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Plastic Free July

Forestwood

Following are some simply ideas on how I reduce my plastic use.

This re-blogged post gives some concerning and encouraging news on the serious and cataclysmic effects of continual plastic use on our environment.
Some Easy way to reduce plastic use:
* Take a re-fillable water bottle whenever you leave the house – your kidneys and the environment will thank you.
* Take a reuseable naturally sourced bag with you for consumables
* Leave some re-useable bags in your car for groceries
* If you can sew, make up some carry and tote bags ( there is a guide here) from fabric scraps or that fabric stash you have in your cupboard that is rarely used. Find a tutorial here: https://forestwoodfolkart.wordpress.com/2010/04/13/scrap-bags-a-girl-can-never-have-enough-bags/
* Refuse a bag for single purchases of bread, fruit, small items
* Boycott products such as commercial biscuits that have double layers of plastic packaging
* Reuse any unavoidable plastics as rubbish bags and dispose of thoughtfully. They can be reused in a variety of ways. Plastic bread bags can even be knitted into coat-hanger covers and Christmas decorations!! Who would have thought?
* Take home your rubbish when out, if rubbish receptacles near beaches are full
* Use a re-usable coffee cup if you like takeaway coffee
* Use glass jars or tins to store flour, biscuits (cookies), or baking ingredients in your pantry or fridge
* Wrap vegetables like celery in damp cloth tea-towels in the fridge
* Display fresh fruit in a bowl rather than in a thin, soft plastic bag in the fridge
* Grate and cut your own vegetables – who needs to buy grated carrot and cheese for goodness sake? It takes but five seconds to grate, literally!
* Buy whole fruit and cut at home, rather than purchase cut rock melon, pumpkin or pineapple, or carrots in polystyrene trays covered with glad wrap
* Write or tell your local supermarket and ask them to stop packaging items like carrots and apples in plastic bags or glad wrap
* Shop for vegetables at a local green grocer for fresh individual fruit and vege
* Save plastic use for toxic items that can’t be disposed of any other way
* Place recyclable plastic in correct Council bins for re-purposing
*Use rubber gloves instead of single use disposable plastic gloves where you can

Make these practices become a habit.

Green Life Blue Water

Okay, so I know the month is halfway over, but even a plastic free day is a plus, eh?  Have a look at this guest post by my sister, environmentalist, educator extraordinaire, yoga instructor, dog rescuer, and now, advocate for a plastic-free world.  Read on and remember, taking even one less plastic bag is a start!

Plastic Free July!

As the forefathers wrote in the Declaration of Independence, the unalienable rights endowed to men (and women) of this country are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. Fast forward 242 years and we are seriously messing with those rights as we clamor for a faster, more convenient lifestyle, adding up to a seemingly disposable endgame for all. From our food system to our thirst to develop everything (land and products) deemed profitable, we are creating a world where the pursuit of happiness will be so much harder to attain because…

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Published by Forestwood

A philosophic Aussie writes here at StPA, one who will readily admit to loving Scandinavia. I'm interested in global politics and what drives us to be who we are. Scratch the surface and you'll find a practical Environmentalist with an egalitarian bent, trying to unleash a little creativity via the written word. Scandinavian culture, literature and traditions are close to my heart, even though I'm Australian. Travel and courteous discussions greatly broaden the mind, so I travel if I can and am always up for a vigorous, respectful discussion. I'm an avid reader, a writer and I enjoy photography and crafts, particularly traditional art forms. I hope you'll find 'Something to Ponder About,' in my WordPress Community.

13 thoughts on “Plastic Free July”

    2. It is marked as a ‘confirmed victory,’ Peggy, but we still need then to stop the supermarkets from doing it. Yesterday there was still much plastic in evidence! And consumers buying it.

      Liked by 1 person

    3. If only everyone would commit to avoiding the plastic. In the 1980s, I used to be able to take my own containers to a local deli and have my purchases put in them. My bill was added up on a scrap of paper. No deli will do that now.

      Liked by 1 person

  2. It all seems to come around. Years ago there were protests against using paper to wrap things in. MacDonald’s especially were targeted for using carton and paper containers to wrap their hamburgers in. It all came to protect the forests in the world. De-forestation was the catalyst to do away with paper packaging. The polystyrene and plastic took over. Now the oceans are awash with plastic and use of paper is shrinking.
    I remember Holland banning plastic bags from shops in the seventies. If you go shopping in many countries in Europe one has to take own bags. They don’t even sell plastic bags.
    Australia is decades behind and not just in environmental issues. We have no Bill of Rights!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. We are indeed behind in the environmental bandwagon. Our geographic isolation had led to a Dakar sense of security in terms of critical environmental and perhaps political issues.

      Liked by 1 person

    2. Indeed we are behind, Gerard. The geographic isolation had meant that we were protected from the harsh realities of pollution both in air and from plastic. Now it is staring us in the face. Politically and environmentally.

      Liked by 1 person

  3. I’ve been doing many of your tips already. Best of all is that Countdown isn’t going to provide plastic bags anymore but they are still doing it! I just tell them I don’t want a plastic bag( got my own bags)

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you for visiting. We can all contribute to making a better environment. It isn’t so hard to go plastic free. A little more work but thr health and environmental benefits last more than a lifetime.

      Liked by 1 person

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