The Challenge: attempt to purchase no single-use plastic for the whole month of July
So it’s been a while since I wrote a post, but I decided to take on a challenge this month and it’s something that I just have to share. It’s called Plastic Free July.
Plastic Free July was started as a local community initiative by the Western Metropolitan Regional Council in Perth, Australia in 2011. Its popularity grew in 2012, so in 2013 PFJ expanded to include a website for the project and over 3,000 people around the world have already signed up.
So what’s the idea?
The challenge is simple: attempt to buy no single-use plastic for a month. ‘Single-use’ includes plastic shopping bags, plastic cups, straws, plastic packaging…basically anything that’s intended only to be used once and then sent to landfill. It’s not a competition, so you can keep a ‘dilemma bag’ for any unavoidable plastic that you purchase. There are lots of ways to share your stories and pics, ask for advice, or have a go at recipes and DIY’s for around the house that don’t use plastic. You can do it for a day, a week, or the whole month. You can also choose just to cut out the ‘Top Four’: straws, plastic bags, plastic bottles and coffee cup lids.
Why do this?
Basically, it’s a way to raise awareness about the amount of plastic that you use. That everybody uses. That could be avoidable.
Australians send 1 million tonnes of plastic waste to landfill every year. Every piece of plastic ever produced still remains somewhere in the earth today. Why use something for only a few seconds that will take longer than the rest of your life to break down?
Most of the commonly used disposable plastic items are a convenience and the numbers are staggering. In one week we go through 10 billion plastic bags worldwide, in the USA an average of 2.5 million plastic bottles are used every hour whilst over 500 million straws are used daily!
There’s also the problem of recycling: whilst important, recycling will never be the solution to rapidly expanding consumption. Plastic Free July focuses on refusing, reducing and reusing. Plus it’s not always possible to recycle everywhere you go.
Some people are also becoming concerned about the health impacts of wrapping food in plastic. The UN and the WHO have even released some reports about it.
Plus of course an issue close to my heart: marine debris. More than 270 of the world’s marine animal species are affected by marine debris; it has a major impact including entanglement and ingestion. CSIRO estimates that there are more than 115 million bits of rubbish on Australia’s coastline. This averages about 5.2 pieces for every person in the country! 74% of all waste we find is plastic. 50% of the top items of ocean debris are associated with beverages. But by using your own drink bottle, takeaway cup and reusable straw (or refusing one) we can all become involved in the solution to reduce plastic consumption and waste.
How to Get Involved
You can register for Plastic Free July here. The website is really informative with lots more information and links to the issue, tips, recipes, tools, and even events in your area. Also, check them out on facebook and twitter. Why not take up the challenge, and see how your planetary footprint can be reduced.
Good luck! And thanks for caring 😀
Sea Change 