Plastic pollution is on the rise! And until we take adequate measures to reduce it right from production to consumption drastically, we will have to face dangerous after-effects by 2050. Chances are, we will find more in the ocean than fish with uncontrolled pollution.
Generating the single-use of plastics needs substantial percentages of fossil fuels that, in turn, pollutes the ambience and cause other climate changes. Once used, plastics can result in environmental damages and negatively affect human livelihood, marine creatures, and the ecosystem as a whole.
Reducing pollution is everyone’s responsibility. Therefore, each individual can follow these steps discussed below, to minimize their usage.
Make use of reusable shopping bags
Switching to reusable shopping bags is a smart way to minimize plastic pollution. So, doing this, each individual can bring down the use of over 300 plastic bags annually. Research suggests that people opt-in for approximately 100 billion bags in the U.S annually. Most of these bags ultimately result in litter adding to the pollution.
Stop using plastic straws if you can
According to the World Wildlife Fund, paper and metal straws are the best substitutes for plastic straws. However, it’s an ideal case scenario, if you can go past the use of straws. Americans, on average, use almost 390 million straws every day. The majority of these land up in oceans and affect the marine creatures and our ecosystem. Scientists believe that about 8 million straws lead to shoreline debris globally. It is essential to eliminate this at the earliest.
Avoid the use of bottled water
Most of us carry plastic water bottles the moment we step out of the house! Americans alone contribute to about 50 billion plastic water bottles annually. And only a minimum of 23% gets recycled. Plastic water bottles increase pollution and generating the same need an increased consumption of fossil fuels. It leads to massive environmental degradation. The smart way out is to make use of reusable, BPA-free water bottles that are eco-friendly. It adds to your savings, as well.
Start to shop from the farmer’s market
You can bring home fresh goods and produce when you buy from the farmer’s market! And since the foods get grown close by, transportation is less, which is better for our environment. Also, unlike the grocery stores, the food here doesn’t get wrapped in a plastic bag, which helps to reduce plastic bag consumption to a considerable extent.
Don’t purchase clothes that have plastic
One of the primary channels of microplastic pollution is clothing. The Pollution Coalition reports that acrylic, nylon, polyester, and synthetic fibers are plastics present in close to 60% of our clothing. Just a simple act of washing these clothes can result in releasing small plastic fibers in water and gradually lead to the ocean and seas. Resorting to cotton clothing can help.
Today, plastic pollution is affecting both water beings and people on land globally. Additionally, plastic production results in global warming and other adverse climate changes. Addressing and remedying this crisis requires high-end policies and global action. However, individually as Global Citizens, we can start by following the steps mentioned above and play our part to reduce plastic waste.
