Thanx to Judy Ringold and Pauline Rosenberg for this excellent workshop and links from our local senior center.
40 Ways to Reduce Plastic Use
- Buy in bulk. Bring your reusable containers to stores that sell in bulk and load up on spices, beans, rice, etc.
- Bring your own clean reusable cloth, paper and used plastic bags where permitted to the store to bag produce.
- Bring a backpack and tote bags to the market to cart your stuff home.
- If you forgot your cloth bags, ask the supermarket checkout for paper bags instead of plastic bags.
- Use powered laundry and dish detergent that comes in cardboard boxes instead of plastic bottles.
- Cut back on gum or give it up. Gum is made of a synthetic rubber, aka plastic.
- Use matches instead of disposable plastic lighters or invest in a refillable metal lighter.
- Ditch plastic straws. If a straw is a must, buy a reusable stainless steel or glass straw.
- Use a reusable bottle or mug for your beverages, even when ordering to-go.
- Reuse existing plastic containers at home for storing food and household items.
- Bring your own container for take-out or your restaurant doggy-bag.
- Avoid buying frozen foods because their packaging is mostly plastic.
- Choose bread that comes in paper bags.
- Buy bar soap instead of liquid soap.
- Buy bar shampoo instead of liquid shampoo.
- Use baking soda as deodorant.
- Use baking soda as toothpaste.
- Try a compostable bamboo toothbrush.
- Try Brush with Bite, a plastic-free all-natural toothpaste that comes in a small glass jar as pellets. You bite one, then brush.
- Bring your kitchen utensils to work instead of using plastic ones.
- When ordering take-out tell them to hold the plastic cutlery.
- When ordering take-out, tell them to hold the condiments that come in little plastic bags if you already have them at home or don’t use them.
- Use glass containers instead of plastic resealable bags.
- Make fresh-squeezed juice or eat fruit instead of buying juice in plastic bottles.
- Try frozen concentrate juice because it’s almost entirely cardboard and metal.
- Make your own cleaning products that will be less toxic and eliminate the need for multiple plastic bottles of cleaner. For a “recipe” for laundry detergent, click here.
- Pack your lunch in reusable containers and bags.
- Opt for fresh fruits and veggies and bulk items instead of products that come in single serving cups.
- Use a safety razor with replaceable blades instead of a disposable razor.
- Use a washcloth instead of a plastic loofah.
- Use silicone sandwich bags instead of plastic bags.
- Use washable crocheted scrubbing sponges.
- Store food in glass containers instead of plastic.
- Use paper pots for seed starting instead of plastic cells.
- Replace plastic trash bag liners with a biodegradable and composteable option.
- Don’t use plastic straws. If you need a straw, buy a reusable metal straw.
- When you do end up with plastic baggies, wash them and reuse them many times.
- Buy pasta sauce in large glass bottles and reuse those jars for storing leftovers.
- Try making from scratch, foods that are packaged in plastic, such as tortillas, bread, salsa, yogurt and sour cream.
- Use biodegradable bags to clean up after your dog.
Also, Pauline offered this link of online stores from Pebbles Magazine online:
‘Going zero-waste’: the expression has exploded over the last few years. Yet, with a puny number of plastic-free alternatives in your local supermarket, and no zero-waste shop near you, does ditching the single-use seem daunting?
Having a plastic free pantry, bathroom and bedroom might not have to remain a fantasy, thanks to the growing availability of online plastic free goods and groceries. Here’s our top ten.
https://pebblemag.com/magazine/living/plastic-free-zero-waste-online-stores
Plus two videos or You Tubes from Oceana:
What are you doing to reduce your use of plastics?
Why We Need to Stop Plastic Pollution in Our Oceans FOR GOOD
