Plastic - Nature's Arch Enemy
As I was paying for two items in my local shop, (I shan't mention the name but it comprises of two numbers) the girl behind the counter proceeded to hand me a plastic bag and two straws. I broke from the norm and I said, 'no thank you' as I really didn't need the excess plastic, the girl was merely following procedure. I am sure 99% of people think nothing of it and this is where the problem multiplies like a virus!
A Major Element to the Issue
I am by no means a saint, or eco-warrior, but this morning I had a bit of a 'wake up call' and I will try my best to make a difference. Every time I purchase anything in my local shop they provide a plastic bag and if purchasing beverages, one straw for every bottle! These detrimental items are dropped, fall out of pockets, are blown away by the wind, eaten by innocent animals and dilapidate our favourite spots of nature.
Have you ever been to a beautiful location and had it ruined by plastic pollution?
Not only does it ruin places of natural beauty, it also injures and kills thousands of wild animals each year. Many marine creatures consume plastic, with the belief its food! The plastic in their bodies can't be digested, causing blockages in their digestive systems, leading to fatality.
For example this poor sea turtle has a straw stuck up its nose, imagine the pain this poor thing must be in!
(Disclaimer this video is quite upsetting, so watch at your own discretion.)
Luckily for the turtle there are heroes out there, but they can't save them all.
Did you know?
It can take anywhere from 20-1000 years for plastic to decompose!
According to https://phys.org:
"It is estimated that plastic waste from coastal countries will increase nearly 20-fold by 2025."
What can we do?
-If you are only buying a few items say 'NO THANK YOU' to bags and don't forget those pesky straws.
-Take your own bags with you, many places offer harder-wearing fabric bags these days.
-Your local beach, forest might have a clean-up initiative, if not why not start your own!
-Recycle items, it can always be a fun project to do with your children.
I know it is easier said than done, but I believe everyone can do the first step.
Which do you prefer?
This?
Or this?
It is easy to forget, but hopefully easier to remember the next time you see one of these serial killers hanging around!
Thank you for reading my blog, please feel free to comment, upvote and follow if you enjoyed this post.
Credits
Video: YouTube - CostaRicanSeaTurtles
Images: https://Pixabay.com
Citation: https://phys.org/news/2017-04-movement-impacts-microplastic-pollution.html
Great post I wrote something sometime ago now how VR could tech people the effects of buying and dumping plastics I am all for this kind of content good job @theexplorer that poor turtle watched the whole video will share it with some friends.
Thanks, I try to do my part, but they are terrible in Thailand for plastic abuse! if you bought 7 different drinks they would try to give you a straw for each one and possibly an extra couple of of bags that you don't need. I found it hard work watching that poor turtle, god damn straws we don't need to use them!
Your right we dont they could even make packaging different so there is no need whatsoever atleast in certain countries now bags and straws cost extra money making people think twice before getting them.
You have received an upvote from @livesustainably. I promote and curate content that encourages and educates others in living sustainably.
I also run competitions for those making the world a better place. Check out this weeks reducing plastic competition here
Thanks for sharing! The amount of plastics that are wasted is nauseating especially given the use that recyclables could be put to. Anything from building homes and greenhouses to bicycles and eating utensils. Providing communities with the infrastructure to re purpose plastics on their own could provide more motivation for clean up as well as a place to put plastics so they do not just end up in a landfill or the ocean again.
The sad part for me is that a tiny amount of people actually care about this matter and it won't really sink in to the masses until it's too late!
You are probably right but taking small steps like posting about the issue here on Steemit helps a little!
omg noooo. The poor turtle. I couldn't watch it all. It was too sad to watch it in so much pain.
I struggled to watch all of that too, but the cause for that poor creature's pain is from our neglect of the Earth.
I think, like you said we need to all contribute and take part by reducing the use of plastic. That way, there will be less demand and fewer plastic bags flying around and in the sea.
Where I live, plastic grocery bags are outlawed. There are times when I actually want one of those bags, but that's not often. Most often, those bags have just come to me out of habit or as a standard procedure, not because I actually chose to get one.
This material that lasts forever is mostly used for one-time applications like that. After a very brief useful life, disposable plastic items take forever to break down (incompletely).
Sounds like a fantastic idea to me, where do live?