To use plastic or to not use plastic, that is the question. Ok, agreed, plastic is handy, lightweight, and readily available. Those of you that saw the "Bag It" movie last Sunday, got a deeper understanding of how plastic evolved, how it is made, and where it goes when thrown away (and re-cycled). This movie is not a new movie (2010) so you can easily watch through your streaming or even purchase on Amazon.
Sadly, a fact I cannot get out of my head is there is now more small plastic than plankton in the ocean, and to the fish it looks like food......tiny fish eat it, bigger fish eat smaller fish and we eat that fish. With that in mind, I refuse to buy certain products in cartons with screw-top pouring spouts, because they are landfill and spouts are unnecessary. I decided to write a letter to company, because I actually like the product.
A scary fact the "Bag It" film talked about, that seems unbelievable, are studies that show that plastic is messing with our hormonal system, reversing the sexes.....you know men more feminine, females more masculine. Really?
What do we do with this information? First, take a deep breath and remember our Person of the Planet pledge to ourselves: "Do what you can, with what knowledge, influence and resource you have." Ask the question when shopping, "Is this good for the planet?" and do your best.
Single use plastic is the worst. Not just produce bags, and shopping bags, but purchases encased in hard plastic. Much of that seems unnecessary.
Elena and Anthony who attended the film brought some additional information. Elena showed some nylon reusable/washable bags for veggies and fruits. She bought these at the Monterey Market. Most likely Whole Foods and Berkeley Bowl have something similar. Joe Pratt discovered a website that makes reusable non-nylon mesh bags. Check out colonyco.com. The website offers a good selection of bags. Their mission is to reduce plastic use. Elena mentioned she uses compostable bags from Biobag for household garbage made out of veggie-based polymers. Anthony K. is currently addressing an issue about the plastic used in newspaper deliveries. We have attached a letter explaining his thoughts at the end.
Thank you to Jessica Day, Eric Larson, and Rob Hoehn, the 3 Climate Specialists who came Wednesday night, presenting a few facts on the state of our climate and giving a talk on the fundamentals of grassroots climate action. Their theme was, "What can you do in Five minutes......or thirty minutes for the Planet. The workshop was well attended
I will end this week's Bits and Pieces with a quote sent to me by Shirley L. from Kathleen Dean, author of "House on Fire". Quote: "Deciding we won't drive to that chain grocery store and buy that imported pineapple is a path in liberation. Deciding to walk to the farmer's market and buy the fresh peas is like spitting in the eyes of the industries that would control us. Every act of refusal is also an act of assent. Every time we say no to consumer culture, we say yes to something more beautiful and sustaining. Life is not something we go through or that happens to us; it's something we create by our decisions.