Avoiding plastic in an everyday lifestyle
Humans must reduce plastic pollution on planet Earth. That is widely known. Sustainable swaps can be small achievable steps on a journey towards plastic-free living. Here are some easy ways to avoid plastic.
Create a routine around these eco items for habitually zero-waste behaviours.
Cloth grocery shopping bag
Single-use shopping bags are now banned in some locations. But many shops continue to offer supposedly 'reusable' thick plastic bags. Those alternatives are still plastic. We can do better.
Cloth shopping bags are a very achievable swap. Some bags are soft materials that can fold up and fit in a pocket. There is really almost no excuse (apart from innocent forgetfulness).
Refillable water bottle
Swap the single-use water bottles for a sturdy sustainable water bottle. According to EarthDay.org, "Humans buy about 1,000,000 plastic bottles per minute in total."
Keep a good reusable water bottle wherever you usually need to hydrate. If you typically carry a bag, get one that can fit in your everyday bag. This could involve a smaller bottle that's compact and light weight. It could be a large litre sized holder to last a while. If you are more likely to sip h2o at your desk, keep a big bottle there. It will probably hold a greater quantity than a glass or mug - so you may be encouraged to hydrate more.
Reusable coffee cup
Everyone should switch to reusable coffee cups right now. "Every year 1 billion disposable coffee cups end up in landfill sites across Australia..." according to the EPA. That is a lot of garbage that could be easily avoided.
Reusable coffee cups are available in such a variety of styles and materials. I use a washable cup that was made from coffee husk. It feels durable so I feel confident when tossing it in my bag. Other coffee cups are made from glass or ceramic, great for experiencing the warmth kind of like a hot mug on a cold day. There are other durable materials too.
Reusable Cutlery and Straw
I am bundling these together because they could be literally carried together. Some people may perceive straws as very optional. But most of us would eventually use cutlery of some sort.
Single use straws and cutlery are generally unnecessary. In my opinion, society should mostly ban them. Even the people with special needs could use silicone straws but I could not speak on their behalf. There seems to be an occasional perceived need for these supplies. I am being sensitive to that. But the general population could live without disposable plastic straws, knives, forks and spoons.
Here's a tip for choosing materials. Bamboo has its place for specific purposes, such as children and airports. I would rather my child would use a bamboo set instead of plastic or metal. But really, bamboo does risk eventually rotting. Stainless steel could win as the most durable. A metal straw could also feel more clean. Do what feels right.
A few initial simple swaps
This list is just the beginning for attempts towards zero-waste living. Make these swaps. Then find a few more potential sustainable switches in your own everyday lifestyle.
Pollution of plastic garbage in the ocean surrounding a turtle. Image: iStock, Pixlr
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