How To Transition Off Plastics

As we have been dealing with the ongoing problem of plastics in our solid waste landfill, we are also becoming more attentive to the chemical toxicity of plastics in their production, use, and disposal, especially in its breakdown into microplastic and nanoplastics that we all imbibe through the air, food, and touch. We read about whales washing ashore with so much plastic, which they have mistaken for food, clogging their gut.

Of course, transitioning off these toxic materials will require legislative remedies. One bill recently passed, E2S-SB 5284, Improving Washington's Solid Waste Management Outcomes, is being implemented and may help. Another bill, Break Free from Plastics, is being pushed in Congress as well. New Jersey and New York have instituted plastic bag bans and some related measures.

But people want to know, in the meantime, how we can avoid, as much as possible, the plastics that are all around us and moving inside of us.

Avoiding single use water sold in plastic containers is one. Avoiding unnecessary packaging of food and deliveries, is another. Others include not heating up food in the microwave in plastic containers, and buying natural fabric clothing, rugs, and linens (many available at second hand stores). I am currently enjoying reading a paper-back Sustain: 50 Easy Tips for a Greener, Cleaner Plastic Free Home, by Christina Strutt of Cabbages and Roses. Used copies are available at a modest sum from ABE books.

Want to dig deeper into the nightmare of omnipresent toxicity of plastic production, use, and disposal, and what we, as a society, can do about it? BeyondPlastics.org and Zero Waste Washington are good starting points, along with the recent book, The Problem With Plastic, by Judith Enck.