All the plastic you've used in your life still exists

All the plastic you've used in your life still exists

Every single piece of plastic ever made still exists - Greenpeace claims.

What is plastic?

Plastic are synthetic or semi-synthetic materials, used to make our lives cleaner, easier, safer and cheaper. Polymeric materials, usually made from coals, natural gas, salts and oils, can easily be shaped using heat and pressure, making plastic products an important part of our day to day lives. You will find plastic everywhere, from the clothes we wear to the cars we drive, the packaging we use to keep our food fresh and in hospital equipment saving our lives. But plastics aren't biodegradable and every single piece of plastic ever produced is still around to this day, mostly broken down, on the tops of the highest mountains and in the depths of the deepest trenches.

Because plastic is relatively easy and very cheap to produce, it got so popular that plastic pollution became a major worldwide problem. Not enough plastic is being recycled, not enough people understand what impact their plastic use has and definitely not enough laws are in place to reduce unnecessary use of plastic. Even if we want to do better as individuals, how can we make a real change? It's a question I am struggling with a lot, as I often feel useless in this worldwide fight against these major oil conglomerates who seem to have their hold on governments and can do whatever the fuck they want.

It makes me feel small in unimportant. But still, we keep on going. Right?

 

So what can you do from home?

  • Sign the Friends of the Earth Petition and demand from our government to take action against plastic pollution.
  • Use less plastic. Think about the clothes you buy, the groceries you get, the bathroom products you use. Please research the stores you shop with to find out what their stance on sustainability is and enter Plastic Free July to challenge yourself to shop completely plastic free for a month. Read more about PFJ here.
  • If you can't reuse or reduce, make sure to recycle properly - read more here on which plastics you can recycle.

 

Together, we can make a real change. So let's tell our governments that we need shit to be done!

 

Sources:

Greenpeace
Sustainabilityguide
Recyclenow
Thoughtco
Recyclenow
Greenmatters

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