By: Nicholas Fox
Plastic, especially single-use plastics, are prevalent on campus. It’s easy to forget about them once they’ve been disposed of, but they’re not gone. Most plastic waste finds itself in a landfill where it slowly breaks down over a few centuries. Even bio-degradable plastic has been reported to last longer than its expected three to six-month decay time. The plastic that ends up in a landfill is susceptible to being blown away into the ocean endangering marine life and murdering precious ecosystems.
Breaking the habits of using single-use plastics can be hard when they’re all around you. Finding alternatives to single-use plastics can even be slightly expensive at first, but it’s worth the investment. Reusable water bottles are one of the most common ways to reduce your plastic usage. If you don’t want to use the water refill stations on campus, purchasing a 5-gallon bottle of water with a hand pump or a filtered water pitcher is a great alternative.
When it comes to shopping, it’s almost impossible to avoid plastic while on the college budget. Here are a few tricks to help you steer clear of plastic when shopping.
- Always leave home with reusable shopping bags or make them the first thing you place in your cart.
- Purchasing single-use plastics in favor of reusable items like bamboo straws or bamboo sponges and utensils makes for great use of natural easily biodegradable material.
- Try to buy products in bulk. In addition to reducing plastic, buying in bulk helps to reduce cost and save gas in the long run. If there is a dispenser system in your bulk store, contemplate bringing your containers, Consider splitting costs with your roommate or family members on certain items.
- Body wash can be replaced by bar soap. They take up less space, clean more efficiently, and cost less than body wash.
Removing plastic out of one’s life does remove the convenience of going to the store to purchase whatever you need; however, this will reduce trips to the grocery store and make an individual much more conscious of every purchase they make.
