Reducing the usage of single use plastic.
Plastic is one of the most harmful products to the animal kingdom and takes thousands of years to break down. Reusable items have quickly made their way into most grocery and home-good stores within the last 5-10 years due to the influx of plastic pollution on our planet.
Biodegradable options have also become more and more common recently as our planet tackles the growing pollution epidemic.
One of the easiest ways to live a more sustainable lifestyle is to cut out single use plastic. Even if you can't cut all of it out of your lifestyle, reducing your usage of it as much as you can is still impactful.
Plastic is one of the most harmful products to the animal kingdom and takes thousands to disintegrate. Throughout this breakdown process, plastics are leaching greenhouse gases like CO2 and methane, further harming our planet.
- Environmental Health News
In 2020 EHS released an article detailing the detrimental impact that plastic has on our health as well as the environment. There are specific chemicals in our food, drinks, and product packaging that are incredibly harmful to our overall health.
"In addition, bisphenol A (BPA), found in polycarbonate bottles and the linings of food and beverage cans, can leach into food and drinks. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 93 percent of people had detectable levels of BPA in their urine." - Environmental Health News
Only 9% of plastic is actually recycled; meaning most of it just sits in landfills and gets swept into the ocean.
The islands of Hawai'i are incredibly close to the Great Pacific garbage patch. This means that we receive an insane amount of garbage on our eastern coasts every day. The micro plastics create a film over the water- harming our marine life and polluting the seas.
Stores like Protea Zero Waste tackle this issue head on by providing various ways to step into a more eco-conscious lifestyle.
They are a refill store located In O'ahu and they also provide a variety of zero-waste products. It is always inspiring to see stores taking the initiative to make the world a more sustainable place. Sustainability is just as important for the economy as it is for the environment.
Supporting local stores such as this one is an awesome way to support small business and the betterment of the planet!
There is no perfect way to be zero-waste, it is a gradual process of choosing to make more eco-friendly choices in our daily lives.
As Anne Marie Banneau once said:
"We don't need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly, we need millions of people doing it imperfectly."
If you are reading this, you are already taking a step in the right direction toward creating a better planet! It is incredible to see how many people are waking up to the stark reality of our impact on our beautiful planet. Rome wasn't built in a day, and creating a more sustainable earth will take time but the more we practice living sustainable lifestyles, the more people we can inspire to do the same.