Fake Plastic Fish

Fake Plastic Wishbones?

2008-11-19T18:48:00.000-08:00

Turns out the cold I thought I had is actually a mild case of pneumonia. Thanks very much to blogger Rejin Leys from Urban Botany who filled in for me tonight with a post about a crazy new plastic product being promoted by, of all organizations, PETA.

This week, PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) held a contest and awarded 5 lucky winners each a package of 10 "vegan" wishbones, so they can fully participate in Thanksgiving Day festivities without having to touch "the awful real thing."

Regular readers of FPF will immediately spot the problem with this, right? Fake Plastic Wishbones? As Beth and other anti-plastic pollution activists have pointed out so many times, the world is already drowning in useless plastic crap. Why do companies keep dreaming up and producing more? And most perplexingly, what is an animal rights advocacy organization doing marketing that plastic crap for the Lucky Break Wishbone Corporation?

Because isn't that what a contest like this is all about? Ad agencies dream of finding high profile organizations that will promote all kinds of products to their members, listeners or followers. It is effective advertising, and its absolutely free. PETA even obligingly links to the company's website, so that all the people who didn't win, but who are now convinced that they need fake plastic wishbones to make their holiday experience more authentic (!) can click right over and order them online.

While this one contest represents a pretty trivial amount of plastic (50 wishbones plus 5 packages), it also represents a very simplistic approach to defending the rights of animals. By ignoring the pollution spewed by factories that make things like plastic wishbones, PETA is prioritizing the rights of livestock animals over the rights of animals in their natural habitats, that are harder to quantify and relate to. The plastics that end up in the ocean kill many animals and damage the habitats of more species than humans have yet encountered. The toxic soup that leaches out of plastic-filled landfills poisons groundwater and flows into waterways - killing more animals. When incinerated, plastics release poisonous gases into the air - killing more animals. Even recycling plastics creates toxic by-products.

Sometimes it is hard to see the connections between different issues. But this one should be easy: finding ways to protect the environment, such as reducing our use of useless plastic crap, is also a way to protect the rights and lives of animals.

And as Rejin suggested in her own blog entry on this topic, why do we need wishbones for making wishes in the first place? "How about creating a new tradition where everyone goes around the table and makes a wish? There, no dead turkeys and no plastic factories spewing hazardous wastes that kill other animals. Problem solved."

Brita® and Preserve® Announce Filter Recycling Program

2008-11-18T01:32:00.000-08:00

This post is copied from the news item I just wrote up on the Take Back The Filter web site. But I'm sniffly and snotty and my head feels like a giant bowling ball, so I don't think I can come up with an original thought.

As promised, here are the details of the take-back recycling program that Brita has developed. Read their full press release here.

1) Collection: Beginning in early January, Brita users will be able to drop off used filters at Whole Foods Markets or mail them to an address which will be provided closer to the start date. [From personal experience, I would recommend NOT sealing them up in ZipLoc bags. This just ends up creating a lot of soggy, wet, not-so-nice smelling filters.]

2) Recycline, dba Preserve, the company that makes recycled toothbrushes, razors, and other household products, will recycle 100% of each plastic filter casing collected into other household products.

3) The filter ingredients, activated carbon and ion-exchange resin will be regenerated for alternative use or converted into energy.

The Take Back The Filter campaign is very pleased with this solution. Of course, we would always prefer to to see the filters redesigned to be reused/refilled. But we understand that that might not be practical. And partnering with Preserve is a great alternative.

When Brita first contacted us back in April, they told us they were leaning on Waste Management to figure out how to recycle the filters. Waste Management is in the collection business. They collect plastic for recycling and sell it off, normally shipping it away to cities in Asia. We wanted the Brita filters to stay here at home where we need green jobs to bolster our economy.

According to Preserve's Earth Efforts page:

Recycline makes nearly all of our products in the United States, working with U.S. manufacturers. This practice benefits our local economy and also reduces the CO2 emissions that would be generated by transportation of products to the United States from other countries. Sometimes we need to extend just beyond the border to guarantee quality and environmentally responsible manufacturing, so the blades for our Preserve razors are produced in Mexico.

Thank you to everyone who got involved in this campaign, sent us your used filters, signed the petition, sent letters to Clorox, forwarded emails, wrote blog posts, and helped in ways we may never know. Brita might have started recycling their filters eventually without our help, but letting them know how important this issue was to so many people certainly ensured that it remained on their radar and that they sought the most responsible method possible.

A huge thanks also to the Sierra Club! Sierra Club, as you may or may not know, already had a relationship with Clorox in helping them to develop their Green Works line of natural cleaning products. So it was natural for our campaign to partner with them to help Brita find the best way to recycle the filters.

What's next?

The Take Back The Filter web site will remain up. If you haven't signed up for updates, please do so. We will let you know further details about Brita recycling. And in the coming days, we will add info on how we can encourage other water filter companies (like Pur) to follow suit.

In January, we will deliver our over 500 collected filters to Brita publicly so that all of you who sent them in can see your filters handled responsibly! And for those who still have filters to send, please hold onto them until January. We will be shutting down our mailbox in a few days.

In the mean time, please send a thank you letter to Brita for the hard work they have done putting this program in place. Clorox is showing itself to be an environmental leader, which might seem unusual for such a large corporation. We'd like them to feel that going green is truly worth it, and to perhaps look at their other product lines and figure out ways to make them more sustainable as well. (I have a few ideas!)

Here's the info for writing to Clorox:

Mailing Addresses:

Mr. Don Knauss, Chairman & CEO
Mr. Drew McGowan

The Clorox Company
1221 Broadway
Oakland, CA 94612

Web Form: http://www.brita.com/contact_form_us.php

Carnival Of The Green #154

2008-11-17T12:00:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the 154th edition of the weekly Carnival of the Green, a collection of environmentally-focused blog posts which moves from one blog to the next each Monday and is managed by Tree Hugger.

Last week, the Carnival of the Green was hosted by Natural Collection's ooffoo site. Next week's is scheduled to be hosted by ~~Environmental Survival Guide~~ The Tranquil Parent.

There were a lot of entries sent to me this week covering a broad spectrum of green topics. We have money managers, green moms, crafters (check out the Barbie dress made from crocheted plastic bags), guys, gals, and everyone in between. So, here are the posts in the order I received them.

Grab a cup of whatever you think appropriate, sit back, and enjoy!

Heather Levin presents How To Set Up A Community Lending Library posted at The Greenest Dollar.

GrrlScientist presents Bottomfeeder: How to Eat Ethically in a World of Vanishing Seafood posted at Living the Scientific Life.

Karen Hanrahan aka Mother Earth presents Clean Your Oven Without Losing Nose Hairs posted at Best of Mother Earth. Karen says, "What if a little elbow grease and a mighty and lovely non-toxic scouring paste could clean your oven?"

Jenn presents Karina's post Preserving Food posted at Tiny Choices.

Joseph presents Free Reusable Tote Bag and Another Free Reusable Cloth Bag at Eco Joe's, saying, "Two great ways to quit using plastic bags (two ways to get a reusable cloth grocery bag for free!)"

Micaela presents Skip the Plastic at the Grocery Store posted at Mindful Momma saying, "If you put your mind to it you can find many alternatives to plastic packaging in the grocery store."

Ray presents Free Car Wash In Heavy Rain To Save Water and Money and High Gas Prices Equal Less Traffic and Carbon Pollution posted at Money Blue Book.

Louise Manning presents 2012 vegetable gardens planned for London posted at The Human Imprint.

Tim presents The $15 Water Heater Upgrade posted at EcoNewMexico.com, saying "Buying a new, high efficiency water heater can cost at least $500, plus installation. Being a creative and frugal guy (read: cheap) I found a way to upgrade my water heater for only $15."

Patricia Turner presents Top 50 Green Technology Blogs posted at Green Web Hosting Blog.

Julena presents Review of Partially Organic Lavera Faces Wild Rose Moisturizing Cream posted at Organic Makeup and Skin Care.

Nichole Halsey presents Bring On the Rain (Gardens) posted at Bad Human! Don't take chemicals from strangers!.

Chris Baskind presents Twilight Time: 3 Ways to Green Winter Lighting Needs posted at Lighter Footstep, saying, "With darker months come heftier energy bills. But greening-up your winter lighting needs can save valuable resources — and your pocketbook. Here’s how to start."

Sally Kneidel presents Environmental education: A new necessity for healthy kids? posted at Veggie Revolution, saying "Children with more access to outdoor play have higher cognitive functioning, fewer symptoms of ADHD, and less obesity - according to a recently published study. That's been the spark for the new "No Child Left Inside" program, which will fund environmental education in K-12 classrooms over the next 5 years."

RecycleCindy presents Yellow Barbie Plarn Dress posted on My Recycled Bags, saying "Barbie goes green! Check out the latest in recycled doll clothing as Barbie shows off her new yellow plarn dress. Its crocheted from old recycled plastic bags into a fun doll dress. Here is the free crochet pattern."

Millie Kay presents Organic Food: Healthy Food Ideas For The Ordinary Shoppe posted at The Smarter Wallet.

Kristjan presents Green Stocks, Investing in Wind Power Stocks, and Obama’s Renewable Energy Pledge posted at The Green Investing Blog.

A Teaser, a Contest, an Announcement, & Year 2, Week 22 Results: 1.0 oz of plastic waste.

2008-11-16T19:23:00.000-08:00

Like last week, I have a bunch of business before the tally.

Teaser: Brita's going to take back and recycle their pitcher filter cartridges!

I received a phone call on Friday (while hanging out at the SF Green Festival) from Drew McGowan, Brita brand manager, alerting me that Brita will indeed begin taking back and recycling pitcher filters beginning in January!

He sent me a copy of the full press release with details, but I've promised not to reveal specifics until Tuesday. What I will tell you is that they seem to have incorporated almost all the elements of our petition in coming up with a solution that keeps jobs here in the U.S. and doesn't rely on shipping the plastic off to China.

Please visit our Take Back The Filter campaign web page on Tuesday for full details of the program. And you can stop sending us your filters. Hooray! Hold onto them until January, when you'll be able to send them in directly for recycling.

Now... we just have to work on Pur and all the other water filter companies...

Contest: What's wrong with this picture?

This is the waste station at the SF Green Festival this weekend: bins for garbage (landfill), compost (the green bin), recycling, and liquids. It's typical of all the stations throughout the event, and there's one thing that doesn't seem right about it. Can you tell what it is? I'll be posting about the Green Festival on Wednesday or Thursday and will discuss this issue. The person who guesses correctly will receive a copy of the Toolbox For Sustainable City Living, by Scott Kellogg and Stacy Pettigrew. If there is more than one correct answer, I'll choose randomly.

Announcements: A Carnival and a Conference Call

Come back tomorrow for the 154th Carnival of the Green hosted right here on Fake Plastic Fish.

Then, this Thursday, November 20: Pandora’s Plastic Box - A Conference Call For All.

Healthy Child Healthy World will be hosting the first in a monthly series of conference calls on health and environmental issues. This Thursday, the theme is plastic:

Join us for an open, non-judgmental conversation about plastics (we all have our Achilles’ Heel). Janelle from Healthy Child Healthy World will be giving a quick background on the issue; Jennifer from The Smart Mama will share her Journey to Glass; Jeremiah from ZRecs will talk about assessing the risks and benefits of plastics, and how bloggers can influence corporate behavior and affect change in the marketplace; and Beth from Fake Plastic Fish will discuss the impacts on the environment and living without.

I hope many of you will be able to join in the call to listen and discuss! Here's the call info:

When: November 20, 10am PST
Dial: (218) 339-3600
Access Code: 1036416#

The Tally:

Plastic items used this week but acquired before the plastic project began:

1 more dirty, scrungy, chewed up synthetic sponge. At the point they start falling apart and little pieces of plastic sponge wash down the drain, it's time to put them to rest.

New plastic waste:

1 plastic pizza thingie from the previous week. FPF reader Froghair took issue with my statement last week that planned to return this thing to the pizzeria and ask them to reuse it. She wrote, "Pardon my skepticism, but do you really think the pizza place is just going to pop that plastic thingie back in their bin and reuse it? Frankly, I hope not, because that's got to be a health code infraction, even if it is washed." She's probably right. So, into Plastic Purgatory it goes, and I will just have to be more conscientious about remembering to request no plastic in the middle of my pizza!

1 plastic RX bottle and cap. From Kaiser. We can't return them to be refilled here.

Wrapper from a Kaiser plastic pill cutter. My doctor gave it to me. I wouldn't normally have accepted it. And in fact, when the pharmacist has tried to give me a plastic pill cutter in the past, I've refused, saying that I'm perfectly capable of cutting a pill with a sharp knife. But when my doctor and I decided that I need only be taking 1/4 of the sleeping pill I use occasionally, I realized a knife was not going to do it. The pills are very small. I really don't think I can cut them into quarters with a kitchen knife without ending up with a powdery mess. So I accepted this chunk of plastic and its wrapper with a sigh. We do what we can and then...

Beth Geeks Out: Reformatting hard drives and installing Windows Upgrades

2008-11-14T07:42:00.000-08:00

I'm tired. I was up very late last night doing a job I love: working on the computers at my office. And as an added bonus, I was doing something great for the environment and saving plastic.

We had five old computers running Windows 2000. We bought a new Filemaker Pro upgrade which will not install on Windows 2000. And even Microsoft will not support that version of Windows anymore. In the past, the company would have tossed the old computers and bought new ones. But this is a new, fierce economy, baby. People can't afford to be wasteful, and I'm freakin' glad.

So instead of tossing perfectly good machines, we bought 5 Windows XP Pro licenses (actually, they are Windows VISTA licenses that allow us to downgrade to XP because we don't really want VISTA at this time) and the only plastic involved was the one CD-Rom I used to burn the downloaded software. I needed a bootable disk, otherwise I wouldn't have burned a CD at all.

Instead of upgrading the operating system, the best thing for everyone is just to wipe out the hard drives and start over from scratch. Oooooh. That feels good! Any crap people might have downloaded on purpose or accidentally goes bye-bye and we start with a fresh, clean slate. In order to do this, you have to boot the machine from the disk. Windows Set Up will ask if you want to delete any partitions already on the hard drive, and you say "Yes." Then it will ask if you're really, really sure, and you do a Sarah Palin wink and cry, "Delete, baby, delete!"

It's fun. Especially after very little sleep and lots and lots of coffee and chocolate cake.

So anyway, these computers are like new. They run faster. The programs on them are upgraded. They have no junk that might have been installed by HP when they were originally purchased. All they contain are few programs that I personally installed on them. It's an environmentalist control freak's dream. And my co-workers are thrilled.

So, the next time your computer is acting slow and cranky and like it just doesn't like you anymore, instead of replacing the physical machine with all its plastic & toxic metals, find out if it can be upgraded first. Reformat the hard drive and start over. Or maybe it just needs memory. Yes, that's a bit of plastic, but not nearly as much as a whole new computer.

You don't have to be a geek. There are plenty of people who will do these things for you. The point is making the effort to do it instead of taking the easy route (which might not be as easy now that money is tighter) and replacing. After Sunday's 60 Minutes episode, it feels good to know I did my bit to keep some of this crap from causing more harm in the world.

Now, I'm off to the SF Green Festival. If any of you other Bay Areans are going this weekend, email me and let me know. I'd love to meet up with you.

What is Local? Expanding the Definition

2008-11-12T09:52:00.000-08:00

The topic of this month's APLS Carnival is "buying local," which seems to be an important factor in the sustainability movement. In the SF Bay Area, we have year-round farmer's markets where local producers bring us their fresh crops all year. So for someone attempting to live plastic-free, it's not hard to add "buying local" to the mix.

Except when it is hard.

Several months ago, I asked your opinion about which was better environmentally -- plastic-wrapped local cheese or waxed plastic-free cheese from Ireland. And surprisingly, most of you voted for the Irish cheese, saying that regardless of plastic, it's probably just better.

So it seems that some folks make exceptions to the local rule when it comes to foods from "expert" regions of the world. But I have a few more exceptions and redefinitions to add to the mix. I get that buying local is better for the environment because it reduces fuel miles and because foods grown locally do not need as much in the way of chemicals and energy to keep them fresh. But there's another reason: community. And sometimes community is not found within a 100-mile radius of where you live.

***
One of my new favorite Etsy sellers is Cat Domiano, aka The Green Cat, who is a blogger friend and one of the founding members of the Take Back The Filter campaign. One of my first interactions with her was when she made some cute mice for my new kittens last year. A quilter, she recently decided to use up scraps of fabric she's been storing by making coasters and napkins and cat toys and selling them them through Etsy.

I had no qualms about ordering cloth napkins from Cat (who lives in New York), even though I could have bought some cloth napkins here in Oakland, for the following reasons:

1) Cat is my friend.
2) I knew that Cat wouldn't send me any plastic packaging (including plastic tape!). She's a Fake Plastic Fish reader and trying to reduce her own plastic waste.
3) Supporting Cat is supporting the environment because she's likely to spend her money in ways that are environmentally-friendly. Right Cat?
4) Supporting Etsy sellers is a way to make sure that the cratspeople creating the products we purchase get a fair price for their creations because they set the prices themselves!
5) Supporting each other's work creates community -- even if we live many, many miles apart. It's a different kind of local, isn't it?

Oh, and when I told Cat I was going to post about her napkins (which are awesome) on Fake Plastic Fish, she wanted me to let you know that she'll do some kind of discount for Fake Plastic Fish readers, so if you place an order, let her know you read about her shop here.

***
Sometimes local really is local. This is Dan from The Green Bean Cafe at Forest and Claremont, just a few blocks from my house and right on my way to BART each day.

At the Green Bean, I can fill up my travel mug with fair trade organic coffee and have a sandwich made and placed into my reusable container. (Yes, the container is plastic. I haven't found a better non-disposable alternative yet, but I'm working on it.) Better than supporting Starbucks, certainly. But more important to me, I've gotten to know Dan and his business partner Brett over the years, and I have a great time every time I visit the cafe.

Dan is one of the funniest guys in town. He and I don't necessarily agree politically (as I discovered on election day) but we agree in other basic, human ways. In fact, he and Brett have set up a container at the shop for local folks to drop off used Brita filter cartridges instead of mailing them to us. And he gets really excited when people bring in their filters.

Besides the coffee, the food itself might not all be organic or local, but the spirit of the place creates community in a world where people too often find themselves separate from each other. These guys know pretty much everyone in the neighborhood, which is rare and precious in our disjointed world.

***
But sometimes, there are real conflicts between buying locally or buying from a large, impersonal corporation. A while back, there was a discussion on Burbanmom's blog comparing the soap she got from a local goat farmer to Dr. Bronner's castile soaps. And I found myself with the same quandary.

I had been buying soap from a local woman at the Ashby flea market. I was supporting her simply because she was local. I didn't know her personally and I never asked about the ingredients she used in her soaps -- fair trade? organic? I do believe they were free of synthetics.

But after reading the discussion on Burbanmom, I actually switched to the Dr. Bronner's soap bars. They are 100% organic. 100% fair trade. The wrappers and containers are made from 100% post-consumer recycled materials. Here is a company trying in every way possible to be sustainable. They are not local to me, and I don't have a personal relationship with them. But maybe those things don't matter.

Or maybe Dr. Bronner's creates a different kind of community -- a meeting of like minds coming together at the organic foods shop to refill their peppermint soap bottles. This company has been around so long and created such good will in the green and "hippie" community that they maybe deserve to be honorary "locals" wherever you happen to find their products.

***
So I guess all things being equal, I'd opt for a local product over a non-local one. But I don't stress about that one criterion. I do the best I can, and then let many other factors help determine my buying choices.

Voices of the Plastic-Free Blogosphere, Part 2

2008-11-10T21:05:00.000-08:00

Two weeks ago, I spotlighted eight bloggers who have taken the challenge to reduce plastic in their lives and have been blogging about it. Here are the next eight voices helping to spread the word through the blogosphere. Thanks to blogger Greeen Sheeep, the newest Posse member, for the above image. Enjoy.

Plastic-Free Bloggers
(blogs primarily dealing with plastic)

Bring Your Own. Anna Cummins is a plastic-free warrior. Not only has she visited the North Pacific Gyre on the oceanographic research vessel Alguita with her fiance Dr. Marcus Eriksen and Captain Charles Moore's team, she also travels the country speaking out about the issue of plastics in the marine environment and is planning a bike tour from Vancouver to Mexico to spread the word. She sent me the following image which illustrates the central point of this blog: our fish are filling up with plastic. If we don't change our ways, fake plastic ones may be all we have left!

Anna started her blog and campaign, Bring Your Own, three years ago, with an opening post that reads, "The idea for this BYO campaign arose as much from my coffee habit as my growing disgust with the buildup of unnecessary plastic crap in the world. I love a good latte, but the java experience was becoming more unpleasant as I'd watch troops of coffee drinkers getting their daily fix in throwaway cups (with plastic lids mind you) yet drinking them right there!"

One of Anna's projects is collecting old T-shirts and turning them into cloth grocery bags. With a grant she received from Patagonia, she plans to create and distribute 400 bags to anyone who will pledge to using them at least 10 times. Her blog post about the non-recyclability of Brita filters over a year ago encouraged me to pursue the Brita take-back campaign. It was also what introduced me to Anna in the first place.

Plastic-Free Posse
(Blogs that cover a range of subjects. I've linked to their plastic-labeled posts here.)

Noitalever's LiveJournal. Danielle hails from Oregon and is currently a student at the University of Idaho. Her attempt to go plastic-free began in May when a friend linked to the article "Plastic Ocean" on her blog. That article changed her whole perception of plastic. Since then, she's made an impressive number of plastic-free changes, including switching back to glasses from contacts. As someone who's worn glasses since 4th grade and could never get the hang of contacts, I welcome her to the four-eyed fold! (Read her post to find out why glasses are the pro-environment choice.)

Mindful Momma. Micaela is one of the founding members of the Green Mom's Carnival. Her big ah-ha moment about plastics was when she realized she'd gotton so caught up in the Costco mentality that she was buying bottled water by the case. She vowed to quit and bought reusable bottles for her family instead. Now she realizes they were BPA-laden polycarbonate bottles, but it was a start.

Arduous Blog. Ruchi, aka Arduous, started her blog to chronicle her year of buying nothing new. Then, she lived in L.A. where, in addition to the buy-nothing challenge, she jumped into one "arduous" challenge after another. Her dad gave her the nickname, and it fits.

Nowadays, she's a student in London, still working to care for the environment and buy as few new things as possible. She first became aware of the plastics issue after reading Elizabeth Royte's Garbageland and realizing that plastic "recycling" is just a way to delay its inevitable trip to the landfill. Ruchi answered the questions below in much more detail on her blog.

ciboulette. Leah is a teacher and writer in British Columbia who was first inspired to remove plastic from her life when she stumbled upon Fake Plastic Fish, about one year ago, during NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month.) She felt depressed by reports of masses of plastic filling up the ocean and found that most of the Fake Plastic Fish solutions sounded realistic for her as well. That was when she realized she might be able to make a small difference. She began blogging about her goal of reducing plastic this past September.

Greenhab: The Browns Go Green. Kellie Brown is going green in Denver. She started looking at plastic differently a year or so ago. The movie Mardi Gras: Made in China made her stomach turn when she saw the conditions under which most plastic tchotchkes are made. Then, she learned about the issue of BPA leaching from plastic, the oil it takes to make plastic, and the Pacific Garbage Patch and how it affects marine life. She says, "How can I look at plastic and not cringe?" Be sure and read her post, "Lessons in Plastic Learned From a Bear."

Jorth. Leisl in Melbourne, Australia, describes herself as a "stay at home fashionista-craftster-writer-chef-gardener-prampusher extraordinaire." She's always been a greenie, avoiding things like plastic bags, but it wasn't until early last year that she began to really analyze her lifestyle and it's effect on the planet in depth. Reading about The Great Pacific Garbage Patch was what finally pushed her to say, "Enough is enough! It's no good waiting around for others to do things - you have to be, as Gandhi said, the change you want to see."

Greeen Sheeep. Rebecca from Wisconsin, who also blogs as Envirorambo at The Green Phone Booth, calls herself "just another lost sheep wandering this planet, trying to find my way back to a more eco-friendly, simple, sustainable way of life." She said that her plastic awareness was the culmination of several things over the past year: moving to a new home and realizing just how much crap they had; trying unsuccessfully to conceive and in doing infertility research stumbling upon EWG's Skin Deep Database; and discovering blogs like Fake Plastic Fish. She is gradually becoming more aware of the impact has and realizing she has a choice.

As I did last week, I asked these bloggers a series of questions about the challenges of going plastic-free. Here's what they told me:

EASIEST CHANGES TO MAKE

Anna: Eliminating single use disposables from my life – coffee cups, bags, and water bottles, it's habit now to refuse these – I always Bring My Own!

Danielle: The easiest change has been simply altering my shopping habits - I buy in bulk and bring my own bags for everything, including sugar. Two other easy changes were carrying my own coffee cup and Klean Kanteen.

Micaela: Quitting bottled water was very easy once I had a good reusable bottle in hand. Packing waste-free lunches and snacks was an easy change too. It's often just a matter of changing your habits.

Ruchi: I ended up using a lot less plastic in my year of non-consumerism, because as lot of plastic waste is in packaging, and if you're not buying, you avoid the packaging thang too.

Leah: Switching from liquid hand and body soap to their solid equivalents. These can almost always be found packed in paper or nothing at all!

Kellie: The easiest thing for us was to just stop buying stuff we really didn't need; that in itself eliminated a lot of plastic waste. We also have been making small changes that add up - no more bottled water, recyclable tin foil instead of plastic wrap...we're currently trying to break the ziplock bag habit.

Leisl: The three easiest things to change were plastic free bread, cheese and fresh fruit and vegetables. We live in inner-city Melbourne, and are blessed to have an amazing bakery that sells bread in paper (and don't mind you bringing your own bag), a cheese shop that wraps the harder cheeses in paper and lets me put the softer cheeses into my own glass bowl, and a green grocer that sells loose/unpackaged produce which I pack into a cloth bag, all within walking distance. That's the good thing about patronizing local, independent shops - they are happy to accommodate their customers, no matter how wacky you may appear at first!

Greeen Sheeep: Making food from scratch. Avoiding prepackaged convenience meals has cut our weekly garbage load from seven bags to two. 3. The safety razor. Way more economical, comfortable, and so easy a 12 year old can do it.

BIGGEST CHALLENGES

Anna: We're surrounded by plastic, sometimes it's extremely difficult to avoid. Personal challenge: some of my fave treats generally come in plastic. Like cheese. Haven't figured this one out yet. Any ideas for a cheese lover that isn't about to start making brie on her own?

Danielle: I quickly discovered that our culture is constantly humming a "plastic is good" tune, and it's been really hard to combat that. For example, most of the "grab and go" foods on my college campus are packaged in plastic and no one seems to think twice about it!

Micaela: I've had a hard time eliminating plastic bags and plastic wrap completely. I use them MUCH less frequently than I used to and I wash and reuse what I have but grabbing a bag is just so easy, it's hard to resist.

Ruchi: Being a student, I don't have much in the way of routine. So I'll often find myself at school at 5pm not having eaten anything all day for whatever reason. So I end up buying a sandwich in plastic wrap.

Leah: The glaring absence of plastic-free yogurt, cheese and toilet paper.

Kellie: It's easy to cut out the little things, but when it comes to, say, a grocery item that only comes packaged in plastic, well, I haven't quite made the leap to thinking "Can I make this? Is there some other alternative?" Baby steps...

Leisl: Our biggest challenge so far has been milk. One shop locally does sell milk in glass bottles, but the delivery times are erratic, and it's very easy to miss out. Oh, and deodorant. I've tried lots of alternatives, and whilst they work for my husband, none of done the job for me. It's the eternal dilemma - will people take me seriously if I pong? [I recommended baking soda to her. Don't know if she's tried it yet!]

Greeen Sheeep: Besides getting the family on board? Packaging. The things we do still buy are inevitably packaged in plastic.

INSPIRATION FROM THE PLASTIC-FREE BLOGGERS

In their own words ---

Anna: Our plastic crap is now entering the food chain! So check this out: a fish [pictured above] my fiancé caught aboard JUNK. After filleting it, he found 17 plastic fragments in its stomach. Plastic contamination is becoming a clear human health issue.

Danielle: Definitely start small - stopping using plastic bags and water bottles. If you try to start big, you won't experience much success and you'll get burnt out. If you can make little changes, you'll have the energy to tackle continually larger issues.

Micaela: Next time you walk through the grocery store, think about every plastic item you pick up. Is there another alternative? Glass instead of plastic? Could I refill this jar next time to avoid purchasing a new one? Do I really need a plastic bag for every vegetable I buy? Once you get into that mentality you will find it is pretty easy to cut your plastic consumption way back!

Ruchi: Treat it like a game, or an adventure. One of the games I like to play is, can I get rid of my one-time use plastic this week? So I focus on a specific area, and then work on that. It also makes you creative in how you can re-use your plastic.

Leah: Start tiny. It's encouraging to know that there are a lot of little changes that can be done with little effort and/or cost. My feeling is that even a little is better than nothing and that just being aware of everyday plastic consumption will help you reduce some of it.

Kellie: You know, when I look at someone like Beth I think "I am WAY out of my league here". But we didn't go from Brown to Green overnight. Take it in small steps and make small changes, but do look at everything that passes through your hands and ask "What's the environmental impact of this? Can I do without it? What can I use or do instead?"

Leisl: It's easier than you think! Start small, and just keep going - the key is coming up with alternative solutions, and then just making them your 'normal' process, like always carrying a cloth bag when shopping, or taking a reusable container rather than relying on a disposable one from the store. Change your habits to change the world!

Greeen Sheeep: I saw this quote left in the comments of a blog once that resonated with me, "Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without!"

Words of wisdom. Let's hear more! I'm noticing a preponderance of plastic-free female voices. Besides Ian from last week, where are the rest of the guys? (Note: If you contacted me about joining the posse, and your blog has not been listed this week, don't worry. This is an ongoing project!)

More sad plastic news. Plus Year 2, Week 21 Results: .05 oz of plastic waste.

2008-11-10T02:11:00.000-08:00

The format of this post will be a little different from most of my weekly tallies because I want to emphasize three stories in the news this week which illustrate more of the problems with plastic and plastic recycling.

First: I learned from JessTrev of The Green Phone Booth (via Twitter) that one of the few plastics we had thought was fairly safe might not be so. According to Toronto's Globe and Mail on Friday, medical researchers at the University of Alberta have found chemicals leaching from polypropylene (#5 plastic), the type of plastic used for many, many food uses, including yogurt tubs and laptop lunch containers, which parents purchase as an alternative to disposable food containers for children. Preserve toothbrushes (the kind I use) are also made from recycled polypropylene.

Not enough is know at this time about the two chemicals found to leach from the plastic, quaternary ammonium biocides and oleamide, to determine whether or not the leaching poses health risks, but Rebecca Sutton, senior scientist with Environmental Working Group, says, "We simply don't want these chemicals getting into our bodies."

When asked which plastics are safe for food, I've always replied that #2, #4, and #5 are the safest as far as we know, but the fact that they haven't really been studied as thoroughly as other plastics means that we don't know for sure if they are actually safe. As it turns out, we're now even less sure. My opinion? Why store food in plastic when we can use glass and other safer alternatives?

Second: Saturday afternoon, a massive fire broke out at a plastics manufacturing plant in Channelview, Texas. View video and news coverage of the fire here. According to an article on Click2Houston.com, the plant manufactured polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) products. Ironically, according to the news story, city officials claim the smoke was non-toxic.

Really? Non-toxic PVC smoke? According to Greenpeace, smoldering PVC gives off hydrogen chloride, "a corrosive, highly toxic gas that can cause skin burns and severe long-term respiratory damage," as well as dioxin, which has been found to cause cancer and reproductive disorders. How is it possible that the smoke from a burning PVC plant can be considered safe for any town?

Third: Tonight, FPF reader Christy B alerted me to a 60 Minutes story that aired today revealing a terrible reality of electronics and plastic "recycling" that will turn your stomach. You already saw the Sky News story about plastic recycling in China. This one is even worse. Watch it below or view it on the 60 Minutes site. This story illustrates why cutting our consumption and requiring manufacturers to produce less toxic, longer-lasting products is essential.

Watch CBS Videos Online

And now that you've had your fill of reasons to cut out plastic, here's my tally for the week.

All new plastic waste:

1 plastic envelope window. From Financial West Group, which does not yet offer electronic statements.

1 plastic seal from a carton of Ben & Jerry's Chunky Monkey. This happened Tuesday night. I blame election anxiety. What a rush!

And that's it. I actually did also receive a free T-shirt in a bubble mailer with plastic tape, but I returned it to the sender after sending an email explaining why. I also received one of those plastic pizza inserts, but I'm planning to take it back to the pizzeria and ask them to reuse it. It's actually unnecessary. I usually remember to request no plastic thingie, and the pizza arrives just fine.

Obama's f---ing lightbulbs

2008-11-06T18:28:00.000-08:00

The highlights of Newsweek's Special Election Project, released yesterday, include this unsettling tidbit:

The debates unnerved both candidates. When he was preparing for them during the Democratic primaries, Obama was recorded saying, "I don't consider this to be a good format for me, which makes me more cautious. I often find myself trapped by the questions and thinking to myself, 'You know, this is a stupid question, but let me … answer it.' So when Brian Williams is asking me about what's a personal thing that you've done [that's green], and I say, you know, 'Well, I planted a bunch of trees.' And he says, 'I'm talking about personal.' What I'm thinking in my head is, 'Well, the truth is, Brian, we can't solve global warming because I f---ing changed light bulbs in my house. It's because of something collective'."

Obama is right, and he's wrong.

He's right that simply changing lightbulbs will not solve global warming. But he's wrong to think that changing lightbulbs is irrelevant. Changing lightbulbs can help to change people's minds. Changing lightbulbs is a gateway action that can lead to other kinds of changes: changing the way a person votes, for example. Individual actions help to create awareness, and it's awareness that creates the climate for political change. Because WE are the government. And the government doesn't change unless we do.

I'm a little disappointed that Obama's vision wasn't broader the day he made that comment, and I'm hoping it was simply the result of campaign exhaustion. But guess what. His new web site is up, and he's got a form we can use to share our vision of how we'd like him to lead the country: http://change.gov/page/s/yourvision. I've already used the form to send yesterday's letter.

Next week, I'll publish more ideas from plastic-free bloggers who have joined the Posse and are hoping that their individual actions will make a difference. We don't plan on giving up any time soon. In a comment yesterday, Clif wrote of the idealism that we share that keeps us going and gives us the hope that others will be inspired by our vision of a world bigger than our backyards. But some people will not be inspired until they actually change that first lightbulb or begin to carry a reusable grocery bag or water bottle. Clif writes, "Let's be the first civilization to make the ideal real. Action on global warming by individuals at a personal level would be an encouraging start."

Obama's "collective" is made up of individuals, dreaming and hoping and acting one by one by one. Let's write to him and remind him of that fact.

Thank you, Santa Sabina!

2008-11-06T04:47:00.000-08:00

Back in May, I sent a letter to the Santa Sabina retreat center, where I have spent many beautiful silent weekends resting in stillness. My letter asked them to please find alternatives to the antibacterial soaps and synthetic air fresheners they had recently begun providing for the use of their guests.

A few weeks later, I received a beautiful card and note assuring me that the center had switched to more environmentally-friendly products. This past weekend, during another retreat, I was able to confirm first-hand that not only had they indeed made those specific changes, but were also working on ways to encourage their guests to be more aware of their environmental impact.

Entering the main doors, I encountered this cute little setup next to the water fountain. It's actually not so hard to fill the bottle right from the fountain, but I guess they felt they'd make it as easy and obvious as possible.

Upstairs in the large linen closet, I found this:

And in the Dining Room was this composting system:

I don't know why there is a plastic bag in the compost bin. I plan to send a follow-up thank you letter with a few more suggestions, for example that they might use compostable bags in the compost bin rather than plastic.

There were also signs about recycling cans and bottles as well as clearly labeled bins for the purpose. I'm pleased that Santa Sabina is taking its responsibility towards the earth seriously. How rarely do we get such immediate feedback to the letters that we send out?

Here are a few more photos I took this weekend, just because...

The hummingbirds were awesome in the rain. Check out my friend David's amazing close-up photos. He has a real camera. Click on "Slideshow" and prepare to be dazzled.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dvdgray/sets/72157608657096412/

Dear President-Elect Obama,

2008-11-05T11:26:00.000-08:00

As I write to you this day after the most exciting election in my 43 years, I want to thank you. You have inspired not only the people of the United States but of the entire world. You weave a beautiful story of hope for people who have become tired and cynical and jaded by political rhetoric.

Here are some of my hopes.

I hope that while we're talking of "restoring prosperity" and "putting our people back to work" we're also working to change the fundamental basis on which prosperity is measured. Is the American Dream the pursuit of newer and bigger houses and cars and the latest gadgets? Higher consumption of the earth's resources? Is that what healing the economy means?

Or can we change our language to encourage deeper American values? Voluntary simplicity? Sustainable living? Connections among people over material wealth? The world cannot afford for us to continue trashing the planet as we have been. And as someone with the great ability to use words to inspire hope and change, you are in a unique position to change the course of our imaginations and help us redefine how we measure prosperity.

We need jobs, of course. Let's make them green and inclusive of all segments of society. Van Jones has offered a beautiful plan in his book, The Green Collar Economy. Let's create an economy that measures not only dollars in the bank but also the satisfaction that one's work is helping to sustain life on the planet.

We want to feel secure, of course. Let's create the security of knowing that we are not creating a terrible mess today for our children to deal with tomorrow. To that end, I urge you to attend the U.N. Climate meetings in Poland this December and promise that the U.S. will lead the way in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and helping other developing nations to do the same.

We all want access to healthcare. Let's also take care of the health of our planet, which ultimately affects the health of us all. Right now, there is an area in the North Pacific Ocean greater than the size of Texas that is filled with plastic. Marine researchers describe it as a "plastic soup." And the plastic didn't just come from vessels dumping their waste at sea. No, the plastic comes from you and me and everyone who has ever used and thrown away plastic products.

Plastic lasts forever. It mimics food for multitudes of marine animals who eat the plastic and feed it to their young. It migrates up the food chain into the fish that we ourselves eat, including toxins that accumulate on its surfaces. Plastic is a great invention and can also be a great threat to the healthcare and security of humans and animals on this planet.

Thousands and thousands of individuals are working to make changes in our own lives to protect the earth, to consume less, and to choose less toxic alternatives, like avoiding plastics, but we are not enough to solve these types of environmental problems. We need our government to hold companies responsible for the full life cycles of the products they produce, we need stricter regulations against toxic products, and we also need a national mindset that encourages consumers to cut back on disposable products and look to what is durable and energy-efficient and timeless.

Protecting the planet is about more than cutting emissions, although that seems to be the big focus of the moment. We also need to cut our consumption and change our priorities. As president, you can set policies in that direction. But we also need you to use your powerful skills of language to light up our minds and show us the value in simple, sustainable, compassionate living.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all you have done so far and all you will do in the next four years. You've asked me to hope. Some of my hope is in your hands.

Sincerely,
Elizabeth G. Terry
Oakland, CA

Year 2, Week 20 Results: 4.0 oz of plastic waste.

2008-11-03T19:57:00.000-08:00

Oy! Too much plastic this week. You'd think that I wouldn't have brought back plastic from a meditation retreat. And you would be wrong.

Here's the tally:

Plastic items used this week but acquired before the plastic project began:

1 expired Chase VISA card. Wondering if these cards will be biodegradable eventually. Like some gift cards these days. Or renewable without having to destroy the old card?

And the new plastic waste:

1 big World's Best Cat Litter bag. We went back to SwheatScoop this week, even though I don't really like it, to save the plastic. And then Soots, who seemed to have grown out of the habit, pooped on the floor. *Sigh* I think little kitty likes the World's Best Cat Litter better. I tried explaining to him about plastic, but he didn't understand because he's... you know... a cat. Also, the corn litter just smells better. Maybe we'll try mixing the two kinds and see what happens.

And yes, I said I'd try making my own newspaper litter like Allie does, but first things first. Let me get in the habit of making their food first!

Packing tape from two packages sent to me this week. I'm going to have to start spreading the word about paper packing tape.

3 plastic envelope windows. From Chase VISA, Financial West Group, & Kaiser Permanente. All mailings I can't avoid.

Bandaid from Red Cross blood donation. It should have been included in the tally a few weeks ago. I also end up with a long plasticky bandage wrapped around my arm, but instead of taking a new one each time, I bring back the old one and ask them to reuse it. And yes, they look at me like I'm nuts.

Plant identification stake. From squash plant. Not reusable because it's printed on both sides. Next year, I'm going to grow veggies from seeds and avoid all plastic.

1 Snyder's pretzel bag. Thursday night, I got to my meditation retreat center too late for dinner and was starving. I grabbed a bag of pretzels from the snack table to tide me over until the next day.

1 Hershey's miniature chocolate bar wrapper. The second night of the meditation retreat being Halloween, our retreat leader Jon showed up in bunny ears and a cotton tail and passed out candy bars. How could I say no?

I just got back from phone banking at the Obama campaign. The first time I've ever done this in my life. Enjoying listening to George Lakoff on NPR as I write this. Looking forward to tomorrow's results. Hoping my candidate wins and that the Propositions I care the most about win and fail in the ways I want. But mostly, being grateful that finally the suspense will be over and we can get on with the work ahead, regardless of the results.

Less Impact Cats eat homemade food

2008-10-29T22:41:00.000-07:00

This is the amount of waste we have been generating each week to feed our cats since they came to live with us in December of last year. 21 BPA-lined cans to be recycled, as well as a cardboard case covered in plastic wrap. The cans never made it to my tally. While I avoid canned foods for us because of the BPA issue, I don't include them in the tally because it's impossible to separate out the weight of metal vs. plastic. Still, regardless of the plastic lining, this is a lot of waste. Yes, the cans can be recycled. But imagine how much energy could be saved if we could avoid the cans altogether!

(Our cats could never tolerate dry food.)

So, I went in search of homemade cat food recipes. I found all kinds of conflicting opinions. There are those who insist cats must eat raw meat to be healthy. And there are those who feel that cooked meat and grains are fine. Not wanting to short-change my pets, I called the Nutrition Clinic at the U.C. Davis Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital. They create custom homemade diets for pets. Unfortunately, not until they are over 1-year old.

Well, the time has come. The kitties had their 1-year birthday a couple of weeks ago. So I tried again. Success. The nutritionist referred me to their affiliated web site www.petdiets.com. You fill out a quick questionnaire for each animal (they create diets for dogs as well) reporting its gender, weight, neuter-status, etc. and then select a protein source and a starch source from drop-down menus. The computer does the rest. I chose chicken, and knowing that my cats used to have digestive problems any time they were fed grains, chose sweet potato as the starch.

Here are the ingredients in one day's worth of food for 11-pound Arya:

4 ounces of cooked white chicken meat
1/4 cup of cooked mashed sweet potato
1-1/2 teaspoons of butter
1 red scoop of Balance It supplement

I ordered the supplement (unfortunately, it's not sold in stores), and it arrived the next day. Here is what the ingredients look like:

Weekly waste will be 1 waxed paper butter wrapper. Bi-monthly waste will be the plastic supplement container. And the occasional shipping box. If I order more than one bottle at a time, I'll cut down on even that.

The biggest challenge was figuring out how to buy the chicken without plastic. First, I took my stainless steal canister to Berkeley Bowl and asked that my chicken be placed directly into the container without plastic or paper. The response was, "No. We're not allowed to do that." "Okay," I said, "I'll put everything back and shop elsewhere." And I did. I returned the bread and butter I'd already picked up and headed to Whole Foods.

Whole Foods was a little more expensive. But the butcher didn't bat an eye when I asked him to put my chicken in the canister. And he had no problem first deducting the weight of the container. I carried everything home in my bike basket and got to work.

I boiled the chicken and baked the yams. (Yes, they're yams instead of sweet potatoes. I think it's okay.) Next time, I will probably cook the yams in the microwave to speed up the process. Then, I put the ingredients in my food processor in batches and mixed it up.

Finally, I used old plastic containers (yogurt, etc.) that we still had in the house to divide up the food into 7 days. (I'm thinking storing the food in Polypropylene is healthier than the BPA in which their commercial food was packed.) To each container, I mixed in 2 scoops of supplement (2 scoops for 2 cats.) I may try adding nutritional yeast (the blue container in the photo) next time and see if it helps with fleas. Forgot to do it this time. Anyone have experience giving yeast to cats?

Not sure how long the fresh food would keep, we put 3 containers in the refrigerator and 4 in the freezer.

And the big question: What do Soots and Arya think?

They go crazy for this stuff. They love it. They whine and cry and beg for more. (Yes, Arya is back wearing the plastic cone after having the metal rod removed from her leg last week.)

I know there are quite a few cat owners who read this blog and may have ideas and suggestions. Please fire away. I'd love to hear what you think.

Voices of the Plastic-Free Blogosphere, Part 1

2008-10-28T18:05:00.000-07:00

Today, Enviroblog's Lisa Frack begins a week-long experiment to live completely plastic-free. I was happy to meet with her while she was visiting Oakland last week and give her a few pointers. But don't let me be the only one. Check out her blog and give her your best tips!

Two weeks ago, I called for more plastic-free bloggers, and many of you responded. So many, in fact, that it would be an injustice to try and cram everyone into the same post. So this week, we'll hear from the first 8 bloggers who contacted me. Next week, I'll post Part 2. And hopefully, as more people join the Plastic-Free Bloggers and Plastic-Free Posse, these posts can become a regular feature.

Imagine the change we can make throughout the blogosphere if more people take on the challenge of reducing their plastic consumption and reporting their results online. We're creating a plastic-free meme that hopefully will ripple out into the consciousness of not only individuals but businesses and bureaucrats alike.

Plastic-Free Bloggers
(blogs primarily dealing with plastic)

Plastic Is Forever. Erin and Kerry are old friends from college who now live miles apart (Los Angeles and New York.) Erin says, "The impetus to make a BIG change, to hold myself accountable and blog about it came after listening to the book The World Without Us by Alan Weisman with my friend and fellow blogger Kerry as we were on a road/hiking trip. After hearing about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch we knew we had to eliminate plastic as much as we could."

Citizen Green. Linda Anderson's son, Joel Paschal, explored the North Pacific Gyre this past winter as a member of the Alguita crew and continued with Marcus Eriksen on his plastic bottle Junk raft to bring attention to the issue of plastics in the marine environment. Linda figured that "if Joel can risk floating across the Pacific, then I can do something here in Indiana to reduce plastic in our lives." So she started her blog to talk about ways to get rid of plastic in everyday life.

Plastic Is Fantastic. Clara is a St. John Ambulance member in South Leicestershire, England. She decided to give up plastic as part of the Amalfi Challenge, a personal development program for young people. Why plastic? She says she's always been aware of it, but it wasn't until she "nipped into the Supermarket earlier this year on a damn cold windy day to try and buy some fruit" that her eyes were opened. "Do bananas and oranges really need wrapping in plastic?!" And yes, the title of her blog is meant to be ironic.

Plastic-Free Posse
(Blogs that cover a range of subjects. I've linked to their plastic-labeled posts here.)

Kale for Sale. Katrina lives in San Anselmo, CA, where she blogs about food and eating locally. Her photos are spectacular! She says, "When I realized we had less plastic waste as a result of eating from the farmers' markets and not the grocery store, it became a game to see how much more plastic we could reduce. The realization began about a year ago."

The Gamble Life. Maya Gamble describes herself as "a displaced Texan, mom to two amazing little boys, wife to the truly fabulous Chris, knitter, sewer, environmentalist, dreamer, and striver." Around the time that she learned of the "plastic soup" out in the North Pacific Gyre, she also came across the No Impact Man blog and Fake Plastic Fish and was "immediately struck."

Mumbled Rantings From the Evol God of Nollij. Ian Hopper from Novato, CA adds humor and pop culture to the mix. I love that he came to the Algalita presentation two weeks ago in a Trogdor T-shirt. He told me that he'd been attempting to reduce his plastic consumption for quite some time, but it wasn't until he read the article Plastic Ocean that he "swallowed the red pill" and was changed forever.

A Slice of the Pie. New Jersey blogger, Kel, describes herself as "Mother, Sister, Daughter. Part Time Writer, Part Time Desktop Publisher, Part Time Medical Billing Clerk, and Full Time Homeschooling Mother of four." She says that while she'd been environmentally aware for several years, it was finding Fake Plastic Fish through the No Impact Man blog that inspired her to change her plastic ways.

Cousin Yellowstone's Recital of Recyclables. Cousin Yellowstone notices recyclables by the side of the road or on hiking trails, and instead of leaving them there, picks them up and brings them home. The blog is mainly a tally of those items. Yellowstone discovered Envirowoman's Plastic-free blog last year, and was immediately inspired, but says that "turning that inspiration into actual action has required time."

I asked these bloggers a series of questions about the challenges of going plastic-free. Here's what they told me:

EASIEST CHANGES TO MAKE

Nearly all the bloggers agreed that switching from plastic bags to reusable grocery bags was one of the easiest steps, followed by carrying a reusable water bottle instead of buying bottled water. Here are a few more easy ideas:

Erin: No more plastic take-out containers. This step is easy but requires forethought; No more bite-size candy, hard candy, or mints wrapped in plastic.

Kerry: Bringing her own coffee mug. Also, eating more fruits and veggies so she doesn't need processed, packaged food.

Clara: Reusing plastic bags, paying more attention when shopping, and reducing the amount of product she uses, "i.e. not just cramming my toothbrush full of paste even though some always falls off," so that each package lasts longer.

Katrina: Not buying food in plastic [note that for other bloggers, this step is more challenging] and using bar shampoo instead of bottled.

Maya: Giving up plastic containers and plastic wrap and carrying organic cotton produce bags.

Ian: No shampoo (using baking soda & water in a reused plastic squeeze bottle), no new liquid soap dispensers (refilling from a bulk container at the store), and buying milk in returnable glass bottles.

Kel: Phasing out plastic cups, bowls, and plates, and replacing them with glass and ceramic ones and looking for plastic-free or reduced plastic alternatives to new products.

Cousin Yellowstone: Buying loose produce at a nearby farmer's market instead of pre-bagged produce at the grocery store and switching from juice to whole fruits.

BIGGEST CHALLENGES

Erin: Plastic-packaged food. Even though she likes fresh veggies and making food from scratch, it's still a daily challenge. And an even bigger challenge for her is staying positive while seeing so many other people use plastic everyday.

Kerry: Planning ahead for picnics, barbecues and tailgates. And "straws are my plastic downfall -- I never remember to say 'no straw.'"

Linda: Researching the facts to make sure she is learning and blogging the truth.

Clara: As someone who is "chronically crippled," relying on "quick fix" short cuts to get things done, "i.e. mops with inbuilt floor wash detergent," many of which are full of disposable plastic.

Katrina: Getting out of the habit of plastic produce bags and finding alternatives to keeping things fresh in the fridge without them.

Maya: Kid stuff -- plastic toys, stickers, markers -- and all the related plastic packaging. She says, "I don't even shop that much and I still find myself with plastic packaging, trying to figure out some way to reuse it!"

Ian: Trying to convince his wife to come on board the "No Plastic Train."

Kel: Finding that for a working single parent of four, time and money are often bigger factors in purchasing decisions than plastic content or packaging. Food packaging ends up being the majority of her plastic waste.

Cousin Yellowstone: Breakfast. Both breakfast cereal and soy milk come packaged in plastic.

INSPIRATION FROM THE PLASTIC-FREE BLOGGERS

In their own words ---

Erin: You can do it and you will have a ripple effect! People I know tell me all the time that I have changed the way they look at plastic and that they think twice sometime before using excess plastic. Start small-think big.

Kerry: You can make a HUGE difference by eliminating "one time use" products from your life! Let's be plastic free from sea to shining sea!

Linda: It is easy to lessen one’s consumption. Pick one item at a time and figure out how to do without it. We used to do without most of this plastic not so many years ago. Now disposable plastic has become a habit that we can break.

Clara: If you don't give a damn about the damage it's causing the environment, about the future, about saving yourself money, then just think of it as a fantastic way to meet interesting people (and it's less humiliating than trying line dancing).

Katrina: Start with what you know you can change. Something easy so you can succeed and feel good. The next step will come easier and the changes that seem impossible will become a piece of pie. Local apple pie!

Maya: [I let people know] that they will feel really good about such small and easy changes like no water bottles or plastic store bags.

Ian: I try to find the common ground between myself and whomever I'm speaking with and try to find a target issue. If I can get someone thinking about reducing plastic in ONE area of their life, it'll spread like a virus to the other parts of their life hopefully! If I were to pick one thing to encourage people to reduce their plastic, it would be to encourage them to read the "Plastic Ocean" article.

Kel: Anyone can lessen plastic consumption, and every bit really does make a difference.

Cousin Yellowstone: Look at the plastic items in your trash can or recycling bin, and choose one type you could easily avoid in the future. Plan ahead for eliminating that one type of plastic waste, and don't get overwhelmed with trying to eliminate all plastic from your life at once.

And here's a final thought from me. When I was participating in running races, I never thought I would actually come in first. And I never thought of myself as competing against the other runners, but with them. Knowing there were people ahead of me kept me going. And knowing there were others behind moved me faster. The adrenaline pumped, and I had better finishing times than I ever did during solo training runs.

What does this have to do with plastic and blogging? Everything! The more of us out here running the plastic-free race, the more inspiration there will be for each of us to do better. We learn by example. By seeing what others up ahead have already done and by knowing there are others behind who are looking to us to point the way. Let's keep the momentum going!

Grateful for plastic pollution?

2008-10-27T21:02:00.000-07:00

Gratitude is the topic of the Green Moms blog carnival this month, which will be posted on the Best of Mother Earth blog next Monday. With Thanksgiving approaching, we've been asked to write about the three green things we're the most grateful for. Which raises the question:

What's green?

For example, is it greener to bottle wine in glass or plastic? Most Fake Plastic Fish readers would say glass. But there are plenty of other well-meaning folks who claim plastic is the greener option because of its light weight.

We might not all agree on what products or procedures are the greenest. And some things that we once thought were green (Nalgene bottles for example) turn out not to be after further research. But what green folks have in common, I believe, is the desire to create a world in which life can continue to thrive indefinitely. Life itself is what makes people take up the "green" cause and label themselves and their products and practices "green." So, with that in mind, these are the "green" things I am most grateful for:

1) This moment, which finds me sitting at a plastic computer, typing this post on a plastic keyboard, listening to a plastic radio and the squeak of Michael's chair next to me. Nothing exists outside of this moment. Nothing. It's all we have and all we ever will have. It's the greenest thing there is.

2) The breath going in and out of my lungs in this moment and connecting me with all other breathing things in this world. Everything, in fact, that has ever breathed. What an amazing ocean of air we live in, mostly without thinking about it, like fish oblivious to the water in which they swim. In and out. In and out. Even while we sleep. We might disagree on the best ways to keep the air breathable, but the fact is that we all have to breath it.

3) All the trillions (quadrillions? more?) of life forms sharing this amazing, insane world. The people who use plastic. The birds and fish and sea turtles who eat plastic. The lives that are saved by plastic devices and the lives that are harmed by plastic poisons. The people I meet each day who are trying to do their bit, step by step, to protect the planet, and the people in my life who tell me they don't care. And the organisms that will eventually evolve to thrive on plastic. This crazy stew of life and pollution that I am privileged to be part of. What a time to be alive, working for a cause while recognizing that we could be wrong.

This past Sunday, my Green Sangha chapter discussed our 4th Principle:

Questioning Ourselves
We constantly live with the questions of what is authentic, loving, and appropriate action. We're willing to not know and be open to other points of view. We know we could be wrong.

I am truly grateful to be a part of such a nourishing community of activists who support one another while leaving ourselves open to the possibility of change, not only in the world outside but inside ourselves as well. Realizing there is no inner or outer fundamentally.

And I'm also grateful to be a part of the community of bloggers and blog-readers, people from all over the world whom I never would have met before the Internet made such communication possible.

Thank you all for the work you're doing. Tomorrow, I'm going to write about a few people who have taken up the plastic-free challenge and have written about it on their blogs. For each of them, there are many, many others who quietly make changes in their own lives without tooting any horns. I wish I could toot a few horns for you. Keep doing what you're doing and know that you are needed and appreciated.

Year 2, Week 19 Results: 1.5 oz of plastic waste. No more cat food cans!

2008-10-27T12:04:00.000-07:00

Oh joy! I made up a batch of homemade cat food for Soots and Arya yesterday, and they love it. Now I'm their favorite human, not Michael. I'll write up a complete post with the recipe later this week. I'm just tickled that this week's plastic cat food wrapper will the the last one for a while.

Here's the tally:

Plastic items used this week but purchased before the plastic project began:

1 plastic label, cap, and spray tip from a can of Tile & Grout Magic. I have pretty much switched to all-natural cleaning products: vinegar, baking soda, etc. And I've given away a lot of my old cleaning supplies on Freecycle. But this can was almost empty, so I decided to use it up this weekend. Didn't work so great anyway!

Plastic smiley face covering from a pencil. I've had this new, unsharpened smiley-face pencil sitting in the pencil holder for a couple of years. Don't remember where it came from. I had no idea the smiley face designs all over it were actually a plastic wrapper covering the pencil until I finally sharped the pencil a few days ago and noticed what looked like little bits of plastic. So I started peeling the plastic away from the pencil, and peeled the whole thing off. Great. Just what we need. Otherwise compostable pencil shavings full of plastic bits. The lesson: Be careful when buying colorfully-designed pencils. They could be coated with plastic.

And the new plastic waste:

1 outer wrapper from a case of Instinct canned cat food. Like I said, this should be the last one for a while. I don't want to jinx myself by saying "forever." We still have 17 cans left as backup for those times when we're too tired or busy to make the food from scratch. But I'm hoping to get in a rhythm of making their food every Saturday so that eventually canned food becomes a distant memory.

1 foam insert from a bottle of Balance It homemade cat food supplement. The homemade cat food will not be completely plastic-free. I do have to add some supplements to make sure the kitties get all the nutrients they need. But the supplements come mixed together in one big bottle that will last at least two months, so we'll be going through much less packaging waste than before.

Packing tape and plastic address label pouch from the shipment of Balance It supplement. Unfortunately, the supplement is not sold in stores. It's made by the department of veterinary medicine at U.C. Davis and must be mail-ordered. Next time, I will order multiple containers so that they can all be shipped in the same box and reduce shipments and packaging. One nice thing is that there wasn't any plastic packaging inside the box.

That's it for last week's plastic. Like I said, I'll write a full post with the cat food recipe and info on supplements later this week. And I'm sure some of you cat-owners will have your own advice to share.