vya kila mwaka, kila kimoja kikiwa na chupa 11 za plastiki. Hadi Julai 8, Adidas itatoa dola 1 kwa kila kilomita iliyofuatwa kupitia programu ya bure ya Runtastic, hadi dola milioni moja, kusaidia mpango wa Shule ya Bahari ya Parley. Soma kuhusu jinsi unavyoweza kuhusika hapa. 3. Uwe na mtazamo wa kweli Kwa mfano, kuna takwimu za kutokeza kwamba kila mwaka, toni milioni 8 hadi 11 za plastiki huingia baharini. Hii ni sawa na kutupa lori la taka lililojaa plastiki baharini kila dakika. Katika Marekani pekee, zaidi ya mitungi milioni 500 hutumiwa kila siku. "Unaweza kuwa unafikiri, ""Ni kijiti tu?"" lakini vijiti vingi huishia baharini ambapo kwa kawaida huonwa kuwa chakula na viumbe wa baharini." Badala ya kutumia matete ya plastiki, chukua matete ya chuma na utumie wakati unapokuwa nje kwenye mkahawa au baa. 4. Uwe na uhakika Sema Hapana Kwa Ununuzi wa Makopo ya Kahawa ya Matumizi Moja Ni vigumu kuwazia kwamba makopo machache ya kahawa kwa siku yanaweza kuwa na madhara kwa mazingira. Kama inavyotokea wao si recyclable au biodegradable. Kemikali zilizo katika plastiki zinaweza kuingizwa ndani ya maji moto unapofanya kahawa. Ni mbaya sana. Hata hivyo, usiwe na hofu; sasa kuna vifurushi vinavyoweza kutumiwa tena ambavyo ni vyenye kuhifadhi mazingira na vya bei nafuu. 5. Uwe na mtazamo mzuri. Kulingana na Shirika la Ulinzi wa Mazingira, kila mwaka, karibu mashine za kunyoa bilioni mbili hutupwa. Vipande vya mashine za kunyoa hutengenezwa kwa plastiki na ni vigumu sana kuvitupa. Badala yake, weka pesa katika kisu cha kupasua cha chuma. Tunakuahidi utakuwa na kuridhika zaidi na matokeo. 6. Uwe na uhakika Wakati wao inaweza kuangalia kama wao ni kufanywa ya karatasi, kutolewa nje kikombe kahawa wamekuwa kupatikana kuwa na plastiki ambayo si kuvunjika na ni uharibifu kwa mazingira. Kikombe cha kahawa ni mchangiaji wa pili kwa ukubwa wa taka baada ya chupa za plastiki, na inakadiriwa kwamba nchini Australia pekee, tunatumia kikombe cha kahawa cha mara moja milioni moja kila mwaka. Badala yake, weka pesa katika kikombe cha kahawa kinachoweza kutumiwa tena. Timu yetu inapenda Pottery for the Planet.