Day 0 (my Costco trip before July started)
There is plastic everywhere. There are some situations where avoiding plastic is pretty easy -- not buying bottled water, avoiding electronics with big plastic packages. These situations are rare compared to the items where there does not seem to be any viable alternative but to buy the plastic. Toothpaste, dish washing detergent, cheese, meat. In some cases I had the choice between a plastic bottle and a glass bottle -- olive oil for example, but those situations were rare. My month without buying plastic had not even started and it seems impossible.
Day 1 (yesterday)
Luckily I did not need to buy anything yesterday -- so I was able to make it through the first day of my quest without an outright failure. It is really no victory because I did in fact just stock up with mountains of plastic at Costco.
Day 2 (today)
I may just make it through today for the same reason as yesterday. But in the four days since I thought of this -- I have become accutely aware that our society will have to change significantly if we are going to be successful in reducing the use of plastics.
Remember this?
- Ben! Excuse me.
- Mr. McQuire
- Ben.
- Mr. McQuire.
- Come on with me for a minute. I want to talk to you. I just want to say on word to you, just one word.
- Yes, sir.
- Are you listening?
- Yes I am.
- Plastics.
- Exactly how do you mean?
- There is a great future in plastics.
- Think about it. Will you think about it?
- Ben! Excuse me.
- Mr. McQuire
- Ben.
- Mr. McQuire.
- Come on with me for a minute. I want to talk to you. I just want to say on word to you, just one word.
- Yes, sir.
- Are you listening?
- Yes I am.
- Plastics.
- Exactly how do you mean?
- There is a great future in plastics.
- Think about it. Will you think about it?
It is hard to believe that this scene with Ben and Mr McQuire in The Graduate happened in 1967. Back when toothpase came in an aluminum tube, and motor oil (and beer) came in metal cans. It was only 45 years ago. In this short time we have filled the oceans with plastic waste.
If you have found a way to avoid buying plastic - leave me a comment and I will compile a master list.
Check in on Chris Jordan's Midway project here. 15 days and $58,000 to go. Thank you to everyone who has contributed.
Here is an interesting story about fishermen, fishing for plastic in the north sea.