According to U.S. Department of Interior, every time you throw a single-use plastic away, it doesn’t just go to the recycling or trash. It ends up in oceans, and habitats, and harms wildlife, which is a huge threat to the earth, and ourselves. 4Ocean, a non-profit helping to clean the earth, has cleaned over 40 million pounds of trash from the ocean, rivers, and coastline since 2017. While the work they are doing is truly incredible, it is sad that there is so much waste and garbage in the first place.
Earth.Org explains that all of these plastics in the ocean and wildlife are like a domino effect. Animals mistake plastic for food which can kill them, or get tangled in fishing nets, or like materials. This is wiping out species. With species dying off, other species have nothing to eat, so they die too. We are already seeing many animals become endangered or extinct.
One way to help stop this problem is to start using fewer single-use items. A reusable grocery bag, instead of a plastic one. A reusable water bottle, instead of disposable. A metal straw, instead of plastic. Making these small changes will not only help the environment, it also helps you save money. Initially, a metal straw is a bit more expensive than a plastic straw. However, as time goes on, the metal straw will still be usable, and the plastic straw will simply be thrown away. Over time, you will keep spending money to replace the plastic straw when you could have bought a metal one and saved money a long time ago. Many of these items are an initial purchase and often don’t need to be replaced.
According to Case Western Reserve University, the average American person spends over $260 per year, on pre-bottled water. This number may not sound like much, but imagine if you could buy one reusable water bottle for about $30, and fill it up with tap water. If you don’t drink your water at home, you could buy a Water Filter. Yes, it is expensive at first, but you can put your tap water into it, for something clean to drink, and in the end, less money is spent! Even buying a gallon of water from the grocery store is less wasteful than all those individual bottles, and way better for the environment, while keeping costs down.
However, sometimes you need to buy a single-use water bottle. If you are looking for a better alternative, try Path or VOSS. Both of these brands are committed to sustainability, and helping keep our earth and oceans clean. And, both of the bottles they come in are refillable! Path uses recycled materials for their bottles, and VOSS uses glass bottles. These are both a much better option than the use of plastic bottles.
In conclusion, making a few simple changes in your daily life could help the environment to be a healthier place!
