The Plastic Dilemma
What Locals and Businesses Can Do to Help
What do plastic bottles, plastic cups and plastic straws have in
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TheJournalNJ.com | MAY 2020 37
common? Each of these items, which millions of people use
daily, will outlast all of us by hundreds of years.
Scientific studies estimate that it will take 200 years for a plastic
straw to decompose. A plastic bottle? 450 years. A plastic cup?
More than 500 years. Styrofoam? Never. These facts underscore the
mounting problem that plastics are posing to the world today.
“Many countries and many states in America are just starting
to awaken to the pressing environmental impact of disposable plastics,”
said Dave Kostka, chairman of the Colts Neck Environmental
Commission. “While there are millions of people who still need to
be educated about this issue, we are slowly starting to see concerted
actions being undertaken to address the plastic problem on a global,
national, state and local level.”
The average American family uses 1,500 plastic bags a year
which translates to Monmouth County’s 156,000 families using
more than 234 million plastic bags each year. When you add the use
of plastic bottles, straws, wrappers, etc., we have a plastic pollution
issue in our county, state and nation.
When the idea of recycling was introduced, the public was receptive.
The result, however, has not been successful.
The promise of the reuse of plastics caused an increase in plastic
use. More product containers and household items were manufactured
in plastic. Using a plastic item once and then discarding it
increased dramatically. Many of these items, if recyclable, were not
being recycled. By 2017, globally, 1 million single use plastic bottles
were sold per minute, however, 91 percent of these bottles were not
recycled, according to Forbes.
It is time to make some changes.
Products made from plastics are useful, beneficial to society but
also can be harmful to the environment. There are, however, small
lifestyle changes which can reduce the wasteful use of plastics. Here
are a few tips to reduce plastic use:
1. Stop buying water in plastic bottles and start using re-usable
water bottles for everyday living.
2. Bring your own ceramic or reusable cup to your favorite coffee
stop, fill up and skip the plastic lid. Your coffee will stay hot longer
while you keep the cup and lid out of the landfill.
3. When ordering a drink advise the server “no straw.”
4. Bring your own reusable bag to all stores you shop in.
5. Look for products packaged in paper, not plastic. Increasingly,
detergents and other products are offered in boxes. Milk and other
beverages are being offered in paper cartons, too.
6. Shop in bulk when possible, helping to reduce overall plastic
waste in your kitchen. Bulk is not always a huge size. Consider buying
larger yogurt containers and place a daily serving in a reusable
container.
7. Rather than buying cut-up fruit in plastic clamshell containers
or plastic bags, buy the fruit and use your own reusable container.
8. Comply with your 2020 Township Recycling Instructions.
What can local businesses do? Businesses and customers can
work together to reduce waste. Here are some tips for businesses
to consider:
1. Evaluate how your business uses disposable plastics and determine if
plastic is the most cost-effective product for the business needs.
2. Explore substitutes for plastic. Are paper bags better from a cost and environmental
perspective? Are other materials available?
3. With more than 500 million plastic straws used every day in the United
States, consider reusable stainless steel straws, glass straws, reusable plastic
straws and paper straws not thinly covered by plastic.
4. Reusable metal cutlery or plant-based cutlery can be substituted for plastic
knives, forks and spoons restaurants provide.
5. Paper and other plant-based containers are alternatives to plastic takeout
containers. No bag or paper bags might be a choice.
6. Reduce plastic use: If eliminating plastic or changing to metal, paper or
plant-based items is not economically feasible, businesses can work to reduce
the amount of plastic use. For example, use sippy lids without straws, advise
customers that straws will be provided only upon request, and ask customers
if they want a plastic bag instead of automatically reaching for one. The same
approach can be taken for other plastic products, like forks, knives and spoons.
Businesses working together with customers can reduce the environmental
detriment without reducing profits or inconveniencing customers.
These are only a few simple examples of what businesses and individuals
can do to reduce our use of plastics to protect our environment. To impact
the plastics pollution problem in our county, state and nation, remember the
three Rs: reduce, reuse, and, if there is a market, recycle.
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