Top Ways to Reduce Plastic Waste

Do you think it’s possible to live life without plastic? Or to at least live with less of it?  Check out this list of plastic-free and less plastic alternatives and see for yourself. Have you got any ideas for our school? PNMS goes plastic-free?

GIVE UP BOTTLED WATER.

Not only does it come in a plastic bottle, but tremendous resources are used to extract, bottle, and ship it. And many brands of bottled water are simply filtered tap water. Get a reusable stainless steel bottle  or stainless steel travel mug, fill it up with tap water before leaving the house, and refill it wherever you happen to be. 

CARRY REUSABLE SHOPPING BAGS.

Carry whatever works for you. Some people like reusable canvas totes. Others prefer to put their purchases into a backpack.

Eating and Drinking on the Go

Grocery Shopping

CUT OUT SODAS, JUICES, AND ALL OTHER PLASTIC-BOTTLED BEVERAGES.

BUY FRESH BREAD THAT COMES IN EITHER PAPER BAGS OR NO BAGS.

At the farmers market or natural food stores I can buy bread that comes in only paper. At the bakery down the street (Kornwaage), I can have my bread placed in my own cloth bag and avoid all packaging. Bread keeps fresh when stored in the cloth bag inside an airtight tin.

LET GO OF FROZEN CONVENIENCE FOODS.

 They all use plastic. Even frozen food trays that seem to be made of cardboard are lined with plastic. The more we limit our consumption of frozen convenience foods, the less plastic waste we’ll generate and the healthier we’ll be!

GIVE UP CHEWING GUM.

Did you know almost all chewing gum is made from plastic? That’s right. When you’re chewing gum, you’re chewing on plastic. Read more about plastic in chewing gum here.

BUY FROM BULK BINS AS OFTEN AS POSSIBLE.

SAY “NO” TO PLASTIC PRODUCE BAGS.

They are generally unnecessary. What are we worried about? That our apples won’t get along with our broccoli during the trip home? Or is it that the produce will get dirty? Hey, it grew in the dirt, and we’re going to wash it anyway, right? At the grocery store, I put most produce directly into my cart and then into my reusable bag.

If you do feel you want a separate bag for produce, cloth options are available.

SHOP YOUR LOCAL FARMERS MARKET.

Farmers markets are a great way to buy fresh, local produce without plastic, as long as you remember to bring your own bags. Normally, the fruits and vegetables at farmers markets don’t even have those little plastic stickers on them.   And for small fruits like berries and cherry tomatoes, use your own container or bag and hand the vendor’s plastic container back to reuse.  Read more about farmers markets going plastic-free.

CHECK LABELS OF PERSONAL CARE PRODUCTS!

Did you know some facial scrubs and other personal care products contain tiny plastic beads? Avoid anything with “polyethylene” listed as an ingredient. 

USE BAR SOAP INSTEAD OF LIQUID HAND SOAP.

People sometimes worry that sharing a bar of soap is less sanitary than sharing a bottle of liquid soap. But think about it: the bar soap gets rinsed off every time you use it. The plastic pump? Not so much. Where do you think the most germs are accumulating?

What are your ideas?

Since the year 2006, Mexico is in the top 10 countries producing the most garbage the world.  Steadily the amount of garbage generated by each person has been increasing due to the increased consumerism and consumption, from the direct influence of American companies.

Currently, Mexicans produce about 1 kg of solid waste per day amounting to over 100,000 tonnes in total. Mexico City has the highest rate of over 1.8kg per person, per day. Only 46 out of 100 hundred households separate their garbage of which only 15% is recycled. The amount of waste recycled as a percentage of the total generated, is only 3.3%.

Much of this garbage is composed of plastics, which have been choking the local landfills and putting pressure on local recycling centers, and causing over 70% of the garbage to be dumped into illegal dump sites.  

One of the biggest landfills in Mexico City had to be closed down because it had reached over-capacity. All of the garbage is collected by private contractors who separate it and resell it. The closure put even more strain on local garbage collection and highlighted the lack of a comprehensive collection and recycling system.

“Even so, there’s still lots of garbage that ends up and accumulates on streets, in parks, at monuments, on vacant lots and in clandestine dumps,” according to a statistics agency.

How much plastic is produced in the country per year?

9,0000 water bottles                                  26 kg of plastics per person                                    650 plastic bags per person.

Mexico is ranked 11th globally in plastics production and eighth in plastics consumption.