Think Cleaner

Recycling is no longer an excuse to use single-use plastics. Less than 10 percent of plastic waste is recycled. There are better alternatives that aren’t as costly to our personal and environmental health. The problem is that there is too much recycling to do, and it’s our fault. Our unintentional disregard for the obvious is filling up our planet with debris. Yes, it really is happening. Modern luxuries and conveniences are accelerating the demise of our home.According to a recent National Geographic article, a study by Roland Geyer that was published in the Science Advances journal was the first global analysis of all plastics ever produced — and their fate. Of the 8.3 billion metric tons that have been produced, 6.3 billion metric tons have become waste. Of those, only nine percent have been recycled. The vast majority — 79 percent — is litter or taking up landfill space. At some point, much of that ends up in our oceans, causing countless problems for the marine environment and the quality of water for every living thing.

If we continue our current course, in about 30-40 years, there could be more plastic in our oceans than fish. Plastic molecules are now being found within the meat of the fish we eat.

“We as a society need to consider whether it’s worth trading off some convenience for a clean, healthy environment,” Geyer says. “For some products that are very problematic in the environment, we need to think about using different materials or phasing them out.”

Working together as a community, we can attack this problem locally. Refill your water bottles and ask others to do the same. If everyone does this just once per bottle, we can cut waste in half. When paper or other biodegradable products are available, consider these options instead of plastic. Let’s stop trashing our planet. Think cleaner and more clearly when reaching for your next drink of clean water.