We have adopted a disposable lifestyle in which around 50% of plastic is used once and then thrown away. Today, single-use plastics present some of the biggest environmental hazards because plastic can take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade. (A plastic water bottle takes 450 years.) And when plastic breaks down into microplastics, tiny 5mm particles, the dangers increase exponentially.
When you discard plastics, they remain in landfills for decades. Contrary to popular belief, only 6% of plastic (actually) gets recycled. As plastics biodegrade, they can leach harmful chemicals into the soil and groundwater, threatening ecosystems as well as our health.
Microplastics and nanoplastics (even smaller particles) have carcinogenic, developmental, and endocrine-disrupting impacts. They are everywhere in our bodies and researchers estimate we have the equivalent of five bottle caps in our brains.
Plastic pollution endangers wildlife and is particularly deadly to ocean marine life. No inhabitant of the ocean is safe. Fish, seabirds, sea turtles, and marine mammals can become entangled in or ingest plastic debris, causing suffocation, starvation, and drowning. Experts predict that by 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the world’s oceans.
Fortunately, there are actions we can take to reduce our plastic footprint. We can ditch single-use plastics; we can buy in bulk; we can reduce consumption; we can cook more at home and take out less, and we can use reusable containers. We can break our addiction to plastic.
Please act: Encourage your State Senators and State Assembly Members to co-sponsor the NY Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act. Here is a link from Beyond Plastics which takes you to Action Network so you can email your legislator.
About the Author:
Camilla Calhoun co-chairs the Lower Westchester Chapter of Beyond Plastics, a national group fighting plastic pollution. She’s been active on the issue since the 1990s, when she helped eliminate styrofoam trays from her sons’ school.
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