Top tips for reducing your plastic

After reading about the plastic bottle house in Tonga (and some of the facts about plastic pollution in our oceans), plus getting a good look at some of the magical creatures in the sea in the photo series, hopefully you’re feeling inspired to make your own contribution to making our oceans happier. Here are some easy ways to get started.

By Alice Forrest

Start small. Every action we do, every purchase we make (or don’t make) has an impact. Making those impacts positive is as simple as choosing one thing to start with – for example, takeaway coffee cups are lined with plastic. Make this your month to try not to use them – get a reusable cup, make your own, sit down and take the time to enjoy your coffee in a mug, whatever works for you. The ‘big four’: bags, bottles, coffee cups and straws, are a good place to start.

Reduce, Reuse THEN Recycle – There is no ‘away’ and all those items we use for a few minutes can last forever. If you can buy less stuff, use less plastic and reuse the items we already have, it’s bound to help the planet much more than just putting something in a green bin.

Think outside the square – Forgot your reusable bag? Haven’t got around to sewing your own produce bags yet? Get creative, use your imagination & make your own solutions. Paper mushroom bags provide a great alternative to plastic bags for your fruit & veg. A glass jar can become a portable coffee cup. An empty bottle of wine can be a reusable drink bottle. A delivery box at the supermarket can help you get your groceries to the car. This can be a challenge and an opportunity; it doesn’t have to be a chore.

Leave It On The Shelf – Use your power as a consumer and vote with your dollar. Many cafes and businesses around the world are changing the way they package and supply based on feedback from customers. If you can live without that overly wrapper piece of fruit or packaged food, then don’t buy it and join the movement of people who #leaveitontheshelf

Find your local farmers market – Many of us are lucky enough to live in places with farmers markets, bulk stores and other plastic-free shopping options. This is a great way not just to reduce your use of plastic bags and packaging, but also to reduce shipping & your carbon footprint and support local food production.

Don’t buy into ‘bio’ – The UN recently published a paper saying that ‘bioplastics’ may actually cause more harm than good for our oceans. Bioplastics are made from biological (or plant based) substances, not petroleum. However there are many different types, made from a range of materials. Essentially, many of these still don’t break down in the ocean or in the environment. Look a little closer and you find Monsanto plant products, and suspect and confusing labelling, like “compostable” (often only valid in industrial composts, not your backyard), or “degradable” (i.e. not biodegradable and won’t go away, but breaks into little pieces quickly). Instead of switching from single-use plastic to single-use bioplastic, go reusable and recycle or repurpose things you already own (like cups and bags).

Get your DIY on – There are a range of things you can make, even if you aren’t the creative type. It can be as simple as making a bag from an old t-shirt (no sewing required) or getting fancy with beeswax wraps or body scrubs. A quick Google will provide you with all the instructions you need.

Start the discussion – Talk to your friends about the issues. Learn more. Use your voice to support legislation like Ban the Bag, and Container Deposit systems. Talk to your local cafes and shops about solutions they can implement.

Start a movement – Get involved in existing groups in your area, or start something yourself – a beach clean, a bag-making night, a toothpaste making workshop – share some skills and make some friends. You could even start a local chapter of Boomerang Bags – sewing reusable bags from recycled materials – it’s now spread to over 514 communities worldwide!

Change your trash – While at first you will miss those plastic bag bin-liners, you’ll soon find that as you cut down on waste you’ll have a lot less trash to dispose of. By putting an organics bin in your kitchen (for your compost, or a friends), or a Bokashi bin, you won’t have stinky food scraps in your trash. Ultimately, we are using too much stuff, and wasting too much. Changing habits will reduce your trash.

It’s hard to start off with. You’ll forget bags, spill lid-less coffees and accidentally get served straws. But instead of being overwhelmed by our plastic-filled world, learn from the mistakes and keep trying. Trust me, it gets easier. Considering that every piece of plastic ever made still exists: every piece of plastic you don’t use makes a difference.

Through her lifestyle, writing and public outreach she hopes to inspire a greater appreciation for the planet and its last wild places. She is currently running a street dog project in Tonga as well as writing for various print and online publications, communicating the science and the solutions to help protect our ocean.

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